Blog : Flooring Supply Shop Blog | Flooring and Floor Heating Supply - Part 26Flooring Supplies

Removing Mold From Your Attic

What are Molds?

Mildew and molds are fungi – simple microscopic organisms that thrive anywhere there is a moist environment. Molds are a necessary part of the environment; without them, leaves would not decay and aspects of soil enrichment could not take place. It is their ability to destroy organic materials, however, that makes mold a problem for people – in our homes and in our bodies.

A common issue bothering many homeowners these days is mold and mildew problems in the attic. These problems are caused due to various reasons, which need to be dealt with immediately. Some of the reasons that can lead to mold problem include excess moisture, poor attic ventilation and roof leakage. Moisture, which is a leading cause for mold problem, can also lead to other difficulties as well, such as, it can make the building material to crack, rot, warp and stain.

If appropriate measures are not taken in time and the mold sets in, it can lead to serious health problems as well. Some of the health problems that can be caused due to mold include respiratory problems, allergy, and skin, eye & throat irritation. Continuous exposure to mold can even be fatal as it can cause cancer. In order to avoid these problems, it is very important to remove mold at the earliest.

In case you are also experiencing the mold problem, be it white, green, black or any other color mold, fix it as soon as possible. However, do not commit the same mistakes that most homeowners do; removing mold on their own. You should leave this job for mold remediation contractors. These professionals are licensed by the state to tackle the mold problem in an efficient manner.

Foremost, the mold remediation contractors ascertain the reason behind mold problem; which more often than not is moisture. Once the source of moisture is fixed, they subsequently strive to remove mold. Irrespective of whether the mold is black, white or green, the mold remediation steps are same; starting with sealing off the area. The area is sealed off with plastic sheeting and tape, which help to keep the mold spores contained in the attic. This prevents mold from spreading throughout the house and worsening the situation.

Next step is to ‘wet vacuum’, which sucks up water from all the water soaked surfaces and also cleans mold. Dry vacuum is always avoided because it launches mold spores in the air, instead of removing it. The molds which are not removed by wet vacuum are killed with the help of an approved fungicide; which can either be applied through a sprayer or fogger. Many people have the misunderstanding that bleach can kill or keep away mold; however it is not effective method.

Once the mold is killed, it is time to clean up the area thoroughly. Mold remediation contractors generally prefer HEPA vacuum for scrubbing, scraping and cleaning up dust and debris. They may sometimes even ask you to remove furniture, building material or any other thing that is contaminated by molds. Before disposing it, the contaminated material should be sealed in plastic bags and subsequently labeled. Lastly, dry out the attic with the help of dehumidifiers or fans. It is essential to dry the area completely to avoid mold from resurfacing again. Once done, the restoration work can be done.

If there is mold in your attic and you do not want to risk serious structural and aesthetic damages to your home, along with health damages to yourself; remove mold from your attic as soon as possible.

Choose the right flooring option to enhance the value of your house

Flooring is one of the most prominent aspects of a house that a potential buyer considers before making a purchase decision. It is for this reason that upgrading or renovating the flooring is essential before putting up the house in the real estate market. Aesthetically appealing and high utility flooring would not only enable you to sell your house quickly but would also increase the value of your house.

Utility of a floor refers to its ease of maintenance and high durability. Certain floors are resistant to spills and stains while there are some that can be refinished a number of times. Although such high utility floors might be expensive, they would enhance the value of your house, thereby allowing you to sell it at a much higher price.

Color of the flooring is can play a major role in persuading a buyer to select your house. Light colored floors are considered to be the best option, since they make the room look larger. Furthermore, a light colored floor would also enable the buyer to visualize their furniture over the floor, thereby assisting their final decision.

Different rooms in a house require different flooring options for visual appeal. It is for this reason that you should select the right flooring option for each room in your house. Areas such as the bathrooms and the kitchens, which are extensively used, should be fitted with low maintenance flooring. Vinyl and tiles are considered to be the two best flooring options for a bathroom.

Houses with wall to wall carpeting would definitely attract potential buyers; however, stains of dirt on the carpets can be a big turn-off for them. It is for this reason that properly cleaning the carpets is essential before showing it to the potential buyers. Replacing old carpets with new ones would be an ideal option for enhancing the value of your house.

While selecting the flooring for your house you should always weigh the ‘Cost VS Benefit’ ratio to make the right decision. For example, using marble in the kitchen would enhance the visual appeal of the area but the initial price and the subsequent maintenance costs could be too high for this option.

Along with the traditional tiles and stone flooring you should also consider contemporary flooring options like bamboo and cork. Flooring material such as these would offer an environment friendly as well as cost effective option. You should also keep in mind the lifestyle habits and the income level of the prospective buyers while making the final choice.

If the perceived value of a house is higher than its price, there is a good possibility of it, getting sold off quickly. It is therefore important to make such changes to your house that increases its value for the buyers. Flooring is one of the most essential aspects of a house; it not only provides a visual appeal, but is also the factor that determines the strength of the house. Therefore, it is essential to wisely select the flooring option that is right for your house.

Anti-Slip Solutions to Unveil Invisatread Contractors Tool kit

Anti-Slip Solutions, LLC will unveil its InvisaTread®

“Contractor’s Toolkit” at the Total Solutions Plus 2010 tile contractors industry conference scheduled Nov. 4 to 6 in Naples, announced Todd Sherman, the firm’s chief executive officer. InvisaTread is a new, safe-to-self-install anti-slip product available through national, regional and local distributors; the low-cost Contractor’s Toolkit has been developed to offer tile and stone professionals an additional, affordable business line.

The annual cost of nuisance claims and legal settlements related to slip falls in the United States exceeds $10 billion annually. This does not account for the loss of productivity or lost opportunity cost. “Homeowners and commercial property owners would readily welcome a service that increases safety and lowers liability,” Sherman said. “Although anti-slip products have been in the marketplace for 25 years, few tile and stone contractors have embraced them as a revenue stream until now.”

Why? According to Sherman, the category of safe-to-self-install anti-slip products has been absent in the marketplace. Opportunities for individual contractors to get involved have been offered through costly franchises, or ventures requiring a large investment in a new business and costly product inventory requirements.

“Anti-Slip Solutions has changed both the chemistry and distribution model for anti-slip technology,” Sherman said. “The development of the InvisaTread product began with the premise that the flooring industry needs a simple after-market solution to address a balance between too little coefficient of friction and too much. InvisaTread has been formulated with both the safety to the installer and the surface in mind.”

InvisaTread increases the coefficient of friction (COF) of most hard-mineral surfaces while preserving their look and feel. The InvisaTread Traction System has been designed as an ongoing program that maintains increased traction for a number of years. And while the products are available to the DIY market, most homeowner and commercial landlords will prefer to engage contractors as surface experts, according to Sherman.

The InvisaTread Contractors Toolkit, at a $75 suggested retail price, includes over $50 in product and provides a training and certification program to ensure that tile and stone professionals have the skills and tools needed to sell the program, safely install the product, and provide guidance to their customers for ongoing traction management. The Kit includes product samples, surface spec sheets, marketing and demo tools, and, more importantly, support from distributors and Anti-Slip Solutions customer support line.

Early enthusiasm for InvisaTread® illustrates how hungry tile and stone contractors are for opportunities to expand their income-producing activities, Sherman noted. “We have met with hundreds of contractors, and they are excited about the opportunity to incorporate our product as a ‘buy-as-you-go’ add-on for their businesses,” he said. “The kit, itself, can produce thousands of dollars in revenues, not to mention a long-term opportunity for contractors to grow their revenue streams by connecting with both new and existing clients.”

Visit Anti-Slip Solutions at Total Solutions Plus 2010. The National Tile Contractors Association, the Ceramic Tile Distributors Association and the Tile Council of North America are sponsoring the conference and tabletop display event at the Naples Grand Beach Resort.

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Introduction InvisaTread Anti-Slip Solution

New Product Introduction InvisaTread® Anti-Slip Solution

The InvisaTread® line of anti-slip products provides a safe and easy to install solution to all of your slip problems.

InvisaTread does not change the look or feel of most surfaces and is safe for self-install.

Our slip resistant treatment increases the coefficient of friction on your floor making it less slippery when wet. InvisaTread is not a coating that will rub off, but rather a safe and effective process that will last for multiple years depending on traffic – you won’t even know it’s been applied to your floor until you feel the increased traction you get while walking on the wet surface. Everyone knows that the floors around your home, work or pool area are dangerous and slippery when they get wet.

Did you know that slip and fall accidents are the 2nd leading cause of emergency room visits in the United States? Applying InvisaTread to your floors will help reduce the risk of slip and fall accidents on wet floors and make your floors and surfaces a safer place for your friends and family and employees. InvisaTread can be applied to bathtubs & showers, porcelain, ceramic tile, granite, terrazzo, limestone, pool areas, honed stone, concrete, acrylic, slate, glazed brick, glass and more.

The InvisaTread® family of products is not recommended for Polished Marble.

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WaleTale Vacuum Attachment Dustless Mixing

WaleTale Vacuum Attachment is an important tool which every tile setter should have. This effective tool helps in eliminating dust at the time of mixing mortars and grouts in buckets. It is a well known fact that inhaling dust is harmful as it can lead to various health problems, like eye irritation, sneezing and coughing. Not only does dust worsens the existing heart disease, but also damages the lung tissues and aggravates lung diseases, like asthma. To prevent such scenario, it is advisable to use the WaleTale Vacuum Attachment for avoiding these health problems.

Some people do not realize the seriousness of the issue, unless they themselves suffer from these problems. Dust sometimes contains free crystalline silica that can lead to chronic lung disease silicosis, which causes irritation in the respiratory system. People develop this lung disease on continuous exposure to crystalline silica for a period of five years or more.

The invisible silica dust is so light that remains suspended in the air for a long time and hence travel long distances in air, affecting many individuals, especially tile setters. This health problem is incurable as well as irreversible, where the condition continues to deteriorate even when the exposure stops. Hence, you must take appropriate measures to avoid generation of dust to eliminate the chances of developing this lung disease. Furthermore, prolonged and repeated inhalation of dust can also lead to lung cancer, which can be fatal.

Along with minimizing chances of developing health problems, WaleTale Vacuum Attachment also provides various other benefits. Since it eliminates dust, the surrounding remains clean and you do not have to worry about cleaning the work area after completing the job. As it is compact and effective, you can easily carry and use the WaleTale Vacuum Attachment anywhere, even indoors. It is also not very expensive and suits everyone’s pocket.

WaleTale Vacuum Attachment has also gained popularity because of its various other attributes, like durability, optimum performance, and no maintenance requirements. Moreover, the WaleTale Vacuum Attachment is easy to use; you just have to attach it to the bucket and forget about dust. It effectively pulls dust and does not allow it to escape from the bucket. The attachment sucks up the dust generated while pouring the powder into the bucket, without affecting the powder flow into the bucket.

Many people argue that one can use dustless mortars instead of WaleTale Vacuum Attachment, but such mortars do not eliminate dust completely. Furthermore, dustless mortars are more expensive than the effective and efficient vacuum attachment. Few other people would suggest that you can use mask while doing the job. Though it is effective in protecting you from various health hazards caused due to dust, but it does not protect others on the job site. People working around you will inhale dust and subsequently develop health hazards. Hence, be considerate and responsible; use WaleTale Vacuum Attachment which completely eliminates dust, thereby protecting you as well as those around you.

Owing to all these benefits, more and more people are increasingly using the WaleTale Vacuum Attachment while mixing mortars and grouts for tile setting.

Removing Mold From Your Attic

Choose the right flooring option to enhance the value of your house

Anti-Slip Solutions to Unveil Invisatread Contractors Tool kit

Anti-Slip Solutions, LLC will unveil its InvisaTread®

Introduction InvisaTread Anti-Slip Solution

New Product Introduction InvisaTread® Anti-Slip Solution

WaleTale Vacuum Attachment Dustless Mixing

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