Water damage in the home can happen anywhere, including dry climates like California. That’s because it typically has to do with your plumbing, and not external causes of moisture.

If you spy a little water spot on your ceiling, act fast. First, you’ll need to identify the source of the damage, and then you can repair the problem. The quicker you call in a pro, the lighter the damage may be on your wallet later. Here’s what to do:

1. Identify the Source

Chances are that the signs of water damage are visible on the level below your bathroom or kitchen. Most often, water damage occurs from a poorly insulated shower or tub. A broken pipe or leak can wreak much more havoc.

2. Shut Off the Water and Call a Plumber

Before you do anything, shut off your water and call a plumber to assess the damage. The sooner they can remedy the issue and clean up the mess, the better off you will be later.

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Need a plumber? Find a local pro.

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3. Enlist Other Contractors Who Can Help

If the water damage in your home is immense, you may need more than one contractor to help. In mild cases, you might be able to seal off your shower and DIY a new caulk job around your tub. But in extreme cases, your space may have suffered structural damage. Often, mold and mildew is present and you’ll need a mold and mildew remediation specialist. If your drywall needs to be restored, a drywall contractor and painter can help get things back in shape. A flooring contractor can restore tile work if the floor was affected.

If the list of pros is lengthy, you might consider opting for a bathroom remodeler instead. This person can be an all-in-one source. A total bathroom remodel might not have been something you planned for in your budget, but it might be worth it if you’re due for an overhaul and have suffered severe damage. Plus, investing now might help your home’s resale value later.

HomeAdvisor is a Patch promotional partner.

source https://patch.com/california/los-angeles/what-do-when-you-spot-water-damage-your-california-home

In a bustling metropolis like Washington, DC, hiring a professional contractor can cost a pretty penny. But if you have suffered water damage in your home, there’s no way around calling in some help.

To save money, shut off your water and call in a plumber right away. They may be able to mediate the mess before things get worse. Here’s what you need to do.

1. Identify the Source

Chances are that the signs of water damage are visible on the level below your bathroom or kitchen. Most often, water damage occurs from a poorly insulated shower or tub. A broken pipe or leak can wreak much more havoc.

2. Shut Off the Water and Call a Plumber

Before you do anything, shut off your water and call a plumber to assess the damage. The sooner they can remedy the issue and clean up the mess, the better off you will be later.

---

Need a plumber? Find a local pro.

---

3. Enlist Other Contractors Who Can Help

If the water damage in your home is immense, you may need more than one contractor to help. In mild cases, you might be able to seal off your shower and DIY a new caulk job around your tub. But in extreme cases, your space may have suffered structural damage. Often, mold and mildew is present and you’ll need a mold and mildew remediation specialist. If your drywall needs to be restored, a drywall contractor and painter can help get things back in shape. A flooring contractor can restore tile work if the floor was affected.

If the list of pros is lengthy, you might consider opting for a bathroom remodeler instead. This person can be an all-in-one source. A total bathroom remodel might not have been something you planned for in your budget, but it might be worth it if you’re due for an overhaul and have suffered severe damage. Plus, investing now might help your home’s resale value later.

HomeAdvisor is a Patch promotional partner.

source https://patch.com/district-columbia/washingtondc/heres-how-mediate-water-damage-your-washington-dc-home

A news broadcast from KGTV recently highlighted problems some students were facing in their dormitory in San Diego at the end of last semester. Heavy rains in November caused flooding and leaks that resulted in over 40 students having to be relocated after their rooms were damaged.According to their report, students complained of water coming through ceilings and around windows. The students also shared stories of humid conditions and moldy smells, including on their clothes that were stored in the dorm. The university is working on repairs to the affected dorm rooms so students can return.In many situations like this, the presence of water, moisture and/or elevated humidity levels can result in the growth of mold in as short as 48 hours. Students or anyone exposed to elevated levels of mold may experience a myriad of health concerns. This is due to the fact that molds produce allergens, irritants and in some cases, toxic substances known as mycotoxins. Inhaling or touching mold or mold spores may cause allergic reactions in sensitive individuals. Exposure to mold can even trigger an asthma attack in some people with the condition.“As an irritant, mold can impact people’s eyes, skin, nose, throat and the lungs of individuals whether or not they are allergic to it,” said Michael Chapman, Laboratory Manager of LA Testing’s Huntington Beach facility. “Inhaling mold may also cause hypersensitivity pneumonitis (HP), a disease that resembles bacterial pneumonia. In addition, exposure to certain molds associated with water damaged buildings, such as some types of  Aspergillus , may result in opportunistic infections in people with a weakened or suppressed immune system.”

source https://www.webwire.com/ViewPressRel.asp?aId=255672

A family that once lived on Camp Pendleton is suing the base’s a military housing contractor, claiming the contractor exposed them to dangerous levels of mold in their home on base.

The lawsuit claims that despite complaints it took the contractor, Lincoln Military Housing, two years to address the dangerous mold. Over those three years, three of the family’s children were exposed and got sick multiple times, the lawsuit alleges.

The family even believes the mold exposure caused sever swelling one of their child’s left lymph node leading to a month-long hospital stay.

Three other lawsuits suits filed over mold claim the residents suffered «severe neurological damage.”

A statement from Lincoln Military Housing they read in part, «We are committed to fixing issues in a manner that puts the readiness of military families first. While we are not familiar with the particular facts of this case, we strongly deny these allegations and look forward to defending ourselves in a court of law.»

source https://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/local/military/family-sues-camp-pendleton-housing-contractor-of-mold-in-home/2272918/

In Wrangell, the local police department, fire department, courthouse, DMV and U.S. customs — are sheltered under one roof. And that roof is — literally — falling apart. The city is working to patch together a solution before it’s too late.

At the beginning of the year, the sprinkler system in the public safety building went haywire. The cold snap froze and broke one of the pipes, causing some flooding.

“So when you walked out here it was like raining, you had an indoor rainforest,” said Thomas Radke, Wrangell’s police chief. His department bore the brunt of the damage. He showed three rooms that had to be cleared out. The garage is in rough shape too. A construction crew just came in and repairs are underway.

But despite all that… he insists the department is functioning. 

“Everyone’s still working. Not a big deal we’re able to work around it,” Radke said.

Not everyone feels that way. With mold forming from water damage, at least one fire department administrator has started working from home.

In 2017, the courthouse was closed for two months because of mold. One room in the court clerk office is still under wraps.

The city said it’s tested the air and it’s safe to inhabit the building. But the roof is letting moisture seep into the exterior walls, something that is compromising the mainframe of the building.

“You can see how deteriorated the paint is, the siding is also pretty soft,” said Capital Facilities Director Amber Al-Haddad outside the building.

The roof has a membrane barrier to protect it from the elements. But Al-Haddad said it wasn’t installed properly — and that was more than 30 years ago. 

Based on an engineering consultant’s numbers, the city put out a bid for someone to fix the roof and sidings for about $500,000. That’s about how much the city has set aside for this project. 

But Al-Haddad suspects the work could cost twice that. Hearing back from contractors, she said they’re reluctant to take on the mold issues.

“That’s why this project is so expensive,” Al-Haddad said. “With mold remediation you have to be very careful with the way you handle the materials so you don’t spread the spores throughout the building.”

The city has been out looking for funding. It applied for a federal Community Development Block Grant in 2017 to develop just the fire hall portion. The city didn’t get the grant. A year later it was awarded the same grant — for a new fire truck.

While the public safety building is a one-stop shop for the town’s most essential services, the various uses makes it difficult to pitch to a specific funding source. 

The city made a roundabout request for tribal law enforcement funds totaling just under $600,000. It called on the local tribe, Wrangell Cooperative Association, to submit that request to the state for a federal Department of Justice grant.

The tribe and city are still waiting. 

While the search for funding continues, elected officials are debating whether to renovate the older building or scrap it for a brand new facility.

“There’s a tipping point because you can put out a ton of money in renovations and still have structural issues down the road,” said Mayor Steve Prysunka. And he notes this public safety complex is one of many buildings needing repairs.

“There’s just a ton of infrastructure issues and a small community like ours, we just can’t tax people to meet this need, we need to find grants and other ways of getting stuff done,” he said.

The Wrangell Assembly is poised to name its public safety building as its top capital project priority. This move is in the hopes of securing state assistance. Should it become available.

City officials have thrown out a ballpark number, that tackling all of Wrangell’s deferred building maintenance and revamping the water distribution system could cost $250,000,000.

source https://www.alaskapublic.org/2020/02/25/mold-water-damage-plague-wrangells-city-services-building-with-no-solution-in-sight/

source https://ventsmagazine.com/2020/02/25/water-damage-how-flooding-can-create-mold-and-damage-your-home/

CHULA VISTA, Calif. — Imagine being told you have just one week to pack up all of your things and move out of your apartment. Tenants at Meheli Palms Apartments located at 215 H Street in Chula Vista said it’s happening to them. 

They’re wondering if it’s legal and have contacted a few attorneys. In the meantime, they’re scrambling to find a new place to stay, after being forced out due to water and plumbing issues. 

“I’m dealing with the unknown because they told us, ‘you have a week to find a new home,’” said Jorge Sanchez. 

He and his family have lived in the complex for 10 months. 

Sanchez said his unit is one of 17 apartments where tenants were just given notice that they have to be out no later than 5 p.m. this Sunday, March 1. 

“Right now, I’m survival mode. I contacted my retirement to see if they can send me some funds,» he said.

Sanchez, who works in IT at a local university, says he and his wife received a letter from Capital Growth Properties over the weekend which says, since water intrusion and major repairs will take longer than 60 days, it is terminating their lease. 

Though Sanchez has renters insurance, he said they told him since there’s no damage to his actual property, he does not qualify for a claim. 

In addition, Sanchez is now concerned about his 10-year-old daughter’s health.

“A neighbor said there was a lot of mold, that they had to break down the walls and the pipes had some issue, too, he said.

Sanchez said he doesn’t see water damage in his apartment but does remember seeing mold on some old boots in a closet, which he thought was odd and threw out the boots. He said his daughter also had pneumonia a couple of months ago and he is now wondering if that could be related to mold exposure. 

Sanchez said he had to take the day off work so he and his wife could try to apply for different apartments, but supply is limited, and the places that are available by this weekend are running around $2,000 a month. His current rent is $1500 a month. 

The letter from Capital Growth Properties said Sanchez is supposed to receive one month’s rent as compensation, but he said he hasn’t seen a check yet. He said that’s making it difficult to come up with a security deposit and first month’s rent for another place.

News 8 reached out to the Capital Growth Properties Monday afternoon, but haven’t heard back. 

source https://www.cbs8.com/article/news/local/tenants-say-theyre-being-forced-to-move-from-chula-vista-apartment-building/509-2ec4eeaa-f4b8-401c-bca9-c2b5a09f2adf

The state has revoked the license of a Twin Cities-based service provider after determining that its staff neglected to provide the assistance to vulnerable adults for which they were hired, resulting in unlivable conditions such as insect infestation, rotting food, mold, cat feces and garbage strewn throughout the apartment.

One Life Health Services, based in Inver Grove Heights, was licensed by the Department of Human Services (DHS) to provide a variety of services to vulnerable adults — individuals with mental or physical disabilities who need help to live by themselves. In a memo dated Feb. 18, the state revoked that license, finding maltreatment based on neglect.

“There was a preponderance of evidence that [the vulnerable adults] did not receive services provided by their care plans which posed a serious risk of harm to their physical and mental health,” the memo said. “It was determined that neglect occurred.”

Staffers at One Life were supposed to help two roommates living in a South St. Paul apartment manage their lives by providing 10 hours of “independent living skills services” a week to each adult. Those services included help with cleaning, as well as demonstrating how to manage homemaking tasks.

The apartment’s conditions became “horrendous” and “horrific,” in the words of a One Life staff member quoted in the state’s memo.

A case manager noted that “everybody knew” the problems existed.

In an October e-mail to a legal guardian for one of the clients, a One Life staff member said “the blame squarely needs to rest on” the clients who are responsible for their own actions within the apartment, according to the DHS memo.

The adults had complex diagnoses. The first person mentioned received assistance because he or she had “Asperger’s Syndrome, anxiety disorder, bipolar disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, impulse disorder and oppositional defiant disorder.” The second individual had fetal alcohol syndrome, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and bipolar disorder.

David H. Brooks, owner of One Life Health Services, said that he is appealing the state’s findings and the revocation order.

“Just because [DHS] put it out there doesn’t mean it’s final,” Brooks said.

Many of his company’s clients are unpredictable, have challenging behaviors and cause property damage. They would be homeless if he didn’t sublease apartments to them and provide services, he said.

He disputes the state’s determination that One Life didn’t provide the contracted services, adding that “we have paperwork to support all of those hours.”

Furthermore, he said, his clients are adults who have the right to refuse One Life’s services.

“We can’t compel client A or client B to meet on any given day,” Brooks said.

The state’s maltreatment investigation occurred in October and November, with conditions ongoing before mid-October 2019. The roommates’ lease was ultimately terminated.

 

source http://www.startribune.com/minnesota-revokes-license-of-company-providing-services-to-vulnerable-adults/568148772/

LISBON — Columbiana County commissioners are spending $9,000 to clean county recorder books that became covered in mold while stored in Mahoning County.

Commissioner Tim Weigle said they agreed to retain the services of Farsight Management of Dover to remove the mold and return the books to Columbiana County for temporary storage until a suitable permanent home can be found.

The books were moved to Great Value Storage in Boardman by county Recorder Theresa Bosel in 2018. She was having them moved from her main office and secondary location in the county courthouse basement to make more room for public access and protect them from further damage from the public.

Last summer, Weigle said Bosel told commissioners she found many of the stored books had mold and needed rehabilitated. He said Bosel mentioned something about it costing $170,000 to correct the problem, but provided no documentation.

Weigle said commissioners and their staff spoke to her after that, but she still did not present them with a formal plan for addressing the problem. He decided to visit the storage facility in November and found some books were just sitting on the floor instead of shelves. While the storage building had a furnace and air conditioning units, it did not appear to be functioning.

“If it was climate controlled, it wasn’t working,” he said.

Weigle took some samples of the mold to be tested. The samples tested positive for Aspergillus / Penicillium, considered to be among the most dangerous types of mold.

That was in December, and Weigle said he found Farsight after seeking help from the county health department.

2,000 BOOKS

Weigle estimated there were about 2,000 index books stored at Great Value, and 1,000 have been cleaned so far and delivered in sealed totes to the elections board, where they are stored on shelves for now. He emphasized this is only a temporary arrangement because the elections board basement is not easily accessible to the public who have a need to view the books. The records in the books date back to the 19th century.

“When the new recorder comes in, whoever that might be, they’ll make a decision about what to do with them,” Weigle said.

Bosel is up for re-election this year but she did not make it on the ballot because her candidacy petitions lacked enough valid signatures. She can still run as a write-it candidate if she chooses.

Bosel said she took the books to Great Value because that was the closest climate-controlled facility with available units. “The problem is they apparently never turned the unit on,” she said.

The information contained in these books has been digitally recorded but the original books still need preserved for historical purposes and other reasons, Bosel said.

FINGER POINTING

As for why she never supposedly followed up by providing commissioners with a plan to address the problem, Bosel said that is not true and she “begged” commissioners for help but was told it was her problem.

“I have gone to Tim and followed up often since he said he would try and help. So him acting like he’s saving the day is ridiculous,” she said, adding commissioners are responsible by law for upkeep of the books.

Bosel said she was “glad they are finally doing their job and taking care of these books. They are the county’s history.”

Weigle disputed Bosel’s contention she “begged” for help. He initially heard about the mold problem from his office staff and not from Bosel, and he chose to become involved later because nothing was being done.

Weigle also questioned Bosel’s claim about commissioners being responsible for the books, saying he believes Bosel is in charge of maintaining her office records and they are only required to provide her space for those records.

Commissioner Jim Hoppel, who is in charge of buildings and grounds, said they had nothing to do with Bosel’s decision to move the books and it was not their responsibility to fix the problem. Commissioners have no direct authority over how other elected county officeholders such as Bosel run their office, other than setting budget appropriations.

“This whole problem was created by her,” Hoppel said. “We were never approached by her to take the records out of here. I know I wasn’t. She told us she was going to find storage and she went out and did.”

The $9,000 is coming from the county capital improvement fund, which commissioners will seek to recover by filing an insurance claim. Weigle was asked if they were considering taking legal action.

“I haven’t even looked into that yet. My first priority was to remediate the problem and find someone to clean the books and get that done because nothing was being done,” he said.

news@tribtoday.com

source https://www.vindy.com/news/local-news/2020/02/fingers-pointed-after-stored-county-books-develop-mold/

Eventually, even the best-laid carpets must be replaced. While regular upkeep can increase your carpet’s lifespan, most manufacturers estimate you’ll need a full replacement after about 10 years. And the signs you need to start shopping around aren’t always obvious.

Here are a few ways you can tell your carpet is reaching the end.

Stains won’t come out

Whether it’s from spilled wine or a new puppy, there are some stubborn stains that even professional cleaning can’t get rid of. If they’re minor, you can typically hide them with area rugs or furniture. But if the damage is permanent and unsightly, it’s probably time to look for new carpeting. Homeowners typically pay between $760 and $2,540 to replace a carpet, according to the Angie’s List Pricing Guide. Per square foot, carpet materials usually cost an average of $2 to $7, though price can fluctuate depending on quality.

Foul odors won’t go away

If you notice that deep cleans just aren’t banishing the bad smells, that likely means the issue isn’t in your carpet alone — it could be in the padding or floor beneath the carpet. How you handle the problem depends on the type of smell. If your pet is the root cause of the issue, you’ll likely need a full replacement. If you notice a musty smell, that could mean you have a water or mold problem. In that case, carpet replacement may be necessary after a mold remediation specialist takes a look at things.

There’s visible damage

Carpet damage can range from smaller issues, like a burn mark or two, to extensive problems like the mold damage mentioned above. If there’s just a small area where the carpet is frayed, it’s possible for a flooring pro to help you patch it up. If your entire carpet was flooded with dirty water, or clean water flooding has taken a long time to dry out, replacement is the best course of action. A pro can also let you know if the damage extends to the floor beneath your carpet, and how to fix the problem before it creates bigger problems.

You have increased allergy symptoms

It can be difficult to remove dust, pet dander and pollen that embeds in carpet fibers over time. If you or your loved ones notice more sneezing, itchy eyes or coughing, it may be that the problem is beneath your feet. The Mayo Clinic recommends using a vacuum with a high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filter or opting for linoleum or hardwood if you’re truly concerned. It costs about $180 for carpet cleaning, via the Angie’s List Pricing Guide, and it’s worth a try before replacing the carpet.

The carpet is old

At a certain point, patching and deep-cleaning your carpet isn’t going to do the trick. If you notice matting, fading color or that the padding just doesn’t feel like it’s there anymore, it’s probably time to move on. If you see ripples or wrinkles, it is possible to have your carpet re-stretched. This is a more expensive repair, so discuss with a carpet pro whether or not it makes sense to fix the issue or get a complete replacement.

source https://www.cjonline.com/news/20200221/ask-angies-list-when-is-it-time-to-replace-my-carpet