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Appraiser/Educator Bryan Reynolds and COVID-19

Appraiser/Educator Bryan Reynolds and COVID-19 Podcast April 7, 2020 31 minutes

“I had a bit of a difficult time with this podcast. We like to think we’re invincible, immune, unaffected, but that’s silly. We are, at the end of the day, all vulnerable. This chat with my long time friend and partner, Bryan Reynolds, brought that realization home, in stark reality and made it tangible and personal.”

“People, we damn near lost Bryan. Please give this podcast a listen. I’ve posted it here, largely unedited. This podcast is the epitome of authentic. “

Hal Humphreys
Partner Appraiser eLearning
https://appraiserelearning.com/
Free webinars on youtube

My comments:

Bryan Reynolds

Before he got Covid, I interviewed Bryan for an article I was writing. I regularly attend his free webinars on youtube. Whenever I am asked if I know anyone who has had covid with symptoms, I say yes. I don’t know anyone else who had terrible symptoms like Bryan’s. I had been writing about Covid and appraisers in my appraiser newsletters since February 2020.

Hearing about his experience directly from Bryan made Covid much more personal for me.

Listen to this podcast!! I saw a short video live on March 26. Hal Humphreys was speaking from his front yard and said that Bryan had coronavirus. I am so glad that he is recovered!

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Face Masks and Covid Risks in Homes

Why should you use a face mask?

SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes the disease, Covid-19 is spread by sharing breaths. When we breathe, water particles are released. The virus “attaches” to the water. The air-water particles are much larger and are easier to filter out than covid. A good visual example of what happens is exhaling when it is cold outside. Water droplets form in the air. Face Masks and Covid Risks in Homes is important to know about.

How tight the mask fits your face is very important. N95 masks are tight.  Surgical masks are loose. They protect the healthcare worker from giving bacteria or viruses to the patient during surgery.

The amount of virus exposure is a critical factor. The riskiest people are those who have symptoms such as coughing and sneezing. If infected, they expel large amounts of particles containing more virus.

What if you want more protection?

No face mask discussed in this post can keep outside air from coming in. You have to breathe the air to live.

To be safest, don’t let any person’s breath come inside your lungs. Wear a full body and head covering with oxygen supplied through a hose. The ultimate is a special containment room with no outside air coming in and air going out completely cleaned, used by pathogen researchers. Hoses run overhead from the air system to the researchers.

You may have seen recently on TV news that nurses and doctors caring for Covid patients sometimes use a portable device on their backs with long air hoses coming to their head and face coverings. They have complete body and head protection. I assume they use portable heavy-duty battery-operated air cleaners for the room air.

Which type of face masks to use inside homes

Click “continue reading” link for info about FDA approved n95 and surgical masks plus some info on cloth masks.

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How to reduce Covid airborne transmission risk

Research shows coronavirus spreads primarily through the air. Recorded 9-22-20 – Video 6 minutes with a full transcript. Excellent video illustrations that shows you how viruses travel in the air in the air. Interview with Dr. Linsey Marr, a professor of civil and environmental engineering at Virginia Tech, and her expertise is in the airborne transmission of viruses. I prefer her experiments because she uses human mannequins.

UPDATED 1-26-21. Some of the questions and comments are a bit out of date, but Dr. Marr is an excellent speaker and her experiments and comments are relevant today

How to reduce Covid airborne transmission risk – audio and a full transcript.

Cigarette smoke example

Excerpt: … Cigarette smoke is a great way to think about different specific scenarios, whether you’re indoors (or outdoors). Do you want to be indoors with that smoker? Well, you think about what affects the ventilation in the room. If the room is really well-ventilated and there’s lots of outdoor air coming in, then that smoke will be kind of pushed outside.

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Deep Cleaning For Covid Is Not Very Effective

Podcast. 9-28-20. 16 minutes. Research has shown that COVID-19 transmission is largely through airborne droplets and particles expelled during sneezing, coughing, talking, and singing. There’s little evidence that surfaces are making us sick. Deep Cleaning For Covid Is Not Very Effective

Microbiologist Dr. Emanuel Goldman talks with Stephanie Desmon about the science behind COVID transmission research, the strong evidence that infection comes from aerosols and not surfaces, and how excess sanitation in public spaces may be giving us a false sense of security.

Hygiene Theater: The Deep Cleaning Performances That Offer Little Protection from COVID-19 To listen click here Note: play button is below the orange image on the right side.

Link to Dr. Goldman’s Lancet article, “Exaggerated risk of transmission of COVID-19 by fomites“ referenced in the podcast. Lots of references. A bit technical, but no too bad. Dr. Goldman did literature research and has many references and links to other articles. Many thanks to him. To read the article click here

My comments: The best explanation I have heard about Covid and surfaces (fomites!!)!

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Covid-19 Residential Appraisers Tips on Staying Safe

Appraisers are exposed to the virus when going inside homes, apartments, and other buildings for relatively short periods of time. Understanding appraiser Covid safety risks is important.

Everyone decides their own level of risk. Some rarely leave their homes or only leave to go to the grocery store. Others, such as appraisers, are essential workers who must leave their homes to work.

Appraiser Personal Risks

  • Age – the older the higher the risk
  • Underlying health conditions
  • Who is in your household and their risk factors
  • Your level of personal protection risk – from none to a lot. If you get infected, you could infect your household members. To me, that is the most significant risk.

Safety risks when appraising

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Covid Safety Tips When appraising apartments and non-residential buildings

Apartment Risks

All types of properties have Covid risks inside. To me, 2-4 unit properties are the most difficult apartments to appraise, due to different types of buyers (owners, investors, etc.). They can also be more tricky to inspect and keep safe from Covid. Larger properties focus on income.

I have appraised many apartment properties, from duplexes to hundreds of units. From converted Victorians to new construction. The fewer the units, the more difficult the appraisals, for appraising and sometimes risk, such as all the units have a different floor plan or a converted Victorian with difficult to measure unit locations.

Face Masks: You and every occupant must have a face mask. Bring extras, such as inexpensive disposable or re-usable cloth masks which you can re-wash. Your PPE: The usual: mask, gloves, etc. Do not re-use masks at another property. Hand sanitizer in car. Gown for apartments with lots of personal belongings.

Minimize the risk of going into the units – time, unit selection, etc.

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Physical distancing – 3 ft. vs. 6 ft. vs. 13 ft. vs. ??? – new research

1-18-21 New Fun Video!!

We know now that airborne small particles are emitted whenever we breathe, speak, etc. We don’t have much data about how much, if any, Covid viruses are included in the airborne particles. There are many factors: outside vs. inside, crowded small rooms, etc. We know that measles can travel through the air (distances vary) and particles can remain in the air for several hours or longer.

Studies regularly cited are observational (for example, choir practice in a small room and many were infected) or airflow patterns in research labs. Fluid dynamic studies spraying particles to see how far they go. But there is no information about how far viruses can travel in the air. An air sampling study published in late July in hospitals found that Covid was in the air particles in nearby rooms. In hospitals, Covid travels through the air, but the people are very sick and exhaling a lot of air.

Video image of cloud of airborne particles (21 to 24 feet) emitted by natural human violent emission such as a sneeze, From The BMJ article referenced below.

The WHO’s original three-foot guideline followed some of the earliest research into how diseases spread. In the 1930s, Harvard researcher William F. Wells measured how far large exhaled droplets traveled and arrived at the three-feet figure. Click the Continue reading link below for more information on the new research study and an excellent Risk Table.

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