mold in seattle (Pacific: homes, allergies, living in)

[bosir]

Hi ... I live on long island, NY. I have developed a nasty little mold allergy over the last few years. It seems to hit me around Aug- Sept when the mold counts are high. Here we can get outdoor levels up and over 50,000. I am thinking of relocating somewhere a little less moldy. I came across a site for an allergy practice in whatcom county, bellingham ? area. Google Whatcom county allergy and you'll come across it. Anyway they show daily pollen and mold counts and the mold counts are always very low i.e. 100-500. These are outdoor counts and with all the rain i would assume them to be higher than what these show. Anyone have any mold allergies out there and if so how do you fare, it's killing me over here ! Thanks !

[allforcats]

In over 20 years in different homes in which I always have had windows open 24/365 even if only 1/8" in midwinter, I've never seen mold.

These threads might help you. They're full of comments from residents.
Mold, Colds, and Insects? Questions about Seattle Life.
Mold ,mold,mold...and more mold

[bosir]

I'm talking more about allergies to outdoor mold levels. The levels there seem to be very low on the outdoor mold counts. I seem to be fine most of the year so mine must come when the outdoor counts skyrocket which is normally in the Fall here in NY.

[Ira500]

From my understanding, outdoor mold levels in the Pacific NW are low, but for those who are allergic to dust mites, the Pacific Northwest is the dust mite capitol of the US.
If you're not allergic to dust mites, you might just like it here.

[texastrigirl]

I lived in Austin TX for a long time (Allergy Capital of the US some years) and I wasn't allergic to the usuals but was to mold there. I moved to Seattle and have an issue from about March to May it seems. I took my Singular and used my inhaler and was okay. It wasn't as bad as it was in Austin but I still felt it. Doesn't seem to bother anyone else in my family though and overall no one has allergies but me. Everyone else had them terribly in Austin. Go figure.

[bosir]

Thanks for your replies ! Texastrigirl have you considered shots, i hear they are not so sucssesful for mold allergies. I'm not sure i love the idea of putting something in my body that makes me feel like i'm poisened !

[41Willys]

The PNW is rated among the highest for places to live if you suffer from asthma.
(PDX ranked as #1) So I would assume the same for allergy sufferers, it outside pollens/molds are your enemy.

[texastrigirl]

No - this mold allergy thing just started in March 2007 in Austin. I was training for a long distance race and got allergy induced asthma and it looks like it has stayed. I have a friend who is an Ironman athlete and she now has the very same thing (she's still in Austin). Very mild case of allergies if I start the Singular right away and it goes away after a few months. After the way my husband suffered in Austin, I have a long way to go to get any sympathy up here. According to asthmacapitals.com, this is the Top 10 List for 2008:
1. Knoxville, TN
2. Tulsa, OK
3. Milwaukee, WI
4. Atlanta, GA
5. Memphis, TN
6. Allentown, PA
7. Charlotte, NC
8. Greenville, SC
9. St. Louis, MO
10. Greensboro, NC

PDX was rated #77 and Seattle was #92 out of 100. On another list of the Fall Allergy Capitals, Austin was rated #1 and Seattle was #100 out of #100.

[Misti in Seattle]

Hello. I have very serious allergy problems to mold and have NO problems living in the Seattle area. I lived in South Florida and had non-stop very critical allergies to mold but am fine here in PNW. I think it is helpful that our frequent rain keeps down dust and pollen, etc. But don't believe everything you hear... we often have GORGEOUS summers here (although I personally love our gentle rain).

[bosir]

Misti in seattle thank you for the info. I don't mean to pry but do you know what mold your allergic to ? Thanks !