Healthy Home Assessment: Improve Indoor Air Quality and Prevent Costly Mold and Water Damage
Steamatic of Sacramento now offers Healthy Home Assessments to identify issues that could be affecting a home and the health of the occupants. Our goal is to give homeowners options for improving their indoor air quality and for protecting their financial investment in their homes. A Healthy Home Assessment differs from a home inspection, which is an official inspection of a dwelling by a home inspector prior to its sale.
The fee for Steamatic’s basic Healthy Home Assessment is $150 and includes:
1. Visual inspection of plumbing supply lines and drains. Few homeowners look under their sinks, behind their toilets or at the water supply lines for their washing machine to inspect for leaks, odors, or mold growth. That’s part of our inspection. Our assessor will show you what to look for if you are interested. Why this inspection? Broken water supply lines and plugged drains cause millions of dollars a year in damage to homes throughout Northern California. This simple assessment could prevent costly water or mold damage in a home and protect the indoor air quality.
Our assessment doesn’t include plumbing in the crawlspace or in the attic. However, Steamatic will inspect these areas for $75 each. These assessments require wearing personal protective equipment. The assessor will also take digital pictures for the homeowner while in the attic or crawlspace.
2. Visual Inspection of the Heating and Air Conditioning (HVAC) system. Our assessor will check all components that are accessible from the living space of the home including filters, blower fans, heater box, condensing coils, registers, main plenum (above the intake register) and ducting where it is connected to the registers.
Checking HVAC components that are in the attic or in the crawlspace will cost an additional $75 and will require the assessor to wear protective gear. However, he will be better able to assess the condition of the ducting and will take pictures.
Why have your HVAC system inspected? HVAC systems collect air borne contaminants that can affect your health such as pollen, mold and tiny particles. Cleaning air ducts helps improve indoor air quality by removing built-up debris. New research has found that the coils and drain pan become contaminated sooner than the ducts and must be cleaned more frequently to maintain air quality. If the HVAC’s coil and drain pan are safely accessible, our assessor can show a homeowner how to clean them. He will also advise about replacing or cleaning HVAC filters. See Steamatic’s Air Duct Cleaning page for more information.
3. Visual inspection of all flooring in the living area of the house including carpet, tile, hardwood, linoleum, and laminate. Why? The assessor will be looking for stains, warped hardwood, and loose baseboards because they could be signs of hidden water leaks or excessive moisture in the slab or crawlspace damaging a house or degrading the indoor air quality. He also will assess maintenance issues because dirty carpet and soiled flooring contribute to airborne debris.
4. Moisture meter testing, concentrating on possible problem areas that are identified during a visual inspection of the walls or other areas of the home. A non-destructive moisture meter provides real time information about surface and subsurface moisture in building materials. The assessor will also use a hygrometer to check the relative humidity of the air in the home.
However, if our assessor finds indications of hidden moisture intrusion, he can also use another tool that essentially sees through walls for an additional $75 fee. Our infrared thermal imaging cameras detect temperature differences in building materials. When used in conjunction with construction knowledge, the IR camera helps identify hidden moisture that may be causing mold growth. The customer will receive copies of the infrared and digital photos as part of the assessor’s written report. See Moisture Inspections and the Mold Remediation pages for more information.
5. Written recommendations/estimates for services and/or referrals to other qualified companies. Steamatic will provide written recommendations and estimates for Steamatic services that could correct any cleaning or moisture intrusions. If needed, Steamatic also will make referrals garnered over 36 years in business to other well- qualified companies. They include environmental consultants, plumbers, HVAC contractors, flooring contractors and reconstruction companies.
6. Discounts and Credits. We want customers to receive good value for our Healthy Home Assessments. Once the assessment is completed, Steamatic will give a 20 percent discount on any recommended service that is scheduled within 90 days. And, if a customer should call us for an emergency service in the year following the assessment, we will credit the entire cost of the basic Healthy Home Assessment. In addition to 36 years of cleaning and restoration experience, Steamatic responds to fire, water and other emergencies 24 hours a day, seven days per week and 365 days per year.
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