Bloody boogers in the morning - air quality issue?

[greg9840]

Sorry for being gross, but my wife and I both have an issue in our house where when we wake up and blow our noses in the morning, we have a lot of boogers and they often (probably at least 50% of the time) have small amounts of blood on them with a small amount of bloody mucus. To give you some background, we had new engineered wood flooring installed in our bedroom a little over a year ago. In order to install the flooring, the floor was first raised using thinset/mortar and Fiberock. When the Fiberock was first laid down (like tile using a leveling system), before the wood flooring was glued down, we heard cracking sounds coming from the Fiberock when walking on it. The flooring company screwed down the Fiberock boards into the concrete foundation to try to correct the issue, which involved drilling hundreds of holes. It created a ton of dust that ended up totally clogging our AC filter and got dust into our AC vents. Adding the screws did not help the issue with the Fiberock and it turned out that the problem was that the thinset was not adhering to the foundation because the foundation had some kind of sealant on top of it or mixed into it. So everything was ripped up and they started over only, this time, they used a primer on the foundation first (it was bright blue in color). The thinset and the Fiberock were laid again and then the engineered wood flooring was glued down. We have had the room cleaned many times afterwards to remove the dust that was created by the drilling/screwing and from ripping up the first attempt to lay down Fiberock on the floor. After the room was cleaned multiple times, it still had an odor of chalk, so I hired an AC duct cleaning company to clear the dust out of the vents using highly pressurized air, and that apparently worked because the chalk odor went away completely. They said the AC coils looked fine and did not need to be cleaned. The bedroom smelled totally fine after that, and I don't notice any dust or odors in the room, yet my wife and I still continued to have this issue with bloody boogers/mucus, only first thing in the morning when we blow our noses. We did not live in the house very long before we installed the flooring, and we have zero recollection of whether or not the bloody boogers were happening before the flooring was installed. At first, we suspected that maybe the air in our room was getting dry at night from running the AC, so the first thing we tried was turning up the thermostat 4 degrees higher, from 69 to 73, for a few days to see if that would make a difference, and it did not. The bloody boogers persisted. So then I hired an indoor air quality company and they did mold spore testing and found nothing noteworthy. Then I performed do-it-yourself air quality testing, which included renting an air pump, and tested for actively growing mold, VOCs, and formaldehyde. The only thing found of significance was that the formaldehyde was elevated, at 79 ng/L or 64 ppb. My wife and I do not smell any chemical smell or formaldehyde smell in the room. From the little bit of research I have done, formaldehyde typically does not cause physical symptoms below 100 ppb. Plus, we now run a HEPA air purifier in our bedroom so the ppb is probably significantly lower than 64 ppb with that running. Any ideas of what might be causing the bloody boogers for us?

[kdean1]

#1 Please use line breaks and paragraphs. That wall of text was hard to read.

#2 Look up Comparetto Cube for a DIY air filter

#3 Consider upgrading the filter on your HVAC system to an Aprilaire MERV 13, or better still MERV 16. But make sure the equipment can tolerate a high efficiency filter.

[R600a]

Sounds like you need to drink more water. It may sound crazy but drinking water and eating plenty of healthy fat protein and vegetables makes a huge difference for me.
Also I don't think filtration can remove formaldehyde. Only fresh air can do that properly.

Sent from the Okie state usin Tapatalk

[greg9840]

Thank you! Do you know how I can determine what level MERV filter it can handle?

[greg9840]

Thank you. My HEPA air purifier also has a carbon pre-filter. That supposedly filters gases/VOCs including formaldehyde. My wife and I do drink a lot of water and eat well/healthy, so I don't think that is the issue.

[kdean1]

Thank you! Do you know how I can determine what level MERV filter it can handle?

A measurement of static pressure must be taken by a professional.

[Artrose]

That blob of words that you laid down there says to me that you're someone who thinks he might have found a way to make some money.

Opinion.....

This is not the place to attempt to gather supporting information for a frivolous lawsuit.

If you're not attempting to do what I suspect, you're being ridiculous.

[ehsx]

Maybe I overlooked it, what is the indoor humidity? Dry air can cause me to get nose bleeds.

[Poodle Head Mikey]

Low internal and external humidity would be my first impressions.

How much water to you consume on a daily basis?

What is the RH% in your bedroom while you are sleeping?

PHM
-------

Sorry for being gross, but my wife and I both have an issue in our house where when we wake up and blow our noses in the morning, we have a lot of boogers and they often (probably at least 50% of the time) have small amounts of blood on them with a small amount of bloody mucus.

To give you some background, we had new engineered wood flooring installed in our bedroom a little over a year ago. In order to install the flooring, the floor was first raised using thinset/mortar and Fiberock. When the Fiberock was first laid down (like tile using a leveling system), before the wood flooring was glued down, we heard cracking sounds coming from the Fiberock when walking on it. The flooring company screwed down the Fiberock boards into the concrete foundation to try to correct the issue, which involved drilling hundreds of holes. It created a ton of dust that ended up totally clogging our AC filter and got dust into our AC vents. Adding the screws did not help the issue with the Fiberock and it turned out that the problem was that the thinset was not adhering to the foundation because the foundation had some kind of sealant on top of it or mixed into it. So everything was ripped up and they started over only, this time, they used a primer on the foundation first (it was bright blue in color).

The thinset and the Fiberock were laid again and then the engineered wood flooring was glued down. We have had the room cleaned many times afterwards to remove the dust that was created by the drilling/screwing and from ripping up the first attempt to lay down Fiberock on the floor. After the room was cleaned multiple times, it still had an odor of chalk, so I hired an AC duct cleaning company to clear the dust out of the vents using highly pressurized air, and that apparently worked because the chalk odor went away completely.

They said the AC coils looked fine and did not need to be cleaned. The bedroom smelled totally fine after that, and I don't notice any dust or odors in the room, yet my wife and I still continued to have this issue with bloody boogers/mucus, only first thing in the morning when we blow our noses. We did not live in the house very long before we installed the flooring, and we have zero recollection of whether or not the bloody boogers were happening before the flooring was installed.

At first, we suspected that maybe the air in our room was getting dry at night from running the AC, so the first thing we tried was turning up the thermostat 4 degrees higher, from 69 to 73, for a few days to see if that would make a difference, and it did not. The bloody boogers persisted. So then I hired an indoor air quality company and they did mold spore testing and found nothing noteworthy.

Then I performed do-it-yourself air quality testing, which included renting an air pump, and tested for actively growing mold, VOCs, and formaldehyde. The only thing found of significance was that the formaldehyde was elevated, at 79 ng/L or 64 ppb. My wife and I do not smell any chemical smell or formaldehyde smell in the room. From the little bit of research I have done, formaldehyde typically does not cause physical symptoms below 100 ppb.

Plus, we now run a HEPA air purifier in our bedroom so the ppb is probably significantly lower than 64 ppb with that running. Any ideas of what might be causing the bloody boogers for us?

[pecmsg]

Thank you. My HEPA air purifier also has a carbon pre-filter. That supposedly filters gases/VOCs including formaldehyde. My wife and I do drink a lot of water and eat well/healthy, so I don't think that is the issue.

carbon pre filters have a very short life span.

Agreed RH too LOW!

[randyf]

Couple of things:

If you used Home Air Check for your formaldehyde test note that their results report high. Still your levels are much higher than typical. Not quite at WHO levels but close. Also - most folks cant detect at those levels. Don't assume that because your nose are eyes are clear your levels aren't high.

If you would like a more accurate test look into using a badge from Assay Technology.

What are your TVOC levels??

Did you turn down your AC when testing?
I always test at upper 70 lower 80s.
TVOC levels ~ double for each 12 degree F increase

I'd get your hands on a laser based particulate meter (Dylos) to see where levels are.

Most of the carbon filters that come with residential Hepa filters are useless. See TerraBloom and Vortex for effective carbon canisters.that are very effective and relatively inexpensive.

If you use cleaning/fragrance products with limonene these can degrade to formaldehyde. Beware!

Note: Carbon has reduced effectiveness for formaldehyde compared to other VOCs..

[greg9840]

That blob of words that you laid down there says to me that you're someone who thinks he might have found a way to make some money.

Opinion.....

This is not the place to attempt to gather supporting information for a frivolous lawsuit.

If you're not attempting to do what I suspect, you're being ridiculous.

Hi, I'm not looking to file a lawsuit. I'm trying to figure out why both me and my wife have bloody boogers/mucus most mornings in case there is something in the air that is potentially damaging to our health. This is strictly about health, not money.

[greg9840]

Maybe I overlooked it, what is the indoor humidity? Dry air can cause me to get nose bleeds.

My thermostat displays humidity and it usually says it's around 45% during the night. Thanks!

[greg9840]

Low internal and external humidity would be my first impressions.

How much water to you consume on a daily basis?

What is the RH% in your bedroom while you are sleeping?

PHM
-------

My thermostat displays humidity and it usually is in the mid 40% range at night. We drink a lot of water. We both drink at least 64 oz of water per day. Thanks!

[greg9840]

Couple of things:

If you used Home Air Check for your formaldehyde test note that their results report high. Still your levels are much higher than typical. Not quite at WHO levels but close. Also - most folks cant detect at those levels. Don't assume that because your nose are eyes are clear your levels aren't high.

If you would like a more accurate test look into using a badge from Assay Technology.

What are your TVOC levels??

Did you turn down your AC when testing?
I always test at upper 70 lower 80s.
TVOC levels ~ double for each 12 degree F increase

I'd get your hands on a laser based particulate meter (Dylos) to see where levels are.

Most of the carbon filters that come with residential Hepa filters are useless. See TerraBloom and Vortex for effective carbon canisters.that are very effective and relatively inexpensive.

If you use cleaning/fragrance products with limonene these can degrade to formaldehyde. Beware!

Note: Carbon has reduced effectiveness for formaldehyde compared to other VOCs..

Thanks for the info! I did use Home Air Check. According to them, my VOC levels were all fine. It was just the formaldehyde that was high. Regarding using a particulate meter, do you think particulates could cause the bloody boogers/mucus?

[R600a]

This may have nothing to do with your case but I never in my life had allergies and then I moved to another state and I kept thinking I was getting sick because I felt so bad and it turns out I just have allergies in this new state. Allergies can cause some surprising symptoms sometimes so it might be a good idea to talk to you and allergy doctor.

Sent from the Okie state usin Tapatalk

[randyf]

Thanks for the info! I did use Home Air Check. According to them, my VOC levels were all fine. It was just the formaldehyde that was high. Regarding using a particulate meter, do you think particulates could cause the bloody boogers/mucus?

What was your TVOC number provided by Home Air Check?

I think particulates are suspect especially considering your history.
Buy, borrow or steal a Dylos are something compatible and monitor your PM levels.

[mofotech]

Hi, I'm not looking to file a lawsuit. I'm trying to figure out why both me and my wife have bloody boogers/mucus most mornings in case there is something in the air that is potentially damaging to our health. This is strictly about health, not money.

off note...but blood in your nose maybe indication of high blood pressure. Maybe check with your doctor first.

[Snapperhead]

Theres nothing wrong with picking boogers ,

Its where you put them ....

[greg9840]

What was your TVOC number provided by Home Air Check?

I think particulates are suspect especially considering your history.
Buy, borrow or steal a Dylos are something compatible and monitor your PM levels.

TVOC was 1700 ng/L. It said that 1900 ng/L was average, so mine was below average.
Total Mold Volatile Organic Compound (TMVOC) was 10 ng/L which it said was exactly average.
I just remembered that I had a Foobot particulate meter hooked up for a while. It got unplugged and moved a few months ago and I haven't put it back. The app says that the last time it was running, it was at around 12µg/m3, which it says is good. It's supposed to be a good product but I'm not sure how accurate it really is.

Thanks!