Allergies : transforming my house (update)

[sidech]

Hello,

some of you might remember me as having to rehome my Brown Headed parrot a few months ago, due to severy allergies. I thought I would update my story. By the way, Zoulou is doing great in his new home. His new mommy loves him and he loves her, following her around and just being his silly self.

After rehoming Zoulou, I noticed an improvement in my allergies, but not 100%, maybe 50%. I have also noticed that if I stay home more than 1 day straight, my respiratory problems aggravate and I don't feel well. When I go out of the house for a long period of time, such as going to work, I recuperate. So, this has lead me to think that there might be problems with the air quality in my house. Also, the fact that I was able to live with a parrot for 4 years straight without any problems before, when I lived in another house that was equipped with a central air exchange system, seems to lead me in that direction also.

I have done a lot of research about improving the air flow and air quality in my house. My first step is having the air quality analyzed by a micro-biologist. This will allow me to know if I need to take special steps to eliminated molds, or anything else, in the house. The report will also allow me to know what type of central air exchange I should get (ie : with humidity control or not, flow capacity...). Also, right now, I have one specialist investigating to find the best central air exchange equipped with an air purifier and hepa filters for me.

I'm hoping there will be nothing wrong with the house (or else, big $$$$ and big trouble !) and that my problems is with insufficient air flow. To solve this probjem, my goal is to have an central air exchange suited to my particular needs installed before Christmas.

Then comes the good part ! I have also made tons of research to try and fin a parrot specie that would be less likely to trigger allergies. My quest has lead me to Eclectus, which is a specie I had considered before, because of its personality. I have found a breder who has a hen sitting on 3 eggs as we speak. She is a very caring and dedicated person, and considers me a good potential home. I have been honest with her and told her about Zoulou's story, the rehoming, my allergies, and all the steps I am taking right now. The babies would be weaned around the end of march, which gives me all the necessary time to have my house transformed.

I am taking this very slowly. I just cannot see myself without a parrot for the rest of my life, but I don't want to cause unnecessary stress in a bird's life. If it did not work out, the baby would go right back to the breeder's house, but this is something I would want to avoid at all costs.

So this is where I am right now. The air quality guy is coming tomorrow. This is serious stuff, it takes 2-3 hours to do, and 2 weeks incubating time before it can be analyzed.

Wish me luck !

[sidech]

No one has an even remotely similar experience ?

[pchela]

The forum tends to be really slow on the weekends... I'm sure people will read your post tomorrow and respond. I don't personally have allergies to animals but I wish you luck! I'd hate to be without a bird my entire life. I've also heard that Macaws are okay for allergy sufferers but I don't know how true that is.

[sidech]

Thanks pchela.

I read about Macaws also, but they are not said to be as much allergy friendly as Eclectus, which are said to have almost no dander. But I don't really count on that. I think the quality of the equipment I install will make the difference.

Also, I like to look at Macaws, but they don't appeal to me as a pet. They are beautiful to watch though. My dream bird would really be an Eclectus.

[sidech]

Well, if anyone is interested, here is what I learned from the air quality analyst. The lab results for air quality will come back in about 3-4 weeks, but here is what we know for sure. You'll understand why I had the impression I was slowly dying in my own house :

1) levels of CO2 are way beyond acceptable levels (gives you migraine headache, dizziness, difficult to concentrate, loss of energy and other nice symptoms)

2) Humidity level on main floor is at 84% (should be at 30-40% this time of year, especially if you have asthma, which I do)

3) There is a lot of mold in the house (very aggravating if you have asthma)

4) There is a good chance that the house is contaminated with mold

5) Anything else, those lab results will let me know

No wonder the parrot on top of that was killing me ! I just wish I had thought of that before, but I had no way of knowing before the parrot left the house and I was still feeling sick.


I'm hoping the results are not too bad. This is going to cost me a lot of $$$$$$$. I hope there is any left for my baby Eclectus

[entrancedbymyGCC]

I'm thinking the air quality is more of a problem than the bird was... mold can be really bad news. Unless you live in Florida, 84% humidity is outrageous. If it is more humid in the house than outside, something is really, really wrong. I'm thinking leaky pipes or a leaky roof or something. Assuming this is a reputable company doing the assessment, this is really serious stuff that needs to be addressed.

How long have you been in this house? Do you own it? Do you have insurance? Homeowner's insurance may cover some of the repairs.

[sidech]

I'm thinking the air quality is more of a problem than the bird was... mold can be really bad news. Unless you live in Florida, 84% humidity is outrageous. If it is more humid in the house than outside, something is really, really wrong. I'm thinking leaky pipes or a leaky roof or something. Assuming this is a reputable company doing the assessment, this is really serious stuff that needs to be addressed.

How long have you been in this house? Do you own it? Do you have insurance? Homeowner's insurance may cover some of the repairs.

That's what I think too (about the parrot). In live in Quebec, Canada. I think I hired a very reputable company. They don't sell anything, or give any references if you need work to be done, so they are not in it for the wrong reasons. Although I must admit the 84% probably had been influenced by my cooker being on all day... Even then, this is my reality, and I will use this item again. There is no evidence of pipes leaking. The exterior membrane on the walls downstairs was not installed properly to the ground, which means I have to have the bottom of the walls cut and the membrane installed. There was also water infiltration and cement cracks that weren't fixed properly, we think. This remained wet, thus the mold.

This is my own house, I've owned it for 2 years, and I have had troubles I believe from the beginning, but it has been getting worse. Also the fact that I have a 75 gallon aquarium must not be helping. But still... I do have home insurance, and I don't know if they will cover anything. But it's a good idea, I'll try that.

There is an avenue I can take, don't know what it is in english, but it's called " vice caché " in French, which means that even though you don't know something, when you sell a house, you're still responsible for it. Which means I might sue the people who sold me the house. I'll wait to get the lab results and the advice of the air analyst, and I'll probably get a lawyer to write them a nice letter. I just have to find them before...

[entrancedbymyGCC]

Do they do new home warranties in Quebec? Did you have a house inspection done when you purchased the house? Both are required in California, at least for a normal escrow/finance situation. Although the warranty usually only runs a year. You might do better with your windows wide open and a lot of sweaters... that really sounds like the ultimate mess.

[sidech]

Do they do new home warranties in Quebec? Did you have a house inspection done when you purchased the house? Both are required in California, at least for a normal escrow/finance situation. Although the warranty usually only runs a year. You might do better with your windows wide open and a lot of sweaters... that really sounds like the ultimate mess.

The house is not new, it's 15 years old. And yes, I had a good home inspection done, and every problem that came up was brought up, although not to this point. BUT, the ex-owners had an explanation for everything, so we ended up thinking that these were old problems that had been fixed. I fixed a lot of things the inspector told me too, but did not go into the " really " serious stuff, as these were recommandations only, and the costly ones too. Anyways, I probably wouldn't have bought the house if I had known, but I was under a lot of stress at the time, because I needed to get out of my house (bad divorce).

Opening windows sure is a good idea, but as you might know, it gets around -40C sometimes around here in winter... We're not there yet, but still. I'm hoping all of this will be behind me in about 8 weeks (my goal). Then I can focus on getting my Eclectus, if I have any money left at all...

[entrancedbymyGCC]

Here the warranties are for any purchase, not just new construction. Our house was built in the 50s. Fwiw...