If you move into an apartment or a home and you sign a lease, some people might think that they’re stuck with that lease even if they discover that the property has a substantial mold problem. This is not true.
No matter who you’re renting from or what kind of property, it is the landlord’s responsibility to provide you with a healthy place to live. If you or your children become sick due to the mold located in the home, apartment, or business you are leasing, your landlord can be held responsible.
The only thing that you have to do first is prove that mold exists in your rented space. That burden or proof is on you because in most leases, mold testing, inspections, and removal are not covered by the landlord. Landlords do not pay for these; you do. If there is a problem, you have to prove it.
If the rental property is infested with mold, the landlord might be liable for the damage to the tenant’s health, the medical bills associated with mold, loss of income due to sickness, and for the damage to clothing and other possessions. Other possible liabilities include the expense it takes to move to a mold-free environment, the difference between the rent at the mold-infested rental and the new, habitable rental, and for any mold inspections, testing, and remediation of the rental that were paid for by the tenant before moving out.
You should mail a notice to your landlord via certified mail that there is a mold problem first and foremost and provide proof within the envelope. An analysis and identification of the mold sample you collected using a mold test kit signed by a mold laboratory is a good way to prove that mold exists in the property.
Even better than this is to have a written report signed by a certified mold inspector along with the above mentioned laboratory report. If notice is ignored by your landlord, you can choose to send a second notice stating that due to the failure to have the mold removed from the property, you are withholding your rent.
Lastly, if that is ignored by your landlord, you should send another notice via certified mail that you are vacating the premises and that legal action is going to be taken, especially if you have suffered health complications due to the mold. You shouldn’t need a lawyer to draw up these notices for you, as long as you are clear and to the point that mold exists on the landlord’s property that you are renting and you want it removed and if you are suffering any health complications, these should be stated very clearly and with proof, as well. Most landlords will respond promptly.
Showing posts with label water. Show all posts
Showing posts with label water. Show all posts
Saturday, January 26, 2008
Here’s How To Stop Water Damage
One of the last things that any homeowner wants to have to do is completely renovate their bathroom or kitchen due to water damage and mold growth, but it happens all the time. It does not have to happen to you, though, as long as you know how to maintain these two rooms properly. They require a lot of daily maintenance to keep in top shape, but it is not the kind of difficult maintenance that you might think. Most of it is just a light cleaning up or casual inspection.
Inspect the floor of the room first. This is what supports everything else, so the integrity of this structure is paramount to the integrity of the entire room. If this goes, so will the rest of it. Try bouncing up and down a little on your toes and see if the room shakes. If it does or if the floor feels weak at all, you may have a water damage problem on your hands. You can also inspect for water damaged floors by looking at the tile and seeing if it is cracked at all. If you have a vinyl floor, looking for cracks in this can also help. Grout or caulking around the room should not be missing or loose at all.
The ceiling in both the kitchen and the bathroom is also at risk, although most kitchens come with a range hood with an exhaust fan built into it that will remove the steam from the room. The bathroom should come with one, as well, but if you live in an older home that has a bathroom in the center of the house, you may not have an exhaust vent already installed. These are installed by standard procedure now, especially in bathrooms that do not have windows, as a part of most building codes.
Make sure that the cabinets underneath the sinks in both of these rooms are covered in a laminate material to keep any dripping pipes from rotting the wood and causing you to have to replace that, too.
Spills of water in the kitchen and bathroom can be somewhat controlled by using rugs to help absorb some of the water. Most homes like to have rugs in these rooms, anyway, but many do not realize that they have a practical application other than just feeling good under bare feet and looking pretty.
Inspect the floor of the room first. This is what supports everything else, so the integrity of this structure is paramount to the integrity of the entire room. If this goes, so will the rest of it. Try bouncing up and down a little on your toes and see if the room shakes. If it does or if the floor feels weak at all, you may have a water damage problem on your hands. You can also inspect for water damaged floors by looking at the tile and seeing if it is cracked at all. If you have a vinyl floor, looking for cracks in this can also help. Grout or caulking around the room should not be missing or loose at all.
The ceiling in both the kitchen and the bathroom is also at risk, although most kitchens come with a range hood with an exhaust fan built into it that will remove the steam from the room. The bathroom should come with one, as well, but if you live in an older home that has a bathroom in the center of the house, you may not have an exhaust vent already installed. These are installed by standard procedure now, especially in bathrooms that do not have windows, as a part of most building codes.
Make sure that the cabinets underneath the sinks in both of these rooms are covered in a laminate material to keep any dripping pipes from rotting the wood and causing you to have to replace that, too.
Spills of water in the kitchen and bathroom can be somewhat controlled by using rugs to help absorb some of the water. Most homes like to have rugs in these rooms, anyway, but many do not realize that they have a practical application other than just feeling good under bare feet and looking pretty.
A Few Sources Of Smoke Damage
Smoke damage to your home can come from a few different sources, but the main one is just an outright house fire. Having a good knowledge of fire safety and what should be considered fire hazards around your house is the best way to avoid this, so while we are going to give you a few fire safety tips, we will also tell you a couple of other sources of smoke damage to your home.
The most important place of the house to practice fire safety is the kitchen. Most fires start here and are usually due to clumsiness or simple carelessness that is almost completely avoidable. The first thing that you need to know is that you should never leave things in your kitchen unattended on the stove. Always try to leave someone to watch the cooking for you if you have to leave and if you do not have anyone that can stay, turn it off.
Grease fires are common occurrences in the kitchen, as well, and there are a few things to know about this. Heat any oil or grease that you are using slowly, since heating it too quickly can allow it to reach its smoke point before you can stop it, making it unsuitable for cooking. It gives the food a bad taste, so throwing it out is best. If it manages to catch on fire, you can use a pot lid to smother it with and this should work fairly well at putting it out. Grease fires also start under the burners sometimes if they have not been cleaned out as they should have been. You can use baking soda to put these small fires out with, but if it even remotely starts to get out of control, use your fire extinguisher. Every kitchen and household needs to have one.
Another source of smoke damage to your home is candles. If you burn a lot of candles or incense, the smoke has to cool and settle to the floor eventually and will become rubbed into the carpet as you walk across it. You can tell if you have this kind of damage if you move a piece of furniture that has been in the same spot for a while and the carpet is lighter.
Cigarettes and cigars are another source of this damage and the same principle that applies to the candles applies here. The best thing to do to prevent this is to just stop smoking, since it will affect your health.
The most important place of the house to practice fire safety is the kitchen. Most fires start here and are usually due to clumsiness or simple carelessness that is almost completely avoidable. The first thing that you need to know is that you should never leave things in your kitchen unattended on the stove. Always try to leave someone to watch the cooking for you if you have to leave and if you do not have anyone that can stay, turn it off.
Grease fires are common occurrences in the kitchen, as well, and there are a few things to know about this. Heat any oil or grease that you are using slowly, since heating it too quickly can allow it to reach its smoke point before you can stop it, making it unsuitable for cooking. It gives the food a bad taste, so throwing it out is best. If it manages to catch on fire, you can use a pot lid to smother it with and this should work fairly well at putting it out. Grease fires also start under the burners sometimes if they have not been cleaned out as they should have been. You can use baking soda to put these small fires out with, but if it even remotely starts to get out of control, use your fire extinguisher. Every kitchen and household needs to have one.
Another source of smoke damage to your home is candles. If you burn a lot of candles or incense, the smoke has to cool and settle to the floor eventually and will become rubbed into the carpet as you walk across it. You can tell if you have this kind of damage if you move a piece of furniture that has been in the same spot for a while and the carpet is lighter.
Cigarettes and cigars are another source of this damage and the same principle that applies to the candles applies here. The best thing to do to prevent this is to just stop smoking, since it will affect your health.
Great Tips For Water Safety
Summertime is the perfect time of year to go swimming, but no matter whether you swim in the ocean, creek, river, or in a city or backyard pool, you should never neglect to consider water safety. A large number of children and inexperienced swimmers die every year because they do not follow a few guidelines that could keep them safe from it.
The most important thing for you to do is learn how to swim. This can be one of the most useful skills you can ever learn and once you learn, you are not likely to ever regret it.
An area supervised by a lifeguard is the best place for you to swim, since the lifeguard is trained in CPR and first aid.
If you have children, they should always wear a floatation device and be supervised by you. There are likely a lot of other people and children where you are and you cannot rely on the lifeguard to be able to pay attention to everyone at the same time.
When you go to a swimming area of a beach or to a city pool, you need to read all the signs and make sure you understand what they mean. This is especially true of beaches, since certain areas of the world may be subject to different kinds of seasonal wildlife that can pose a great amount of danger. A good example is the box jellyfish that swims off the coast of Australia and can kill you. They inhabit the waters off the coast of northern Australia between November to April or May, so swimming in this area during this time is not recommended at all. You should be careful at other beaches around the world, though, even if there are no signs posted concerning dangerous wildlife.
Safety rules should be set for your entire family based on the level of swimming experience that each person has. Children and other inexperienced swimmers should not enter water that is higher than chest level.
If you have alcohol to drink, you should not go swimming, diving, boating, or driving. Alcohol impairs a lot of basic human necessities like coordination, judgment, and balance and your body will not stay as warm.
The only time you should dive into a pool of water is when the area is posted as being safe to dive into.
The local weather report can also be important to you and you should get out of the water at the first sign of a storm.
The most important thing for you to do is learn how to swim. This can be one of the most useful skills you can ever learn and once you learn, you are not likely to ever regret it.
An area supervised by a lifeguard is the best place for you to swim, since the lifeguard is trained in CPR and first aid.
If you have children, they should always wear a floatation device and be supervised by you. There are likely a lot of other people and children where you are and you cannot rely on the lifeguard to be able to pay attention to everyone at the same time.
When you go to a swimming area of a beach or to a city pool, you need to read all the signs and make sure you understand what they mean. This is especially true of beaches, since certain areas of the world may be subject to different kinds of seasonal wildlife that can pose a great amount of danger. A good example is the box jellyfish that swims off the coast of Australia and can kill you. They inhabit the waters off the coast of northern Australia between November to April or May, so swimming in this area during this time is not recommended at all. You should be careful at other beaches around the world, though, even if there are no signs posted concerning dangerous wildlife.
Safety rules should be set for your entire family based on the level of swimming experience that each person has. Children and other inexperienced swimmers should not enter water that is higher than chest level.
If you have alcohol to drink, you should not go swimming, diving, boating, or driving. Alcohol impairs a lot of basic human necessities like coordination, judgment, and balance and your body will not stay as warm.
The only time you should dive into a pool of water is when the area is posted as being safe to dive into.
The local weather report can also be important to you and you should get out of the water at the first sign of a storm.
Tips On Water Safety
Swimming can be one of the most important and life saving skills that you can ever learn, but learning about safety while you are in or near the water can be just as crucial. There are a lot of things that you should take into consideration before going swimming, whether it is in your own pool, a community pool, or another location such as a river or ocean.
Locations with wildlife can be dangerous to swim in, especially beaches, since there are sharks, jellyfish, and other things that can either attack you or make you extremely sick. This is why you should pay attention to any signs that are posted near beaches, since these will usually give you information about any wildlife you need to pay attention to that are in the area during the summer. Box jellyfish off the coast of northern Australia are particularly dangerous to swimmers and it is best not to swim in this region between the beginning of November and May.
If you can swim in an area with a lifeguard, you should do so, since the lifeguard is supposed to be trained in both first aid and CPR. This ensures that you and the rest of your family have a good time and are relatively safe, although everyone should take an opportunity to learn CPR and other first aid skills.
Never dive into an area of a pool unless you know that it is safe to dive in due to signs posted or by physically judging the depth of the water yourself. Never jump into a body of water unless you know for sure how deep it is and you can never tell this just by looking at it.
Children that you take swimming with you should be wearing floatation devices at all times and be supervised. Even if there is a lifeguard on duty, they can still drown or become injured, since there are probably a lot of other people that the lifeguard has to supervise.
Another good rule to live by is if you drink, there are quite a few activities that you should not be doing. Swimming is included among driving, boating, or diving. Drinking alcohol is known to impair a number of different senses necessary to conduct these activities responsibly and has caused a massive number of deaths in the past and continues to in the present. Please drink responsibly and not while swimming.
Locations with wildlife can be dangerous to swim in, especially beaches, since there are sharks, jellyfish, and other things that can either attack you or make you extremely sick. This is why you should pay attention to any signs that are posted near beaches, since these will usually give you information about any wildlife you need to pay attention to that are in the area during the summer. Box jellyfish off the coast of northern Australia are particularly dangerous to swimmers and it is best not to swim in this region between the beginning of November and May.
If you can swim in an area with a lifeguard, you should do so, since the lifeguard is supposed to be trained in both first aid and CPR. This ensures that you and the rest of your family have a good time and are relatively safe, although everyone should take an opportunity to learn CPR and other first aid skills.
Never dive into an area of a pool unless you know that it is safe to dive in due to signs posted or by physically judging the depth of the water yourself. Never jump into a body of water unless you know for sure how deep it is and you can never tell this just by looking at it.
Children that you take swimming with you should be wearing floatation devices at all times and be supervised. Even if there is a lifeguard on duty, they can still drown or become injured, since there are probably a lot of other people that the lifeguard has to supervise.
Another good rule to live by is if you drink, there are quite a few activities that you should not be doing. Swimming is included among driving, boating, or diving. Drinking alcohol is known to impair a number of different senses necessary to conduct these activities responsibly and has caused a massive number of deaths in the past and continues to in the present. Please drink responsibly and not while swimming.
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