Hoarding is classified as a type of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. Hoarders tend to stockpile items as well as constantly acquire more and more items. A person suffering from hoarding disorder gets emotionally attached to their items, regardless of whether or not they have any real value. They often refuse to discard any item for fear of losing something that according to them could be useful, valuable or important. The end result is that the piles and piles of accumulated items keep getting larger and larger.
To ensure the safety and well-being of the hoarder, as well as people around them, quick, efficient and discreet measures are often required. Sometimes, friends and family members who live around a hoarder think they can clean up the hoarder’s mess.
No matter how much goodwill and concern they show, a hoarder can be suspicious of their motives, and things could take a dangerous turn. Though they have the person’s best interest at heart, a hoarding cleanup can be overwhelming.
Here are a few reasons why attempting a hoarding cleanup is not something anyone should handle on their own.
Taking up the tasks of cleaning a hoarder’s mess can be challenging.
Hoarders keep bringing more and more things into the house. The excess clutter in the home makes cleaning the place a challenge. Even simple cleaning chores like dusting, vacuuming and removal of trash become difficult and hazardous. It can be a physically and mentally overwhelming task to handle the cleaning activities as well as caring for the person affected with hoarding disorder.
Exposure to biohazardous waste during hoarding cleanup involves health and sanitation risks.
A hoarder’s home can quickly become the ideal breeding ground for bacteria, harmful germs, and other microbes. The environment becomes dangerous to live in. Dirt collects in larger quantities, food gets rotten, and trash builds up. All this leads to the release of hazardous fumes and by-products. It is inevitable that there will be exposure to dangerous microorganisms that could cause diseases.
Mould growth is more likely in a hoarder’s house.
In a hoarder’s house, it can be more difficult to spot mould growth. Ventilation and airflow can be very poor due to the clutter and restricted space throughout the house. Water intrusion can result in water damage to anything it comes in contact with. Mould also starts as hoarders have difficulty throwing away food. These conditions are ideal for mould infestation. Attempting to clear out a hoarder’s home affected with mould can be extremely dangerous.
Air quality deteriorates substantially in a hoarding environment.
A hoarder’s home with immense clutter can have dust, foul odours, biohazardous waste, and decaying waste products. Due to lack of proper ventilation, and germs and microbes present in the hoarder’s home, air quality can be poor. There is way to no know what airborne pathogens are circulating in the home. Any person or pets in such an environment may face difficulty in breathing and respiratory problems may develop.
There could be severe health risks as a result of prolonged exposure to the contamination in the air.
Physical Injuries can happen in a hoarder’s house.
Personal injury is highly possible in a hoarding environment. There are increased chances of tripping and falling when pathways get obstructed. Persons can get injured when the build-up of large piles start to fall over. This can be extremely dangerous is it can trap a person in. If the person is alone at the time, there may be no chance to get help. Even when help comes, it will be very difficult to reach the injured person.
A hoarder’s house is a fire hazard.
A hoarder generally has a large number of flammable items. Moving items even during a hoarding cleanup could increase the risk of causing a fire. Wiring gets damaged and heat ventilation gets covered. In case of a fine incident, excessive clutter makes extinguishing flames more challenging.
Lack of home maintenance leads to structural damage to the hoarder’s house.
In a hoarding environment, many maintenance tasks go ignored. Water leaks and plumbing difficulties can cause water damage to the structure of the building. Excess weight put in areas of the house that could already be structurally weak, can damage it permanently. As hoarders tend to keep visitors or even repairmen, contractors and technicians out of their homes, these issues go unnoticed and unattended and can worsen over time. This can be dangerous when anyone attempts a cleanup of the place.
Safe, effective and discreet Hoarding Cleanup Services provided by Bio-Cleanse Pty Ltd.
When attempting the hoarding cleanup on your own, you could be exposing yourself to germs and other dangers. It is best to leave hoarding cleanup up to professionals.
Bio-Cleanse Pty Ltd. has a team of technicians who are experienced and trained to deal with the hoarding issue. Our team is always protected with sufficient equipment when taking up the task of cleaning a hoarder’s house. We can clean up all the clutter for you and remove any hazardous waste. We make sure you are fully satisfied with the final sanitised environment.
Our areas of operation are Goulburn, Canberra, Batemans Bay and surrounding areas of NSW. Reach us on 0409037634 or email us at bryan@biositecleanup.com.au.