Indoor Air Quality
Indoor air quality means many different things to different people, however, in the true sense, this is the quality of the air we breath inside our homes or building.
This is not always mold. Many times, people want to go to the thing that they are most familiar with, MOLD. This is perfectly understood, however, to the Indoor Environmental professional (IEP), the word Indoor air quality encompasses a whole host of issues that can affect the air we breath. Some of the issues are mold, volatile organic chemicals (VOC), pollen, dust, Allegens as well as dry or moist environments. With out a proper assessment, you could be spending money on testing that is needless and only serves to liberate you from you hard earned money
So, if you are concerned with the indoor air quality of your home or building, have an IEP, indoor environmental professional conduct an assessment to determine what the issues may be and if needed, what kind of testing is recommended. It is my opinion, that to do any kind of testing with out a proper assessment first, is like a doctor prescribing you a medication with our doing a physical or evaluation to determine the proper course of action.
What is a Indoor Air Assessment?
The best analogy I can give is we give the home or building a “Physical”. When you have a suspicion of a bio-growth (mold) issue, it is very important to assess the building for any “red flags” that may be present. It is also important to determine if there is a source of moisture that may be creating the problem. Just like going to your personal physician, your Dr. will give you a physical, so he/she has a full understanding, based on their knowledge and experience, of the reasons for your complaint. Although you may think it is one thing, it may be something totally unrelated.
We do the same thing as it relates to indoor air quality. The average assessment, depending on the size of the home, takes approximately 1-2 hours. We will take a brief history to collect information from you, the person inhabiting the property, about the symptoms that have led you to this point.
From this history, we will then inspect the areas of concern(s). We will look for the presence of visible mold colonies and suspicious odors. Odors can be a very important indicator as to the presence of bio-aerosols (airborne mold spores) and/or mvoc’s(volatile organic chemicals emitted by bio growths/off gassing). We look for sources of moisture in the form of bulk water i.e. leaks and or vapor issues and condensation. By taking psychrometric information such as ambient temperatures, relative humidity, etc., we can determine if there is sufficient moisture to support mold growth in your home/building.
During our assessment, we also use moisture meters and other devises to determine if there is active moisture and its possible source. Our training and experience allows us to see conditions that may not be readily apparent to the untrained eye. From the information collected, we are then able to determine if further testing is needed such as air testing or swab samples, etc. If laboratory information will give us additional information that is helpful to your situation we will make that recommendation. (Laboratory testing is optional and you will have the opportunity to accept or reject any testing recommendations).
The assessment will give you factual information about your situation, answer any questions you may have and provide you with a written report for future reference and documentation. At this time, we will also recommend what kind of testing we thing would be necessary and let you decide whether you desire to take on any additional expenses, over and above the initial assessment. We will also direct you to additional professionals, if needed, and make any necessary referrals such as remediation contractors, Industrial Hygienists, etc.
For a small fee, the assessment is the best start to receiving factual and professional information about your indoor air quality concerns and set you on the road to a proper solution.