breathepuresolutions

Why Does My Produce Produce Mold?

Thu, 04 Aug 2022 16:31:00 GMT

Wash or rinse your produce. According to Health.com, The reason to wash fresh fruits and veggies is to rinse away soil, microbes, and pesticides. Sometimes you'll see visible soil on leafy greens and other veggies, which can be unappetizing and add a gritty texture to your meal. Microbial pathogens found on produce, including E. coli, salmonella, the microbes that cause norovirus, and mold or fungus can result in foodborne illness.
Dry the fruits and vegetables thoroughly. Moisture encourages mold growth.
Keep an eye on spoilage dates printed on packages, including deli meats and cheeses. Refrigerate foods quickly when you bring them home.
And finally, and maybe most importantly, get your home healthy. If you find your food is spoiling before it should, you likely have “elevated mold load” in your home. Elevated mold load includes spores, growing mold, dormant mold, and the mycotoxins associated with mold. Call Breathe Pure Solutions of Illinois LLC and see if they can help. If your home grows mold on fruits and vegetables, meats and cheeses quickly, you can figure the indoor air quality isn’t doing your personal health any favors. Breathe Pure Solutions of Illinois LLC is literally, “A Fresh Start to a Healthy Home”

More About Mold Load

Wed, 13 Jul 2022 16:49:00 GMT

I understand that their reasoning is that they need to “contain the mold” so that it doesn't get into the rest of the home. This is a great thought, if for even a split second, anyone thought the rest of the home was sterile. Or, at very minimum, void of mold load. I'm guessing the only way to assign logic to the containment idea is to suggest that all mold, in the entire home, heard about the leak and decided, as a group, “lets go to the party” Of course, this is beyond ridiculous. I personally look at the containment protocol differently, and I believe it is their way of suggesting, “we are not responsible for anything in the home, relative to mold, except what is in this small contained area. I took a week long mold contractor class a few years ago, and we spent a day learning the ins and outs of 6 mil plastic, and duct tape, and double bagging, and twisty ties. I did not feel as though I was learning anything that would be considered “state of art”. Yes, it was a long day. In an attempt to break up the day, I asked the group, “hey, after we are done, we take down the plastic, and then test the home?” An almost thunderous amount of voices all said, almost in unison, “NO”! I went along, played dumb, and said, “why”? The vocal ones were very adamant in telling me, “you will never be able to pass that house, on a mold quality test, unless you leave the containment up, and test within containment after you have run air scrubbers within the containment for a few days. I pushed further, “so, are we not worried about the rest of the house”? The return statement was, “it's not within our scope of work”. I get that, and thats a safe way to keep themselves free of liability.

I can draw a comparison to the car world. Lets say you are involved in a car accident. The reason for the accident is the brake system on the car failed. The accident caused significant damage to the front end of the car.

What needs to go be corrected for this car to be working correctly again? Anybody with even a tiny amount of common sense would say, make sure you get the brakes fixed. But what if you just took the car to a body shop. And they just fixed the front of the car? In other words, they just fix the visible problem, and they ignore the root of the problem. This seems insane, however, in my mind, this is precisely what the containment/remediation world is doing to a home. Just as the brakes need to be fixed for the car to be safe, the mold load needs to be corrected to make the home healthy. In the majority of the homes that I have been involved with, the overall mold load was elevated long before the flood or leak occurred. Do some things possibly still need to be removed? Of course. However the point here is the whole home needs to be corrected.

I once was involved in a very spirited conversation with a lab technician that told me the water caused the mold. And it does, sort of. However, In her mind, the water brought in the mold and the wet sheetrock simply begins to grow mold. I countered with, “please explain how a mold spore or cell will ride on the back of H2O, work its way through the foundation, and eventually into the studs and ultimately the paper on the sheetrock. THAT IS NOT WHAT IS HAPPENING. In fact, there are primitive water filters that almost work the same way. They first filter through a layer of soil, then through rocks, then through wood chips, and eventually you end up with relatively clean water. I point this out, as reasoning that the mold is not coming with the water. I was trying to point out that the mold spores are part of the already, pre existing mold load in the home. The water simply helped the mold load manifest itself.

It is critical that people dealing with mold toxicity understand that the visible mold, wherever it is, is not the bulk of the problem. Just as the damaged front bumper is not the bulk of the problem with the car.

When a home has a flood or a leak, the tendency is to look at the area of the water intrusion, which depending on the mold load of the home immediately before the leak or flood, will begin to grow mold in 24 hours. Breathe Pure Solutions of Illinois LLC is the only Company that understands this concept, and has a way to address the entire home.

The Molecules Of Life

Sun, 09 Jan 2022 17:01:00 GMT

When PAA is added to water, it dissolves. This has no effect on the water except to change its pH (make it more acidic).

Small Molecules

Small molecules are molecules that have anywhere from one to a few dozen atoms.

One important type of small molecule is minerals. The following minerals are important for living things: calcium, magnesium, sodium, potassium, sulfur, phosphorus, chlorine, iron, zinc, copper, iodine, selenium, manganese, molybdenum, cobalt, boron, nickel, and lithium. Some of these (like sulfur and phosphorus) can be incorporated directly into biological molecules. Others (like magnesium, iron, zinc, and copper) help certain proteins perform their function correctly. Still others (like sodium and potassium) are used by cells to maintain how salty they are on the inside.

Another type of small molecule that is important to living things is gasses. The most important gasses to microbes are oxygen, hydrogen, nitrogen gas, carbon dioxide, and methane. Certain microbes can breathe some of these gasses. Other microbes just break them apart so that they can be used for making biological molecules.

Vitamins, an energy molecule called ATP, and the building blocks for making macromolecules are also considered small molecules. Small molecules are affected by PAA, but this isn’t the primary way that PAA kills microbes, so I’m not going to go into more details.

Macromolecules

After water, macromolecules make up most of the weight of living things. Macromolecules are molecules that have hundreds or even thousands of atoms. They usually don’t dissolve easily in water unless the right kinds of salts are present.

Biological macromolecules are also polymers. That means that they are made up of simple units that can be combined to make longer or larger molecules. A good comparison would be LEGO bricks. With just a few different shapes and colors of bricks, people can build very elaborate LEGO creations . The same is true for biological polymers: with the same sets of building blocks, arranged in different combinations, we get things as diverse as swamp gum trees , E. coli , dwarf frogs , Micrasterias algae , and stinkhorns .

There are four major macromolecules that are found in biology:

polysaccharides (which are made of sugars)
lipids (some of which are made of fats)
nucleic acids (which are made of nucleotides)
proteins (which are made of amino acids)

As mentioned above, the building blocks of these macromolecules are considered small molecules. But those building blocks can be combined into molecules that are much larger. For example, if we stretched out the DNA in one human cell, it would be about 6 feet long!

Macromolecules are the primary target of PAA. How PAA attacks macromolecules and why that kills or inactivates microbes will be the subject of a future post.

Characteristics Of PAA

Wed, 17 Nov 2021 17:22:00 GMT

How is it so effective? The reason for the excellent and rapid antimicrobial effects of peracetic acid is its specific capability to penetrate the cell membrane. It does this through the process of oxidation – Remember all those electrons? In the most basic terms, oxidation is the transfer of electrons. PAA disinfects by oxidizing of the outer cell membrane bacterial cells, endospores, yeast, mold spores and other types of cells. Inside the cell it denatures proteins, disrupts cell wall permeability, oxidizes sulfur bonds in enzymes. PAA irreversibly disrupts the cells systems and destroys it.

Is there a downside? Or is PAA an invincible powerhouse? Despite the significant benefits of PAA use, there are concerns about the health and safety of those exposed to PAA while working with the chemical. PAA in high concentrations can be corrosive and cause mild to severe irritation of the eyes, nasal and upper respiratory system. Properly handling and taking recommended precautions while using or applying PAA is essential. For industrial hygienists, accurate quantification of PAA in air remains challenging as it rapidly degrades into its constituents of acetic acid and hydrogen peroxide, and sampling methodologies are still undergoing development by both governmental agencies and private companies. This makes it difficult to determine concrete occupational exposure limits. This is a work in progress by private industry and governmental industries alike.

In conclusion, it is safe to say that the hype around PAA is not without merit. The list of applications and uses pf PAA will continue to grow as will our knowledge on how to quantify it and safely use it. It is an exciting time to be in this industry.

What Are Indoor Allergies And What Causes Them?

Wed, 13 Oct 2021 17:38:00 GMT

Dust Mites: Dust mites are microscopic, insect-like pests that generate some of the most common indoor substances – or allergens – that can trigger allergic reactions and asthma in many people. Hundreds of thousands of dust mites can live in the bedding, mattresses, upholstered furniture, carpets, or curtains in your home. They feed on the dead human skin cells found in dust. Dust mites are not parasites; they do not bite, sting, or burrow into our bodies. The harmful allergen they create comes from their excrement and body parts. Dust mites are nearly everywhere; roughly 80% of homes in the U.S. have detectable levels of dust mites in at least one bed. The ways to reduce the presence of dust mites are: Reduce humidity, reduce the places dust mites can grow, replace carpets (preferably with non-carpet), and dust regularly.

Mold: Mold is a type of multicellular microscopic organism found both outdoors and indoors. It is a living thing, and it lives to reproduce and colonize. You can develop a mold allergy at any age. If you have a mold allergy, it can trigger symptoms of hay fever such as a runny nose, cough, and headaches. The symptoms can begin immediately upon exposure and persist all day. This is especially true if you spend long periods of time around the mold. Diagnosis of mold allergies can take time and identifying the source of mold can be challenging. Medications can help alleviate the effect of a mold allergy, but the best action is always removing the mold or avoiding it altogether. Some molds produce mycotoxins so dangerous that they can cause lifelong problems or even death. The best way to solve a mold infestation problem is to work with a licensed mold remediator. They have the right tools, products, and training to make your indoor space healthy again.

Pet Dander: Did you know that 6% of the US population is allergic to cats? And the cat dander is much more potent in causing allergic reactions than the animal’s fur or hair. Eliminating these allergens from your indoor space can go a long way towards creating a healthy home or office. The solution to too much pet dander is to wash and brush your animals often, and preferably outside.

We need to face facts. Diagnosing and living with allergies are two difficult things to do. Since we tend to spend so much time indoors, it is time to pay attention to our indoor air quality and make it as clean as possible. Your health may depend on it.

Mycotoxins Might Not Be The Problem

Sun, 25 Jul 2021 17:46:00 GMT

Mike - “Why don't you test the home after the containment has been removed?”

Traditional Company - “ It’s not in our scope of work, we were contracted to take care of the disaster and return that area to dry, rebuilt and no/low microbial growth.”

Mike: “I understand that, but what about the rest of the home?”

Traditional Company: “We were not hired to deal with the rest of the home, we were hired to correct the area affected by the disaster”

So what is the problem? The problem is that in as many as 75 percent of homes in this country there is an elevated mold load long before the disaster occurred. The mold growth at the site of the moisture is simply a manifestation of an elevated mold load to begin with. Additionally, very few people understand the inadequacies of air quality testing, and certainly air quality testing within a confined area does not in any way, shape, or form indicate that the home is healthy. This desperately needs to be understood by all those involved. If this is not universally understood, then all subsequent thought processes and planned treatment of getting well from mold toxicity, are now based around the false notion that the home is now mold free. It affects all parties including the customer, the health care provider, and the customers family.

The Customer - Now thinks that their home is mold free, and has to drawn the conclusion that either they are not sick from mold as they have been told. Secondly, and just as dangerous; they conclude that since there is no longer existing mold, it must be this ever present and (almost impossible to get rid of) mycotoxin. This becomes mentally exhausting and leads to a number of decisions that are not rooted in fact.

The Health Care provider - Now often trusts the report, and believes the home is finally mold free. He or she potentially changes the diagnosis, or at least changes the approach. Again, they have been assured by the “Mold Experts” that, based on the test results, the home is now mold free. The popular opinion in the mold toxicity world is now, the issue must be the ever present mycotoxins. Don't get me wrong, I whole heartedly believe that when a person has been exposed to mold, the mycotoxins and their detrimental effects can linger on for a long, long time. Mycotoxins inevitably become the emphasis of the concern. In other words, everyone feels the mold has been addressed, so the mycotoxins must still be the issue. This becomes a real issue when certain mold pundits around the world begin telling their patients that the mycotoxins cannot be removed and you must walk away from the home, leaving your mycotoxin contaminated belongings behind. (All this, based on an air quality test, within a small, plastic tent using a testing method that, quite frankly, nobody trusts.) Are they right in saying the mycotoxins are present? Yes, of course they are. But they are missing the point. The mycotoxins remain because in multiple places in the home… the mold remains and is constantly emitting the toxins. This is still an ongoing mold issue.

I do not believe a home exists, in which the mold has been completely remediated, yet the mycotoxins remain. I also do not believe that many homes have been completely remediated, unless they have received the Breathe Pure Solutions of Illinois LLC Service. Breathe Pure Solutions of Illinois LLC often gets phone calls requesting information that proves we eliminate mycotoxins. My first thought is always, “If we don’t, who does?" Secondly, peracetic acid has been proven to breakdown the sulphur and sulphydral bonds of enzymes and metabolites. I.e. mycotoxins. It would be very easy for us to simply say, “Yes, the mycotoxins get dismantled by the peracetic acid.” We believe it is more important to educate our customer base on what is really going on in the home. Having said this, I repeat, I do not believe, that the home that has been remediated by traditional “tear out” has only mycotoxins remaining. In fact, this is a total fallacy. The home has been spot treated for mold, and ignores the fact that every home inherently has an elevated mold load. My point being, if you think you still have mycotoxins, I believe you still have mold. As evidence, we know that mycotoxins have a documented half-life. Certainly, the half-life within a home and the homes contents, must be equal or less than that within our body or within our own cells. Our homes, for the most part, get a constant supply of fresh air daily and even hourly.

Furthermore, to make the assumption that all of the mold that was in the home previously, before the flood or leak, simply migrated to the moisture, so that all of the mold within the home could conveniently be cleaned up and disposed of in a couple of plastic bags with zippy ties is beyond ridiculous.

Hopefully I have explained that the mycotoxin problem is not because toxins mysteriously hang out in the home long after the mold has been addressed, but more accurately, the home still has an elevated mold load, and is still emitting mycotoxins. It is the constant emittance of mycotoxins from existing mold in the home that is the real issue. Mold finds food and moisture in a number of unseen places. Window sills, bathrooms, clothing/shoes, hvac duct work, air conditioning coils, drains and overfill holes in sinks, floor drains, carpeting, caulking around bathroom tubs, and kitchen sinks, crawlspaces, etc , etc. And it is often the cumulative effect of the mold throughout the home that creates the elevated mold load and the constant emittance of mycotoxins.

As a comparison, let’s assume your home has a natural gas leak originating from two places, the water heater and the furnace. Next, let’s assume the gas company fixed the water heater, but did not realize that the furnace had a gas leak and was releasing dangerous natural gas toxins. It would seem very odd to me, for the gas company to say, “Yes, we fixed the gas leak, so if you are still feeling toxic effects from the natural gas, its because the gas is still in the home from the original leak.” In other words, they claim to have fixed the problem, now you, as a homeowner, will have to deal with the toxic gas that hangs around. This, of course, is nonsense and I don't believe any gas company would ever say that. However, that is essentially what the mold world is saying when they:

Trust the very tests that everyone knows are inaccurate and inconsistent. and
Assume that because the Disaster Company tested within the plastic tent, after running the air scrubbers, and those tests were OK, the whole home is OK.

More appropriately, the gas company would come back and check for other gas leaks. A mold company should do the same before anyone waves the “mycotoxin white flag," and inaccurately declares that the mold is gone but the mycotoxins remain. Consider getting your home treated by a Breathe Pure Solutions of Illinois LLC Licensee. Breathe Pure Solutions of Illinois LLC recognizes that the entire home needs to be addressed, in order to assist our customers in their journey to wellness. The mycotoxins will no longer be an issue, once the mold (ALL OF THE MOLD) is remedied.

Part 1 - Binders: What Are They And Why Do I Need Them?

Thu, 15 Jul 2021 10:59:00 GMT

The product I’ve found to be most effective in my patients is Pectasol-C. The active ingredient/binder is modified citrus pectin. Pectasol-C is generally well-tolerated, tastes good, comes in capsules or powder form, and was effective in providing my patients with improvement in their symptoms. Dosing for most patients is 1 tsp, 2 times per day, though the dose can be decreased if it is being given to children or is not being tolerated at the full dosage.

Other binders that have worked along with Pectasol-C for specific biotoxins include activated charcoal, bentonite clay, chlorella, NAC (N-Acetyl Cysteine), and Saccharomyces boulardii.

-Sidebar- Binder Tips:

Binders are taken two to four times per day.
All binders should be taken away from food to minimize their binding effect on essential nutrients.

Dr. Jeff Wright Naturopathic Medical Doctor

Purchase Petasol-C at a discounted rate here . Register to make an account (no spam).

Top 4 Reasons Treatments Fail

Thu, 03 Jun 2021 11:18:00 GMT

2. HVAC is harboring moisture! This is extremely common in high humidity locations throughout the country. One of the first steps of the very detailed step by step procedures is to turn the “fan only” on in order to allow the coils to dry. This may or may not be enough. It is important during the bid process that the technician asks the right questions. One great question is, “Do you feel like the mold problem is worse when the HVAC system is on?”. Adjustments to the step by step can be made based on this information. It would not be inappropriate to increase the 10 minutes per thousand square feet (which is the baseline recommendation on the step by step) to 15 or 20 minutes per square feet. Or, another option would be 10 minutes per square feet before the home is fogged, and 10 minutes per square feet after the home has been fogged.

3. The drains or drainage system in the home is not functioning like it should. This can be caused by one or more dried out P-traps, open drain lines, or even missing toilets and sinks in which the drain have not been covered or sealed. The drainage system in each home is designed, through the use of p-traps, for the water in said p-traps to seal the sewer from the home. If this is not the case, the InstaPURE process irritates what is essentially the municipal sewer system, and spores will fly. I have seen this many times. Ensure that all p-traps are filled, treat each sink during the treatment, and ensure all drains are sealed.

4. Not adjusting the settings of the EverPURE process. If the EverPURE process is completed at 90 to 100 psi, the air pressure will stir up all dead spores, sending them airborne, resulting in compromising the after tests. Make sure to lower your air pressure regulators to around 60 to 70 psi, in order for the Goldshield to land lightly on each surface. Honorable Mention - Window sills, and window tracks not being cleaned out properly- Although peracetic acid vapor is one of the few antimicrobials that will fight through soil load, as mentioned earlier, it is not magic. Mold on top of dirt, on top of mold, on top of dirt is asking the vapor to do a lot of work. We can assist the process by cleaning out the window tracks and sills. This does two things. 1. Addresses the bottom layer of mold, and ensures that the fog gets to everything, and; 2. Gives the Trihydroxy Il Dimethyl Propyl Octadecyl (i.e. Goldshield5) a nice clean surface to establish the covalent bond. This will give long term protection in problem areas such as the window tracks.

Pure Maintenance Patented Equipment vs Backpack Or Handheld Sprayers And The Stuff They Use

Fri, 30 Apr 2021 11:26:00 GMT

Advantages of our equipment vs competitors:

Our dry fog system was built for “whole house” treatment. (not for spot treatment). It is very important to understand that you cannot successfully return home to healthy status by spot treating mold. A traditional mold remediator wants or needs to go into a customer's home and find where it is Wet and Black (or brown or white or green). They will remove the wet, sometimes remove the black, and sometimes treat, with a sprayer, the remaining skeleton of the area before rebuild. All this being performed under the contained plastic, duct tape, and doubled up twisty ties. Breathe Pure Solutions of Illinois LLC maintains that the entire home needs to be addressed and cannot return to healthy status until this occurs. It would be very difficult if not impossible to treat a whole home with a backpack sprayer. Certainly, it would be ineffective for the following reasons:

PM Dry fog creates a Vapor State, which is critically important for “whole home disinfection” This cannot be achieved with a backpack sprayer.
PM Dry Fogging PAA offers better dispersion which equates to much more surface contact. A sprayer will treat horizontal surfaces, and whatever else you can make wet with the spray. The dry fog treatment disinfects the air, the furnishings, and all surfaces in the home. 90 percent of which cannot be reached or should not be wetted by a spray.
PM Dry Fogging PAA creates vapor pressure which evens out the coverage, additionally, it pushes the AI into all areas of the home. Cannot be achieved with a backpack sprayer.
PM Dry Fogging PAA can contact hard-to-reach places that people and sprayers cannot reach. i.e. light fixtures, ceiling lights, under tables, behind appliances and cabinetry, crawl spaces, and attics. Cannot be achieved with a sprayer.
PM Dry Fogging PAA produces much less moisture on surfaces. I recently was at a bid in the Southern States, at a school, in which the competitor had the school cover all keyboards, computers, TVs, sound equipment, and electronics before they came in and sprayed a thymol based disinfectant. Incidentally, Thymol has been recently linked to nervous system disorders. I am curious what the Company would have told the School when they reported that there was still mold on the keyboards, computers, TVs, sound equipment, and electronics. And for that matter, all surfaces that could not be reached with the wet backpack sprayer.
PM Dry Fogging PAA is safe! It is not a phenol, chlorine, or benzyl (containing a benzyl ring) It does not create formaldehyde, or off-gas poisons, or heavy metals.
PM Dry Fogging PAA has Superior biocidal/fungicidal activity (in the range of 4-5 log kill, meaning 99.999 percent,) Products that are used in sprayers are far less effective.
Peracetic acid decomposes to water, and oxygen, quickly. Although some studies show it is a respiratory irritator, the fact that the home is vacant, and the technicians use proper PPE makes this argument completely moot. This is not the case for the products used in backpack sprayers. A pine oil-based disinfectant has been shown to break down to formaldehyde, which is a known carcinogen. Chlorine bleach is an asthma sensitizer, and phenols or ortho- phenyl phenol OPP are known to cause cancer.
Dry fogging PAA particles float in the air for an extended amount of time due to a few things, one of which is the Brownian Motion concept. Brownian motion is the random movement of particles suspended in a liquid or gas. Other physics at work are dispersion, evaporation, and vapor pressure. This simply cannot be achieved with a backpack sprayer.
Dry Fogging PAA system disrupts sulfhydrl and sulfur bonds in proteins and enzymes. This is one of the only things that will come close to reducing mycotoxins.
Dry Fogging PAA system penetrates the outer cell membrane of all micro-organisms in the entire space. Sprayers using disinfectants either off-gas to kill the membrane, or cause the micro-organism to mutate. Both of which can lead to the “super bug” concern in society.
Other methods of disinfection include surface wiping, which does not come into contact with all surfaces, thus micro-organisms growth occurs after wipe down. Additionally, “Quat Binding” has been proven as a real downside of spraying and wiping. The Quarternary compound is literally attracted to the microfiber, or terry cloth, so when someone surface sprays, then wipes, they are literally wiping the Active Ingredient off of the surface. Look up quat binding for an interesting afternoon.

Hopefully, all can see the inherent weaknesses of subpar equipment, and subpar products, and subpar processes. Breathe Pure Solutions of Illinois LLC is recommended by hundreds of healthcare practitioners around the world, and that number is increasing daily. Be proud that you are an important part of a Company that was the First and is the Best at whole home mold remediation.

Peracetic Acid Vapor

Thu, 15 Apr 2021 11:36:00 GMT

PAA delivers the most according to the Canadian Journal of Microbiology. PAA is a highly biocidal oxidizer that maintains its efficacy in the presence of organic soil. We know from years and years of fogging, just how amazing PAA is. We also have white paper from other companies who use PAA fog in cleanrooms, medical facilities, etc. It's a terrific, safe, and effective microbicide. Admittedly, sterilizing a “clean room” is much less of a challenge than removing mold from a hoarder's home, the science remains the same, and the treatment is effective. Another huge benefit of PAA Vapor is the lack of residual left behind after we complete a treatment. PAA breaks down into oxygen & water and provides us with some huge advantages over what our competitors may offer. Not the least of which is how safe it is for the families we help. It is non-carcinogenic, it’s not chlorine or bleach, not a phenol, and not in the benzyl group. A quick google search of unhealthy effects of any of these, and you will soon learn that it is either the residual left behind, which can eventually get in our kids or grandkids bodies, the potential for lung or asthmatic issues, or the combination of what was left behind and future products mixed with the residue and the reactions to them.

I am often asked, “So what exactly does it do to the cell or the spore?” The mechanism of action or Mode of Action of PAA is oxidation. Meaning it denatures proteins, disrupts cell wall permeability, and oxidizes sulfhydryl, sulfur, and disulfide bonds in proteins, enzymes, and other metabolites. The PAA vapor interacts with numerous cellular constituents breaking them down and inactivating all working parts. With the disintegration of the fungal cell wall, internal components will no longer be contained and are unable to organize. Simply stated, once the cell wall is compromised, it falls apart. And it cant reorganize. Proteins are rapidly attacked by PAA through the oxidation of amino acids. I once heard it put in this way “PAA fog is like taking a gun to a knife fight.”

Home Construction Changes And Mold

Wed, 24 Mar 2021 11:45:00 GMT

In addition to this, we have exchanged traditional lath and plaster construction for sheetrock. I.e. sheetrock with paper all around it. A much better food source than traditional lath and plaster. An added benefit of the plaster is lime was added. With the ph of lime included in the mix, it became a natural fungicide. Lime plaster was also permeable and allowed for diffusion and evaporation of moisture.

3. It seems, homes are getting more and more complex rooflines: When a portion of one part of a roof, delivers rainwater to another part of a roof, and then to a larger part of a roof, the accumulated water often gets diverted into “corners” in hopes that a miraculous rain gutter can handle the volume of water. It usually is a recipe for water getting into places that it should not be. In addition to this, when a roofline abuts into a wall, the flashing is not sufficient to keep water from wicking into the wall. Once the wall is saturated, the water will find its way inside the home. I am constantly amazed at absolutely beautiful homes being built, and very little attention is paid to the drainage. This includes problems from the rooflines to the rain gutter, to the ground. Additionally, if there are low spots where the water can flow into the foundation, it is only a matter of time before water intrusion into the basement or crawl space.

4. We are building bigger homes: Bigger homes, bigger problems. Or at least more problems. I recently treated a home that had 14 sinks, 4 bathtubs/showers, 6 toilets, two kitchen sinks, two dishwashers, two refrigerators with water supplied to them, two washing machines, and 4 outdoor hoses connections. This increases the odds of having leaks and floods. Along with this, multiple HVAC units in a home. Times, at least in our home State, these larger homes are often used as vacation homes and are not occupied year-round. The lack of attention, the decreased year-round occupancy, less heating, less cooling, and less ventilation, often results in mold growth.

5. EMFs and Specifically 5G Electromagnetic Frequencies; Several studies have found that low-level EMF exposures of the type found in many homes induce mold growth. Similar research done at Chernobyl found ionizing radiation encourages mold growth.

The most interesting work to date is related by Dr. Dietrich Klinghardt. In his studies, he determines the following:

the amount of cell phone radiation in a cubic inch of air is now several million times higher than it was just ten years ago,
the production of biotoxins in mold cultures increased by more than six hundred times when exposed to ambient cell phone radiation from a nearby cell phone tower.

Whether you agree with some or all of these points, it is very hard to dispute that we have put ourselves in a very unhealthy position relative to our homes, our indoor environment, and our health.

Mycotoxins And Mold

Mon, 01 Mar 2021 11:52:00 GMT

Might I offer a different approach and solution? The tests are indeed junk, and the home is still FULL of mold. Every home, to some degree, has mold pockets, producing spores, growing mold, and producing mycotoxins. And it is often if not always, the cumulative effect of these areas, sometimes hundreds of them in a single home, that is the real mold and mycotoxin issue. It’s not the wet wall, that grew mold when the water heater broke. That wet moldy wall is simply a manifestation of moisture and an already elevated mold load in a home. It started growing mold on the moisture because there was already an abundance of spores in the indoor air.

Let's now talk about traditional remediation. It is spot treatment at best. A traditional mold remediator will contain the area, dry out the area, tear out the area, rebuild the area, and then run air scrubbers in the contained area, test the contained area, and finally declare the WHOLE home mold-free.

First of all, mold doesn't just stay within the confined area. It was in the whole home before the flood, and it is in the whole home after the flood. The fact that the home grew mold quickly on the damaged wet material simply is a manifestation of elevated mold load in the home. The entire home is sick, and the confined area that is being remediated within the containment area, may indeed get a little better, but the fact remains the entire home is still sick. I repeat you cannot spot treat mold and mycotoxins.

The frustrating part of this is the customer then reports, after the traditional remediation, to their health care provider that their mold has been addressed. The healthcare provider will congratulate them, however in all reality, the patient will continue to get sicker each passing day as if nothing changed. Time and time again, the healthcare practitioner, or mold pundit will eventually say, “here is the real problem, you got rid of the mold, (based on the clearance tests, which all of a sudden they trust) but there are still mycotoxins in the home” And you know what? They are partly right. The real issue is this. THE CUSTOMER STILL HAS MOLD IN THE HOME, SO OF COURSE, THEY STILL HAVE MYCOTOXINS! It is not because these mysterious little toxins hang around forever. Its because the overall mold load in the home continues to emit toxins. It becomes plain as day, once you have been treated home after home after home, and witnessed success stories over and over again. The whole home needs to be addressed. There are miniature mycotoxins factories throughout the home. They need to be shut down. Once shut down, fresh air will enter the home, and the home will return to a healthy status. But not until all mold/mycotoxin factories are shut down.

The important concept here is moldy homes produce mycotoxins, actively. Furthermore, it is the constant and unrelenting emissions of mycotoxins that make people sick. A truly Mold Free home will have no mycotoxins. In addition to this, and on a side note, mycotoxins or metabolites are susceptible to oxidation. The Breathe Pure Solutions of Illinois LLC dry fog system works based on oxidation. But, as we mentioned, it's difficult to test, so I opt, at least in this blog, to appeal to a common-sense angle on the issue. We will discuss oxidation in other blogs.

Let's compare this to a more common problem that we as a society have figured out how to address. Let's assume you have a gas leak in your stove and a gas leak in your furnace. Two separate and distinct areas are releasing toxic gas. One upstairs, and one in the basement. You suspect you have toxins in the home because you likely can smell it, it gives you a headache or nausea, or heaven forbid, something worse. We have determined that the best way to solve this problem is to stop the constant flow of natural gas into the home. How is this accomplished? By calling in an expert, and getting the leak or leaks fixed. Stopping the flow of toxins. What if, for example, the expert only fixes the gas leak in the stove. (Let's assume he only fixed the one because that is the only place he could see visible signs of gas leakage) And let's further assume that the furnace is still releasing gas into the home. Let's take it a step further, and imagine that the guy fixing the stove, contains the area of the stove, fixes the leak, runs air scrubbers, then tests that area, and then declares the home safe. Is the area that he tested toxin-free? Well, temporarily. But it won't be as soon as he removes the containment. It would be a travesty if a healthcare provider were to say, well, you fixed the leak, but you still have gas in the air.” You need to either address the gas still in the air, or you need to move because it is very difficult to get rid of the natural gas in the air. “Well, he or she is partly correct, you do still have gas in the air, but it is not from the “lingering” toxins. It's from the other source or sources of gas leaking. The obvious solution is to fix all the leaks in the home, which would be akin to fixing or denaturing all the mold in the home. And as in mycotoxins, the gas will eventually dissipate. I have never heard of someone having a gas leak in the home, and once it is fixed, being told that you need to get rid of that gas that was emitted during the leak, or move out. Is natural gas unhealthy, of course, it is. But we also know enough to believe that if all the leaks are fixed, the fresh air will win. We know that the air circulating from indoor to out and vice versa will solve that issue. Again, the issue is the constant supply of toxins must be stopped. The same applies to mold and mycotoxins, the constant “supply” or the machines creating the mycotoxins must be stopped.

We must stop trusting the “post-remediation” tests, that tell us the mold is gone and let the traditional remediation companies get away with simply blaming the mycotoxins. The mold is still in the home after traditional remediation. Treating the whole home will make the house safe. Give Breathe Pure Solutions of Illinois LLC a call, for whole-home remediation.

Is Your Home And Your Body Full Of Toxins? What Can Be Done?

Fri, 26 Feb 2021 12:08:00 GMT

So what to do about it? First of all, your toxin load, which includes VOCs and Mold or MVOC’s must be lowered. The path to a healthy home or workplace is worth the effort. A few tips I have come up with from working in the indoor air quality industry for years are:

Listen to your body. You know what items your body reacts to. Additionally, you know what situations cause stress, which in and of itself is toxic. You also know what areas in the home seem to give you the most acute reactions. Do what needs to be done to address various issues in the home or workplace. If for example, your co-worker's perfume makes you sick, address it. If the air conditioner turning on in your workplace or home makes you feel anxious or nauseous, address it with the building manager or a mold professional. If your car is full of mold, or a musty smell, address it.
Inventory your home, your workplace, and your belongings, and determine what items are causing you the most health effects. This may mean throwing out a mattress, changing dry-cleaners, and modifying when and how you use cleaners in your home, or even changing your employment situation and your workplace. Many people get the inventory step confused with listening to your body step. Both are separate and distinct steps, and both are important.
Get advice and encouragement from others who have gone through what you are going through, and lean on others for support.
Rely on a professional mold remediation company with a history of satisfied customers. 4-Seek health care providers who specialize in chemical toxicity, and mold toxicity.

Along with this, one of the easier toxins to reduce are the MVOC’s. You don't have to live in a moldy home. Steps to reducing mold in the home include:

Try to determine the history of the home, including the building process itself. Was the home completely “dried in” before rain and snow? Also question the previous owners of the home. Unfortunately, a past homeowner will not always be forthright with you, but it is worth a try. Knowledge is power, and the more you know about the history of water intrusion, the better you can attack and correct the issues.
Determine where the water intrusion has occurred. Correct it, if it still is wet, and determine the most beneficial remediation available. Remember remember remember, the area of the leak is not the only area to be remediated. Mold moves throughout the home. Mold spores find new homes, in which to spore out, grow and produce mycotoxins. Whole house remediation is needed. You can't spot treat mold and expect the home to be healthy and without mold, spores, and mycotoxins. It's simply impossible. The entire home must be treated if the goal is to be a healthy home.

The message here is that although you may not be able to eliminate every stress or every toxin, you can lower the overall toxin load. Additionally, you absolutely can rid your home of elevated mold, spores, and mycotoxins. Your body will eventually respond in a positive way, and you will begin the healing process. Breathe Pure Solutions of Illinois LLC may be your first step to a healthy home or workplace.

Mold Illness Treatment Mistakes

Wed, 17 Feb 2021 12:13:00 GMT

Mistake #3: You’re not keeping your detox pathways open.

During the detox, your organs are working extra hard to get rid of toxins. Make sure to help them out. Supporting drainage and detox organs such as the kidneys, liver, and lymphatic system are important for healing.

Mistake #4: You’re taking too many supplements and focus solely on supplement protocols.

Many people with mold illness are super sensitive to foods, chemicals, or medications. The last thing you need is 10 different supplements at once. It's more for your immune system to process and make sense of. Healing goes far beyond finding the perfect supplement protocol.

Mistake #5: You’re looking for quick fixes.

Chronic illness is not the flu. It won’t be healed within a week, even if you're out of the exposure. Find a good practitioner, commit to your protocol and be patient!

Mistake #6: You’re not doing any mindset and brain retraining.

There's a strong relationship between mental and physical health. Unhealthy thoughts can rev up the fight or flight chronic stress response and cause physical symptoms. Calming this response and activating the parasympathetic nervous system is key to healing from sensitivities, brain fog, fatigue, and more! You can not properly detox and heal while in constant "fight or flight".

Mistake #7: Not working on the gut.

Around 80% of the immune system is in the gut. It is directly connected to the brain. So gut inflammation leads to brain fog, memory issues, etc. If you have reactions to foods, supplements, chemicals, and more, you most likely have a leaky gut leading to massive inflammation as toxins start leaking into the bloodstream. A history of antibiotic use causes dysbiosis (bacterial imbalances) leading to candida and immune dysfunction. Heal the gut!

Blessings, Brooklyn

acceleratenaturalhealth.com

P.S. If you haven't started doing any mindset and brain retraining yet (see mistake #6), make sure you are in my free Brain Rewiring for Health and Happiness group on Facebook. I share tips in this group almost daily on how to begin implementing brain retraining techniques!

Frequently Asked Questions About Mold

Tue, 02 Feb 2021 12:22:00 GMT

Question: Are Breathe Pure Solutions of Illinois LLC processes toxic?

Answer: No. Pure Maintenance uses what is know as peracetic acid. Peracetic acid is listed as 1 of only 7 antimicrobials that the EPA themselves have listed as a “Safer Choice”. Additionally, the fog emits a very very low parts per million during the process. The second step is a proprietary formula that creates a mechanical device on each surface to make the home very inhospitable to mold surviving on any surface of the home. The second step creates a covalent bond to each surface that cannot come off, cannot off-gas, and simply makes each surface very difficult for a spore to land on, and survive. It's akin to a balloon landing on a bed of nails.

Question: How long does it take to treat the average home?

Answer: An average home will take approximately 3 to 5 hours to treat. We do recommend that customers stay away for a couple of hours before returning, for the vinegar smell to dissipate. Some like it, others would rather “air out” the home for the couple of hours we recommend.

Question: I’ve been sick for years, and my healthcare practitioner feels like the mold in my home is making me sick, Is that possible?

Answer: Yes, the evidence of indoor mold toxins and associated mold illness is becoming more and more mainstream every year. It is no longer just a “hunch" that indoor mold can make people sick. Doctors such as Daniel Pompa, a well-known health practitioner throughout the US, are at the forefront of the very personal battle some people have with mold toxicity.

Question: How often will I need to treat my home?

Answer: Likely and in most cases, Just 1 treatment is sufficient. The long-term effects of creating a very inhospitable home for mold spores keep the home from repeating the mold load cycle.

Question: What is the mold load cycle?

Answer: The Mold Load Cycle was coined by Pure Maintenance a few years ago. In every home, there exist areas within the home that moisture is present. These areas include but are not limited to window sills, bathrooms, carpets, drains, clothing, HVAC systems, HVAC humidifiers, air conditioners, etc etc. The cumulative effect of several small areas that harbor mold, and sporadically (no pun intended) emit spores create more and more areas that have mold and heavier and heavier concentrations in these areas. Additionally, every home after a few years has the inevitable leak or flood, and some have multiple water events. A traditional remediator will address the area of the water, but the whole home mold elevation or cycle continues. A flood or leak adds to the mold load, and when addressed may lower the mold load slightly, but only slightly. Additionally, Because the typical homeowner does not clean with a sterilant or sporicide, and the fact that mold can last for years and years and years without food and moisture, the overall “mold load” increases. Every home goes through this, some more intensely than others, but every home goes through the mold load cycle. It is precisely the mold load elevation or cycle that creates the well-known “grandma and grandpa’ smell in a home. The mildewed moldy smell that we all associate with older homes.

Question: Why does my bathroom ceiling or caulking keep growing mold, even though I clean it?

Answer: It is important to understand that in most cases, there is nothing wrong with the bathroom per se. There is something wrong with the entire home. The home has an elevated “Mold Load”. When a home has elevated mold load and is going through the mold load cycle, the elevated mold and associated spores manifest themselves wherever there is moisture. So yes, you can keep cleaning it, and it will keep coming back. Generally when a bathroom has evidence of mold growth, so do the window sills, so do the drains, and your bread probably molds quickly. Ps, some breads have so many preservatives that this is not a good indicator of mold load.

Question: Why does my front loading washing machine grow mold so rapidly?

Answer: It could be a couple of things. Most notably, the design of front-loading machines does not completely clean the clothes, and the fact that a front-loading door must be sealed to keep water from coming out also keeps fresh air from drying out the moisture between loads. Once this becomes commonplace, you will notice your clothes never smelling fresh. In fact, the supermarkets are now stocked with additives for either the washing machines or the dryers to attempt to get rid of the moldy smell.

Question: Can my “stuff” be saved if we have a moldy home?

Answer: Yes, that is the beauty of the Pure Maintenance treatment. Everything in the home, along with the home and HVAC system will be fogged. We are often told that this is too good to be true. We believe it's a pretty awesome treatment.

EMF's - Electromagnetic Fields

Thu, 28 Jan 2021 12:33:00 GMT

Radio Frequency (created by cell phones, wifi, bluetooth, radar, and other types of state of the art technologies.)
Electric Fields (Wiring in buildings and homes)
Magnetic Fields (These are fields that are caused by wiring errors in homes. i.e. reverse polarity, or current flowing where it should not. AC to DC transformers created magnetic fields as well as metal bed frames. These can cause a disturbance to the natural magnetic field of the earth.)
Dirty Electricity, (related to magnetic fields, but at higher frequencies.

Some of the most common sources of EMFs include cell phones, microwaves, computers, smart TV’s, wifi trackers, power lines, electric blankets, bluetooth and wireless headphones, and electrical panels.

To add to this, in what can only be explained with the word EXPONENTIAL, is the relatively new 5G technology. There is really interesting work conducted by Dr. Dietrich Klinghardt in which he explains the number of EMF’s increases the mold toxicity by 600 Times. A quick version of explaining the test is that he used two Petri dishes with mold pre-loaded. One was protected with what he termed a “faraday cage” essential a protective metal net around the dish to block any EMF’s. The second petri dish was left unprotected. The result was 600 times more mold load in the unprotected dish versus the protected dish. Adding to this scary thought, 5G is on the increase. A few bullet points from Dr. Klinghardt:

The amount of cell phone radiation in a cubic inch of air is now several million times higher than it was ten years ago.
There is a strong case for reducing EMF exposures, particularly among pregnant women and particularly among women who have Lyme disease. We know that Lyme disease is almost always accompanied by mold toxicity.
The rise in neurodevelopment disorders in children, not just autism, is linked (by some doctors) with increased EMF exposures

The health effects of mold in your home or workplace are becoming more and more documented and chronicled. The study of the health effects of mold combined with 5G is only in its infancy. Much more knowledge and understanding will be available as studies of these two components of a very imperfect storm continue.

So what can be done? It's going to be very difficult to eliminate our exposure to EMF’s. Things like turning off your cell phones and wifi at night help. But it's a difficult task to be completely EMF free. Perhaps battling the mold is the easier culprit to eliminate or at least control.

First and foremost, take care of your home or workplace. The water problem, intrusion, or elevated humidity needs to be addressed. Then, contact your nearest Breathe Pure Solutions of Illinois LLC licensee will a “Fresh start to a Healthy Home”

Opening Up After A Shutdown

Sun, 20 Dec 2020 12:53:00 GMT

Ways to prevent this are a little bit like getting the toothpaste back into the tube. It may be too late to adjust the HVAC, thermostat, or add water to the traps to stop the unhealthy condition; so what are the options? Pure Maintenance treatment on a facility or a home is the ideal way to lower the “mold load” of a building before re-entry. Pure Maintenance’s patented two-step process will solve all concerns relative to mold in a reopening facility. Pure Maintenance, is a “Fresh Start to a Healthy Life.”

What's A Quat?

Thu, 10 Dec 2020 13:01:00 GMT

Why are quats controversial? Most quats are potent disinfectant chemicals commonly found in disinfectant wipes, sprays, household cleaners, hospital disinfectants, etc. all designed to kill germs. Most do this by breaking down protein, disrupting cell walls, cross-linking, coagulating, and oxidizing. The quat is often the stuff that allows a product to claim to be antibacterial. So why all the concern over quats? It comes down to what the positively charged Nitrogen core is attached with. or vice versa. Some are really, really unhealthy, and are even classified as carcinogens.

Some Quats are formaldehyde-releasing toxic chemicals that have been associated with multiple health risks including:

Allergies & irritation (skin, eye, lung)
Contact dermatitis – Studies estimate that between 13% and 34% of contact dermatitis cases may be linked to quats.
Asthma- triggering it in those who already have asthma and new-onset in people with no prior asthma
Reproductive and developmental toxicity
Injuries: eye and mucous membrane injuries from splashes or contact with mists and oral and gastrointestinal injuries from swallowing solutions containing quats
Promoting “superbugs“. Concerns about quaternary ammonium compounds leading to resistant bacteria stem from how these ingredients interact with bacterial cell membranes.

An example, Alkyl dimethyl benzyl ammonium chlorides. (ADBAC)’s. There are over 20 different alkyl dimethyl benzyl ammonium chlorides used in different formulations as part of disinfectant products. These are characterized by a benzene ring known to cause all kinds of health concerns. Including being carcinogenic, asthmatic, and an immune system disruptor.

Another is dialkyl dimethyl ammonium chloride (DDAC). There are five DDAC compounds that are structurally similar to two alkyl groups and two methyl groups. DDAC-based (products are used in disinfectants as well. Examples of active ingredients in quotes that should be avoided are:

*Benzalkonium Chloride
*Benzethonium chloride
*Alkyl dimethyl benzyl ammonium chloride

The beauty of the Pure Maintenance two-step process, is that we use a very safe sterilant, (peracetic acid is one of only 7 antimicrobials listed by the EPA as a “safer choice”) to denature the spores or cells of concern. It breaks down to oxygen and water when we are done. We then use a very mechanical version of a quat, to place a protectant on all surfaces. It’s the reason we felt like a patent on the 2 step process was vitally important.

Back to the million-dollar question, is Goldshield a quat? Well, yes. It is characterized by a core Nitrogen atom. But that’s where the similarities of the classic “quat” inference end. Goldshield is trihydroxsilypropyldimethyloctadecyl ammonium chloride. Sounds potentially scary, but on the contrary, is a really safe, water-soluble “mechanical” structure. It is not built to kill. It is built to protect. Essentially making every surface that has Goldshield “covalently bonded” to it very inhospitable to microbes. It is that simple. Comparing Goldshield to a classic quat begins and ends with the Nitrogen core. Quats are formaldehyde-releasing toxic chemicals that have been associated with multiple health risks including:

Allergies & irritation (skin, eye, lung)
Contact dermatitis – Studies estimate that between 13% and 34% of contact dermatitis cases may be linked to quats.
Asthma- triggering it in those who already have asthma and new-onset in people with no prior asthma
Reproductive and developmental toxicity
Injuries: eye and mucous membrane injuries from splashes or contact with mists and oral and gastrointestinal injuries from swallowing solutions containing quats
Promoting “superbugs“. Concerns about quaternary ammonium compounds leading to resistant bacteria stem from how these ingredients interact with bacterial cell membranes.

Is Mold Making Your Child Sick? How To Tell And What To Do About It

Tue, 17 Nov 2020 13:09:00 GMT

Sneezing
Coughing
Itchy, watery eyes
Runny or stuffy nose
Asthma, difficulty breathing, or chest tightness

Just like other allergies, mold allergies are caused by your child’s immune system overreacting to contact with mold spores. When your child inhales the microscopic, airborne spores, the immune system unleashes antibodies to attack the spores. This cycle is what keeps your child sick.

If you live in a humid area, have a family history of allergies, seen mold growing in your home, or suspect your child might be allergic to mold, seek help from a medical professional. An allergist or immunologist can do a quick test to determine whether your child is allergic to mold. If so, treatment options range from over-the-counter allergy medications to allergy shots and asthma inhalers.

Equally important, you'll need to improve the air quality in your home to keep allergies at bay. The best way to do this is to hire a pro. Pure Maintenance specializes in removing both surface and airborne mold and pathogens. You can also improve the air quality in your home by running the air conditioner in warmer months and investing in a dehumidifier.

Black Mold Exposure

Mold can make your child sick in a more dangerous way: through black mold spores. In addition to common respiratory symptoms, black mold can also cause persistent fatigue, migraine headaches, nausea, and even internal bleeding.

In addition to being life-threatening, toxic black mold can be difficult and expensive to treat. That’s why it should be eliminated from the home as soon as possible. Just like with allergies, dehumidifiers and air purifiers help remove spores from the air. It is also recommended that you repair any leaks and add proper ventilation to humid areas, like showers.

Home Maintenance and Mold Treatment

Mold can enter your home wherever there's a water issue, such as windows, bathrooms, and crawl spaces. That's why it's crucial to ensure these areas are well-ventilated and leaks are fixed. For instance, if your windows are leaking air or water, there's a chance that mold can thrive on them. It's best to have your windows repaired or replaced to prevent mold growth. Keep in mind that the cost of getting glass window panes professionally replaced will depend on the amount of damage your window has sustained and the type of glass.

Additionally, if you’ve seen mold growing on your walls, regardless of the color, repaint the walls using a mold inhibitor to stop the mold in its tracks. If none of these methods work, contact the pros at Pure Maintenance to remove the mold and keep it from returning.

Regardless of whether or not mold is causing your child’s symptoms, it’s always best to see a pediatrician or immunologist just to be safe. A qualified medical professional can properly evaluate symptoms, determine their causes, and prescribe any necessary treatments. Sometimes, a case of the sniffles is just a minor inconvenience. However, if your child’s symptoms are interrupting daily life, it’s better to be safe than sorry. Finding the cause of an underlying illness might not be a simple process, but it’s always worth it to find ways to make your child feel better.

Mold Testing Methods

Tue, 03 Nov 2020 13:32:00 GMT

I have been in bathrooms in which I can see the mold growing on a wall, and the test comes back relatively clean. Why? That mold is not stressed. It’s getting moisture from daily showering, it has food, and it's happy. It’s not going to spore unless it gets stressed. So spore traps have their inherent limitations. Whether we are talking viable or non-viable, the same limitations apply. The only difference is that non-viable tests are optical readings under a microscope at the lab, and viable is actually grown by the lab.

Next is Tape pull tests. These are useful for situations in which you think that weird looking stuff on the wood trim, or around the toilet, etc, may be mold but you are just not sure. The tape is pressed against the substance in question, and the lab will optically identify it as mold, and specifically what kind. This does not, however, quantify the mold load of a home. The report will give you a 1-4 score, so as an example, Aspergillus, with a 1, simply means “there's a little bit of aspergillus on that tape” to a 4 meaning, “there's a bunch of aspergillus on that tape”. Basically useless information with just too many variables in play.

Big box store Petri dishes are one of the biggest wastes of money out there in the industry. The air we breathe has mold, it's part of our planet. What you don't want, however, is to have an elevated mold load in your home. By placing a petri dish out in your home, you are determining absolutely nothing. Mold is in the outdoor air, outdoor air comes indoors, it’s a bad test. Perhaps if you could identify a “marker mold” i.e. Stachybotrys, or chromium it is of some value, however, people often just look at the mold grown in the dish and panic. Mold is part of life, Elevated out of control mold should not be. Petri dishes will not distinguish whether it is normal everyday mold count or out of control mold load in the home.

Swab tests are like a tape pull test in that you will test a very small surface to determine if it is mold and what type it is. It is more commonly used for bacteria testing, however, some use it for mold testing. It will distinguish between live mold and dead mold, which a tape pull test cannot. The lab will take the swabs and “grow” whatever is collected in the swab. Again, this cannot quantify the mold load of a home. It's more for identifying whatever is on a surface.

Anderson Sampling, or Cascade Impactors. These are the genesis of spore trap testing. They come in a number of stages of aluminum plates, or dishes, which have smaller and smaller holes as the air continues through the plates. It utilizes a pump to pull the air through the individual stacked filters. This, in effect, filters out the particulates by size, and the end result of the last plate is often incubated much like a “via-cell” spore trap cassette. This is likely more accurate than the more commonly used plastic spore traps but is also more cumbersome, and prone to cross-contamination from one testing site to another. Again, with the cascade impaction, you are testing for 1/3 of the mold and this is in a small area, within a home during a small 5-minute cycle. ERMI testing stands for the Environmental relative moldiness index. It was a test originally developed in an attempt to establish a baseline for healthy vs. unhealthy homes. The test “scores” the home, with a range of above 10 unhealthy, and below 10 considered healthy. The test involves vacuuming or dusting up a 10 foot by 10-foot area of flooring. This dust is then submitted to a lab that breaks the mold down to the actual DNA of the mold. This test, since it could be picking up dust from years in the past, is a very good test for determining the mold load of the home. Particularly the mold history of the home. What has happened over the years and accumulated to this point. The cons of the test are that it is very expensive, and probably gives the customer more information than is needed. From strictly a Pure Maintenance standpoint, the treatment we offer is going to take care of the mold, regardless of its family or genus. The drawback of this test, from a Pure Maintenance standpoint, is that through the use of polymerase chain reaction testing, it results in the actual DNA being identified. So even though our process oxidizes and destroys all spores and cells, the DNA still remains. For this reason, the ERMI is good before the test, in which they score the healthiness of a home, however, it is not a good test at determining the efficacy of our treatment. The now harmless DNA will always remain. Even after treatment. There are a number of health practitioners who understand this dynamic, and still recommend Pure Maintenance to their patients. The ultimate test, obviously, is the health improvement of their patient.

And finally, particle counting has been a recent addition to the mold testing world. Particle testing or counting uses an advanced method involving lasers providing an intense light and thereby counting very small particles and grouping the counts by size. Again, the inherent problem with this type of testing is that mold is not always sporing, so it is not a great test for determining the overall mold load of a home. It is, however, good at counting particles or particulates and grouping them in a range roughly the same size as most mold spores. The advantage of this test is it is in real-time. This test method accurately assumes most molds are in a similar range of sizes.

Overall, testing for “mold load” is not a perfect science, and may never be a perfect science. However, what is close to perfect, is the Pure Maintenance method of reducing the “mold load” in a home, as evidenced by thousands of happy customers.

Where Mold Comes From

Wed, 14 Oct 2020 13:48:00 GMT

Mold is a fungus that occurs naturally within an ecosystem. Mold, mildew, yeast, and other fungi serve a variety of purposes in nature. These include decomposition of raw materials, natural pesticide for plants, and some molds have been found to create powerful antibiotics in the medical community. Mold can serve a great purpose when found in an outdoor environment but it can also cause serious health issues when found in indoor settings.

Within an ecosystem, plants and animals make their way through a natural life cycle of conception, growth, and death. Without mold these dead organic materials would pile up and cover the earth. Mold naturally begins to feed on these materials and increases the decomposition process. The role that mold plays within an ecosystem is vital.

Mold also serves agricultural purposes and develops naturally on plants. Throughout history mold growing on plants has served as a natural pesticide to fight off bugs and virus. The same organic materials and moisture that help plants to grow also provides great conditions for the production of mold and fungus. When mold grows it gives off a trace poison called mycotoxins that helps fight disease on plants.

The same mycotoxins that are used to fight disease in plants have also been harnessed by medical scientists to form helpful drugs and antibiotics. One of the most well known examples is Penicillin. Many refer to Fleming as a careless technician who returned from vacation to find that a mold had developed on an accidentally contaminated staphylococcus culture plate. Upon examination of the mold, he noticed that the culture prevented the growth of staphylococci.

Mold serves valuable purposes in controlled environments and outdoors. Problems can arise when mold goes uncontrolled and finds its way into indoor environments. The same mycotoxins that are poisonous to bacteria and virus can be poisonous to the human body.

When Mold Dries, Is It Dead?

Thu, 10 Sep 2020 14:12:00 GMT

This is one of the most common misconceptions involving mold. There is much confusion between what is dormant mold and what is dead mold. Mold is a fungus that grows in the form of multicellular filaments called hyphae. These filaments combine and become mycelium.

Will Mold On Bread Hurt You?

Mon, 31 Aug 2020 14:15:00 GMT

Mold will grow on bread quicker and more abundantly in homes with heavy “mold load”. Now that we know why mold grows on the bread, let's discuss the original question. “will mold on bread make me sick?” The short answer is let's not try it out. Mold contains toxins that can make a person sick. Additionally, each person is different. Some people are extremely sensitive to mold and others are not. Some can likely eat with no consequences, and others can become sick. It is simply not worth finding out if you are one of them or not.

The lesson here is that if the bread in your home gets moldy easily and often, you likely have an elevated mold load in your home. Have Pure Maintenance take a look, and get a “Fresh Start to a Healthy Home”

Mold In Crawl Spaces

Thu, 20 Aug 2020 15:49:00 GMT

Ventilation codes are about the same for crawl spaces as they are for attics. For crawl spaces, you are required to have, unless local or state codes are different, 1 square foot of ventilation for every 150 square feet of underfloor space. So a home with a 2000 square foot “footprint” would need to have the equivalent of 13 square feet of ventilation. There is quite a bit of flexibility relative to how to divide up the 13 square feet of ventilation. There are also “exceptions” in which the ventilation requirements are significantly less, or non-existent. Some of these exceptions include a vapor barrier, or a full vapor-proof membrane being completely sealed onto the floor and up the walls partially. I've never been able to wrap my brain around the thought process of installing a vapor barrier, which will often trap moisture, you will need less ventilation.

It has been my experience that ventilation is the most critically important variable in reducing the mold load within a crawl space. I am sure that every climate is unique in determining the best way to handle a crawl space. However, here in Utah, in many cases, I can see that the “vapor barrier” actually exasperated the problem. Particularly if the homeowner noticed mold getting out of control, and tried to add a vapor barrier to stop the growth. When this happens, the crawl space now has elevated mold and mold spores, and a plastic barrier simply traps moisture and mold underneath. As discussed earlier, you now have even better conditions to increase mold growth and increase the overall “Mold Load” of the home.

The time to address mold in a crawl space is during construction. Hopefully, the lumber used in the crawl space was not exposed to moisture, and hopefully and just as important, does not have mold on it. The next factor is moisture. Hopefully, the home was “dried in” with a roof before winter or rain set in. If during the building process, you can keep the mold load low, and the moisture low, you have a fighting chance of keeping the overall “Mold Load” low. After moving in, If either or both get out of balance, mold will be an issue. This can become a real health issue, particularly when the crawl space is being utilized to hold the furnace and HVAC ductwork. No furnace or ducting is airtight, and simply through the venturi effect, you will pull mold, mold spores, and toxins from the crawlspace through the HVAC system, and deliver it throughout the home. I have heard really sad stories of literally thousands of dollars being spent in an attempt to remediate the issue, with very little or no relief.

Thankfully, the Breathe Pure Solutions of Illinois LLC 2 step dry fog system can return a crawl space and the home to low “mold load”. The first step is called InstaPure, in which a peracetic acid dry fog fills the entire volume of the space. All mold and mold spores, along with any bacterial load will be completely denatured. In the second step, called EverPure, the technician will apply a solution that is widely used as an antimicrobial product in manufacturing. Every surface in the crawl space will be coated with trillions of tiny carbon spikes with a positive electrical charge. No poisons, no heavy metals, no triclosan's, no phenols, no bleach is involved. These tiny spikes create a covalent bond with every surface in the crawl space. This process will make the crawl space very inhospitable to mold in the future. Mold spores will not have the luxury of bouncing around within the space in hopes of finding moisture. As soon as a spore touches an electrically charged spike, it is effectively torn apart. The cycle of mold finding moisture, sporing, and those spores finding moisture and sporing, and having this repeat over and over again will not occur. This along with added ventilation, if needed, is simple and more importantly, a Fresh Start to a Healthy Home.

Which Mold Is The Most Dangerous?

Thu, 20 Aug 2020 14:31:00 GMT

Other molds produce:

Aflatoxins (produced by Aspergillus) including Aflatoxin B1, B2, G1, G2, M1, and M2
Ochratoxin - including Ochratoxin A, B, and C
Fumonisins - including Fumonisin B1 and B2 and Zearalenone

Mold spores out when stressed. Additionally, mold produces dangerous mycotoxins. Spores can affect a person's respiratory tract, cause asthma, headaches, rashes, etc. The mycotoxins that are a byproduct of mold can also cause neurological issues including depression, anxiety, weight gain, weight loss, headaches, brain fog, fatigue, muscle weakness, pain, tingling, etc.

Do all molds cause these? Probably not, but a good portion does. Our recommendation is to treat all mold as a serious problem. If you have obvious mold, regardless of type, you need to address the issue.

Addressing the mycotoxins is altogether different. Mycotoxins are not a living cell or spore. Therefore “killing” a mycotoxin is not possible. They are not alive. However, by eliminating the production of mycotoxins, as well as oxidizing the proteins within the toxin, a home receiving the Pure Maintenance treatment can be returned to a healthy status.

A home with elevated levels of Stachybotrys, Chaetomium, Aspergillus, and others seem to have one thing in common; they are present in homes that have had or are currently experiencing humidity issues, water issues, and ventilation issues. The overall “mold load” in the home needs to be addressed. The beauty of the Pure Maintenance dry fog treatment is that it addresses ALL mold and ALL bacteria in a home. Get your home treated whenever you suspect elevated “mold load” in your home.

The following peer-reviewed writings are a tiny fraction of the overall information regarding Trichothecene. These include effects on the blood-brain barrier, neurological effects, immunological effects, and intestinal effects.

Weidner Maria, Husel Sabine, Ebert Franziska, Schwerte Tanja, Galla Hans-Joachim J, Sumpf Hans-Ulrich U..Influence of T-2 and HT-2 on the blood-brain barrier vitro. New experimental hints for neurotoxic effects.

Other Neurological effects studies include Doi Kunio, Otsuka koji, Mechanisms of mycotoxin-induced Neurotoxicity through Oxidative stress

Immune effects Kankkunen Pain, Valimaki Elina, Rintahaka Johanna, et al. Trichothecene mycotoxins activate NLRP3 Inflammasome through P2X7 receptor and SRC tyrosine kinase-dependent pathway

Why Traditional Remediation Does Not Get Rid Of Mold

Fri, 14 Aug 2020 15:05:00 GMT

Let's assume this house is 15 to 20 years old. As homes age, the “mold load” within a home increases. It has to increase. Every home, regardless of the level of housekeeping, has little pockets of mold growth. These include bathroom tile, bathroom flooring, windows and window sills, carpet near water, clothing, sink drains, floor drains, rags, etc etc. All of these small areas have mold growth to some degree. Undoubtedly these little areas will spore, and either 1. Add more mold to these areas, or 2. find a new pocket. Remember mold remains viable for years and years. The cumulative effect of all these little pockets becomes elevated mold load within a home over the years and years. You don't believe this? Someone explain the “grandma and grandpa” smell or odor of an older home. Of course, it is mold, elevated mold load. The various changes in building codes, materials, and styles have made the problem worse. So let's assume that on a scale of 1-20, and 20 being an absolute moldy disaster with visible mold, elevated mold spore counts, and mold odor, this home week before the flood was an 8. 8 is probably a good guess since the EPA now says that up to 50 percent of all homes and buildings are affected by elevated mold levels. When the flood occurred, and within 24 hours of the said flood, the“8” climbed to a 14. When the disaster company came in and did their work for the next two weeks on just the basement bedroom, the house likely dropped to a 10. It's not going back to an 8, since the initial flood would have to elevate the mold load throughout the home. The mold created during the early stages of the flood undoubtedly sent spores throughout the home. Even if the disaster company was able to remove every single solitary spore, hyphae, and mycelium, the home would have increased in overall mold load with the elevated humidity during the flood, the actions taken during the initial cleanup, and the general cleanup. No, I do not believe double bagging with a twisty tie prevents a mold spore from escaping and entering the rest of the home.

Furthermore, the thing that is of most concern, is that the disaster company will now declare the home “safe” and the customer will assume that the home healthy.

What is missing with traditional remediation techniques.? The failure to admit that the entire home could be sick, and likely is sick. The actual water intrusion did not bring the mold that followed. The mold load and corresponding mold spores were already in the home before the flood. The spores simply landed on the wet stuff. So removing the “wet stuff” only removes the spores that happened to land on the moisture and start to grow. The fact of the matter is, the flood likely just elevated an already moldy home. Again, the EPA now says up to percent of homes have moisture problems and elevated mold. The flood simply manifested this fact.

Breathe Pure Solutions of Illinois LLC is the first Company in the Nation to understand and stress the point that the Entire Home is Sick, not just where the water came in. The mold did not, or likely, did not come with the water intrusion. The mold was already in the home at elevated levels, and the mold spores in the home found the water. Spot rebuild does not address the health of the entire home. It just makes the wet stuff go away. Often, it is more affordable and much more effective to find your local Breathe Pure Solutions of Illinois LLC Licensee and return your Entire home to a healthy status.

Restoring Home Health Is First Step in Healing

Tue, 11 Aug 2020 15:43:00 GMT

Water aside, mold only needs two other major ingredients to facilitate growth and reproduction - oxygen and nutrition. And, unless you are not breathing (aka dead), your body is providing a good supply of oxygen to the bloodstream as well as to the most vital organs and systems. In our outdoor environments, nutrition for mold takes the forms of plants and soil. In our homes and facilities mold goes after wood, dust, concrete, sheetrock, and pretty much anything we use to build. In short, It’s not very hard for mold to find nutrition indoors. Within the physical body, mold will not feed on soil or building materials but will attempt to consume anything it can find which typically takes any of the various forms of organic matter native to each of us.

Kind of a grim outlook, right? Well, given these seeming bodily disadvantages when compared to fending off other microbes our bodies still do quite well. However, success is largely contingent on one very important factor. Our bodies must stop ingesting high doses of mold spores and their common mycotoxin companions. Our bodies can continue to use their natural processes to detox and flush and cleanse all day long, but it’s to no avail if our dwelling environments are filled with high counts of mold and mycotoxins. Removing the cause of mold-related health problems and illnesses must be the first step in any remedial therapy, detoxing, and healing. Any healing modality will fall short if the body is continually fighting against a moldy living environment.

There is some good news because this can be remedied. In my experience, there are only two ways to solve the dilemma of living in moldy environments: 1) Move, and 2) Get the mold remediated in such a way that it addresses the whole health of the home. Most of us do not want to move into a different home solely to avoid mold, nor do we want the headaches that accompany such an endeavor. If that’s you, then you're left with the second option. I was careful in my wording because as intuitive as it sounds it can be easy to focus only on the visible mold colonies that are in a particular part of the house, say the bathroom or basement, and not think in terms of the overall air quality and health of a home. I can’t tell you how many homes I’ve been to where the source of the musty smell cannot even be determined. Perhaps, little drips and spills have accumulated over the years, resulting in an off odor. Perhaps, there was a flood that was not addressed on time, and the mold and the musty smell is now into the carpets and furniture. Or, perhaps, the HVAC units and vents have, over time, collected and are now distributing mold spores throughout the home.

There are other instances, like the situation I had recently in Orem, Utah where the homeowner had hired a mold remediator to rip out and take care of some black mold in her master bathroom. Following the remediation, she continued to wake up around 3 AM every morning with a migraine. She ended up convincing her insurance company to pay for our full house treatment from Breathe Pure Solutions of Illinois LLC in which we addressed the mold and mycotoxins within every room in the house as well as the HVAC and vents, and the common mold hotspots such as window seals drain, sink overflows, housing for the jacuzzi tub, etc. Last time we talked, about two months following the full house mold treatment, she said the morning migraines had completely stopped within a few days of the treatment and her daytime migraines had been reduced by two-thirds.

Mold and mycotoxins are hard on our bodies. The healing journey can be long and hard, especially if there has been long-term exposure to moldy environments. Fortunately, there is an increasing amount of health practitioners who understand how to address mold-related illnesses throughout the country. We support and cheer these professionals on in their valuable work. The practitioners we work within the Salt Lake and Park City area are adamant about having healthy air to breathe and healthy home environments before even attempting any remedial therapies. In some cases, remediating a home back to healthy levels and thus allowing the body to detox itself is all that’s needed for mold-related health concerns. In other cases, it’s only the first step to better health. Whatever the case, we join with the mold fighting community to continue providing and creating cleaner indoor air for all of us to breathe.

Guidance From CDC On Reopening Buildings After Prolonged Shutdowns

Tue, 28 Jul 2020 15:57:00 GMT

It is important to understand that every building or facility in the world is operating on the very edge of becoming a mold-infested disaster. Buildings are meticulously engineered by air handling experts, architects and the like to maintain the proper airflow, temperature, humidity, vapor pressure, balance, etc.

Who To Call For Mold Removal

Thu, 12 Mar 2020 16:02:00 GMT

Understanding Pure Maintenance And the Industry Standard Testing Procedures

Now, let’s assume before the test is 40,000. Do you have mold? Yes. Is the 40,000 indicative of your mold level? Probably not. The actual mold “load” of a house would be exponentially higher than this.

Now, the question is- since we have established that the mold level in the home cannot be quantifiable with air testing, how do we determine how bad the mold is?

The answer is simple, we don't know. This is why the government has attempted to establish guidelines of minimum mold spore counts, and every time has come up with zero guidelines. Every home or building is different and every person is different. The mold load could be really bad and make someone in your home really sick, or it could be really bad and nobody in your home gets sick. It could also be small amounts in the home and makes someone in the home really sick. Some have the genetic makeup to get very sick from the toxins. Others get sinus infections from just a few spores. It’s literally impossible to establish a minimum safe mold level. So it becomes a personal decision that each customer needs to make based on smell, visual assessment, health, history of the home, and advice from their health care practitioner.

Now that we have established that testing a non-treated home or building is non-sensical, let’s examine exactly what happens to a home before treatment and while it is receiving the pure maintenance dry fog treatment.

The state of a mold-ridden home is as follows. Mold levels continue to climb, day after day, and year after year. Here is a comparison, a Meth home is safer tomorrow than it is today. The Meth will eventually off-gas (this is, of course, if the meth users have moved out). Fresh air is introduced, the epicenter or user of meth has moved, so fresh air will eventually get a stronghold. So again, dealing with meth or any VOC’s, like new carpet, or a memory foam mattress, tomorrow is safer than today, next year is way safer than this year. A mold-ridden home, however, is the opposite. The mold “load” is more dangerous a week from now than it is today. And will continue to be more dangerous as time goes by. Mold isn't going to die on its own. It grows, its spores, it goes dormant, then happens upon moisture, and repeats the whole process. The EPA has recently said that the only way to control the mold is to control the moisture in the home. They are right, but good luck on a home that already has high levels of mold load and mold spores. Every home has it's own little, what we at Pure Maintenance call, “Mold Factories”. Think of the mold factories as “pent up” energy waiting to explode. These areas are mostly healthy growing mold.Theydon'tsporeoften. Theseareasincludebutarenotlimited to bathrooms in general, caulking in tubs and toilets, bathroom ceilings, toilet seals, drains in sinks and tubs, dried out P-traps, window tracks (particularly on North sides of homes), front-loading washing machines, food, clothing, shoes, etc. Throw in the inevitable homeowner disaster, in which a basement floods, or a small pipe leaks between walls, or a water heater bursts. Everyone has a story. Add in building flaws limiting airflow from outside to in and inside to out, an occasional bathroom without a vent, carpet in a bathroom, and humidifiers malfunctioning in an HVAC. Now consider the fact that our walls are made of paper, we use porous particle board, etc. All of these factors cause the mold “load” in the home to climb. A great example of this that everyone is familiar with is the “grandma and grandpa smell” in older homes. That’s not grandma and grandpa, well, not usually. That’s years and years of the mold “load” in the home getting higher and higher. And remember the pent up energy of all the mold factories in the grandma and grandpa home. The pent up energy is largely the growing happy and content mold. As you can see, it's almost impossible to truly and accurately measure the mold “load” of a home. Certainly not by air quality testing.

So what happens when we fog? The home is filled with a vapor (fog) of PAA i.e. InstaPURE, the very same PAA that has been tested over and over in labs all over the world. It is the exact same fog that kills viruses and bacteria, which incidentally; is much harder to kill than fungi. It is the top tier of sterilants in both the aqueous and the vapor form. And it’s not just Pure Maintenance saying this. It is absolutely common knowledge in the disinfection world. It’s going to sterilize the home. While fogging the InstaPURE, we are stirring up the mold and the air dramatically. We are dumping in 10-15 Cubic feet per minute of air at 90 psi. Along with this we are driving the humidity up to 80-90 percent and driving the parts per million of InstaPURE to 40 or 50 ppm. The spores in the air are obviously getting hit with the vapor, and the growing mold is in a state of stress since it is getting hit with fog. When growing mold is in a state of stress, its spores. Dramatically. Tests that we have conducted show that a before the test of 300 could, when tested during the first few minutes of fog, climb to 30,000 or more. This simply demonstrates the potential “pent up” energy in a moldy home. We are attacking all of the mold factories, spores, the entire mold load of the home.

After the 45 minutes minimum of dwell time, the fog has exhausted all factories. They have no life, literally, and no sporing potential. The home is sterile, with nothing but junk floating around in the air. The junk, by all testing that we have performed, often gets misinterpreted as a mold spore. Most commonly as pen/asp. This is akin to a war zone after the battle. The overall mold “load” is now at zero. The home or facility is safe.

Now we perform the EverPURE process. The purpose of the EverPURE treatment is to make the home or building “inhospitable” to mold and mold spores. On a non-treated home, mold has the luxury of floating inside from outdoors and potentially bouncing around many times searching for moisture. Now, I don't for a minute think that a mold spore has a brain, but this is essentially what is happening since it will hit a dry surface and not stick, get blown off of that surface, and become airborne to the next surface. This will continue until it hits moisture. Once it lands on moisture, it begins to grow. It needs food, but even dust will suffice. Again, as we have stated in the past, a moldy bathroom does not mean you have something wrong with the bathroom. It means your overall mold level along with spores is elevated and it is manifesting itself wherever there is moisture.

Remember that the key to EverPURE is that the Nitrogen molecule has an incredibly strong positive charge to it. Mold has a negative charge to it. Consider this for a minute, if the “junk” floating in the air still had life, the live spores would still have a negative charge. It stands to reason that when we fog EverPURE, the two would attract and fall to the floor together. This doesn't happen. Why? Because the junk in the air is lifeless. It has no charge. Viability tests conducted as part of a side by side comparison with non-viable testing has confirmed this. At Fort McNair, we showed “junk” in the air as part of the non-viable testing, but the Viability testing that was performed side by side showed absolutely nothing was alive.

So there you have it. Before testing is mostly inconclusive. “After” non-viability testing is a better, but still shows junk in really badly infested structures. Viability testing is much more accurate since we have disturbed the mold to the point that it is exhausted.

More importantly, what has the Pure Maintenance treatment accomplished? A number of things. All really good, and all things that no other mold remediation company can replicate.

Killed i.e. denatured all mold spores and mold cells, and bacteria, and virus.
Exhausted all of the little mold factories, which if not addressed, will put the home right back into the moldy situation.
Addressed the health of the entire home. Not just where someone can see that there has been moisture.
We have made the home very inhospitable for mold to ever get a stronghold in the home again.

Feel proud that the Pure Maintenance dry fog system is the finest mold remediation available in the world.

Comparing the Pure Maintenance process to the industry substandard “tear out, and hepa scrub the air” approach of traditional remediation companies. The overall mold “load” of the home or facility has not been changed much if any. And it is going to climb again. Tomorrow is worse than today, next week will be worse than this week. Again, there is a reason they will not tear down the containment before testing.

PS. Pure Maintenance does believe that the ERMI test, which stands for Environmental Relative Moldiness Index is accurate BEFORE the test. ERMI uses dust sampling off of the carpet or hard surfaces, so it’s a fairly good history of mold that has been around the home for a while.

PURE MAINTENANCE "5

And with the ERMI test, you are not so much a victim of sporing or airflow as you are with an air quality test. The ERMI also uses DNA to perform a PCR which stands for polymerase chain reaction testing and defines the very genus of the mold. An example would be- it’s Aspergillus, but what kind of Aspergillus is it? For us, it doesn't matter, but for some it does. Some people like to know so they can tailor the treatment to the patient. ERMI is good before the test. ERMI is terrible after the test since it is using DNA. DNA remains after we kill/denature mold. I REPEAT, ERMI is NOT a good AFTER the test. We need to make sure that the doctor and patient understand this concept. Most are fine with it as long as we explain. In fact, I have yet to talk to a doctor about this subject and then have them object to the treatment.

PURE MAINTENANCE

Mycotoxins

Wed, 04 Mar 2020 16:18:00 GMT

Chaetomium produces two different mycotoxins called chaetoglobosins A and chaetoglobosins C. All of the aforementioned are very common in water damaged buildings. Tricothecene or T-2 is exactly what Nerve Gas is made from. It is suspected to have been used in Laos and Cambodia in the late 70’s and early 80’s, and Afghanistan in more recent years. It has been described and aptly named “yellow rain”. It causes all kinds of health issues from nausea, sore throat, cough, difficulty breathing, bleeding disorders, and even death. It also is linked to various neurological problems. Obviously in the case of Yellow Rain, the concentration is lethal.

The study of mycotoxins within the indoor air industry is in its infancy. It has long been studied relating to livestock, agricultural commodities, and food supplies. Particularly the food or grain that cattle are fed. There is also a lot of coverage on peanuts having mycotoxins along with the mold. This is well documented, however; it has only recently risen to the attention of indoor air hygienists and the medical world associating indoor mold and mold toxicity.

- Mike Adams

The Pure Process

Tue, 10 Sep 2019 15:13:00 GMT

InstaPURE The first of Breathe Pure Solutions of Illinois LLC two-step process is a “dry fog” called InstaPURE. InstaPURE utilizes a powerful EPA-registered cold sterilant that denatures mold spores throughout your home, lysing their cell walls and unwinding the proteins as described in this article . By turning the mold spore or other microbial organism into inert matter, you can breathe a healthy sigh of relief knowing that the mold in your home or office is gone. The InstaPURE process is so effective that it will disinfect and sterilize any surface it touches without getting anything wet. InstaPURE is also used in offices, hospitals, daycares, gyms, cars, etc.

First – We treat all the ductwork in the home or building. Air ducts are common sources of microbial growth due to moisture caused by temperature differentials, so we start here.

Second – We treat the remainder of the home or building room-by-room. This is done to build up barometric pressure and relative humidity in each room, invoking the Laws of Thermodynamics. The elevated pressure and humidity, combined with a vapor phase change, will force the dry fog to push into microscopic crevices.

Third – We use a liquid chemical sterilant to treat drains, jetted tubs, and overflows to eliminate microbial life. This will denature all the organisms (fungi and bacteria) that cause foul odors in your sinks and showers.

The bi-product of the InstaPURE process is akin to distilled white vinegar in a fume form. This is non-toxic and will disperse quickly when we open windows after treatment. You will notice a slight vinegar-like smell for 24-48 hours after our treatment is complete, BUT you are completely safe to sleep in your own bed within a few hours after we leave.

EverPURE

The second application in the patent-protected Breathe Pure Solutions of Illinois LLC process is EverPURE. While InstaPURE can effectively remediate virtually any home, office, or other building, what happens when new mold spores enter the premises? EverPURE is the answer! EverPURE provides antimicrobial protection once it is applied. In many areas, this will last much longer!! This organo-silane antimicrobial leaves no visible or tangible residue, unlike many other antimicrobial compounds. It sits on your keyboard, door knobs, walls, furniture, and every other surface of your home waiting for the next mold spore, bacteria, orvirus looking for a place colonize. When a microbial comes near a surface of your home, the antimicrobial will pull in the organism and mechanically destroy the cell on contact.

**The chemical products used for InstaPURE and EverPURE are EPA-registered and FDA-approved for use in all 50 states.

Updated 05/2021

The Link Between Neurological Issues And Mold Exposure

Wed, 24 Jul 2019 16:35:00 GMT

The brain has a different method of metabolizing toxins; the glymphatic system. In 2012, researchers from the University of Rochester identified this new maintenance system called the glymphatic system, which uses the cells’ mitochondria to remove cellular waste from the brain. It found that the clear cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) in the brain is what is responsible for draining toxins from the brain, similar to how the lymphatic system is what removes waste from other cells in our bodies to the kidney and liver. But, the brain has no lymph, and relies on the cerebral spinal fluid.

According to Psychology Today, ”Exposure to triggers such as environmental toxins and infections can cause chronic inflammation in multiple body systems. These triggers cause damage to the immune system, the brain, the heart, the lungs, and many other body systems.

Exposure to triggers is cumulative and can, over time, cause debilitating chronic illness and even death. An important part of the treatment of all EAIs is to reduce exposure to environmental triggers and to help the body to expel toxic buildup through detoxification. Treatment of EAIs is more likely to be successful if the patient and physician can identify the specific triggers affecting the patient’s health. EAIs are interconnected. For example: a person with biotoxin illness is likely to become more sensitive to chemicals and develop multiple chemical sensitivities (MCS). Likewise, a person who suffers from chronic Lyme disease is likely to become more sensitive to mold and other toxins found in water-damaged buildings. Some people who have become ill from exposure to one set of triggers may become sensitive to wi-fi exposure.” It is thought that many illnesses not mentioned above may be caused or exacerbated by a person’s exposure to environmental toxins. These include:

Alzheimer’s disease and dementia
Epilepsy and other seizure disorders
Dysautonomias such as postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome
(POTS)
Parkinson’s disease
Autistic spectrum disorders
Depression, anxiety and other mental illnesses
Autoimmune diseases
Cancer
Diabetes (Type 2) and metabolic syndrome
Obesity
Cardiovascular disease
Celiac disease, and other food sensitivities
Leaky gut syndrome (LGS) and dysbiosis
Asthma and allergies
Pneumonia and COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease)
Psoriasis and eczema

Chronic exposure to harmful environmental toxins and other triggers interferes with the normal functions of the body. They can affect the mind. It is not uncommon for children or adults with recurring exposures to moldy indoor environments at home, work, or school to develop multiple symptoms. Treatment for mold exposure and Breathe Pure Solutions of Illinois LLC Dry Fog procedure in the home or office will lead to substantial improvement of health.

What Is The llCRC?

Sun, 23 Jun 2019 16:52:00 GMT

Are their projects in which the dry fog is not appropriate? Of course there are. Are most projects going to benefit from the dry fog treatment? The answer is an overwhelming YES! Breathe Pure Solutions of Illinois LLC licensees are represented throughout the United States. Some just do dry fog treatments, others fall into the category of “restoration” companies that compliment their services rendered with additional dry fog treatments. It is a new cutting edge, patented, and proprietary technology. We make no apologies for improving the quality of the lives of our customers. Breathe Pure Solutions of Illinois LLC dry fog treatment does not pretend to fall into the realm of IICRC protocols. It does, however, fall into the category of- and as stated by the IICRC-“updated developments in the field of mold remediation.”

What Is The Link Between Lyme Disease And Mold

Tue, 14 May 2019 17:00:00 GMT

What is the connection between Lyme disease and Mold?

Breathe Pure Solutions of Illinois LLC is the only company in the world that addresses the health of the entire home. True mold remediation must involve more than just the area of water intrusion. Once a home or building has a water intrusion, it must be considered that the entire home is sick. The entire home must be accounted for and returned to healthy status.

The Mold Epidemic

Thu, 09 May 2019 17:10:00 GMT

The Mold Epidemic

The change from plaster walls to sheetrock. Sheetrock is covered with paper that mold loves, particularly black mold. Moisture will always “wick” from wet to dry. Therefore, if your foundation is wet, it will wick to the studs in the walls, which will then wick to the paper on the sheetrock.
Pressed wood or particle board. This was developed as a cheaper alternative to solid wood. It is essentially wood pulp, and wood pieces glued together. This is not only more porous, which soaks up and retains water much better than straight lumber, but the glue, mixed with the mold creates all types of mycotoxin and VOC problems. Mold releases enzymes to breakdown its food. The mold than produces mycotoxins as an after effect of feeding and growing.
Changes in building codes in the 1970’s. Let’s remember the energy crisis of the 70’s-long gas lines, concerns for imported oil and gas. In an effort to be less dependent on energy, building codes were almost universally changed throughout the country. The changes were aimed at reducing the outdoor cold air from getting in and the indoor heat from getting out. in the winter, and the outdoor heat from getting in and the indoor cool air from getting out in the winter. What we actually created are homes that can’t breathe. When homes have very little airflow, the moisture within the home becomes a real issue. As the indoor humidity level exceeds 60 percent (some experts even say 55 percent), we have essentially created an ideal environment for mold. Less air movement means things stay moist longer. As building materials and contents of the home stay moist, mold grows and propagates. It doesn’t have to even be a flood or major event. Refer to our blog titled “What is happening to our Homes” for a better understanding.
EMF’s are now at an astronomical rate. EMF’s are electromagnetic fields. With the explosion of cell phones and Wifi, the scientific data is just now pouring in. EMF’s make mold much worse. EMF’s not only make the mold toxins worse, but the body takes on EMF’s just like any other toxin. Toxin overload is more and more likely when you combine that EMF’s are attacking your system, along with making the toxins from mold worse. As the toxins in your body build up, the healthiness of your home, (the place you spend half of your life) is critically important.

Breathe Pure Solutions of Illinois LLC dry fog system addresses the health of the entire home without introducing your family to further poisons, heavy metals, phenols, and the like. Breathe Pure Solutions of Illinois LLC is a fresh start to a healthy home.

Top 10 Places Mold Might Be Hiding Inside Your Home

Tue, 16 Apr 2019 17:16:00 GMT

Where will you find mold in your home?

Does The Ozone Work For Mold Remediation?

Wed, 10 Apr 2019 17:56:00 GMT

What is the connection between Lyme disease and Mold?

The above information, coupled with the EPA noting that several health effects including decreased lung function, throat irritation, severe asthma symptoms, cough, chest pain, shortness of breath, irritation of lung tissue, and higher sensitivity to respiratory infection make ozone a poor choice to improve the health of your home.

Is UV Light Effective?

Thu, 28 Mar 2019 18:09:00 GMT

You can google UV light and mold and stumble onto a plethora of information and mis-information relative to UV (ultra violet) light and its attempt to control mold. According to the EPA, 92 million Americans live in substandard air quality.

What Is Happening To Our Homes?

Sun, 24 Mar 2019 18:20:00 GMT

Here is a little known secret. The mold companies use the containment method more for the after testing than for the safety of the occupants. If they can confine an area with plastic, and then run “air scrubbers” within the confined area at the end of the project, you will be able to run a test (with the confinement still in place) and declare the home safe. Sometimes they have to run these scrubbers for days to get a good test result. Wait a minute…. are they not testing the whole home? No, just the area where the containment existed. News Flash #1 THE SPORES ARE THROUGHOUT THE HOME!!! As soon as the containment comes down, that area will be infected again.

Now going back to the mold spore count within the home, you are now comfortably 100 to 1000 times higher than the outdoor level at a very minimum. Now it is manifesting itself in the bathrooms, it’s in the window sills, it’s in your drains. Remember that we said “manifesting” itself in those places. It’s everywhere, but this is where it is visible because you have water for it to stick to, begin to feed, and spore out. Your laundry stinks if left in the washer for a day, your food gets moldy quicker than ever before. Even though you just had a professional company do their professional, insurance company sanctioned, certified protocol, someone is still sick- or will be soon. Let’s throw in another variable to really confuse the general public. News Flash #2!! Air quality tests are extremely inaccurate. Everyone knows this. California won’t even accept them in litigation. California now says, if you see mold or you can smell mold, you have mold. Period.

To think that you can determine the moldiness of a home by pulling in 75 liters of air, hoping that 1. mold sticks 2. mold is sporing out at the time, 3. the air flow of the home is bringing the mold to the area being tested. Additionally, Stachybotrys is a very heavy spore, that doesn’t remain aloft for long, Chaetomium spores out inside a perithecium, which keeps it from becoming aloft easily, and every lab reads the tests a little differently. These are two of the most toxic molds in the world, and its hard to pick them up in a test. We tell people that an air test is a tool , and that’s all it is. It is by no means a definitive measurement of the health of the home.

In conclusion, every home is different, but every home has potential issues with mold, mycotoxins and bacteria/endotoxins, etc. regardless of whether it has been professionally remediated or not. Additionally, it is difficult to measure the health of a home, and it’s impossible to declare the home safe, unless the entire home has been treated. Breathe Pure Solutions of Illinois LLC is one of the few companies in the country that understands that the entire home is sick, not just where the flood occurred, and not just where the mold is manifesting itself. The mold and mold spores are everywhere. That’s one reason why Breathe Pure Solutions of Illinois LLC is growing so quickly throughout the country. Breathe Pure Solutions of Illinois LLC addresses the health of the entire home. People who have been sick for years, are getting well after the home has received the Breathe Pure Solutions of Illinois LLC 2 step dry fog treatment.

Chronic Inflammatory Response Syndrome "CIRS"

Tue, 19 Mar 2019 18:27:00 GMT

It’s often difficult for people, including health care practitioners, to get to the bottom of their health issues when it is associated with mold. Often times, a traditional family doctor will not even think of the possibility of it being an environmental issue. It is also further complicated because it is typical for most of the family members to feel fine. For example, if there is water damage in a house, often only one member of the family with one of these gene types may become sick, while the rest of the family is relatively unaffected. This has led to a lot of confusion. In some cases, the person with CIRS has been accused of making it up, or has told the symptoms are in their head.

Home building techniques in the U.S. have dramatically changed in the past 40 years. We have transitioned from plaster walls to sheetrock with paper as a food source for mold. We have also introduced more porous building materials to our homes i.e. particle board, which soak up the water and create an ideal breeding ground for mold. We have also decided, in an effort to be more energy efficient, to wrap our homes tightly. This may improve the heating and air conditioning costs, but the homes no longer can breathe. This helps mold to gain a stronghold in the home. All of these subtle changes have created widespread elevated mold spore counts in our homes. This can happen even if you have not experienced a flood or leak of some kind. Breathe Pure Solutions of Illinois LLC offers a unique and affordable process to rid a home of mold, mold toxins, and bacteria. Typically in a 4-6 hour window, Breathe Pure Solutions of Illinois LLC can return the home to less than outdoor mold spore levels.

The Dead Mold Myth

Thu, 07 Feb 2019 18:32:00 GMT

Where did the Dead Mold Myth come from, and why does it linger?

The Answer

Most still operate under the thought process that we killed the mold with the bleach, but someone was still sick. Therefore we need to tear out as much as possible. There is no testing data, no white paper, or anything that scientifically shows that a dead mold spore can either A- make you sick or, B- become an allergen. Yet the myth remains alive, based on bad information dating back to the 60’s. Another facet of this subject is the confusion between dead mold spores and dormant mold spores. Yes, dormant mold can still make you sick and dormant mold can still be an allergen. Think of dormant as “dehydrated” or dried out mold. Once it is exposed to the right environment, it’s off and running again. The dormant cell is still in-tact. But dead mold is a whole different thing. Dead, by the Breathe Pure Solutions of Illinois LLC definition, and the microbiological world definition of dead, is accomplished by what is know as lysis . The outer membrane of the cell will fall apart through a process of oxidation.

Denaturing

Additionally, we incorporate a process called denaturing . The definition of denaturing is: destroying the characteristic properties of a protein or biological macromolecule by heat, acidity, or other effects that disrupt the molecular conformation. InstaPURE is an EPA registered sterilant. By the very nature of that registration, it has to kill mold. Once mold has been exposed to InstaPURE, the outer membrane is oxidized and the cell is denatured. It becomes “inert nothingness”. Mike Adams February 2019

Four Simple Steps To Prevent Mold Growth On Bathroom Walls

Wed, 06 Feb 2019 15:49:00 GMT

By Ryan Taylor IF you are a human who breathes, you have probably seen funny black, pink, orange, brown, or white growth around a bathtub or shower. Usually you see it the grout or caulking, but sometimes you see it accumulate underneath a persistent drip in your leaky faucet. Once mold is visible in a building, it often requires professional remediation in order to eliminate it and stop it from growing back. BUT you can also use some simple techniques to eliminate lingering bathroom moisture and keep mold under control before it becomes a problem. Tools you may need:

Stiff scrub brush
Sponge
Squeegee
Face mask
Cleaning gloves

Materials needed:

Cleaning agent
Grout Sealer

Eliminating lingering moisture Bathrooms in any climate are subject to higher moisture levels. If that moisture lingers for too long, mold will grow, and will be difficult to get rid of regardless of how often you clean. Eliminating linger moisture in your bathrooms is key to preventing new mold growth. To prevent lingering humidity and mold growth, follow these four steps:

Step 1: Clean No technique will prevent mold growth better than cleaning regularly. Waiting until you visibly see a need to clean will nearly always create an environment for mold to grow. Remove existing mold (both visible and not visible). While wearing sufficient protective equipment, use a cleaning agent to remove mold stains. Bleach is often recommended through hearsay to treat mold, but unfortunately it isn’t enough to do the job on its own. It is, however, very good at whitening the stains after the mold is killed. Consider combining household chemicals like hydrogen peroxide and white vinegar to create a mold-killing compound. Be sure not to spray the chemicals as inhaling them can harm your lungs. Use a stiff scrub brush and sponge to physically remove the stains as well as any mold that might have rested on any other surface. Wash any chemical residue down the drain.

Step 2: Squeegee After EVERY bath or shower, squeegee water off the shower or bathtub walls. This will significantly reduce the amount of water available to support mold and mildew growth. It will also allow the room to dry far more rapidly.

Step 3: Ventilate Depending on when and how your home was built, you may or may not have a bathroom fan. If you have a ceiling or wall fan installed, run the fan both during and for at least a half hour after you shower. This pulls air with high moisture out while pulling in drier air from other areas of your home. If you don’t have a fan, or if your fan is too small for your bathroom size, consider placing a fan in the bathroom window to pull humid air directly outside.

Step 4: Seal Grout and caulking fail. When mold is present, they fail even quicker. If you have caulking, pay close attention to its integrity. If it begins to crack or peal away from the surfaces, remove it, and replace with brand new caulking. If you have grout, you can waterproof it by sealing the grout lines annually with a standard sealer. If the grout is cracking or crumbling, you may be too late to repair it yourself.