Squirrels driving you nuts? If these enchanting little rodents have moved in overhead to shelter from winter weather, respond quickly. Your home’s healthiness and safety may be at stake. Squirrel problems are nothing to take lightly. Those cute little critters can chew through shingles, roof tiles, and wooden support beams. Also, they cause serious damage […]
Four Easy Ways to Get Lice Out of Your Family’s House – Fast!
As school rings in across western North Carolina, teachers, students and families look forward to a host of new, shared experiences. With the coming of fall, furry caps and wooly coats comes the inevitable gift of togetherness: head lice. Oh, my! My skin starts to crawl just thinking about head lice. Doubtless, an itch or […]
Got Ants? Make Them A Partner In Your Home Healthiness Investigation.
Ants can be a problem in your home. But they can also point the way to hidden healthiness challenges. When you were a kid, did you ever wonder why those ants were marching one by one? As a home healthiness examiner, I have learned a surprising truth! Those pesky ants are actually our friends, yours […]
Moles and Voles: Part two … another perspective and a little clarification
You may recall, we recently discussed how these little creatures can be pretty destructive in the blog post, “Tunnel Road: Get Moles and Voles to hit the highway before first frost.” This is true for many reasons as I discussed in the previous post … however, here are some additional thoughts about these creatures. The […]
Tunnel Road: Get Moles and Voles to Hit the Highway Before First Frost
If you’ve ever seen a mole or vole, you know they are, for want of a better word, cute. But the damage they can inflict with their burrowing is anything but. Let’s talk about moles and voles, and how those ardent burrowers with the sweet faces can be the kiss of death for your home’s […]
Lyme Disease Recovery Requires A Healthy Home Environment
Lyme disease is transmitted by common ticks, but it can be uncommonly difficult to diagnose and cure. That’s why any protocol addressing Lyme recovery underscores the need for maintaining a healthy home environment. Summer is tick season in the southern Appalachians. Ask any outdoorsy neighbor, and they’ll tell you to keep an eye out for […]
Mold Growth Is Western North Carolina’s “Quiet Ecological Disaster” of Devastating Proportions
Consistently high dew points and weeks of warm temperatures result in a regional increase of indoor mold growth, worsening health conditions, and rising costs into the tens of millions. That’s why I think it’s fair to assert that Western North Carolina is in the middle of a quiet ecological disaster of devastating proportions. Right now, […]
Chronic Allergies? Cockroaches Should Be On the List of Culprits
If you’re a hunter kitty, that fast moving, flying American cockroach, known as a “palmetto bug,” or its smaller, particularly invasive German cousin sure looks like fun. But what you and I know that kitty does not is that cockroaches are not only not fun, they’re also not healthy. In western North Carolina, allergens such […]
When Mice Look At Your Home, What Do They See? Get The Mouse Control Checklist
When mice look at your home, what do they see? When you fail to consider what makes your home attractive to a mouse, it’s like putting out the welcome mat. “Come on over to our house,” they hear. “Make yourselves at home.” If you build it, they will come. Bringing with them the dirty, smelly […]
A Cautionary Tale of Jim, the DIY Homeowner Who Vented a Crawl Space
When it comes to maintaining a healthy home, homeowners can do about 50 percent, or half, of those needed project themselves. That’s good news for the handy types among us. Tools and materials are a do-it-yourselfer’s idea of fun. Add a bit of common sense, make a plan, top with a sense of adventure, and […]