Connecticut Green Living

The following article originally appeared on Examiner.com, Feb. 13, 2016 Mold. The word conjures up images of two-week old bread in the fridge, that hunk of cheese we accidentally bit into or something we suspect in the crevices of the bathroom tiles. It's that last image this article aims to address. Robert Weitz, owner of RTK Environmental in Fairfield County, says that there are different signs to look for in winter versus summer. In summer, the worry and the danger stem from the humidity and condensation, but sometimes winter brings more insidious challenges. "Ice damming is a big issue," says Weitz. "On Facebook and Twitter we get a lot of traffic [concerning this problem]. [Ice damming means that] when we get a significant amount of snow on the roof, and then the sun on the next day, it causes snow to melt; and that water will end up, naturally, on the roof itself and flow down towards the gutter into the roof ... Now you have water [leaking] into the gu...

(The following article first appeared on Examiner.com, Mar 1, 2016) Spring is still a few weeks away, and here in Connecticut we are, no doubt, still in for several more crisp nights. Your kids have been stuffy, sneezy, and nauseated at various times during this winter – albeit a tepid one by New England standards – and you’re almost through the finish line. Not only cooler temperatures but low humidity makes this an uncomfortable time of year. While in summer we often complain about too much humidity, in the winter every body part seems to get chapped and so dry it can be painful. Besides Vitamin C, lots of sleep and hand washing, an effective buffer to winter’s punch is a good humidifier. For kids, nothing beats Vicks SweetDreams Cool Mist Humidifier, which projects an array of wildlife and marine life images such as dolphins and giraffes on the ceiling. No filter is required, and you can use or discard the accompanying Vicks Vapopads with menthol scent (I tried it without, and i...