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Mold Inspection: How is it Done?

The inspection process includes a general understanding of the building, including age, number of stories, roofing and siding type, and presence of basements or crawlspaces.

The behavior of moisture in the structure is the critical component of the assessment. The grading around the building should be reviewed to ensure the water flows away from the foundation. This is especially important in the area of roof leaders and drains. Some grading issues are a challenge by definition. For instance, if a home has a walk-out patio door on one side of the basement and the rest of the basement is below grade, this implies that the grade slopes toward the house on the other side. [Read more…]

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Indoor Air Quality Assessment – Walk Through Inspection

Investigation

A thorough walk through inspection of each floor is conducted to investigate and determine potential sources of Indoor Air Quality contamination. The mechanical room air handling systems are visually inspected for microbiological contamination on the cooling and heating coils, drip pans and other system components. The maintenance records also are reviewed for each facility. Experienced field technicians qualitatively review the delivery capacities of the air handling systems to determine if air flow appears sufficient for the size and type building under investigation. [Read more…]

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Indoor Air Quality Assessment – Technical Approach

Indoor air quality has become a major issue due to recent conservation efforts to reduce the cost of heating and cooling buildings, increased reliance on mechanical ventilation equipment, and growing awareness that air quality problems can impact the health, comfort, and productivity of building occupants. Since 1974, in the wake of the first oil embargo, the need to reduce building maintenance and operation costs has been a priority of building managers. To reduce these costs, new buildings have been constructed as hermetically sealed structures. Additionally, older buildings have been sealed by the addition of energy-efficient window and door closures. As a result, fresh air ventilation is provided primarily by way of mechanical air-handling equipment. [Read more…]

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Should I Spray Bleach on my Mold Growth?

The presence of active mold growth inside an occupied building requires remediation measures to remove the growth. Existing industry standards published by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), American Industrial Association (AIHA), Institute of Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC), American Conference of Industrial Hygiene (ACGIH) and others all emphasize  the need to remove the mold growth. This is defined as the demolition and removal of affected porous materials such as carpet, drywall and insulation, and the thorough cleaning of non-porous materials such as wood, metal, vinyl and hard plastic. [Read more…]

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What is Sick Building Syndrome?

Sick Building Syndrome (SBS) is a term used to describe a situation in which building occupants experience acute health effects or comfort issues that appear to be linked to the time spent in the building, with no specific illness or identified cause. SBS differs from Building Related Illness (BRI) because in BRI, the symptoms of diagnosable illness can be attributed to exposure to indoor air contaminants.  SBS refers to nonspecific symptom complaints such as irritation of the throat, eyes, nose, and skin, headaches, and fatigue.  These symptoms are felt by individuals while in their work space.  The symptoms may worsen throughout the work day and disappear when they leave the work building. [Read more…]