Are you beginning a remodeling project? Well, take a deep breath because your air is about to be affected in a major way. Is this preventable? It can be, if you take action. The most important time to act is before you begin your remodeling project, especially if you are staying in your home during the process. It is your job to make sure your contractor has your family and overall indoor air quality (IAQ) in mind before workers start invading your home and creating a dust storm.
This is a vital concern for homeowners, especially if someone in your home has breathing difficulties, such as asthma or another chronic medical condition. In the past, contractors used patchwork dust-control solutions that are ineffective at preventing hazardous dust from traveling throughout the home. Today, more contractors are remodeling smarter and cleaner by providing livable remodeling to their clients.
Here are three ways to protect your livability within your home and to ensure that your contractor understands your need for excellent IAQ:
Learn about the dangers of dust.
Remember the last time you kicked up a lot of dust? Your eyes itched. Your throat burned. You might have even felt dizzy and fatigued. Those are common signs of indoor air pollution. You need to understand exactly what your family and pets could be inhaling while a contractor builds your dream kitchen.
Examples of harmful substances that might be uncovered during your remodel include:
• Materials such as drywall, cement and sawdust
• Dangerous substances such as silica, asbestos and lead
• Mold and mildew
• Dirt and debris of many sizes, including ones you can’t even see
• Organic matter like rodent feces and dead bugs
If you have IAQ problems before a remodeling project, they could be magnified by 10 times if a dust management plan is not in place. Visit livableremodeling.com to learn how this dust can be ingested by humans and pets every day during a project Also, remember that just because you can’t see it, doesn’t mean it isn’t there. Smaller dust particles are the most hazardous. They are lighter, stay in the air longer and travel farther than larger particles.
Make a livability plan.
As the protector of your household, you need to be armed and ready to ask your contractor some tough questions to make sure your family is safe throughout this long and hard process. Before you hire a contractor, make sure you relay the information you’ve learned about hazardous dust.
Create a checklist of discussion points for contractors that can be the basis for your livability plan. For tips, visit build-clean.com/homeowner/tips.php. For example, what is the project timeline? What will be your temporary living arrangements if, for example, the contractor is working on the kitchen or bathroom? And, most importantly, what is the contractor’s plan to control potentially hazardous dust from invading the rest of your home?
Find a “clean” contractor.
Top contractors across the nation are using new tools and work processes to minimize the dust. Your contractor should have you covered, if you pick the right one. One of the top new practices is to collect dust while it is still airborne, such as with the new BuildClean Dust Control System. Collecting particulates in this manner is the most effective way to capture and virtually eliminate all types of work-site dust — up to 90 percent of airborne dust, to be exact.
The result? You can breathe easy. Your indoor air quality even can improve to better than normal levels. Homeowners like Jim Colpi of Northbrook, Illinois, appreciate the efficiency and effectiveness of BuildClean. He saw firsthand how BuildClean picked up dust from all stages of his basement remodel — including the wood framing, drywall installation and sanding — and kept it out of his family’s living areas.
“It was kind of shocking that there was no dust anywhere. Period,” Colpi said. “It’s as if the project had not even happened.”
Homeowners don’t have to accept the dust and the dangerous living environment that it creates. Expect livable remodeling. You deserve it. For helpful tips and important points to discuss with your contractors visit livableremodeling.com.
This article is courtesy of Brandpoint.