Carpet offgassing?

[PamNY]

I am having the strangest problem. I have some sort of respiratory reaction every time I visit my friend's apartment.

It's quite striking -- coughing, feeling almost short of breath -- and it goes away immediately when I leave. It never happens any other time, and I am completely sure the problem is in her building.

Her building had new, cheap hallway carpet installed some months ago, and I assumed that was the problem, but it's been months. It stopped happening for a while, but was back this weekend. My best guess is the weather was cooler, and she's had windows closed.

Has anyone heard of carpet offgassing last for months? There is nothing unusual in my friend's apartment, and she is a very good housekeeper.

I'd be interested in any suggestions as to what the issue might be. I don't normally have this sort of problem, though I did react to new upholstered furniture years ago.

[pll]

Could she have mold somewhere?

[jessmarimba]

I am having the strangest problem. I have some sort of respiratory reaction every time I visit my friend's apartment.

It's quite striking -- coughing, feeling almost short of breath -- and it goes away immediately when I leave. It never happens any other time, and I am completely sure the problem is in her building.

Her building had new, cheap hallway carpet installed some months ago, and I assumed that was the problem, but it's been months. It stopped happening for a while, but was back this weekend. My best guess is the weather was cooler, and she's had windows closed.

Has anyone heard of carpet offgassing last for months? There is nothing unusual in my friend's apartment, and she is a very good housekeeper.

I'd be interested in any suggestions as to what the issue might be. I don't normally have this sort of problem, though I did react to new upholstered furniture years ago.

They redid our hallway at the office and it was terrible for at least 4 months. I don't know if it's actually the carpet or the padding and carpet mastic (that adhesive, if that's how it was installed, is pretty potent). I felt like I was suffocating and got a headache every time I walked through the hallway to our office.

[PamNY]

The building certainly could have mold. It's an old building converted to condos, and they have many unexplained leaks.

Off to read about mold.

[sookiesue]

Carpet offgassing can cause all sorts of health problems. I had to take a class several years ago that was being held in a new classroom with new carpet and it made me so sick I had to drop out and take the class during a different term in a different location!

When I bought a home with brand new carpet several years ago, I discovered a product that worked really well for me

http://www.afmsafecoat.com/products.php?page=5

The Carpet Seal worked wonders. You have to shampoo the carpet and then scrub the carpet seal into the fibers. I did this before we moved in and I never had any more negative effects from the new carpet.

There may be other products out there like this, this just happens to be the one that I found first. I would think that there would be several out there by now since offgassing is such a problem for so many people. There may be a product out there for use with new upholstery, too.

I know you can't very well clean and seal the hallway carpets in your friend's building, but if you know now that new carpet can cause this reaction for you, at least you can try to prevent it from happening in your own home in the future!

[OakLeaf]

I'd suspect mold too. If it was building materials of any kind, I'd expect two things: (1) that your symptoms would get less pronounced over time as the concentration decreases, and (2) that you'd react in other buildings too.

[Crankin]

Pam, didn't you have some type of allergic reaction last year to a food? Forgive me, if I am confusing you with someone else.
I have a mold allergy and also some food allergies (certain shellfish and peanuts). Sometimes just a smell walking through a store will set me off.
Sounds like mold to me.

[PamNY]

No, I don't have food allergies.

The more I think about it, the more I think mold makes sense.

Crankin, what do you do about mold allergies? Do you tolerate it, or is it necessary to avoid completely?

[shootingstar]

My partner does have mold allergies...he gets pounding headaches. For instance he can not be in a greenhouse or plant conservatory.

We cannot have hardly any potted plants indoors because of his mold allergies. It's naturally occurring in the soil.

1 container plant for herb or pointisetta is ok. That's it.

Who knows, could mold be in the walls...then get into the HVAC system.. Or mold underneath the carpet overlay, etc.

[PamNY]

One question for allergy-knowledgeable people: I don't have any allergies to mold (or anything else) outdoors -- does that make it unlikely I'd be reacting to mold indoors?

Shootingstar, you comment is interesting. I recently started feeling lightheaded in a greenhouse. I thought it was because I'd been walking slowly though the botanical garden -- slow walking (like in a museum) makes me exhausted. But now I wonder if it was mold.

[Crankin]

Well, for awhile, I took allergy shots at 2-3 various points in my life.
Now, I live in a house that has hardwood floors, and I am scrupulous about keeping things clean. I don't do well in humidity, so in the summer, I run the AC when sometimes it's more humid than hot.

[OakLeaf]

I don't know a lot about the specifics of molds, but my allergist tests for seven different genera of molds, and I'm being treated for three. I'm sure certain kinds of molds thrive better indoors while others are more common outdoors.

[shootingstar]

Hope PamNY you'll pin down the mold mystery. It's always good to understand any allergies that one acquires over time.

[PamNY]

For the moment, I'm going to do nothing -- except try to manage the problem with ventilation at my friend's house. If problems occur in other places, then I will look into it.

I have let her know what's going on; she is resistant to the idea that there might be mold, but I think a building with persistent (and unresolved) leaks when it rains is an ideal place for mold to grow.

Thanks to everyone for the replies.