Getting Rid Of Mold In Your Home

Getting Rid of Mold in Your Home

Although just a tiny organism, minuscule mold can pack a serious punch: one report reveals mold cost the U.S. $22.4 billion in health care expenses in 2016 alone. How much is that? That’s almost the GDP of Jamaica. Without plumbing performed by a professional in your kitchen, bathroom, or workplace, mold can quickly get the upper hand. So what can be done to rid your household of mold in your sinks, leaky showers, closets and bed sheets? Here are some tips to get you started.

Humidity: Mold’s Favorite Environment

Mold loves moisture. In fact, it needs it to survive. Just like us humans and other animals, mold needs water to survive and thrive. But given even a little bit of moisture, this simple organism becomes a nuisance, wreaking havoc on our respiratory, and even neurological, systems. Once mold gets exposed to moisture, it can begin to multiply. At that point, it is able to release spores that go up into the air and settle on nearby surfaces, creating veritable mold colonies. With humidity above 50%, mold starts flourish, spawning new mold wherever it can. However, without humidity, mold dies of thirst. So step one in controlling mold is to dehumidify your home.

Get Leaks and Floods Fixed by Pros

A quality professional plumbing service is a must when your home has sprung a leak. Yes, maybe you could tighten a nut or bolt or two, but while the leak was happening, how much mold started to grow? A plumbing expert can come in and not only fix the problem but analyze the area to see if any mold used the leak to start building an unwanted home. And if there is any significant flooding, regardless of the source or type, it’s a must to get experienced pros to handle the cleanup. These things cannot be left to chance.

You Can Hunt and Kill It

Even though mold can be dangerous, it’s also a fairly fragile little creature. Once spotted, some bleach mixed with water will get the job done. Killing the mold really isn’t the most difficult part of the job. The challenge comes with protecting yourself and your family in the process. Cover all of your skin and blow a fan out a window to whisk away any spores stirred up while cleaning. And, when in doubt, play it safe by hiring a professional to handle the work.

If you find mold lurking in your house, be sure to check and double check all plumbing fixtures nearby. Quite often, it is visible in various different colors, so you can easily spot it and quash it. If you can’t see it, you can sniff it out. It has an unmistakable musty odor.  Even if you don’t have bleach handy, don’t worry, other household cleaners also do a good job of stopping it in its tracks. If, after zapping the mold, you keep the humidity down, you can quite literally breath easy.

Guest Contributor, Cindy Trillo

Tips on Choosing the Right Color for Your Bedroom

Tips on Choosing the Right Color for Your Bedroom

How do you paint a room that bookends your day? Bedroom is more than sum of its parts, its function is something sacred – to offer you a moment of respite from daily woes and comfort you when you feel the most vulnerable. In fact, it is a place where you should be able to feel the most vulnerable without any reserve. This is why it is so important to choose the right colors for this area – because you will wake up to them every day and they will be the last thing you see each night. With that in mind, here are the tips on choosing the right color for your bedroom.

It needs to be calming

Calming color scheme is the top priority and the tip you’ll get from basically anyone if you ask them about bedroom aesthetics. Now, the idea of calmness can vary from person to person, but it would be safe to say that you should definitely go for serene composition. In other words – no distinct contrasts. Just make the lines and tones blend into each other and complement each other’s level of warmth. The question of whether you should go for lighter and darker tones is mostly dependent on you, but darker ones are usually recommended for the bedroom.

Dark and calming nuances

Dark colors are actually a good go-to option if you want to create a truly calming and comfortable bedroom. However, these dark colors should not be too harsh or bold. Go for some nice pastels like charcoal, olive, deep violet, navy or silver tones. The best variant is to either go for gentle blue-steely tones with a pinch of milky gray if you want a cold scheme, or olive-celery sort of green that can be a good basis for a room that aims for organic and warm tones. Line your room with furniture that has white skeletons in order to add some crispy visuals and a sense of space to your bedroom.

It needs to be done right

After you have created a hypothetical arrangement of colors for your bedroom – preferably a collage you can actually show to professionals – you should seek out high quality painting services that can bring your vision to life. The last thing you need is a messy environment which cannot be fixed, so avoid doing this all by yourself. Lines that are drawn sloppily can also impact the levels of your anxiety in the long run. You might not notice it at first, but it is one of those things that creeps into one’s mind slowly and insidiously.

If your bedroom is small…

Still, if your room is already cozy when it comes to space, the darker colors (which are there to create a comfortable and cozy atmosphere) might not be the best solution. If your bedroom is small, you should consider lighter tones and start with a white basis. According to the type of bedroom you want to create (warm or cold) you can choose a white with a bluish hue or the one with a warm creamy dash. The brighter tones will add a sense of airiness and brightness to your bedroom, almost without fault, so it is a risk-free and solid solution.

The window conundrum

The windows in your bedroom are a tricky element – you’d want big windows for bright mornings and sunny afternoons, but you’ll also want to minimize the presence of light if you want to sleep in. In that case, you will get the best of all worlds if you installed bigger windows but also added some solid shutters which are easy to manage. You will also want to install windows which can be easily opened and don’t let any bulky furniture block them. You will want to have an option to let the fresh air flow through your bedroom whenever you need it.

If you followed at least a few of these tips on choosing the right color for your bedroom, you should end up looking at something truly aesthetically pleasing – a place that, as far as palette of colors go, suits your sensibilities and makes you feel content. Even though people have different ideas of comfort, they all share this deeply-rooted yearning to have a safe place where they can rest, and with just the right combination of colors on your hands, you too can have a bedroom of your dreams.

Guest Contributor, Diana Smith

Fall 2018 Decoration Trends

Labor Day Weekend is over, which means Fall will be here in no time. Most of us love to decorate for Fall. Here are my Top 2018 Fall Decoration Trends. 

Pumpkins falling out of the fireplace and spiders hanging off the fireplace, genius. 

​Yes, it’ll take this extra cool Halloween dessert table for my house. Plus, you have to admit those lights look pretty cool. 

simplicity goes a long way in this porch, beautiful colors.

Fall is the perfect season to decorate inside your house. I love the entire thing, I'm just not sure if I could live without being able to use my kitchen island. 

You can either have a pre Thanksgiving dinner with this table or use this table for Thanksgiving. Which ever dinner you go with, it will be a hit with everyone. Just make sure to invite us.

So simple, but it came out great. The red door adds to the decor. Great job. 

This makes me want to paint my door orange for Halloween. 

I love real flowers, but if you’re going to get fake flowers make sure they look real. This is a winner. 

What are your favorite trends for this Fall?  

Do you have anything special in mind?  

Share your pictures with us, we love hearing from you. 

-Kevin Szabo Jr Plumbing