Home owners beware: Several dangers may lurk in a home. If
you’re not careful, they could make you sick. Pillar to Post, a home inspection
company, reviews how to spot these dangers in the home and encourages you to
contact a home inspector if your home may be at risk for any of these potential
dangers.
1. Radon: a colorless, odorless gas that can
seep into the home from the ground. Radon has been called the second most common
cause of lung cancer.
What to look
for: Basements or
anything with protrusion into the ground offer entry points for radon. The Environmental
Protection Agency publishes a map of high prevalence areas for radon.
A radon test can determine if high levels of radon are present.
2. Asbestos: a fibrous material once popular in
building materials because it provides heat insulation and fire resistance. But
asbestos was banned in 1985. It may still be found in older home’s insulation
materials, floor tiles, roof coverings, and siding. If disturbed or damaged, it
can enter the air and cause severe illness.
What to look
for: Homes built prior
to 1985 are at risk of having asbestos within construction materials. Home
owners should especially be careful when remodeling because disturbing
insulation may cause the asbestos to become airborne.
3. Lead: a toxic metal used in home products
for many years that can contribute to several health problems, especially among
children. Exposure can occur from deteriorating lead-based paint, pipes, or
lead-contaminated dust or soil.
What to look
for: Homes built prior
to 1978 may have lead present. Look for peeling paint and check old pipes. To
get a HUD-insured loan, buyers must show a certificate that homes built prior
to 1978 are lead-safe.
4. Hazardous
products:
stockpiles of hazardous household items — such as paint solvents, pesticides,
fertilizers, or motor oils — that can create a dangerous situation if not
properly stored or disposed. They can cause illness or even death if small
amounts are ingested.
What to look
for: Make sure these
items aren’t tucked away in corners, crawl spaces, garages, or garden sheds.
Home owners often don’t realize these products can pose a danger and may forget
they’re storing them. But buyers don’t want it to become their problem — and
expense — to dispose of. If these products are found, make sure the buyer
requires their removal and gets a disposal certificate prior to closing, which
proves the products were disposed of properly and not just dumped in the
backyard.
5.
Groundwater contamination:
the result of hazardous chemicals that are illegally disposed of and then seep
through the soil and enter water supplies. A leaking underground oil tank or
faulty septic system can contribute to this.
What to look
for: Look for any
conditions that may be conducive to leakage. Homes near light industrial areas
or facilities may be at risk. Also a concern: areas once used for industry that
are now residential. Pillar to Post offers a Neighborhood Environmental Report
that details any dangers or remedies of environmental incidences and sources of
contamination that have occurred at a specified address and within its
vicinity.