My slumlords are 1) a physician and 2) an environmental engineer employed by the state of CA (Indoor Air Quality ironically). Do they have a higher degree of liability than the regular landlord? If so, why, what laws pertain? I live in CA.
This is a legal question and we don't give legal advice. That's what lawyers are for. However, in my layperson opinion, a doctor or a lawyer would not have any more liability than an ordinary slumlord. The burden of responsibility on the normal adult remains consistent. Ignorantia juris non excusat or ignorantia legis neminem excusat. (Ignorance of the law is no excuse.) So conversely, I suppose special knowledge doesn't make them more responsible. Under the law, they are equally as responsible as any other slum lord. Though if you ask two lawyers, they might end up fighting over it. No one seems to find agreement where mold is concerned.
Logically, I would say that if you're in a mold litigation situation, document everything, and especially have professional sampling done. It's harder to deny mold when there's adequate record of it.
Look up the case concerning Norton Community Apartments. That's a 2009 mold case where 34 tenants recovered $883,000 from their landlords in Los Angeles (which is still in California.)
California's "Toxic Mold Protection Act of 2001" authorizes the state's Department of Health Services (DHS) to set permissible levels of indoor mold exposure for sensitive populations (like children, or people with compromised immune systems or respiratory problems). The California law also allows DHS to develop identification and remediation standards for contractors, owners, and landlords and requires landlords to disclose to current and prospective tenants the presence of any known or suspected mold.
You might want to look at the SB 732 Implementation Update which discusses the problem researchers have in separating the effects of mold from the sister problems of a mold-friendly environment.
Can mold cause extreme nausia and excessive migraine headaches that I am experiencing?
First, this is a medical question, and you should certainly take any medical problems you're experiencing to a doctor to diagnose. Whatever we might conjecture on the basis of a couple of facts and assumptions is definitely not a medical diagnosis.
It is certainly possible for someone to have developed a response to mold that includes nausea and headaches. Those are two symptoms which in fact can be related to sinus/respiratory allergic reactions to mold spores (though it might entail a sinus headache rather than a migraine. In most otherwise healthy people, an allergic reaction is the most likely health problem one might encounter from a mold. However, the experts do warn that immune-compromised individuals, the elderly and infants can have very severe responses to mold. It sounds like you need to visit a doctor. It might be useful for you to have a professional take mold samples and and have them identified in a lab; that might help you narrow down your own diagnosis, especially if you are responding allergically to a particular mold species.
What are renter's right when it comes to mold problems?
Renters rights can be a sticky legal question so first remember that we don't give legal advice.
It all depends on
1. your contract
2. your local laws
3. what can be proven in court.
The smartest thing to do if you are locked into a mold infested rental is to DOCUMENT everything. Get everything tested so you have tangible proof of the conditions which you can provide to your lawyer, if it comes down to litigation.
The problem is that currently there are no permissible exposure limits or building standards, although some states (california, texas, new jersey, indiana and maryland) are developing guidelines and regulations for indoor air mold. California has, for example, the Toxic Mold Protection act of 2001, which authorizes the DHS to set levels for sensitive individuals. and develop remediation standards for landlords. Landlords in all states (except for Colorado and Arkansas) are responsible for maintaining/repairing rentals including fixing leaky pipes, windows, and roofs. Which happen to contribute to mold.
Although it is the landlord's duty to maintain habitable premises, bear in mind the landlord can turn around and sue you, because when a tenant's negligence is the cause of injury, the landlord is not liable and you might end up liable for damages.
I was exposed to several molds beginning ~1998 at the school in which I taught. Could I possibly still have "mycotoxins" in my system? Can I be tested for this somewhere and somehow? I live in Martin, TN (NW TN). I can send samples/go somewhere.
First, we should make it clear that we are not medical experts.
That said, I would not expect a mycotoxin to stay in your system for fourteen years. However, if your exposure somehow gave you some kind of parasitic type of infestation, then it is possible that you might have an "infection." You might need to do some detective work to find a doctor who tests for this. If you know of a lawyer who has pursued mold lawsuits against the local school, they may have a list of local doctors they can recommend. The likely doctors might be an allergist who treats patients with mold allergies or an infectious disease physician who treats mold infections. If an infection is in the lungs, a pulmonary physician might be recommended. Patients who have been exposed to molds in their workplace may be referred to an occupational physician.
Can exposure to some molds lead to numberous urinary tract infections? How does one go about getting tested for this?
How molds affect different individuals varies; and since we are not medical professionals, we really can't say definitively what specific molds might be affecting you. However, we're not alone in this, because doctors and scientists are still finding different ways people are affected by mold. Also, the link between cause and affect can be indirect. (Consider that if you take penicillin (a medical product derived from mold), it clears your system of both harmful and helpful bacteria. Often individuals do get infections such as urinary infections after a course of antibiotics because the helpful bacteria have been eliminated.)
You can easily check for a direct connection.
After your property is tested by a mold expert, and the samples are sent to a lab, you will receive back a list of the types of mold that are in your environment.
If your doctor takes a culture, he will be able to cross-check that result with that list.
HI, A VERY GOOD FRIEND OF MINE BOUGHT A TRAILER
APPROX. 5 YEARS AGO & DID NOT KNOW IT HAD MOLD.SHE HASN'T HAD IT TESTED(NO MONEY)BUT IS NOW CONSTANTLY SICK.MIGRAINES,SEVERE COLDS,RUNNY STOOL FOR OVER A YEAR,ETC.DOES SHE HAVE ANY LEGAL RECOURSE.HELP!
We aren't lawyers so we don't have answers to your legal questions. You need to talk to lawyers about that. But if you think there is a problem, DOCUMENT EVERYTHING. This means having testing done, keeping paperwork. Testing of your property, testing of yourselves. You will only be able to have a case if you have a case you can prove. Call or email Byebye Mold for testing!
HI AGAIN,IF MOLD IN YOUR HOME HAS NOT BEEN REMOVED,& YOU'RE CONSTANTLY GETTING SICK,DOES THAT ALSO MEAN CLOTHING & PRETTY MUCH EVERYTHING IN THE TRAILER IS CONTAMINATED?IF YOU CAN'T AFFORD TO REMOVE THE MOLD,DO YOU BASICALLY HAVE TO LEAVE YOUR HOME?
There's not a quick answer for that, without seeing or testing it.
Trailers can be an iffy proposition. It could be decomposing formaldehyde, other trapped chemicals, or mold. If there is some kind of trapped off-gas output, it won't affect laundry. If it is mold, that is not literally IN the clothes, the clothes might be salvageable, if well laundered, and thoroughly dried in a hot dryer. OF course if the clothes themselves are molding, or there is a massive infestation, soft goods which are contaminated are beyond recovery. If your mold tester or health department examines this property and suggests the goods be disposed of, make sure you document this, because that is a tangible damage--if there is someone who can be found responsible for it.
My Diamond Bar house had water damage when water heater busted last Nov.
Please quote indoor air sampling for mold from all the air vent to see if further cleaning is required.
what is the standard for mold count in air?
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There is no standard mold count. It is a time/location based contingency. In other words, the baseline is set at the mold count of the outdoor air in your area. You can check the National Weather Service for your current mold count.
That would be the standard. Your indoor air should not be higher than the indicated mold spore activity.
I am a senior at Happy Camp high school. There has been problems with black mold in the school. I want to ask you what can we do about this?? They failed to remove the mold, and we've been told that they found mold in one of the secretary's lungs.
Unfortunately, no one can do anything about gossip (the rumor of mold in someone's private health report), but since the school is a public institution, you can certainly bring the mold problem in the school up to your local school board in the next public meeting, as well as informing local public officials, and the local media. You can also suggest that the PTA begin a drive to perform mediation, or even pay for the location to be tested by sampling for mold.
Good luck with this. If the secretary is affected by mold exposure from school, then she may be willing to assist; her health should probably be covered by the school system's health insurance, but they might even be liable for damages. Of course, if you are in California, you can contact http://byebyemold.com
My apt had mold in hall area & bedroom closet. Maintenance sprayed & some returned.Also, we just discovered mold in vents in bedroom & wet spots on ceilng & wall. 2 family members got sinusitis. Are we in danger?
Response to mold infestation is very individualized. It can be allergic in nature, or it can be due to exposure to mycotoxins, if the mold happens to be one that excretes mycotoxins. Sinusitis is an allergic reaction which will probably disappear when the allergen/source is pinpointed and removed.
When mold needs to be removed, "spraying" is not an adequate solution. In addition to the wet spots, the source of the wet spots should be located and dealt with. Once the leak is eliminated, and the remediation complete, and all of the spores vacuumed or otherwise removed from the vents, the family members will probably no longer demonstrate sinusitis...unless they show the same symptoms when they are outdoors. You cannot expect the indoor atmosphere to be less spore-ridden than the outdoor atmosphere which is the baseline.
