I live in an old house, built in 1925. It has no AC and hardwood floors.
I swear, this house produces an unbelievable amount of dust. There is the standard powdery variety which accumulates on every horizontal surface, and there is a fluffly fibery kind that accumulates in the corners and hangs from long strings of cobwebs from the ceiling.
Where in the world is all of this dust coming from?
Maybe from lead-based paint? Or from the way the house was constructed? Supposedly concrete slab construction allows condensation to form when the cold cement contacts the warm house.
Do the fibres look anything like this? (this is an extreme case shown here)
The powder can be a fungal growth in dry air, growing on damp wall papre.
Here is how to fix it, if that is what it is.
Oh, and timber floors show dust much more than carpets generally. Carpets hide a multitude of cleaning sins.
Here is another photo showing the dust and cob-webs of dry rot causing spores. Anything look familiar?
The house isnt on a concrete foundation, its got a crawlspace under it which is just dirt.
The fluffy stuff is actually dark gray and has the consistency of cotton.
Is this something to be concerned about? Am I risking respiratory disease or anything?
J
Does it smell really stale, or dry?
Does it reappear quickly (a few days) after you clean it away?
Do you have a digital camera? Post a picture and I might be able to ‘diagnose’ it easier.
I can’t see how asbestos would have been used in home construction (where is the house…?), so I doubt it would be that.
But you would be best to get it tested if you have any lingering doubts about it.
I have a lousy digital camera. I will take a picture, but it aint gonna be super duper high quality.
Give me your email address, and Ill send you a picture.
Or, alternately, if you are afraid of posting your email on this message board, you can email it to me at jtegnell@hotmail.com
It does in fact reappear quickly. The house is in Greensboro NC.
How does one get something like this tested?
Sorry, I missed your reply 'till now.
My e-mail is on the link (profile) below my posts.
To test the air, there are two methods…
One, call a friend in construction or architecture, and have them visit the house. The smell will give it away immediately if it is dry rot, as I suspect it is.
Two, look under ‘damp-proofing’ in your local yellow pages - anyone there should be able to give you advise, or even a free consultation. Give them a call to discuss.
Should point out though, if it is dry rot you could be in a world of hurt, financially. Unlike wet rot, which can be just cut out and the timbers replaced, dry rot is airbourne and the whole place would need to be sealed and fumigated, any rotted timer removed and replaced, and there’s still no guarantee the service will catch all the pores. So, it may come back eventually.
I hope for your sake it is not this, and some other simple fungal growth. Open the windows and turn on the heating up full, and see if it clears any. (Air changes/ hour in the room is key).
Good luck.
Do you have a washer and dryer in the house? If so, and if the dryer is a bit leaky, that’s where your dust is coming from.
–Nott, kicking a dust-groundhog out of the way