Text to Order!There has been a tremendous discussion about climate change. If this is an actual issue, it will affect human society, the way we interact and live in these human clusters that are called department buildings or even neighborhoods. There is no clear consensus about this matter and while it might be significant, especially pertaining to the way we survive in the environment where we are currently living, it has turned into a political and popular matter.
Regardless of the social determination about what it is the truth is about climate change. Our lives could change drastically from one season to the next. Areas that up until last year experienced moderate-to mild cold temperatures during winter could experience the total opposite: Harsh low temperatures or excessive heat.
So How does that affect the current living conditions in the US?
In both instances, these climate changes had a serious impact on homes that were built under the previous temperature conditions of the past. As the residents scramble to deal with the new climate conditions, they often overpower them and so buildings and property react adversely.
Among these problems, we can count mold and mildew. These fungi show up once the weather is adequate, there is no need for cross-contamination and they are not “brought in” by contaminated items as what happens when a home is invaded by unwanted critters such as cockroaches.
Thus, it is not strange nor is it the culprit of the human house resident that these fungi start growing inside their homes. Yet these are not the only changes that people are experiencing with the change of their “normal” weather. Mold and mildew are indeed among the biggest and most worrisome problems, but there are additional ones.
What problems can climate change cause in a household?
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Dry Rot
This is the name given to the rotting and decay of a house’s wooden frame and structure. While the name suggests that this rot happens in dry conditions, it is not. It requires high levels of humidity, a poorly insulated home, poor management in weather, and, of course, neglect.
For the average homeowner is difficult to distinguish when dry rot has begun in a home. It might give itself away with the smell of wet ground or woods after the rain. However, most people dismiss this smell quickly and believe it belongs to any other number of possibilities.
Since dry rot is not an easily seen ailment in anyone’s home, it is rare for a homeowner to consider it or prepare. While dry rot is something that can be attributed to a diverse origin,
Properly insulating your home will reduce the number of factors you should consider when searching for and battling against dry rot.
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Metal corrosion
This could be the biggest headache for any homeowner other than dealing with mold and mildew because of bad, poorly installed, or decayed insulation. Metal corrosion affects not only the structure of the house but also anything and everything that contains metal: pipelines, electrical installation, gas installation.
Metal corrosion can go as deep as the kitchenware and electronics in your home.
But the problems are many
These two are the most common and probably the biggest problems other than mold and mildew. Any household that has excess moisture, a problem with humidity, can basically bank out on the certainty that the reason for the problem begins with the insulation.
If you are not certain if the problems you have are related to insulation or perhaps a lack of foundation in your home, it is advisable to contact a contractor as the best way to proceed is to ensure that the building code has been observed, and to have the foresight of a professional.
If you are certain that there is no problem with the foundation. Here, that the house has been built over a concrete slab rather than stomped out grounds, then you could start directly by checking the insulation. If you bought the property, your real estate agent should be able to provide you with the answer to this.
Not owning a property is not an exemption for being on the lookout for proper or improper insulation. Consider that you will not be doing a favor to your landlord but protecting the items that you have worked so hard to gain.
Let’s go back to climate change. As we have been mentioning, climate change has caused areas that were dry to become moist. Each year, “extraordinary” events take place in a more common manner such as heavy snowstorms in desert areas or in tropical ones.
Homeowners, landlords, and residents are caught “unaware” and unprepared. Each year new residents face house-related problems that are common for those who live in areas where such occurrences are common and yearly. People who are used to experiencing snow and cold temperatures each year are also experiencing changes.
These changes might be even lower temperatures or heavy snow, or, on the opposite, they could be experiencing hot temperatures and climate. Having a properly insulated home can work fine either in hot or cold temperatures. The problem begins when the temperatures range in the extreme. Homeowners or house residents that prepare and insulate their homes considering extreme temperatures are rare, not because they lack foresight, but because it is just as equally bad to over-insulate as to under-insulate.
Wait… what can over-insulation cause?
Over insulation can trap moisture and humidity and encourage the development of the problems that you are trying to avoid: Rot, corrosion, mold, and mildew. A risk that is frequent as it is possible to add R-value to the insulation chosen to increase its effectiveness, there are insulation specialists that encourage this decision while there are others who believe it to be a waste of money and added risk to the house.
So, as we were saying, these homeowners are surprised and do not have their homes prepared either for cold temperatures in normal warm or hot areas or for frigid temperatures. You will see burst pipelines and frozen solid water lines with people losing power, warmth, and basic services as the lines that provide them freeze and break.
And we have one more factor to consider… Modern-day society has changed forever.
We have talked about the most common occurrences in areas where the climate is either changing into a colder one or in households where there are residents (human or not) battling coronavirus in any of its variants or experiencing “long-covid”. Or any of the many problems that have been rising from the Sars Cov-2 or Covid 19 virus.
So what are the Covid-19 related problems?
Covid illness has proven to be dangerous regardless of the number of vaccinations that you have administered. One of the first things physicians instruct you to do when you receive a “positive” diagnosis on whether you have covid-19 is to stay clear of air currents.
Protecting yourself from air currents also means that the normal “ventilation” activities you do in your home: opening up windows and letting the fresh air from outdoors come inside, is something that is not happening. This is a very important step if you happen to have “long-covid”.
Besides those who are Covid-19 survivors, and the care that they need; there is another set of Covid-19 related patients that have to be extra careful with drafts and temperature changes. While the vaccines do save lives and are a very good idea to get; there is indeed a small percentage of the population that have developed neuropathies that are related to the Covid-19 vaccine.
These people do NOT fall into the category of those that have been sick with Covid but rather they are a new type of patient. Well, not new exactly, more like an alternative patient that has a reaction to the Covid-19 Vaccine.
These reactions range from mild to severe. From occasional to chronic. And it affects different parts of the body; there is no one location that is specific as there have been cases that are reported with such reactions and the development from cardiac conditions to a chronic cough.
Anybody’s ailment can be worsened if you add a respiratory factor to it.
So?
All three types of patients:
- Currently suffering Covid (in any of its variants)
- Had Covid, but are experiencing aftermath symptoms and health problems. (long- covid)
- Got vaccinated, but belong to the tiny percentage that overreacts to the vaccination (less than 50 thousand worldwide)
Need the same type of consideration when it comes to the recovery of the ailment: They need to stay away from drafts and cold air. This means that during the 24 hours of the day they will keep their windows closed, drapes drawn, and probably will turn on the central heating or start their own environmental heater.
This will cause the moisture of the environment to condense and gather in window sills, door frames, corners of the floor, inside closets, under the bed, as well as in any other “out-of-sight” locations where mold can develop without disturbance.
What could happen?
The main target of the Covid-19 illness is the lungs. This is something that the WHO has stated since the very beginning. Anything that irritates the lungs can cause serious complications to these patients.
Mold, even if it is in its mildest form can cause serious damage. Patients with cough and phlegm will increase the frequency of the cough episodes, as well as the size of the phlegm that they will be expelling. This can cause tears of the throat and infection, leading to different diseases that will add to the already convalescent Covid-19 patient.
So maybe the patient has successfully survived or is on his/her/its way to survive Covid-19 but complications rose from the use of heaters, the lack of proper insulation, or the excess, caused a delicate body to develop additional or non-Covid-19 related illnesses that will take him/her/it to the hospital or maybe the graveyard.
It is of the utmost importance that the patient avoids temperature changes. Survivors from the first Covid-19 wave referred to this simple action as being pivotal in their survival. And on this, the right insulation will be of assistance
We will discuss more on the significance of proper insulation in the survival process for Covid patients in a later post. It is important to remember that this particular disease is still under study, and much of what we know now comes from “trial and error” practices.
For now, it will suffice to say that the vast number of factors that are contributing to climate change across the globe mandate that the human race adapts. In this adaptation, Pacific Insulation is there to offer you only the best in insulation materials.
Contact us today for personalized attention.
