You are here: Home / Archives for Matthew Hines

By

Mold in the Attic, Bats in the Belfry

Why be Concerned about Mold in the Attic?

We frequently are asked to remove mold from a residential attic.  There is little doubt that it occurs under certain conditions.  Is it, however, a health hazard?

It is useful to remember the air dynamics of any building, including your home.  Warm air rises and you can try to stop it but you won’t.  Starting from the basement, air is heated, either by winter time heating or just plain hot weather, and moves upward.  This convection forces air out of the basement and eventually the air arrives in the attic.

The reason that we ventilate an attic is to release the air, and attendant moisture t
hat it has absorbed, so that it does not accumulate in the space.  Back in the day, this was pretty straight forward, since there were not many moisture sources in the home that added to the moisture load.  A couple of gable vents were usually sufficient to vent the air (and moisture).

Fast forward to the present and there are many more moisture sources to manage. Just a simple thing as replacing clapboard or asbestos siding with vinyl changes the whole ventilation dynamic of the home.  Vinyl is impermeable and the air that used to get to the home and attic does not.  The home no longer breathes the way it used to. [Read more…]

By

Testimonial

Dear Prospective Customer,

Air Consulting Services was recommended by our realtor who had many excellent reviews from satisfied clients. They were brought in to remediate mold growth in our attic shortly before closing on our home. This was a critical job as our buyers were extremely anxious about this problem. Dave Kichula was on site quickly to evaluate the mold. He presented us with a clearly written proposal that described the extent of the problem, the likely cause, and the remediation process. He also recommended how to prevent it from happening again.

Dave’s crew was on site in less than a week. They were meticulous, respectful of our home and us as owners of the home, and professional. They made a point of explaining all steps of the process and answered our questions patiently. In addition, they took great care to safeguard our carpeting, walls, furniture, and other belongings.

Dave and his crew re-inspected the attic after the work was done to confirm that all mold was removed and conditions were clean. The manner in which the remediation was handled from beginning to end was first rate. We would recommend Air Consulting Services to anyone wishing to have timely, professional, thorough, and respectful service!

Sincerely,
Paul and Cathy K.
West Windsor, NJ

By

What I Consider a Mold Activity: The Primer

Clients frequently ask us, “How are you able to find mold problems when I don’t see anything and neither does anybody else.” Or a common variation on this theme, “I have a mold test but I don’t know what it means.” Our answer is, we follow the Sherlock Holmes investigative approach that has been described in virtually all of the published standards.

What does this mean? It means that you look for clues, which means you are looking for data. And you can’t really evaluate data unless you understand what it signifies. You need some basic understanding of the critter you are pursuing. Let us start at the beginning. [Read more…]

By

Noise and Hearing Conservation

Monitoring Procedures:
A noise survey is typically conducted with a direct-reading sound level meter such as the Quest Model 155 Precision Sound Level Meter. The meter and the dosimeters described below are calibrated with the CA-12B sound calibrator. The calibrator is a self-contained oscillator that produces a stable 110 dBA sound pressure at a frequency of 1000 Herz. [Read more…]

By

Mold Standards: Do They Exist?

We have stated that there are no accepted numerical standards for mold concentrations. Several previous attempts at suggesting numerical concentrations have failed due to the enormous diversity of the thousands of mold species that naturally occur, and to the wide variability in human responses to these species. Most professional doubt that we will ever have a set of exposure limits like we have for other indoor contaminants such as radon, asbestos and lead.

This does not mean, however, that there are no standards with which to conduct a competent assessment or remediation project. Numerous public and private agencies in the US have written standards for biological contaminants, starting with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists (ACGIH) in the late 1980’s. The body of professional standards has grown steadily since. A sampling of the evolution of professional industry standards is shown below. [Read more…]