Mold And Moisture Control (NAPSA)—Whenthere’s a fungus among us, damaging your home and your family’s health, the solution can be simple. “If you control moisture, you'll control mold,” explained Mike Poellinger, chairman of the Responsible Solutions to Mold Coalition, a building industry trade group. To prevent moisture and mold, the coalition recommends: e Make sure that moisturesensitive building materials are not stored outside or exposed to weatherbefore installation. Roof designs should be designed to drain freely and allow water to move rapidly off roofs and away from the building. e Use water-resistive barriers behind tub and showertile instal- lations, so water permeating through tile grout drains back into the tub or shower pan—not into the wall cavity. Gypsum wallboard should be installed only when buildings are closed in from the weather. Before wallboard and other moisture-sensitive interior compo- nents are installed in buildings that have been exposed to the weather, provision must be made to dry the framing and subfloor. This may be as simple as providing time and ventilation to allow for drying. Depending on the climate, mechanical drying and dehumidification equipment may be required to supplementventilation drying. e All windows, doors, roofs and chimneys need to have flashing installed around them. e The ground around buildings should be graded to maintain a slope of five percent that drains away from the building. e All earthen crawl spaces should be covered with impermeable plastic sheets. Do not store anything on top of the plastic Moisture-sensitive materials like drywall need to be kept dry before installation. sheeting as this can lead to damage that will allow water vapor to enter the crawlspace from the soil below. e Avoid excessive indoor humidity—run exhaust fans over stoves and in bathrooms for 10 minutes after use. e Watch for water stains or standing puddles in the basement, bathrooms or under kitch- en sinks. Treat water leaks as you would a smoldering fire— eliminate the cause and dry the water immediately. The coalition, which is funded by grants from USG Corporation, National Gypsum, and American Gypsum, created Guiding Principles for Mold and Moisture Control. It is available on the organization’s Web site, www.respon siblemoldsolutions.org, in an interactive format in which visitors can explore mold and moisture control steps by clicking on various parts of a typical house.
