#30 - How Your Home Could Be Making You Sick (And How to Fix It) with Alexx Stuart

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Good day and welcome to the
show.

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I just wanted to take a quick
minute to say thank you for

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listening.
If you are a new listener or a

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returning listener, I really
appreciate your time.

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I've been doing this show for a
little bit over a year now and I

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feel like I'm finding my groove.
I've had some really cool guests

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and I've got some more really
cool guests lined up for this

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year and beyond as well.
So I'm having such a good time

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and I just wanted to say thank
you for being here.

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If you aren't already, please
follow the show on your chosen

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platform and leave a review if
you're liking the content so

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far.
I have an interview with Alex

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Stewart coming up for you from
the Low Tox Life, so I hope you

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enjoy it.
Thanks for being here again.

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Bye.
Hello and welcome to the

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Building Psychology body, where
we talk about better buildings

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to live and breathe in.
My name is Jess Kismet and I'm

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going to be your host today on
the show.

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I'm joined by Alex Stewart,
author, educator and founder of

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Low Tox Life.
Alex delivered a rather

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compelling talk about her own
experience with mild illness at

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the Passive House conference
this year in Melbourne, and I

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invited her on the show then and
there.

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For more than a decade, Alex has
been helping people understand

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how the products we use, the
food we eat, and the spaces that

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we live in affect our health and
well-being.

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And at last count has 452
episodes of her own podcast,

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also named Low Tox Life, for you
to listen to.

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So definitely go check out some
of those.

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But for now, let's get into this
chat.

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Welcome, Alex.
Thank you so much, Jess.

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I was so moved by how my talk
came across at the Passive House

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conference because I truly
believe it is not a unique

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story.
I know in fact it's not a unique

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story.
And the fact that a whole bunch

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of industry professionals are
committed to healthier buildings

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for healthier people and how
it's not just about cost and

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energy efficiency and, and, and
that kind of side of things.

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It was just so heartwarming
because it gave, it just filled

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me with hope.
So it was awesome to meet you

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there and I'm stoked to be here.
Yeah, you were swarmed after you

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got off after.
It was a bit, I know.

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For a good 20 minutes waiting to
talk to you.

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Sorry.
And that's fine.

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That's fine.
Yeah.

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You're, you definitely had a a
captive audience there at the

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right kind of audience.
So, yeah, your talk was very

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well received and I thoroughly
enjoyed it.

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So thank you for coming.
Oh.

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It's a pleasure.
So you talked a lot in that talk

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about your own experience with
Maud illness, which was long,

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exhausting and at times very
isolating.

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So could you take us back to the
beginning and tell us a bit

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about the early signs of mould
illness in yourself and how and

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your family, and then how you
navigated the maze of trial and

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error and misdiagnosis?
MMM.

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Gosh, I mean, how far back do we
go?

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Because retrospect is such a
teacher.

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And I think if I look at my
childhood, if I look at stories

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that my parents have then filled
the gaps in on later Dad will

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tell you the story of my teenage
bedroom and the steel frame

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single windows and wiping mould
off them in the summer months.

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And I lived in that room.
You know, every teenager lives

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in their tiny bedroom and spends
a lot of time in there.

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And in the 80s and 90s, you'd
lock yourself in, you'd listen

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to music, you know, just, it was
so lo fi and innocent and

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lovely.
But that was the reality.

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And I had tons of issues.
I had migraines, I had weight

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fluctuation issues.
My face was always super puffy

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and I could tell and I could
feel it.

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And I would do the same things
as my friends, but I wouldn't

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act or be the same as my
friends.

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I didn't have the energy my
friends had.

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I had shortness of breath often,
which eventually we linked to

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sulphites as well.
But living in a mouldy

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environment sure doesn't help.
And so you could go back quite

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far.
But more into my adult life,

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what's really interesting to me
and what speaks to the bigger

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problem we have with the
building industry, certainly in

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my town of Sydney that has a
shed tonne of negative geared

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properties, investment
properties is over this last

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kind of 25 years, I have been a
renter in Sydney.

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For the first half of that, it
was because we were saving for a

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deposit.
For the second-half of that, it

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was because the deposit was gone
due to health problems and we've

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now ended up in a rental loop.
And over that 25 years, I have

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personally seen the degradation
of the quality of housing stock

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in Sydney.
And if you want to talk about

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first symptoms, looking back I'd
say it would be I became

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extremely overweight and
inflamed in a subfloor terrace

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house, one bedroom.
And that was in my early 20s.

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I then moved out and went and
lived in a very healthy home,

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just instantly lost 20 kilos,
got into shape, felt fantastic.

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Like, you know, all, all things
seemed to fall into place.

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Now I knew nothing about the
environment and how it could

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impact you or that mould toxins
can be micro estrogenic.

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Like I knew none of that stuff
back then.

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All I thought was finally what
I'm doing to put the work in is

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working.
And This is why I have so much

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compassion for people who might
have trouble getting healthy and

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might know that they're carrying
extra weight.

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And that's contributed to other
health issues or brain fog or

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all the other things that we
know being overweight can

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contribute to.
And this is not fat shaming

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either.
Like, I mean, I have a couple of

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mates who are on the larger
size.

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They're as healthy as like, but
for me, I knew at a certain

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above weight, I felt unwell.
And that was me.

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And I knew also in retrospect,
that you could literally plot it

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out on a graph against houses.
And so that's my first

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retrospective signs.
My second was when we had my

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son, there was a leak between
the master and the main bathroom

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and the landlord didn't want to
fix it.

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And he just said, you can, you
guys can leave anytime.

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It's too big a thing.
I can't afford it, so we won't

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charge, break lease, just start
looking and and we'll call it a

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day.
How generous.

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But I remember that was the
house where I needed to start

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using earplugs to sleep.
So for me, now that I know,

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having interviewed all these
incredible health professionals

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over the years, all of a sudden
my nervous system was more and

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more primed and I was more
vigilant.

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So tiny little noises in the
night, my husband rolling over

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in bed, never a problem before.
All of a sudden a problem.

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I was not a hyper vigilant
person, I can tell you that.

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And it absolutely marries with
certain neurotoxins, like the

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mycotoxins that come from
Ketomium species for example,

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with the the implication on the
nervous system and twitching

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tremor.
But of course, hyper vigilant

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comes with all that.
So needed the earplugs.

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Then I was just a bit more
jumpy, bit more anxious.

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But of course, because the
timeline also included a new

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baby, you go, oh, you know,
fatigued mum worried about

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everything.
But what I noticed in our next

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department was freshly painted
and fresh carpet.

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You know, how exciting, how
generous.

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Once again, no, just a cover up
job for a what do you call it,

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the slab that was never properly
sealed, waterproofed.

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And I remember now slugs used to
come out of the bathroom drain

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in a like a really beautiful and
if you're listening rather than

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watching.
I put that in inverted commas

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relatively new apartment block
just a few years old and I was

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like trying to keep on top of
the cleaning.

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I was at home with the bulb and
I couldn't.

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I just mold would just always
grow on the walls everywhere.

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It was crazy until the point
where our couch got green.

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But if the physical symptom was
actually noticing when I was

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reading books to Seb, I would
need to take these deep extra

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breaths.
Like it was like really hard to

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not be super wound up just doing
something as simple as reading a

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book.
Like the effort would be like

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threefold.
It was as if I was running a

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marathon.
So everything started to feel

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like a much bigger effort than
it actually was.

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And my sleep started to get more
and more lightweight, started to

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stack on.
And I think then we moved from

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there to a place that again, was
freshly carpeted and painted.

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But we were assured that these
were really good owners because

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the last guy screamed at me in
front of my baby, who was 18

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months old at the time, for not
being good enough at cleaning.

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Yeah, our couches went green.
I really don't think that's my

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problem, but I'm not staying on
top of things.

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Shocker.
And so the interesting thing is,

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as I look back, it kind of
sounds like an abuse story, some

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of these interactions with
landlords and and agents.

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And I completely understand how
you end up just being a bit kind

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of submissive because if you
think about a nervous system and

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going like from fight, flight,
freeze to fawn, I think I was

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just in fawn.
I was like, OK, I just, I can't

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handle because I couldn't
actually handle the energy of

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that interaction, let alone
fight it.

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And so we would just keep moving
on.

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And unfortunately, the place
where we landed and stayed for

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seven years was the worst.
We had a huge storm soon after

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moving in.
Wall water, kind of inside

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bedrooms kind of stuff.
Yeah.

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And this landlord replaced the
whole roof and sent a tradie in

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to repaint everything.
And we thought, Oh my gosh,

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amazing.
Remembering I know nothing about

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healthy buildings at this point
in time still.

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So I just saw a landlord who was
super proactive and was like, Oh

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my gosh, thank you.
So we thought it was done, kept

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living there.
Few years later I start

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experiencing after a massive
virus that summer.

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I also then started having these
teary eyes that just wouldn't

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stop.
And I was doing a lot of public

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speaking at the time and
literally just be wiping my

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eyes.
They just wouldn't stop.

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One of my tear ducts was
completely blocked.

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I found out and the only
solution was surgery.

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But what was interesting, and
again, I'm telling you these

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details because I, I, I know
someone will be out there going

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my God, that's relevant, my God,
that's me.

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Oh my God, I didn't know that
was related.

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I went overseas to my cousins
wedding, my mums from Mauritius,

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bit of a burst lottery there.
We head off great time and

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celebrate as a family.
And I noticed over there my I

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stopped hearing and, but when I
came home, I was like, oh, thank

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God, that's done, you know.
But three days later, three days

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later, it started again.
And another time I went away for

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work.
I came back and I was filled

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with a sense of dread,
depression, darkness, sadness.

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And I love my home, I love my
family.

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We've got the love.
I mean, I'm just so lucky.

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So I knew it wasn't them and I
knew it wasn't my life.

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You know, Low Tox is going super
well.

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I was helping people make all
these healthy swaps through the

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E course and and all sorts of
things.

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It was such a happy time and yet
just could not seem to get on

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top of these random things that
would come up.

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I had a surgery for that blocked
tear duct because no one could

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figure it out and I genuinely,
as a professional speaker

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couldn't go on like that.
It's kind of hard to explain it

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when you don't have it, but if I
was like, it would just be

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constant tearing and wiping my
eye stuff.

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After that surgery, things went
really downhill.

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It was almost like a big whack
of anaesthetic was a bit of a

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straw that broke the camel's
back for a totally overburdened

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toxic system.
And I started getting heart

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palpitations, twitching, tremor.
All these symptoms started just

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piling up to the point where it
was like, if you look at that

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original Shoemaker, Richie
Shoemaker graph of all the

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symptoms of mold toxicity.
And I know people argue that

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there are different ways to deal
with mold.

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In fact, I would argue as well
now, but back then it was a real

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00:12:24,080 --> 00:12:26,720
aha moment because it was me
plotted out on a graph.

227
00:12:26,720 --> 00:12:28,720
I didn't just have a couple of
them, I had all of them.

228
00:12:28,800 --> 00:12:33,320
The, the electric shocks, the
shooting pains, everything.

229
00:12:33,920 --> 00:12:36,440
It was crazy.
Digestive system blown to

230
00:12:36,440 --> 00:12:38,400
pieces.
Absolute shocker.

231
00:12:38,400 --> 00:12:42,880
And that was where we lost all
of our apartment deposit money

232
00:12:43,040 --> 00:12:45,520
just trying to figure out what
on earth was going on because I

233
00:12:45,520 --> 00:12:47,640
still had no idea MALT was
causing it.

234
00:12:47,800 --> 00:12:52,320
And I had every scan, every
specialist, every naturopathic

235
00:12:52,440 --> 00:12:57,600
remedy you could think of, so
many things, gut tests and

236
00:12:57,600 --> 00:13:01,320
anyone who's been down a chronic
illness Rd. where the

237
00:13:01,320 --> 00:13:04,360
conventional path doesn't help
you and is expensive enough as

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00:13:04,360 --> 00:13:07,760
it is, the integrative path's
even more expensive.

239
00:13:07,760 --> 00:13:10,880
We've got a real problem with
healthcare.

240
00:13:11,760 --> 00:13:14,280
I know those doctors are
incredible.

241
00:13:14,280 --> 00:13:16,760
There's probably a couple of you
guys listening right now.

242
00:13:17,240 --> 00:13:21,200
However, if it costs 10s of
thousands of dollars worth of

243
00:13:21,480 --> 00:13:26,120
hyperbarics and pamph and you
know, all like that is not

244
00:13:26,120 --> 00:13:30,160
healthcare because it actually
bankrupts people and it back

245
00:13:30,320 --> 00:13:33,640
exactly.
It's it's, it's crazy.

246
00:13:33,640 --> 00:13:37,560
And, and so, yeah, it was a
really tough year.

247
00:13:38,120 --> 00:13:41,320
And and I started being one of
those crazy people who, because

248
00:13:41,320 --> 00:13:44,160
I was awake all night anyway
with just such a jacked up

249
00:13:44,160 --> 00:13:47,240
nervous system by this point,
like all Ollie had to do was

250
00:13:47,240 --> 00:13:50,480
roll over and I'd get a
tachycardic response for hours,

251
00:13:50,760 --> 00:13:53,480
just like 200 crazy
palpitations.

252
00:13:53,520 --> 00:13:56,000
It was mental.
Yeah, it was actually mental.

253
00:13:56,000 --> 00:13:59,960
Thank God for yoga Nidra and
just helping like, help me to

254
00:13:59,960 --> 00:14:02,360
try and bring it down.
I was doing all the right

255
00:14:02,360 --> 00:14:04,080
things, but the right things
just didn't.

256
00:14:04,560 --> 00:14:09,000
I didn't even touch the sides,
Jess, like, you know, it's we do

257
00:14:09,000 --> 00:14:12,160
a lot of victim blaming in
complementary health, like try

258
00:14:12,160 --> 00:14:14,000
harder, do the protocol better,
do that.

259
00:14:14,200 --> 00:14:17,720
I'm just I'm done with it all.
It's so exhausting for people

260
00:14:17,720 --> 00:14:22,440
who are genuinely at the end of
their tether and truly need,

261
00:14:22,440 --> 00:14:27,320
need figuring out like how to
even just set up the stage for

262
00:14:27,320 --> 00:14:30,960
you to be able to then cope with
doing all that stuff to have it

263
00:14:30,960 --> 00:14:33,920
start to help.
So that's a bigger conversation

264
00:14:33,920 --> 00:14:36,960
for another day.
And I guess I'll just come to

265
00:14:36,960 --> 00:14:42,560
the moment where I put my faith
in a chiropractor on the

266
00:14:42,560 --> 00:14:46,560
Internet in the US who had a
schizoaffective disorder son.

267
00:14:46,560 --> 00:14:51,320
So he had gone down every
possible rabbit hole of genes,

268
00:14:51,320 --> 00:14:53,800
environmental illness.
He'd been helping Doctor Ben

269
00:14:53,800 --> 00:14:57,920
Lynch out in the early days of
mapping out alleles and

270
00:14:58,160 --> 00:15:03,560
polymorphisms and all that jazz.
And in his patient intake form,

271
00:15:03,920 --> 00:15:08,280
which was 5 pages long, one of
the questions was, do you recall

272
00:15:08,280 --> 00:15:12,360
a time of experiencing a severe
storm that caused water damage

273
00:15:12,360 --> 00:15:14,840
in your home?
It was a simple question.

274
00:15:15,840 --> 00:15:19,760
And I was like, oh, yeah.
And I've just answered it like,

275
00:15:19,760 --> 00:15:21,320
you know, as well as everything
else.

276
00:15:21,320 --> 00:15:23,560
And it took forever to write it
all out.

277
00:15:23,680 --> 00:15:27,640
So we're talking.
And he's like, I think this

278
00:15:27,640 --> 00:15:30,840
might be mould.
I think there might be something

279
00:15:30,880 --> 00:15:34,600
that you need to explore there.
And if it is and if it's

280
00:15:34,600 --> 00:15:36,800
impacted your nervous system
this much.

281
00:15:36,800 --> 00:15:41,280
And if you had things like happy
gas for that general, you know,

282
00:15:41,280 --> 00:15:44,080
as the precursor to a general,
and it had actually a couple of

283
00:15:44,080 --> 00:15:45,960
dental treatments where it also
had happy gas.

284
00:15:45,960 --> 00:15:48,600
So he was just kind of adding on
all of these.

285
00:15:48,600 --> 00:15:53,000
So you know, B12, fully depleted
nervous system fried, extra

286
00:15:53,000 --> 00:15:56,400
toxicity from both mould and
aesthetic, but all these other

287
00:15:56,400 --> 00:15:58,840
things.
So I had the cleanest diet in

288
00:15:58,840 --> 00:16:01,080
the world.
I used the most low tox products

289
00:16:01,080 --> 00:16:05,040
in the world, did not cut the
mustard because these were some

290
00:16:05,040 --> 00:16:09,360
seriously big inputs that had
impacted my system beyond my own

291
00:16:09,360 --> 00:16:13,680
ability to repair.
And so he put me on super high

292
00:16:13,680 --> 00:16:18,000
strength B12 charcoal before bed
every night and high strength

293
00:16:18,240 --> 00:16:23,000
ubiquinol and SPMS.
So pro resolving mediators.

294
00:16:23,000 --> 00:16:26,880
It's a basically the fish oil
before you have to convert the

295
00:16:26,880 --> 00:16:29,400
EPADHA to do what it does in the
body.

296
00:16:29,400 --> 00:16:33,880
It's like straight to the good
stuff, really, really power, he

297
00:16:33,880 --> 00:16:36,200
said.
If this works, I reckon you just

298
00:16:36,200 --> 00:16:40,680
have a super overburdened system
that just needs a lot of support

299
00:16:40,680 --> 00:16:43,360
and a lot of mopping up of the
bad stuff.

300
00:16:43,360 --> 00:16:48,840
And it may actually work really
fast to get you back to feeling

301
00:16:48,840 --> 00:16:52,360
like you can just do life.
Because I, I was at the point

302
00:16:52,360 --> 00:16:53,960
where I thought, this carries
on.

303
00:16:53,960 --> 00:16:56,760
I'm in a wheelchair in six
months, this carries on, I'm

304
00:16:56,760 --> 00:16:59,400
probably dead next year.
It was very dark.

305
00:16:59,440 --> 00:17:05,319
I can't, it's, it's so, so tough
to actually even connect to the

306
00:17:05,319 --> 00:17:09,200
person that I was because there
was a shame around it being well

307
00:17:09,200 --> 00:17:13,040
known as a very healthy person
and all of a sudden not being

308
00:17:13,040 --> 00:17:15,800
able to show up for my community
the way I normally did.

309
00:17:15,880 --> 00:17:20,319
But there was also a lot of
freaking terrified kind of stuff

310
00:17:20,319 --> 00:17:23,280
like what am I going to see my
kid grow up?

311
00:17:23,280 --> 00:17:29,240
Like it was awful.
And I just could not believe how

312
00:17:29,400 --> 00:17:35,480
obvious the toxicant was and how
prevalent it is when you start

313
00:17:35,480 --> 00:17:39,280
talking to people to experience
mould in the home.

314
00:17:39,280 --> 00:17:43,760
And I'm not talking a bit of
condensation mold on a window or

315
00:17:43,760 --> 00:17:47,400
in a shower, like that's just
excess humidity, talking water

316
00:17:47,400 --> 00:17:51,040
damage from poorly built or
poorly maintained buildings.

317
00:17:51,040 --> 00:17:55,280
And so I started unpacking it
slowly, slowly interviewing

318
00:17:55,280 --> 00:17:59,360
people, seeing who knew what,
realizing how little support

319
00:17:59,360 --> 00:18:02,840
people had, and then also
realizing how much it costs

320
00:18:02,840 --> 00:18:06,200
people to get better.
You know, I did everything I, I

321
00:18:06,200 --> 00:18:09,760
possibly could to try the
Shoemaker protocol, to try the

322
00:18:09,760 --> 00:18:11,680
integrative health
interventions.

323
00:18:11,680 --> 00:18:14,120
Still wasn't great.
As soon as I was somewhere

324
00:18:14,120 --> 00:18:17,640
mouldy, it was like all it took
was a couple of days and I'd be

325
00:18:17,640 --> 00:18:21,120
at my worst again.
And that's just not a resilient

326
00:18:21,120 --> 00:18:24,960
body.
And so for me, it ended up being

327
00:18:24,960 --> 00:18:31,080
a case of taking antifungal
medication, like actual meds to

328
00:18:31,080 --> 00:18:33,120
deal with the colonization
issue.

329
00:18:33,160 --> 00:18:38,000
And I can't tell you impact that
they had on me.

330
00:18:38,000 --> 00:18:42,640
It was like, it was like I
finally had the support I needed

331
00:18:43,360 --> 00:18:48,320
in 100 bucks a month.
No 100, No, 50 bucks a month.

332
00:18:48,320 --> 00:18:49,800
Yeah, because 100 bucks for two
months.

333
00:18:51,960 --> 00:18:54,600
Solution.
I managed to actually just show

334
00:18:54,600 --> 00:19:00,240
my GP who charges 35 bucks a
consult and take him through all

335
00:19:00,240 --> 00:19:02,760
the research of a couple of
American doctors using

336
00:19:02,760 --> 00:19:06,000
antifungals.
And I said, I think I've just

337
00:19:06,000 --> 00:19:10,640
got too much going on and it's
just kind of in all my tissues

338
00:19:10,640 --> 00:19:14,000
and I've got to get it out like
like an like a bacterial

339
00:19:14,000 --> 00:19:17,160
infection.
Why do we not use save the day

340
00:19:17,360 --> 00:19:22,200
antifungals for when we've
experienced very intense, very

341
00:19:22,200 --> 00:19:27,120
chronic fungal exposure?
And there are a few people who

342
00:19:27,360 --> 00:19:30,680
who try and explain it as, oh,
but it's dangerous for the

343
00:19:30,680 --> 00:19:31,960
liver, it's dangerous for the
brain.

344
00:19:31,960 --> 00:19:35,720
But if you've got a good GP who
can actually monitor you while

345
00:19:35,720 --> 00:19:38,640
you're on something that does
have side effects potentially,

346
00:19:39,040 --> 00:19:42,280
like I got to the point where I
was like, screw it, I'm trying

347
00:19:42,280 --> 00:19:45,040
this.
Can you please give me a liver

348
00:19:45,240 --> 00:19:47,560
blood test?
You know that I do now, two

349
00:19:47,560 --> 00:19:49,760
weeks, one month.
So we monitor that.

350
00:19:49,760 --> 00:19:54,400
He could not believe the
difference between me and and me

351
00:19:54,400 --> 00:19:56,400
in a month later.
He couldn't.

352
00:19:56,400 --> 00:19:59,320
He could not believe it.
I couldn't believe it.

353
00:19:59,400 --> 00:20:01,720
It was incredible.
Me, yes.

354
00:20:01,720 --> 00:20:04,480
And I'm, I'm not saying that's
other people.

355
00:20:04,480 --> 00:20:07,840
I am also definitely a huge
advocate for things like

356
00:20:07,840 --> 00:20:10,960
charcoal to mop up what's going
on in the gut, especially if you

357
00:20:10,960 --> 00:20:14,480
eat foods like grains or you
find it really hard to go low

358
00:20:14,480 --> 00:20:18,320
carb because carbs can sometimes
allow yeast to proliferate in

359
00:20:18,320 --> 00:20:21,120
the gut.
To repair the nervous system,

360
00:20:21,120 --> 00:20:23,120
Ubiquinol to support your
mitochondria.

361
00:20:23,120 --> 00:20:26,240
Like there are some really
amazing supplements that chiro

362
00:20:26,240 --> 00:20:29,360
was bang on with that like
support kit.

363
00:20:29,360 --> 00:20:32,080
And other people are going to
say that the way they healed was

364
00:20:32,080 --> 00:20:36,400
through really expensive pamphen
hyperbaric chamber therapy as

365
00:20:36,400 --> 00:20:38,480
well.
Like I'm not denigrating any

366
00:20:38,480 --> 00:20:41,320
therapies.
My priority is trying to figure

367
00:20:41,320 --> 00:20:45,760
out a way where people know
there are options for any budget

368
00:20:45,760 --> 00:20:49,960
and that if something doesn't
work, let it fail fast and move

369
00:20:49,960 --> 00:20:52,200
on.
Don't keep trying to hope in it

370
00:20:52,200 --> 00:20:55,560
because it's natural or hope in
it 'cause it's integrity, or

371
00:20:55,560 --> 00:20:58,240
hope in it 'cause it's a, a
pharmaceutical.

372
00:20:58,240 --> 00:21:02,080
Like all of those things could
be wrong for you or all of those

373
00:21:02,080 --> 00:21:06,200
things could end up being right.
It has taught me so much about

374
00:21:06,240 --> 00:21:11,280
the fault in rigid thinking, in
black and white ideas, in these

375
00:21:11,280 --> 00:21:15,240
health silos that exist with
purity testing in the Internet,

376
00:21:15,600 --> 00:21:17,360
because it just doesn't help
people.

377
00:21:17,360 --> 00:21:20,800
People just end up feeling
secretly ashamed or blindly

378
00:21:20,800 --> 00:21:23,200
following and then no longer
questioning.

379
00:21:23,200 --> 00:21:28,680
And so, yeah, I feel like it's
been been quite a journey, but

380
00:21:28,840 --> 00:21:33,680
an incredibly powerful one for a
number of reasons that I don't

381
00:21:33,840 --> 00:21:37,320
think I fully even know what to
do with all my lessons yet,

382
00:21:37,640 --> 00:21:39,920
right.
Like, I might write a book, I

383
00:21:39,920 --> 00:21:44,400
might just do a speaking tour to
like, you know, is it your home?

384
00:21:44,400 --> 00:21:47,240
Like, and just actually start
trying to help people piece it

385
00:21:47,240 --> 00:21:49,800
together because it was all
happening when my first book

386
00:21:49,800 --> 00:21:53,040
came out and I was sick as a dog
doing this book tour because,

387
00:21:53,280 --> 00:21:54,880
you know, you get your kid to
get through school.

388
00:21:54,880 --> 00:21:59,160
Like, it's incredible what
parents can muster while when

389
00:21:59,160 --> 00:22:01,800
you have to do stuff for your
kids.

390
00:22:02,840 --> 00:22:06,520
And my husband had just started
a business and it wasn't doing

391
00:22:06,520 --> 00:22:10,040
so well at the start.
So I was it.

392
00:22:10,160 --> 00:22:14,000
And I remember starting to speak
about it, what I had found so

393
00:22:14,000 --> 00:22:20,520
far, and then people hugging me,
just crying, saying, I think, I

394
00:22:20,520 --> 00:22:23,520
think you've saved my life.
I had no idea that it could be

395
00:22:23,520 --> 00:22:25,640
my home.
Like, I can't tell you the

396
00:22:25,640 --> 00:22:28,240
stories that have transpired
since Jess.

397
00:22:28,240 --> 00:22:32,160
It's been, my God, there are
thousands, thousands and

398
00:22:32,160 --> 00:22:35,760
thousands of people who are
suffering from things that I

399
00:22:35,760 --> 00:22:39,520
have just shared, who either
know and finally are getting the

400
00:22:39,520 --> 00:22:42,800
help they need.
No, and they own the house and

401
00:22:42,800 --> 00:22:44,520
they've got a mortgage they
can't afford as it is.

402
00:22:44,520 --> 00:22:47,360
So they can't afford the
remediation or who know and

403
00:22:47,360 --> 00:22:50,280
they're not experiencing any
justice in the rental system or

404
00:22:50,280 --> 00:22:54,120
who know and their parents or
their partner doesn't believe

405
00:22:54,120 --> 00:22:55,680
them.
And they feel like, you know,

406
00:22:55,680 --> 00:23:01,520
I've, I've seen people admitted
to asylums for professing that

407
00:23:01,520 --> 00:23:03,840
it's their home that's driving
them crazy.

408
00:23:04,520 --> 00:23:07,920
But we have papers on the
psychiatric implications of some

409
00:23:07,920 --> 00:23:10,520
of these mycotoxins.
So it's like, what?

410
00:23:10,600 --> 00:23:13,560
We literally have science to
explain it and we're putting

411
00:23:13,560 --> 00:23:16,120
people away.
It's awful.

412
00:23:16,120 --> 00:23:19,160
I mean, the, the broad range of
things I've heard, I wouldn't

413
00:23:19,160 --> 00:23:22,640
have believed it unless I'd gone
through it myself, which is why

414
00:23:22,640 --> 00:23:24,880
we should always be open and
compassionate.

415
00:23:24,960 --> 00:23:27,360
Yeah.
So many barriers to actually

416
00:23:27,360 --> 00:23:29,000
getting answers.
Yeah.

417
00:23:29,280 --> 00:23:32,520
And the overwhelm of going
through the whole health and

418
00:23:32,680 --> 00:23:36,040
home remediation process in
itself is so overwhelming.

419
00:23:36,040 --> 00:23:38,280
Was so.
Daunting and then the amount of

420
00:23:38,280 --> 00:23:43,080
cowboy scenarios that like fix
your mould problem out there

421
00:23:43,080 --> 00:23:45,480
because it's completely
unregulated.

422
00:23:46,240 --> 00:23:49,800
I know people poo poo
regulation, but if we can get it

423
00:23:49,800 --> 00:23:54,280
right and and start to create
truly democratic processes by

424
00:23:54,280 --> 00:23:58,760
which a number of experts in all
fields come together to decide

425
00:23:58,760 --> 00:24:03,400
how something should best for
what we know now in time be

426
00:24:03,400 --> 00:24:06,680
dealt with, then regulation can
be wonderful.

427
00:24:06,840 --> 00:24:10,000
But unfortunately with the
amount of money in politics, no

428
00:24:10,000 --> 00:24:13,080
matter who the party, we're not
really going to move forward

429
00:24:13,280 --> 00:24:16,800
that way.
So at this point it is word on

430
00:24:16,800 --> 00:24:20,120
the street and trying to help as
many people as you can.

431
00:24:20,120 --> 00:24:22,240
Anyone who knows anything to
help.

432
00:24:22,520 --> 00:24:23,640
Yeah.
I mean, look at building

433
00:24:23,640 --> 00:24:25,640
biologists and the work you guys
are doing.

434
00:24:25,640 --> 00:24:28,520
Thank God.
I'm not a building biologist

435
00:24:28,520 --> 00:24:31,800
yet, still studying.
I know, I know, but you're on,

436
00:24:31,800 --> 00:24:36,800
you're well on your way.
My hope is that we end up with a

437
00:24:36,800 --> 00:24:40,920
marriage between various
associations who deal with

438
00:24:40,920 --> 00:24:43,920
buildings by fixing them and
building them, adhering to a

439
00:24:43,920 --> 00:24:46,160
standard.
Because even if you look at

440
00:24:46,160 --> 00:24:49,960
something like the IICIC and I
know they're working hard on an

441
00:24:49,960 --> 00:24:52,920
upgrade of the standard clarity
around it.

442
00:24:53,640 --> 00:24:58,720
You still have situations where
the young 20 year old real

443
00:24:58,720 --> 00:25:03,200
estate agent managing a rental
property is not going to know

444
00:25:03,200 --> 00:25:07,080
that that even exists.
And they're going to have a

445
00:25:07,080 --> 00:25:11,360
client say you got to fix the
air con leak and they're just

446
00:25:11,360 --> 00:25:13,880
going to fix the leak and
they're not going to worry about

447
00:25:13,880 --> 00:25:17,400
what might be behind the wall,
right?

448
00:25:17,400 --> 00:25:21,160
So standards are great if
they're enforced.

449
00:25:21,160 --> 00:25:25,080
But unless we have a policy
piece that comes with a

450
00:25:25,080 --> 00:25:30,200
standard, we will perpetuate
this whole issue of tons of

451
00:25:30,200 --> 00:25:33,000
investment properties having so
many.

452
00:25:33,240 --> 00:25:35,560
You know, and I don't have
anything against people building

453
00:25:35,560 --> 00:25:37,880
a small portfolio for themselves
to be able to build for

454
00:25:37,880 --> 00:25:40,800
retirement.
Like I think you do you.

455
00:25:40,800 --> 00:25:43,680
That's amazing.
I probably would have too if,

456
00:25:43,720 --> 00:25:46,200
you know, I could.
And so I'm not going to lie

457
00:25:46,200 --> 00:25:48,800
about that.
But we should cap it.

458
00:25:48,800 --> 00:25:52,000
We should certainly not allow
infinite negative geared like,

459
00:25:52,000 --> 00:25:56,120
you know, just don't let's not
all pay any tax on anything and

460
00:25:56,120 --> 00:25:59,160
contribute to society.
Like, I just think there are

461
00:25:59,160 --> 00:26:01,760
limits.
But speaking to friends who have

462
00:26:01,760 --> 00:26:07,480
portfolios, they have no idea
often what's going on in their

463
00:26:07,480 --> 00:26:10,480
investment properties.
They don't realize some of the

464
00:26:10,480 --> 00:26:13,320
conversations these agents are
having with tenants.

465
00:26:13,800 --> 00:26:18,240
I actually, I've had some
hilarious conversations, one

466
00:26:18,240 --> 00:26:20,240
being when we had an air con
leak.

467
00:26:20,440 --> 00:26:24,000
We ended up remediating it
straight away ourselves because

468
00:26:24,000 --> 00:26:28,520
we knew that a it would take
weeks to decide and you've got

469
00:26:28,520 --> 00:26:32,280
48 hours when it comes to water
damage before mold starts to

470
00:26:32,280 --> 00:26:36,040
grow as a like Max, right?
So you've got to act fast.

471
00:26:36,520 --> 00:26:39,720
We replaced the carpet, same
same colour, everything in the

472
00:26:39,800 --> 00:26:44,120
built in robe and took away all
the mouldy kind of under floor

473
00:26:44,120 --> 00:26:46,800
stuff.
Put that down as well, freshened

474
00:26:46,800 --> 00:26:50,840
everything up and fixed it.
And she said, well, that wasn't

475
00:26:50,840 --> 00:26:53,240
approved.
We'll have to send some what we

476
00:26:53,240 --> 00:26:54,760
would have send a carpet
cleaner.

477
00:26:54,760 --> 00:26:58,360
Why did you just like, hold on,
you were going to send a carpet

478
00:26:58,360 --> 00:27:01,000
cleaner to what?
Wet it more?

479
00:27:01,600 --> 00:27:07,160
She just, she didn't know she's
21, you know, And so I really

480
00:27:07,160 --> 00:27:10,000
think there are just so many
broken parts of the system.

481
00:27:10,000 --> 00:27:13,520
I tell that kind of story to my
friends and one of them has

482
00:27:13,520 --> 00:27:16,840
actually just gone through
because she has investment

483
00:27:16,840 --> 00:27:21,640
properties, but she rents and
she's just gone through a water

484
00:27:21,640 --> 00:27:23,280
damage thing.
It was asking me a whole bunch

485
00:27:23,280 --> 00:27:26,920
of advice and couldn't believe
how hard it was to get the right

486
00:27:26,920 --> 00:27:30,040
kind of repair done with the the
landlord.

487
00:27:30,040 --> 00:27:34,720
And I'm like this, this is what
your tenants are going through.

488
00:27:34,760 --> 00:27:37,760
You don't get told about it
because your agents want to keep

489
00:27:37,760 --> 00:27:40,960
your business, and keeping your
business involves hardly ever

490
00:27:40,960 --> 00:27:44,160
contacting you.
It's time for a quick sponsor

491
00:27:44,160 --> 00:27:46,960
shout out.
Today's episode of the Building

492
00:27:46,960 --> 00:27:50,000
Psychology Potty is proudly
brought to you by our amazing

493
00:27:50,000 --> 00:27:51,920
sponsors Enduro Builders and
Climate Shore.

494
00:27:52,400 --> 00:27:54,760
A huge thank you to these
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495
00:27:54,760 --> 00:27:57,760
supporting the podcast and
helping us spread the word about

496
00:27:57,760 --> 00:27:59,240
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497
00:27:59,680 --> 00:28:01,800
Your support makes this podcast
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498
00:28:02,320 --> 00:28:05,080
Please head over to their
websites and follow their social

499
00:28:05,080 --> 00:28:06,640
pages.
Right.

500
00:28:06,640 --> 00:28:11,480
Like it's such a broken system.
Hopefully that leaves room for a

501
00:28:11,480 --> 00:28:14,240
lot of people to feel like
they're not being victimized by

502
00:28:14,240 --> 00:28:17,360
me and what I'm saying.
It's just that we have to

503
00:28:17,360 --> 00:28:21,800
recognize all of us, that it's a
broken system that needs fixing

504
00:28:21,800 --> 00:28:25,120
on a number of levels.
Like starting with a Clean Air

505
00:28:25,120 --> 00:28:30,160
Act where landlords or
homeowners have to, by law,

506
00:28:30,480 --> 00:28:33,840
clean their air cons every
single year.

507
00:28:33,840 --> 00:28:38,760
Like you get your fire check
because that is causing far more

508
00:28:38,760 --> 00:28:42,920
asthma and eczema than you know
then we need to be experiencing

509
00:28:42,920 --> 00:28:45,280
and people need to be running
off to doctors and pharmacists

510
00:28:45,280 --> 00:28:48,960
for just dirty air from an air
con, let alone a water leak.

511
00:28:49,240 --> 00:28:52,160
I've got a good story about an
air con in this house because

512
00:28:52,160 --> 00:28:54,240
I'm also renting.
At the.

513
00:28:54,440 --> 00:28:58,560
Front and the ducting in this
house I actually got my head up

514
00:28:58,600 --> 00:29:02,000
I got up a ladder and got popped
my head into the ducts and I've

515
00:29:02,000 --> 00:29:04,280
been in this house nearly two
years so I went through for the

516
00:29:04,280 --> 00:29:07,600
first winter no sorry the first
summer using it's an evaporative

517
00:29:07,600 --> 00:29:11,480
cooling system so it works
really well well it's yeah it

518
00:29:11,480 --> 00:29:12,960
cools the house down quite well
it's.

519
00:29:13,000 --> 00:29:15,040
Effective.
I quite like, you know, the

520
00:29:15,040 --> 00:29:17,200
airflow and I like having all
the doors open and everything

521
00:29:17,200 --> 00:29:19,440
like that.
So I, I was using it fairly,

522
00:29:19,440 --> 00:29:21,720
fairly often and popped my head
up into the duct.

523
00:29:21,960 --> 00:29:26,360
You what I found, I've put a
photo on the screen for anyone

524
00:29:26,360 --> 00:29:29,840
who's watching the video.
It is taped in red dust.

525
00:29:29,840 --> 00:29:32,440
The ducting is, I don't even
know how thick it must have, you

526
00:29:32,440 --> 00:29:37,400
know, a centimetre of thick of
dust on the bottom of the, on

527
00:29:37,400 --> 00:29:38,920
the bottom of the duct or maybe
a centimetre.

528
00:29:38,920 --> 00:29:41,400
But the bottom of the ducting,
every single duct I've looked

529
00:29:41,400 --> 00:29:43,880
in, every single one is all
caked with, with dust.

530
00:29:44,920 --> 00:29:49,120
And I contacted the agent to fix
it and they would like they put

531
00:29:49,120 --> 00:29:52,640
a split system in instead rather
than fixing, I'm fixing that

532
00:29:52,640 --> 00:29:54,200
because I said I'm not using
that anymore.

533
00:29:54,200 --> 00:29:59,240
And yeah, they just put a split
system in instead, which is, you

534
00:29:59,240 --> 00:30:02,040
know, it works, it's fine.
But I'm still, that's still

535
00:30:03,080 --> 00:30:05,440
probably getting into my house
every time there's a breeze.

536
00:30:06,560 --> 00:30:08,480
Yeah, and I know.
That's it.

537
00:30:10,000 --> 00:30:13,640
I've had funny, it's like I
cough and clean my throat a lot

538
00:30:13,640 --> 00:30:18,960
as it is and my lungs in this
house have felt every night I go

539
00:30:19,120 --> 00:30:23,920
lay down, said to my partner.
My lungs feel raspy and I don't

540
00:30:23,920 --> 00:30:25,960
know why.
Like I feel like I have like a

541
00:30:25,960 --> 00:30:28,240
smoker's cough and I I'm not a
smoker.

542
00:30:28,240 --> 00:30:31,160
I never have been and.
But yeah, it's usually

543
00:30:31,160 --> 00:30:34,960
Clostridium from air con.
Is it Clostridium is that I

544
00:30:34,960 --> 00:30:38,760
think that's what the species is
very common in air cons and

545
00:30:38,760 --> 00:30:41,080
like.
And thank God where you live is

546
00:30:41,080 --> 00:30:42,800
dryer Jess.
Yeah.

547
00:30:42,800 --> 00:30:46,880
So put ducting, old ducting that
doesn't get serviced in a humid

548
00:30:46,880 --> 00:30:53,400
place like Darwin or Sydney.
I mean, just disaster, like such

549
00:30:53,480 --> 00:30:57,080
a disaster for people's health
and people are coughing and

550
00:30:57,080 --> 00:31:01,120
raspy have skinny shoes.
So this is where it's it's it's

551
00:31:01,120 --> 00:31:04,760
really powerful when you can
actually join the dots.

552
00:31:05,440 --> 00:31:09,320
Because if enough people do,
then we have a chance at policy.

553
00:31:09,320 --> 00:31:13,000
Because like, imagine being a
politician and making it super

554
00:31:13,000 --> 00:31:15,520
easy for them to get re elected
by letting them know that your

555
00:31:15,520 --> 00:31:19,920
entire constituency is not gonna
unless you put some policy in

556
00:31:19,920 --> 00:31:23,200
place around new buildings and
building maintenance.

557
00:31:24,400 --> 00:31:28,160
And can I just emphasize these
homes, as you would have seen in

558
00:31:28,160 --> 00:31:35,080
my talk, we're not like full of
party super old homes.

559
00:31:35,720 --> 00:31:39,520
They some of them were stunning.
One of them we would have

560
00:31:39,520 --> 00:31:42,600
thought, Oh my gosh, this is
like a like a vogue living

561
00:31:42,600 --> 00:31:44,320
place.
And it was that one where we

562
00:31:44,320 --> 00:31:47,000
thought just a couple of years
ago when we moved seven times in

563
00:31:47,000 --> 00:31:49,480
a year, I didn't even, I just
thought, you've got the point.

564
00:31:49,480 --> 00:31:51,920
Like, let's just get to the
point where where I'm super sick

565
00:31:51,920 --> 00:31:54,640
and we figured out it's mould.
I don't need to tell you about

566
00:31:54,640 --> 00:31:57,640
all the crap that happened after
that as I really started to

567
00:31:57,640 --> 00:32:02,360
unpack the problem with housing.
But I think we often think, oh,

568
00:32:02,360 --> 00:32:06,400
if it's expensive or new, then
it's going to be fine.

569
00:32:06,440 --> 00:32:08,120
We have not found that to be the
case.

570
00:32:08,120 --> 00:32:11,280
In fact, the healthiest home
I've lived in the last decade,

571
00:32:12,160 --> 00:32:15,200
it was actually the very first
apartment building in Pots Point

572
00:32:15,200 --> 00:32:18,040
ever built in inner Sydney,
1910.

573
00:32:18,040 --> 00:32:21,280
It was built and my gosh, we
were healthy in there.

574
00:32:21,280 --> 00:32:24,080
It was incredible.
They ended up knocking it down

575
00:32:24,080 --> 00:32:26,440
to build a palace for a super
rich dude.

576
00:32:26,440 --> 00:32:29,440
But yeah, that was.
And it just taught me so much,

577
00:32:29,560 --> 00:32:32,840
you know, was not the lightest,
brightest place, but it was the

578
00:32:32,840 --> 00:32:36,680
kind of place that every time it
rained, even if you had all the

579
00:32:36,680 --> 00:32:40,720
windows open, it would never bat
on the side of the building.

580
00:32:40,720 --> 00:32:44,360
They had eaves everywhere around
this apartment building and

581
00:32:44,360 --> 00:32:48,160
balconies off all the windows
and doors so that you just had

582
00:32:48,160 --> 00:32:51,400
nothing hitting the building so
it would dry out really quickly.

583
00:32:52,280 --> 00:32:54,640
Yeah, it doesn't matter how many
millions of dollars you spend on

584
00:32:54,640 --> 00:32:56,600
your house, water can still get
to it.

585
00:32:58,840 --> 00:33:02,240
Sure can.
It is often surprising to people

586
00:33:02,240 --> 00:33:05,400
that indoor air quality can be
worse than outdoor air quality,

587
00:33:05,440 --> 00:33:08,680
even within polluted cities.
So from your perspective, what

588
00:33:08,680 --> 00:33:11,320
are the hidden contributors
inside our homes and what are

589
00:33:11,320 --> 00:33:14,720
some of the achievable steps
that families can take to shift

590
00:33:14,720 --> 00:33:18,800
that needle a little bit?
So I love this question because

591
00:33:18,800 --> 00:33:21,000
there is something everyone can
do here.

592
00:33:21,000 --> 00:33:24,680
There is every budget can feel
like they can get on top of

593
00:33:24,680 --> 00:33:27,120
something.
And in fact there are even in

594
00:33:27,120 --> 00:33:29,960
some categories you can just
simply stop buying stuff that

595
00:33:29,960 --> 00:33:33,800
you might be regularly buying.
And I love that for us, because

596
00:33:33,800 --> 00:33:37,480
for me, the whole Low Tox Life
platform was built around the

597
00:33:37,480 --> 00:33:40,160
idea that we could all do
something from where we are with

598
00:33:40,160 --> 00:33:42,880
what we've got.
And it's not this exclusive club

599
00:33:42,880 --> 00:33:44,800
and it doesn't have to be done
perfectly.

600
00:33:44,800 --> 00:33:46,720
And everyone's got different
priorities.

601
00:33:46,720 --> 00:33:50,000
And so we end up with people
learning all this stuff and then

602
00:33:50,000 --> 00:33:52,280
going and living off grid in a
tiny home.

603
00:33:52,600 --> 00:33:56,720
But then we've got other people
that end up just doing city life

604
00:33:56,720 --> 00:33:59,280
better for their family and
everything in between.

605
00:33:59,280 --> 00:34:01,880
And I just love that because
there should be space for

606
00:34:01,880 --> 00:34:05,520
everybody to do life the way it
makes sense for you to do it and

607
00:34:05,520 --> 00:34:08,520
to just do it better for you and
better for the planet.

608
00:34:08,520 --> 00:34:13,239
Like it's not dogmatic at all.
And so in this category, if we

609
00:34:13,239 --> 00:34:15,960
think about inside our homes,
just sticking with mold for a

610
00:34:15,960 --> 00:34:20,120
little minute, this one is a bit
exy because it does involve

611
00:34:20,120 --> 00:34:23,920
buying an appliance, but it will
possibly be, especially if you

612
00:34:23,920 --> 00:34:26,639
live somewhere with a lot of
people in your home.

613
00:34:26,639 --> 00:34:31,080
So a lot of human humidity from
cooking or baths and showers and

614
00:34:31,520 --> 00:34:33,840
that kind of stuff with
breathing, there's that.

615
00:34:33,920 --> 00:34:37,760
But if you live in a humid
climate, so coastally, anyone on

616
00:34:37,760 --> 00:34:40,600
the East Coast needs one of
these or more unfortunately,

617
00:34:40,600 --> 00:34:43,440
it's just a fact.
You need to control your

618
00:34:43,440 --> 00:34:45,120
humidity.
Or if you live somewhere with

619
00:34:45,280 --> 00:34:48,600
big bouts of rain that you need
to get on top of, because it's

620
00:34:48,600 --> 00:34:51,960
like those, you know, with
climate change, we have not

621
00:34:51,960 --> 00:34:55,719
necessarily more rainfall, but
we have a greater amount of

622
00:34:55,719 --> 00:34:59,600
rainfall in shorter periods of
time causing these rain bombs.

623
00:34:59,600 --> 00:35:02,680
And our cities and regional
areas are not built for them.

624
00:35:02,680 --> 00:35:05,440
We don't have the kind of
drainage or water systems that

625
00:35:05,440 --> 00:35:07,440
can cope.
And so it ends up kind of

626
00:35:07,440 --> 00:35:10,840
pooling around places.
And that's what causes some of

627
00:35:10,840 --> 00:35:14,320
this rising damp style water
damage or intrusion because it's

628
00:35:14,320 --> 00:35:17,200
so ferocious, like big tropical
storms.

629
00:35:17,200 --> 00:35:19,920
And so anyone who lives in
Sydney would understand this

630
00:35:19,920 --> 00:35:23,200
tropicalization effect that
we've experienced over the last

631
00:35:23,200 --> 00:35:25,440
20 years.
Our humidity has gone up 10%.

632
00:35:26,360 --> 00:35:28,800
So you're not dreaming if you
thought, oh, I didn't need a

633
00:35:28,800 --> 00:35:31,680
dehumidifier when I was a kid.
What, you know, why do I need

634
00:35:31,680 --> 00:35:33,640
one now?
Well, we've changed.

635
00:35:33,720 --> 00:35:38,120
Unfortunately, climate change
has changed us as a climate.

636
00:35:38,880 --> 00:35:41,640
So that appliance that you're
referring to is a dehumidifier?

637
00:35:42,080 --> 00:35:44,160
Yes it is.
Yes it is.

638
00:35:44,160 --> 00:35:47,880
And I always say get the biggest
1 you can afford.

639
00:35:48,600 --> 00:35:50,920
Biggest.
I mean like they say things like

640
00:35:51,080 --> 00:35:57,440
8 litre, 10 litre, 12 litre,
16202530354045, get the biggest

641
00:35:57,440 --> 00:36:02,120
1 you can afford because the
motor is what changes in those

642
00:36:02,840 --> 00:36:07,080
litres it can extract per day.
And you want a powerful motor,

643
00:36:07,240 --> 00:36:11,120
as powerful as you can get for
when that rain bomb does hit, or

644
00:36:11,120 --> 00:36:14,800
for when the kid does spill
water out of the bath and it

645
00:36:14,800 --> 00:36:18,760
goes into the corridor, or for
when the dishwasher springs a

646
00:36:18,760 --> 00:36:20,880
leak and a tradie can't come
till the next day.

647
00:36:20,920 --> 00:36:23,560
So you mop it all up, You crank
the dehumidifier.

648
00:36:23,960 --> 00:36:29,080
I just don't think a $300.10
litre dehumidifier is worth it.

649
00:36:29,320 --> 00:36:33,160
I would much rather you wait
another couple of months and buy

650
00:36:33,160 --> 00:36:37,920
a 35 to 50 litre dehumidifier
that's double the price, but

651
00:36:37,920 --> 00:36:41,520
that is actually gonna cut the
mustard in a humid climate.

652
00:36:41,520 --> 00:36:44,600
And then you can rotate this one
big one that's super powerful

653
00:36:44,880 --> 00:36:47,240
throughout your home.
And I've done a ton of reels

654
00:36:47,240 --> 00:36:51,800
that help people with like even
with floor plans to show you how

655
00:36:51,800 --> 00:36:53,840
to do it.
And you can just jump on low

656
00:36:53,840 --> 00:36:57,720
tops life on insta and it's all
the reels a few back.

657
00:36:57,720 --> 00:36:59,920
You'll probably have to scroll
up a bit, but if it's got a

658
00:36:59,920 --> 00:37:04,600
white tile background with text,
it's one of the dehumidifier

659
00:37:04,680 --> 00:37:07,160
education reels.
So I won't talk about it more

660
00:37:07,160 --> 00:37:10,200
here.
But the reason it's so important

661
00:37:10,200 --> 00:37:14,600
is because if you can keep your
humidity under 60%, ideally

662
00:37:14,600 --> 00:37:18,320
around 4550, but that's not
always achievable in very humid

663
00:37:18,320 --> 00:37:21,120
climate.
So under 60 at least every

664
00:37:21,120 --> 00:37:23,680
couple of days for a good few
hours.

665
00:37:24,000 --> 00:37:26,880
And that's why rotating is a
great system because it's just

666
00:37:26,880 --> 00:37:30,920
about drying everything out
super regularly in your home.

667
00:37:30,920 --> 00:37:34,280
You can prevent the
proliferation of mold, and you

668
00:37:34,280 --> 00:37:38,440
can halt it even in a water
damage situation while you're

669
00:37:38,440 --> 00:37:40,720
waiting for a bigger picture to
be solved.

670
00:37:41,080 --> 00:37:43,520
Yeah, that was my question,
because, you know, I know

671
00:37:43,600 --> 00:37:47,320
dehumidifiers are used to keep
indoor humidity down in general.

672
00:37:47,480 --> 00:37:50,520
I hadn't heard of them used as
like an interim solution for

673
00:37:50,520 --> 00:37:53,080
drying if you have a flood or a
lake.

674
00:37:54,280 --> 00:37:58,320
Totally, I mean anything you can
do to sequester moisture whether

675
00:37:58,320 --> 00:38:02,280
it's a shit hits the fan kind of
situation or man it's been

676
00:38:02,280 --> 00:38:04,480
raining every day this week
situation.

677
00:38:04,520 --> 00:38:09,160
Both situations a dehumidifier
is going to help prevent the

678
00:38:09,160 --> 00:38:12,760
growth of mold, or at the very
least if it's a really bad

679
00:38:12,760 --> 00:38:17,160
issue, halt it or slow it down
from becoming a bigger problem.

680
00:38:17,760 --> 00:38:19,480
Yeah, and did does.
That make sense?

681
00:38:19,840 --> 00:38:22,640
Yeah, absolutely.
Did dehumidifiers have sensors

682
00:38:22,640 --> 00:38:24,680
on them that tell you the
humidity in that space?

683
00:38:25,400 --> 00:38:27,120
Yes.
Well a good brand should

684
00:38:27,120 --> 00:38:28,560
absolutely.
Yeah.

685
00:38:28,560 --> 00:38:33,320
So we, I tend to have, I got
where have I put it?

686
00:38:34,360 --> 00:38:35,800
Here you go.
Here's the one I prepared

687
00:38:35,840 --> 00:38:37,480
earlier.
So if you have one of these

688
00:38:37,480 --> 00:38:41,840
guys, if you're watching this is
a climate gauge or a hygrometer

689
00:38:41,840 --> 00:38:43,840
is the more technical term for
it.

690
00:38:44,080 --> 00:38:46,680
But it's something that can give
you the percentage of humidity

691
00:38:46,680 --> 00:38:49,840
atmospherically.
Right now in Sydney, it's 39%.

692
00:38:49,840 --> 00:38:51,320
It's my favorite time of the
year.

693
00:38:51,320 --> 00:38:54,680
I love it and it's nice and low
and healthy.

694
00:38:54,680 --> 00:38:59,160
But if it starts raining
tomorrow, it's going to jump up.

695
00:38:59,280 --> 00:39:04,360
You know in summer it gets up to
8590 if you don't control for it

696
00:39:04,360 --> 00:39:08,600
inside and air conditioning
ducting can control for it.

697
00:39:08,600 --> 00:39:12,360
If you've got ducted, air con
can bring things down a few

698
00:39:12,360 --> 00:39:15,560
percent quite quickly and
easily, but split systems, not

699
00:39:15,560 --> 00:39:18,720
so much.
But dehumidifiers are going to

700
00:39:18,720 --> 00:39:21,520
be what protects your soft
furnishings from starting to get

701
00:39:21,520 --> 00:39:24,880
damp and starting to grow mold.
Going to protect your clothes,

702
00:39:24,880 --> 00:39:28,440
your leather goods, your shoes,
your couch, your mattresses.

703
00:39:28,440 --> 00:39:32,040
If you do that rotational thing
for a few hours in each room

704
00:39:32,320 --> 00:39:37,040
over a 2/2 day period, it's just
never going to get wet enough to

705
00:39:37,040 --> 00:39:39,680
damage your stuff.
And I mean, if you look at any

706
00:39:39,680 --> 00:39:44,240
council clean up the amount of
waste, I mean, never mind the

707
00:39:44,240 --> 00:39:47,320
landfill implication and the
planet implication of all of

708
00:39:47,320 --> 00:39:50,720
that waste, but that's hard
earned cash from people in the

709
00:39:50,720 --> 00:39:54,840
working class going down the
drain, having to replace things

710
00:39:54,840 --> 00:39:58,720
every few years that you could
otherwise be spending on, you

711
00:39:58,720 --> 00:40:02,000
know, building a nest egg or
going on a family holiday.

712
00:40:02,000 --> 00:40:07,840
Like it's crazy how we just kind
of accept, Oh yeah, that got a

713
00:40:07,840 --> 00:40:10,040
bit old and mouldy.
Got to check it out now.

714
00:40:10,600 --> 00:40:12,240
And it doesn't have to be that
way.

715
00:40:12,240 --> 00:40:16,320
Dehumidifiers end up paying for
themselves a million times over.

716
00:40:16,320 --> 00:40:17,600
Trust me.
That'll be.

717
00:40:17,600 --> 00:40:19,680
That'll be my first one.
Yeah.

718
00:40:21,720 --> 00:40:24,440
Second one, Another one that's
really powerful.

719
00:40:24,440 --> 00:40:28,120
And it is appliance related.
But I'll not spend as much time

720
00:40:28,120 --> 00:40:31,400
on this as air purification.
If you live in a city, there's

721
00:40:31,400 --> 00:40:34,440
pollution to deal with.
Poland to deal with wherever you

722
00:40:34,440 --> 00:40:39,680
live, there's dust mites in most
homes and they can be a really

723
00:40:39,680 --> 00:40:43,160
powerful allergen.
There is obviously mould spores,

724
00:40:43,160 --> 00:40:45,840
so that actually helps clean the
air.

725
00:40:45,840 --> 00:40:48,560
Dehumidifiers don't clean air,
they control moisture.

726
00:40:48,880 --> 00:40:52,560
Air purifiers clean the air.
VOC's, let's just say you got

727
00:40:52,560 --> 00:40:55,640
some new furniture or you just
did a Renault off gassing.

728
00:40:55,720 --> 00:40:59,360
All sorts of chemicals that you
guys learn about in bio, in

729
00:40:59,480 --> 00:41:02,280
building biology.
You could have old lead paint

730
00:41:02,480 --> 00:41:05,520
from an older house.
You could be in an agriculture

731
00:41:05,600 --> 00:41:08,600
culture area dealing with
agricultural chemicals in the

732
00:41:08,600 --> 00:41:11,680
air.
For whatever reason, most people

733
00:41:12,040 --> 00:41:18,280
have indoor toxic burden if you
like, and air purifiers, even if

734
00:41:18,280 --> 00:41:21,080
you just have one on in the main
part of your home where most

735
00:41:21,080 --> 00:41:24,360
people spend their time.
It just reduces the toxic

736
00:41:24,360 --> 00:41:28,240
burden, just makes literally
easier for your body to just do

737
00:41:28,240 --> 00:41:32,200
what it needs to do without all
the extra hassle of processing a

738
00:41:32,200 --> 00:41:34,760
whole bunch of extra toxins.
It might not have to if you had

739
00:41:34,760 --> 00:41:36,920
one of those.
So again, from a healthcare

740
00:41:36,920 --> 00:41:39,640
cost, you could end up saving a
tonne of cash.

741
00:41:40,160 --> 00:41:43,760
The next thing I'll say is
synthetic fragrance.

742
00:41:44,200 --> 00:41:46,640
This is my favorite category
because as I mentioned at the

743
00:41:46,640 --> 00:41:49,720
start, it's about like this
doesn't even cost you anything.

744
00:41:49,720 --> 00:41:53,560
In fact, it saves you money if
you are using fabric softener,

745
00:41:53,600 --> 00:41:57,080
if you are using scented
candles, if you are using.

746
00:41:57,320 --> 00:42:00,560
And isn't marketing clever to
convince us to spend 50 bucks on

747
00:42:00,560 --> 00:42:03,280
wax?
I mean, that's just like, wow,

748
00:42:03,320 --> 00:42:06,600
we were really hoodwinked there.
So there's that.

749
00:42:06,600 --> 00:42:10,840
There's air fresheners, timed
air fresheners, scented reeds,

750
00:42:10,840 --> 00:42:14,760
toilet ducks, what else?
Just that whole category of

751
00:42:14,760 --> 00:42:18,760
smelly stuff is unfortunately
really disruptive to our

752
00:42:18,760 --> 00:42:21,720
hormonal systems.
And blokes might be thinking,

753
00:42:21,720 --> 00:42:23,360
oh, but I don't use all that
smelly stuff.

754
00:42:23,360 --> 00:42:26,400
Well, let's point you towards
your deodorant choices, gents

755
00:42:26,400 --> 00:42:29,920
and the aftershaves.
And we're all using some kind of

756
00:42:29,920 --> 00:42:32,240
smelly thing.
If you look at mainstream

757
00:42:32,240 --> 00:42:36,480
culture and you can literally
stop, you can obviously for

758
00:42:36,480 --> 00:42:39,520
something like deodorant, switch
to a a non-toxic option and

759
00:42:39,520 --> 00:42:43,200
we're support for choice now.
Some great if you're a bit lost,

760
00:42:43,200 --> 00:42:46,240
if you're new to all of this on
lowtoxlife.com, there's a shop

761
00:42:46,240 --> 00:42:49,560
tab and I don't sell any
products, but I've literally

762
00:42:49,560 --> 00:42:52,920
just got like a whole bunch of
shops that if you shop there,

763
00:42:52,960 --> 00:42:55,800
you're sweet and you don't have
to worry about these synthetic

764
00:42:55,800 --> 00:42:59,440
fragrances because most
synthetic fragrances have a

765
00:42:59,440 --> 00:43:03,320
number of sometimes over 100
different chemicals in that

766
00:43:03,320 --> 00:43:05,360
umbrella term of fragrance or
puffer.

767
00:43:06,400 --> 00:43:11,560
And, and funny story, when I
worked in the beauty industry as

768
00:43:11,560 --> 00:43:15,200
a young counter manager, David
Jones for one of the brands, I,

769
00:43:15,200 --> 00:43:18,280
I thought I'd, you know, like
hit the big time working for a

770
00:43:18,280 --> 00:43:21,480
super fancy French brand and big
international company.

771
00:43:21,520 --> 00:43:26,480
But actually I was causing
myself to get migraines to to

772
00:43:26,560 --> 00:43:30,040
234 a month.
Really bad migraines, terrible

773
00:43:30,040 --> 00:43:32,040
period problems.
Everyone in the cosmetics

774
00:43:32,040 --> 00:43:34,720
department had period problems
of some kind, fertility

775
00:43:34,720 --> 00:43:38,360
problems, you know, you name it.
It was like, I really wish

776
00:43:38,360 --> 00:43:41,720
someone would do a PhD on
cosmetic consultants and toxic

777
00:43:41,720 --> 00:43:44,360
exposures, because I reckon
you'd find some pretty

778
00:43:44,800 --> 00:43:48,520
interesting things out about
that as a control group.

779
00:43:48,560 --> 00:43:52,000
So mass exposure on the daily,
it was awful.

780
00:43:52,480 --> 00:43:55,320
And hairdresser.
So if you're using these, yes,

781
00:43:55,320 --> 00:43:59,080
hairdressers, Oh my gosh, the
things they're breathing in.

782
00:43:59,080 --> 00:44:02,080
I mean, my cleaner, I remember I
don't have a cleaner at the

783
00:44:02,080 --> 00:44:05,320
moment, but I had one for years
and she was amazing.

784
00:44:05,320 --> 00:44:08,640
And she used to love coming to
our house because she'd be like,

785
00:44:08,640 --> 00:44:11,440
this is the only place I don't
feel sick at work.

786
00:44:11,440 --> 00:44:13,760
And I'm like, we'll see.
You've got to sort that out.

787
00:44:13,760 --> 00:44:16,480
Start bringing your own stuff.
It's like, oh, people don't let

788
00:44:16,480 --> 00:44:17,800
you.
They want you to use all the

789
00:44:17,800 --> 00:44:21,400
bleach and all the things.
I'm like, no, that's really bad

790
00:44:21,400 --> 00:44:23,880
for you.
And she would love it.

791
00:44:23,920 --> 00:44:25,880
She'd be like, ah, I just feel
like I can breathe.

792
00:44:25,880 --> 00:44:27,680
It's great.
Yeah.

793
00:44:28,960 --> 00:44:30,680
So that's it.
That's the good news.

794
00:44:30,680 --> 00:44:34,520
You can literally stop with all
the fragrances that can just

795
00:44:34,520 --> 00:44:36,640
end.
So that saves you a ton of cash.

796
00:44:36,640 --> 00:44:39,440
And then for the things you like
using, like shampoos and

797
00:44:39,440 --> 00:44:42,600
deodorants, just start trying
some low tox brands.

798
00:44:42,600 --> 00:44:44,640
And just remember it's probably
going to take two or three

799
00:44:44,640 --> 00:44:46,160
before you find something you
love.

800
00:44:46,200 --> 00:44:48,440
Just like when you moved out of
home and started buying your own

801
00:44:48,440 --> 00:44:51,120
stuff at your supermarket and
the conventional stuff.

802
00:44:51,640 --> 00:44:55,040
But you do end up spending less
money as long as you don't buy

803
00:44:55,040 --> 00:44:58,280
into the hyper consumerist.
I need to now.

804
00:44:58,280 --> 00:45:00,400
Just keep trying every new thing
that comes out.

805
00:45:00,960 --> 00:45:02,800
Don't do that.
You don't need to.

806
00:45:02,880 --> 00:45:05,960
Just make your swaps.
Be happy, move on, live your

807
00:45:05,960 --> 00:45:07,720
life.
That's my advice.

808
00:45:08,120 --> 00:45:11,920
So dehumidifiers, air purifiers
and chemical scents.

809
00:45:12,560 --> 00:45:14,920
There are three hot tips.
Yeah, synthetic fragrance.

810
00:45:15,680 --> 00:45:16,200
Yeah.
Thank you.

811
00:45:17,240 --> 00:45:20,840
Yeah, what do I call them?
It's chemical sense.

812
00:45:20,840 --> 00:45:24,920
The only reason I don't like the
word chemical is the low tox

813
00:45:24,920 --> 00:45:26,600
version still full of chemicals
as well.

814
00:45:26,600 --> 00:45:29,240
Like chemicals aren't bad.
And so that's why I like

815
00:45:29,240 --> 00:45:31,400
chemical free.
I don't love as a term because

816
00:45:31,400 --> 00:45:35,000
nothing is.
But you know, our water, this

817
00:45:35,000 --> 00:45:38,520
T-shirt is made-up of chemicals
even though it's organic, got

818
00:45:38,520 --> 00:45:42,040
certified cotton, you know, So I
just like people to say

819
00:45:42,040 --> 00:45:45,000
synthetic versus like the man
made versions.

820
00:45:45,320 --> 00:45:46,960
Yep.
OK, sure.

821
00:45:47,200 --> 00:45:48,240
Thank you.
All right.

822
00:45:48,240 --> 00:45:49,680
We've got a few questions to get
through.

823
00:45:49,680 --> 00:45:50,920
So we are going to do rapid
fire.

824
00:45:50,920 --> 00:45:53,400
So mold and dentists are
frequently dismissed as purely

825
00:45:53,400 --> 00:45:56,480
cosmetic, a stain on the wall or
a bit of a musty smell.

826
00:45:56,480 --> 00:45:59,720
How do you explain to families
that this is actually a real

827
00:45:59,720 --> 00:46:01,920
health issue?
How do you find you can

828
00:46:01,920 --> 00:46:04,920
communicate that message to so
it resonates with them and they

829
00:46:04,920 --> 00:46:09,240
take it seriously?
First question, how do you feel?

830
00:46:10,360 --> 00:46:13,440
Do you feel well, quite often
people say, Oh yeah, I'm fine.

831
00:46:13,880 --> 00:46:18,120
They say, has anyone got any
eczema, tummy issues, coughs

832
00:46:18,120 --> 00:46:21,040
that kind of linger around?
Oh, yeah, yeah.

833
00:46:21,120 --> 00:46:25,520
You're like, OK, sometimes it's
just being curious about

834
00:46:25,520 --> 00:46:30,440
actually how you are versus the
I'm fine, which we just usually

835
00:46:30,440 --> 00:46:35,120
default to and then and then
helping them join the dots.

836
00:46:35,120 --> 00:46:39,120
The thing, though, is I do want
people to make a distinction

837
00:46:39,120 --> 00:46:43,680
between molds that will
invariably grow on a wall or

838
00:46:43,680 --> 00:46:47,480
tile in the shower space or
bathroom space if you're not

839
00:46:47,480 --> 00:46:51,160
dehumidifying regularly.
And that does not tend to be a

840
00:46:51,160 --> 00:46:54,920
dangerous situation because it's
actually just caused by excess

841
00:46:54,920 --> 00:46:57,840
humidity.
So once you clean that with your

842
00:46:57,840 --> 00:47:01,000
detergent and wipe it away and
throw away the kitchen towel

843
00:47:01,000 --> 00:47:05,120
that you removed it with, you
always remove, don't kill.

844
00:47:05,120 --> 00:47:08,400
So don't use bleach and things
like that, just detergents nice

845
00:47:08,400 --> 00:47:12,240
and sticky so it takes it off
really well and and then you

846
00:47:12,240 --> 00:47:14,640
move on.
Then dehumidify, start your

847
00:47:14,640 --> 00:47:17,200
rotational plants, start putting
your dehumidifier in the

848
00:47:17,400 --> 00:47:20,280
bathrooms every time the family
is done with their showers for

849
00:47:20,280 --> 00:47:24,040
the day and and get it bone dry.
You'll never have a mould

850
00:47:24,040 --> 00:47:26,240
problem in there again.
Unless you have a leak of

851
00:47:26,240 --> 00:47:29,160
course.
But most problems in those parts

852
00:47:29,320 --> 00:47:32,240
laundries are the same are
excess humidity.

853
00:47:32,240 --> 00:47:35,800
So don't panic if you see a bit
of mould on your wall.

854
00:47:37,320 --> 00:47:41,120
Do be concerned if you see it
coming through your wall through

855
00:47:41,120 --> 00:47:45,240
bubbling paint or a sense of
staining through a wall like you

856
00:47:45,240 --> 00:47:51,080
can see it near a skirting board
or ceiling tea staining on a on

857
00:47:51,080 --> 00:47:53,720
a ceiling.
Like that's when you need to

858
00:47:53,720 --> 00:47:55,200
act.
Act quickly.

859
00:47:55,200 --> 00:47:59,360
And again, most people will
because I often deal with the

860
00:47:59,360 --> 00:48:03,720
naysayer partner as the main
object, like the main kind of

861
00:48:03,720 --> 00:48:06,280
block between actually getting
something done.

862
00:48:06,280 --> 00:48:09,120
Sometimes it's a wife, by the
way, it's not all men.

863
00:48:09,200 --> 00:48:12,880
It's just whoever got sick first
tends to be the the home warrior

864
00:48:13,800 --> 00:48:16,680
who's asking the questions.
And to them, I always say,

865
00:48:18,000 --> 00:48:20,960
especially if you own, it's a
very easy sell.

866
00:48:22,240 --> 00:48:25,640
Do you want your house to
continue to grow in value over

867
00:48:25,640 --> 00:48:28,800
time?
I don't know a homeowner that

868
00:48:28,800 --> 00:48:33,840
doesn't.
If you do, the money it will

869
00:48:33,840 --> 00:48:38,040
cost to just remortgage a little
bit, 1020 grand, whatever it is,

870
00:48:39,160 --> 00:48:44,080
remediation is expensive.
That will be made back very

871
00:48:44,080 --> 00:48:48,320
quickly because you're
maintaining a healthy home and

872
00:48:48,320 --> 00:48:51,200
you're not going to have to have
a building report that comes out

873
00:48:51,200 --> 00:48:54,320
when you sell it in 10 years
where they've found a big issue

874
00:48:54,320 --> 00:48:58,560
and then negotiate a price down
for 100 grand less because of

875
00:48:58,560 --> 00:49:00,480
the work they're going to have
to do because you didn't do the

876
00:49:00,480 --> 00:49:04,400
work for 20 grand.
So you do the math and it's

877
00:49:04,440 --> 00:49:06,840
starting to.
So if you own your home and you

878
00:49:06,840 --> 00:49:11,920
have money in a mortgage that
you can draw on like that is so

879
00:49:11,920 --> 00:49:15,120
powerful to actually link it to
health concerns and rising

880
00:49:15,120 --> 00:49:19,480
healthcare costs and to the
value of the property decreasing

881
00:49:19,480 --> 00:49:22,520
over time instead of increasing,
which is what it should.

882
00:49:23,200 --> 00:49:26,600
So the back pocket hit the back
pocket hit the back pocket.

883
00:49:26,680 --> 00:49:31,840
Like no one wants to depreciate
their asset and no one wants

884
00:49:31,840 --> 00:49:36,400
sick kids, so it's usually a
pretty easy sell once you map it

885
00:49:36,400 --> 00:49:39,080
out.
OK, Quick question about you

886
00:49:39,080 --> 00:49:43,600
said not to worry about mold
from excess humidity and more to

887
00:49:43,600 --> 00:49:47,240
be concerned about bulk water
leaks and mold from from bulk

888
00:49:47,240 --> 00:49:52,320
water.
You know, we talk a lot about

889
00:49:52,680 --> 00:49:55,800
condensation in the building
science industry because there's

890
00:49:55,920 --> 00:49:59,360
warm humid air being sort of
trapped inside more airtight

891
00:49:59,360 --> 00:50:01,960
homes and they're coming into
contact with cold surfaces,

892
00:50:01,960 --> 00:50:05,960
whether it's steel framing or
whether it's aluminium framed

893
00:50:05,960 --> 00:50:07,520
windows, etcetera, etcetera.
Yeah.

894
00:50:07,600 --> 00:50:10,880
So, yeah, it is a major concern,
absolutely.

895
00:50:10,880 --> 00:50:14,280
And this is where building
biologists can be really helpful

896
00:50:14,280 --> 00:50:18,360
in helping you assess what the
situation is in this building

897
00:50:19,000 --> 00:50:23,480
and investigate properly what's
causing it, what you need to do

898
00:50:23,480 --> 00:50:27,880
to get on top of it.
What I know is that if it is

899
00:50:27,880 --> 00:50:31,200
simply an indoor humidity
situation, even with

900
00:50:31,200 --> 00:50:34,120
condensation, but a girlfriend
who's just moved in a few

901
00:50:34,120 --> 00:50:38,680
floors, a few doors down into
quite a new build that I know

902
00:50:38,680 --> 00:50:40,520
for a fact was unfortunately not
built well.

903
00:50:40,520 --> 00:50:42,960
But she'll have a good couple of
years in there before problems

904
00:50:42,960 --> 00:50:45,480
show.
I mean, yeah, anyway, we we

905
00:50:45,480 --> 00:50:48,080
adapt and survive to the
conditions we're in anyway.

906
00:50:48,200 --> 00:50:52,160
But I said to her, if you are on
top of this from the get go and

907
00:50:52,160 --> 00:50:55,200
you don't allow that
condensation to form by really

908
00:50:55,200 --> 00:50:59,240
proactive dehumidification,
you're going to be fine.

909
00:51:00,320 --> 00:51:04,800
Because she will, because it's
not allowed to grow, because

910
00:51:04,800 --> 00:51:09,920
it's not, you know, so the, it
can be a super powerful

911
00:51:09,920 --> 00:51:14,480
workaround while we deal with
this bigger issue at a much

912
00:51:14,480 --> 00:51:18,760
higher level on how we are
allowing buildings to be built

913
00:51:18,760 --> 00:51:21,480
like this in the 1st place.
And what is happening to these

914
00:51:21,480 --> 00:51:24,240
buildings and how we're then
dealing with that once the

915
00:51:24,240 --> 00:51:27,080
issues that invariably were
always going to come up because

916
00:51:27,080 --> 00:51:30,160
of the way it was built due and
you start having building

917
00:51:30,160 --> 00:51:33,120
problems.
So I, I, I think we've always

918
00:51:33,120 --> 00:51:35,240
got to give people, I talked
about this at the conference.

919
00:51:35,240 --> 00:51:38,240
You've got to have a lot of
people much higher up who work

920
00:51:38,240 --> 00:51:40,800
on boards of building
associations and everything with

921
00:51:40,800 --> 00:51:44,120
like, yeah, but dehumidi, I'm
like, yeah, but people need help

922
00:51:44,120 --> 00:51:46,560
today.
But dehumidifiers are very

923
00:51:46,560 --> 00:51:48,880
helpful right now today for
everyone.

924
00:51:49,280 --> 00:51:53,920
And so that's something we can
all feel empowered around while

925
00:51:53,920 --> 00:51:58,240
we all try and understand better
what's causing all of these

926
00:51:58,240 --> 00:52:01,240
massive issues and then band
together slowly over time.

927
00:52:01,240 --> 00:52:03,320
That's it's a big project.
It's huge.

928
00:52:03,840 --> 00:52:08,680
So I would never wait to get it
right at the macro level and

929
00:52:08,680 --> 00:52:12,120
ignore the micro things we can
all do from today to manage

930
00:52:12,120 --> 00:52:15,040
humidity.
You know, I think, I just think

931
00:52:15,200 --> 00:52:18,640
like everyone needs help now.
We can't wait until our Prime

932
00:52:18,640 --> 00:52:21,120
Minister or president one day
turns around and goes,

933
00:52:21,560 --> 00:52:23,440
everything will be built passive
house.

934
00:52:23,440 --> 00:52:25,720
Like that's just, that's never
going to happen.

935
00:52:26,240 --> 00:52:31,360
So we actually have to, yeah.
I think in your climate where

936
00:52:31,360 --> 00:52:34,080
you regularly get, you know,
high levels of humidity, that

937
00:52:34,080 --> 00:52:37,920
dehumidifier is really the best
option because opening up your

938
00:52:37,920 --> 00:52:40,560
doors and windows just
introduces in those really hot,

939
00:52:40,560 --> 00:52:43,840
stinky months just introduces
more humid air inside your

940
00:52:43,840 --> 00:52:45,600
building envelope.
Whereas where I live in South

941
00:52:45,600 --> 00:52:48,960
Australia, we encourage people
to, you know, if they end up

942
00:52:48,960 --> 00:52:52,000
with a building envelope that's
true airtight, we tell them to,

943
00:52:52,040 --> 00:52:55,240
I tell them to buy like one of
those monitors that you have

944
00:52:55,240 --> 00:52:56,640
there.
I have a couple of in my home,

945
00:52:56,720 --> 00:52:59,920
monitor the indoor for humidity,
open up windows if they need to.

946
00:52:59,920 --> 00:53:01,840
That's the easiest, quickest,
cheapest way.

947
00:53:02,040 --> 00:53:04,480
It's just to monitor the
humidity inside their home and

948
00:53:04,480 --> 00:53:07,160
then open up their windows if
they need to get that down.

949
00:53:07,480 --> 00:53:10,640
And then of course we go.
We also can suggest the

950
00:53:10,640 --> 00:53:13,040
mechanical ventilation route,
which is like opening the

951
00:53:13,040 --> 00:53:15,200
window, but using mechanical
means.

952
00:53:15,200 --> 00:53:17,440
Decentralized systems can work
really well.

953
00:53:17,440 --> 00:53:19,520
Those dehums, are they, are they
noisy?

954
00:53:19,640 --> 00:53:24,600
And the air purifiers.
Air purifiers are really quiet.

955
00:53:24,600 --> 00:53:27,640
I've got two different brands
and both of them just sort of

956
00:53:27,800 --> 00:53:29,800
very light.
Like I've got 1 on now.

957
00:53:29,800 --> 00:53:33,080
I never turned it off for
podcasting, never had an issue.

958
00:53:33,120 --> 00:53:37,120
If I crank it to do an air clean
like where it's scrubs, the big

959
00:53:37,120 --> 00:53:41,000
one does make a bit of noise but
it's literally for 30 seconds so

960
00:53:41,040 --> 00:53:44,640
no problems there.
Dehumidifiers, yes and they are

961
00:53:44,640 --> 00:53:48,360
warm air and that is why I
always say put it on where you

962
00:53:48,400 --> 00:53:51,880
are not and so if you're you
know.

963
00:53:52,160 --> 00:53:53,920
Emit warm air.
Probably shouldn't go into it.

964
00:53:54,080 --> 00:53:55,160
Yeah, yeah.
Yeah.

965
00:53:55,160 --> 00:53:57,120
OK.
So warm air increase the heat

966
00:53:57,120 --> 00:53:59,680
load inside the home.
Yeah.

967
00:53:59,680 --> 00:54:02,320
And so people go, oh, I don't
want it to be hotter.

968
00:54:02,320 --> 00:54:05,600
Like it's summer and like just
don't be where it.

969
00:54:05,920 --> 00:54:08,680
Is that because warm air holds
more moisture so it's actually

970
00:54:08,680 --> 00:54:12,600
heating the air?
Just purely by heating the air,

971
00:54:12,600 --> 00:54:17,320
the humidity will drop relative
humidity in the air.

972
00:54:17,520 --> 00:54:21,280
It's, well, it's sucking
moisture at the same time as

973
00:54:21,600 --> 00:54:25,560
expelling dry, hot air from its
motor, basically.

974
00:54:25,840 --> 00:54:28,600
OK, so that that expelling the
hot air is just keeping the

975
00:54:28,600 --> 00:54:31,040
motor cool?
It's more of a by product, yeah,

976
00:54:31,160 --> 00:54:34,120
rather than yeah, yeah, makes
sense, Makes sense.

977
00:54:34,920 --> 00:54:36,760
Yeah.
And so of course you don't want

978
00:54:36,760 --> 00:54:39,880
to be in the same room as it,
but when we're sleeping, it's on

979
00:54:39,880 --> 00:54:42,880
out here overnight in the summer
in the living, dining, kitchen.

980
00:54:43,200 --> 00:54:47,160
And when we're out here, that's
when I rotate it half a day in

981
00:54:47,160 --> 00:54:49,640
each bedroom.
No one's in there, it doesn't

982
00:54:49,640 --> 00:54:51,160
matter.
But what you end up with is

983
00:54:51,160 --> 00:54:55,320
beautiful crispy dry sheets and
mattress, never that tacky

984
00:54:55,320 --> 00:54:59,040
floorboard kind of feeling where
you're not in the tropics.

985
00:54:59,520 --> 00:55:03,160
It works a tree, anyone can do
that.

986
00:55:03,160 --> 00:55:05,000
Who's thinking?
God yeah, I really hate that

987
00:55:05,000 --> 00:55:08,920
humidity and that feeling of my
sheets being wet even when I've

988
00:55:08,920 --> 00:55:11,400
dried them in the sun all day.
It's just because it's 80%

989
00:55:11,400 --> 00:55:13,520
humidity.
Like it's never going to get

990
00:55:13,520 --> 00:55:17,560
below 60 unless you manic
mechanically do it.

991
00:55:17,960 --> 00:55:19,880
Do it.
Yeah, those humid, those humid

992
00:55:19,880 --> 00:55:23,280
environments can feel impossible
to can feel impossible to

993
00:55:23,280 --> 00:55:24,400
control.
So without that

994
00:55:24,400 --> 00:55:25,920
dehumidification.
So that's a good tip.

995
00:55:27,200 --> 00:55:30,360
So the question that I ask all
of my guests at the end of our

996
00:55:30,360 --> 00:55:33,240
conversations is, out of
everything that you have learnt

997
00:55:33,240 --> 00:55:35,840
in your career, what is the one
thing you want the listener to

998
00:55:35,840 --> 00:55:38,040
know?
There is no silver bullet.

999
00:55:39,440 --> 00:55:42,640
Things can take time, but there
is always something you can do

1000
00:55:42,640 --> 00:55:46,040
right now.
Lean into what you know feels

1001
00:55:46,040 --> 00:55:48,480
good for you right now with the
resources you have.

1002
00:55:48,480 --> 00:55:50,960
That's probably the best thing I
could ever teach someone.

1003
00:55:52,240 --> 00:55:54,720
The Internet will try and
convince you there's there's

1004
00:55:54,720 --> 00:55:57,080
people that profit from
convincing you they have the

1005
00:55:57,080 --> 00:56:02,920
only in one answer and and I
just refuse to believe that that

1006
00:56:02,920 --> 00:56:05,360
is the case.
Both as someone who did a

1007
00:56:05,360 --> 00:56:08,280
humanities degree.
So there are always a ton of

1008
00:56:08,280 --> 00:56:11,440
perspectives to consider in
pretty much any exploration of

1009
00:56:11,440 --> 00:56:16,200
any topic.
But also because we're all

1010
00:56:16,200 --> 00:56:19,800
living in different types of
houses, we're all experiencing

1011
00:56:19,800 --> 00:56:22,720
different levels of stress.
We've all had different levels

1012
00:56:22,720 --> 00:56:26,000
of exposure to toxins.
We all have different budgets,

1013
00:56:26,000 --> 00:56:29,480
different time constraints,
different family situations.

1014
00:56:29,480 --> 00:56:32,320
Like just free yourself from
trying to find the perfect

1015
00:56:32,320 --> 00:56:36,520
answer and do the next thing
that you know is making things a

1016
00:56:36,520 --> 00:56:39,520
little bit better for you.
That's probably the the best

1017
00:56:39,520 --> 00:56:42,520
thing I've ever learnt and the
best thing I could ever teach.

1018
00:56:43,720 --> 00:56:46,600
Thank you, Alex, Thank you for
all of your work in this space.

1019
00:56:46,600 --> 00:56:48,640
Thank you for taking the time to
talk to me today.

1020
00:56:48,640 --> 00:56:51,920
Please go and check out Alex.
There's all of her resources,

1021
00:56:51,920 --> 00:56:55,120
websites, books, podcasts.
I'll link everything in the show

1022
00:56:55,120 --> 00:56:57,880
notes for you.
And I hope that the message

1023
00:56:57,880 --> 00:57:00,960
today has educated somebody and
empowered somebody.

1024
00:57:02,240 --> 00:57:04,360
And I hope so too.
Thanks so much for having me,

1025
00:57:04,360 --> 00:57:05,120
Jess.
Bye.