Archive for the 'Blog' Category

The Most Common Places That Mold Can Grow in Your Home

When people think of mold, the thought of stale bread or food often comes to mind. Mold lurking in the corners of your home aren’t generally thought of. This is a problem because mold can have serious health effects, from allergies to respiratory issues. It is important to take mold growth in your home seriously, or you may be putting you and your family’s health at risk.

So where does mold lurk in your home? Well, mold grows in damp, humid places. That can mean many areas in your home. Here are the most common places that mold grows in homes:

Basement

When you think of a basement, what are the first three words that come to mind? Likely, the words are a combination of dark, damp and creepy. Well, the dark and damp part is what causes mold to grow. Basements can also have water damage due to flooding, which can lead to mold growth.

Walls

Pipes are inside of walls and if there are pipe leaks, you might not even know what you…

Mold Can be Lurking in Your Home

Mold is not a substance that you want to mess with. Unfortunately, mold can grow in many areas of your home. That is why you need to know the signs that you may have mold in your home.

Signs of Mold in Your Home

• Smell: Mold has a distinct smell. If you smell mold, but cannot see it, you may have an underlying problem that needs to be addressed.
• Sight: The obvious sign of mold is seeing it. It can be as simple as what grows between the grout in your bathroom. It is important to note that even small amounts of mold can have a negative impact.
• Pipe Leaks: These can denote that mold is present. Unfortunately, leaks are often hidden behind walls and if left undetected, there can be larger issues at hand.
• Flooding: If your house has been flooded in the past, you may have mold lingering. If flooding left home materials wet for more than 24 hours, chances are that mold is growing somewhere.
• Water Stains: If you see water stains on ceilings or walls,…
  READ MORE →

Tackling a Home Renovation as Your New Year’s Resolution

New Year, New You. That’s how the saying goes, right?

As we find ourselves in the year 2017, you celebrated with friends, loved ones or family, toasted the ball drop with champagne, and maybe even had yourself a New Year’s kiss. Chances are that you made a New Year’s resolution before the clock struck midnight as well.

What was your New Year’s resolution? Was it to stop swearing or at least cut back on the bad words? Maybe it was to lose some weight or get into better shape to finally run that 5k you’ve always wanted to. Was it to love yourself first, or be more confident?

Or maybe, you’ve decided to tackle the resolution of all resolutions and finally get started on that home renovation you’ve been promising yourself for years. You know the renovation you were going to do when you bought the house five years ago. Well the time has finally come and 2017 is the year!

You might be ripping apart your kitchen and replacing old rickety cabinets and Formica countertops with cherry cabinetry and…

Have a Happy Holiday with AQHI, Inc. Keeping Your Home Safe

The holidays are upon us. Isn’t it the truth that they sneak up on us earlier and earlier each year? Chances are that you find yourself scrambling to get everything together. Any shopping that wasn’t completed on Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, or Cyber Monday needs to be completed. Gifts need to be wrapped, the tree prepped, and stockings stuffed. Festive lights need to be hung outside, along with tinsel and decorations inside. Especially if you have children, you will want your home looking like a glorious Winter Wonderland, minus the snow since we’re in California.

The list might seem never ending, and that’s before we even get to drafting, singing and sending out holiday cards, and prepping for Christmas dinner. You need to find a turkey, ham, roast, or whatever entre fills the center of your dining table, and decide what sides will accompany it. That’s not even including the daunting task of cleaning up after Christmas dinner. In addition to that, there’s cleaning and preparing for all the family and…

Environmental Remediation Market Expected to Reach $123.13 Billion by 2022

The environmental remediation market is expected to grow 7.62% annually between 2016 and 2022. This number may seem alarming, but between the increasing need for environmental protection, government regulations, increasing pollution, and demand from automotive, forestry, oil and gas industries, the increase is actually quite believable.

Another reason for this unprecedented growth is the increase in renovations of homes across America. As land becomes scarcer, Americans are looking to renovate homes that have withstood the test of time. However, a house built in the 1940’s does not have the aesthetic that people are searching for. The finishings are almost antique and chances are that there is no “open concept” that people rave about these days. That means renovations on a massive scale are needed to bring these houses up to snuff, which means cracking into walls, floors, ducts and ceilings that have been around since before lead paint, asbestos and PCBs were a big health concern.

Now, this growing number of homes needing environmental remediation and abatement is causing the industry to grow at…

Advanced Quality Hazmat Industries – A History Lesson

came to be.

Environmental Hazard History

In the 1980’s the country began playing much closer attention to the materials that were being used to build our homes and businesses. The main driver of this was asbestos. Between the 1940’s and 1980’s, asbestos was regularly used in many different construction materials. These materials were used as insulation, reinforcing products, fire protection and heat absorption. Though there was some evidence that these materials posed health risks, a formal study was not completed until the late 1960’s. By 1978, the…

Did You Know That the Inland Empire Is a Hotbed For Mold?

You’ve always been told that mold grows in dark, damp places, right? If this is true, then why do desert areas like Los Angeles, Phoenix, Tucson and the Inland Empire see mold flourish? Mold normally grows best in areas that have higher humidity and larger amounts of rainfall. This suggests that areas like Portland, Seattle and Florida will see the highest levels of mold growing. However, this is not always the case. Commercial buildings and residences in Arizona, California and Nevada also experience mold infestations because of four key reasons.

1. Valley Fear

This type of mold is the most deadly mold species. It has killed several thousand people over the last several years. Unfortunately, for those living in desert areas, this mold only grows in drier desert soils. This type of mold can cause chest pain, fever, coughing and several other symptoms. The mold spores can be stirred up into the air by construction, farming and simply the wind. Wind is generally what causes this mold to come into…

READ MORE →

Keep the Ghouls, Mold, Lead & Asbestos Away this Halloween

We are well into fall, which has already brought cooler temperatures and shorter days. As we trail off into the tail end of October, Halloween is quickly approaching. With the approaching holiday comes apple cider, donuts with Halloween colored sprinkles, all the candy you can eat, and little kids dressed in adorable costumes. Do you know what else comes with Halloween, though? With Halloween comes scary movies, witches, monsters, creepy clowns and even ghosts and ghouls running amuck.

As terrifying as that all sounds, even scarier things can prowl in your home. The worst thing about these dangerous visitors lurking in your home is that they don’t just come in with the Halloween tide, they are in your home year round. What are we talking about –   PCBs, mold, lead and asbestos.

Where are PCBs, mold, lead and asbestos lurking in my home?

These harmful substances can be found in many places throughout your home. Asbestos was used in construction materials until 1978, and can be found in…

New Study Finds That Caulking in Your Home Can Contain PCBs

While many people know that exposure to Polychlorinated Bipheyls (PCBs) or asbestos can be harmful, many don’t know where these harmful carcinogens can actually be lurking. Commonly found in fluorescent light ballasts manufactured before July 1978, PCBs are harmful carcinogens that can have a detrimental effect on your health. While they were originally believed to solely exist in homes, offices and schools in the light ballast capacitors or asphalt potting material surrounding a capacitor, a new report has been released refuting this.

Reports are now indicating that caulking compounds used in building and renovating buildings up until the late 1970s can have large concentrations of PCBs. The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently released a statement regarding research they conducted, which states that any caulk put into place after 1950, but before 1979, might contain up to 40% PCBs and can emit them into the surrounding air. They furthered the statement by adding that PCBs can also contaminate any adjacent materials like wood or masonry.

While you may think this issue…

Back to School…Back to Asbestos?

Though the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a warning about the hazards of asbestos in American schools, the potential threat to students, teachers and staffers still exists. As September hits and students flock back to school, there is a risk of  being exposed to asbestos, states a Mesothelioma Cancer Alliance study.

According to the study, any school built before 1981 is presumed to contain asbestos materials. The Ocean View School District in Orange County agrees with the study’s findings, with the President of the District stating that asbestos can be found in a vast majority of the public schools in the area.

The District takes the threat so seriously, that two years ago, three elementary schools were closed when asbestos was detected, and 1,600 students were bused to other schools around Orange County. The cost of the project was over $15 million dollars and threatened to bankrupt the school district.

Unfortunately, these hazards still exist across California and the rest of the country as well. The good thing is that the presence of asbestos in a school does not automatically mean that there is…