A Mother:
There are a caldron of chemical compounds associated with the
aftermath of fires. These are broadly known as PAHs or
Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons, however, there are many other
chemicals involved. Cleaning smoked damaged materials is very
expensive - you should have demanded your insurance adjuster
writeoff your belongings.
While Ozone can breakdown these compounds over time, it would
take weeks to months for it to accomplish this. The best
remediation solution is to launder washable fabrics in special
surfactants to deal with the combustion byproducts and to have
all other upholstered furniture clean by specialists who deal
with fire damaged belongings. Again, a very expensive process
but one that is proven to work every time - assuming they do not
destroy the item during cleaning.
The CIH should have explained all this to you before he
performed any assessment. Further, the price tag you were
charged is excessive by any standard for IAQ assessment.
My only recommendation for you is to cease your exposure by
having your home and belongings properly cleaned or removed.
Health is more important than belongings.
RD
On 4/07/08, A mother wrote:
> We did not have any MOLD we had smoke odor. Our clothes smell
of the same
> smell when the OZONE was running. A bleachy sweet chemical
kind of odor. They
> Still are out gasing that strange smell. Washing does not get
rid of the smell.
> Even the 2nd restoration man said, yes that's the smell of
ozone when the ozone
> is running. yes we had a CIH test the air. A Worthless test
costing $6300. Could
> not tell us what is going on or causing the problem. My house
is now a sick
> house due to the chemicals and OZONE used for smoke odor. DO
NOT USE
> OZONE FOR SMOKE ODOR OR THE SMOKE ODOR CHEMICALS THEY WILL USE
IN
> YOUR HOME. You need to strip out the smoke odor damage to have
a SAFE house
> to live in after they get done.
>
> Ozone chemically reacts with the surface of things causing a
change in chemistry.
> Then those things out gas new chemical products. Some are
toxic out gasing.
> Our clothes 14 months later still smell of the ozone smell not
mold or fungal
> anything. If you read the current research on Ozone and indoor
air quality you
> will find these facts that are being shared here.
>
> READ the research by Weschler and Nazzaroff and Nisk.
> Hal Levin of indoor air quality. Check out sunstar web site on
OZONE machines.
> the EPA
>
> sunstar-solutions.com/ozone.htm
>
> OZONE is a poisonous gas and an extreme lung irritant that can
do serious lung
> damage. You should not breath any ozone. OZONE will chemically
react with
> surfaces and the nitrogen in the air leaving toxic oxides and
other products that
> are harmful to your health and safety of your home.
> Ozone will corrode plastics, rubber, paint, vinyl, wood glue,
and components in
> computers and other electrical items. It can ruin a circuit
board in your computer.
> There's a lot more info on OZONE. Get the facts before you use
it.
>
> Deodorizors are toxic petrol chemicals. DO NOT USE for smoke
ODOR. if used in
> your home they will leave toxic residues and can be even worse
after mixed with
> ozone which can further break down the products and chemicals
to even more
> dangerous substances.
> California has a bill to stop the use of OZONE machines. I
found restoration
> companies who discovered the problems with OZONE'S use and
stopped using it
> after many problems and law suits after it's use. I found
restoration people who
> got VERY sick from years of exposure to these chemicals and
OZONE. A few
> almost died. Some probably have died due to these exposures.
We were not
> meant to live with all these chemicals in our environment.
>
> The only place you will find it stated that ozone is safe to
use is on the websites
> of companies selling these machines and restoration companies
who use them.
>
> A mother passing on what I have experienced and learned from
many months of
> research and personal experience.
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