09-22-2008, 01:02 PM
esnap's take is often informed, it's worth a listen.
By the way, I know more secret recipes for the most lethal paints from the dawn of boat building time. . .rot? You must be kidding. There's 200 year old soggy wood out there. . .but don't let your kids touch it!
As a boat person for the last 15 years I can tell you more about mold than you want to hear. I mean really. Hawaii is easy compared to living on a boat.
You will have mold and rot on biodegradable surfaces, and some you wouldn't think so IF and ONLY if there is a threshold of moisture content present enough of the time to maintain life. The spores of the mold are everywhere, and nothing you will do will prevent that. Poison is of course the traditional route, but solves nothing, ultimately. There are two courses of action: seal everything up and maintain the climate at a low enough humidity to keep the scuzz from growing, which I feel is impossible, or to ventilate and remove moisture through natural means--which takes a lot of thought and tinkering with the airflow of a house AND a dedicated heat source. The heat source is important as it's the motor that drives the absorption of moisture from surfaces. You must draw cold air, heat it, which makes it pull water, and gas it off. That is the mechanism to dry a house.
I'll post a few details about how to do it. A tepee is a good primal reference, but we can do better. In my place it involves vents in the floor, and all sorts of crazy stuff that I tune as I go along.
By the way, I know more secret recipes for the most lethal paints from the dawn of boat building time. . .rot? You must be kidding. There's 200 year old soggy wood out there. . .but don't let your kids touch it!
As a boat person for the last 15 years I can tell you more about mold than you want to hear. I mean really. Hawaii is easy compared to living on a boat.
You will have mold and rot on biodegradable surfaces, and some you wouldn't think so IF and ONLY if there is a threshold of moisture content present enough of the time to maintain life. The spores of the mold are everywhere, and nothing you will do will prevent that. Poison is of course the traditional route, but solves nothing, ultimately. There are two courses of action: seal everything up and maintain the climate at a low enough humidity to keep the scuzz from growing, which I feel is impossible, or to ventilate and remove moisture through natural means--which takes a lot of thought and tinkering with the airflow of a house AND a dedicated heat source. The heat source is important as it's the motor that drives the absorption of moisture from surfaces. You must draw cold air, heat it, which makes it pull water, and gas it off. That is the mechanism to dry a house.
I'll post a few details about how to do it. A tepee is a good primal reference, but we can do better. In my place it involves vents in the floor, and all sorts of crazy stuff that I tune as I go along.