Clearance Testing for Mold in Your Building
If you suspect a water intrusion issue in a building you own or manage, it’s important to get clearance testing for mold. This process is a part of creating a safe work environment for staff and visitors to a building. It also assures building occupants that their well-being is important to management. Testing either follows remediation or occurs as a benchmark for the progress of such efforts. For our part, WTI | Pure Air Services provides mold clearance testing for schools, businesses, and government agencies.
Reasons for Clearance Testing for Mold
The Environmental Protection Agency provides guidelines on the mold remediation process. This includes finding a remediation manager or qualified IAQ firm to identify the source. Once contracted, inspections and assessments follow. After corrective action, clearance testing for mold is the next step. This verifies the effectiveness of removal efforts. It also ensures that the initial source for the issue gets identified and removed or corrected.
A part of a healthy workplace is providing safe indoor environmental conditions. Bacteria, mold, and other fungi affect health indoors. Mold colonies form in warm, moist conditions after periods of heavy rain or due to flooding. Leaky pipes, roofs, and basements allow moisture into buildings. As well, high temperatures create the ideal breeding ground for colonies to form. Mold spores travel from their source behind walls and counters and in ceilings. Ventilation systems circulate mold spores and other particulates throughout the building. Once in the air, they trigger symptoms such as eye, throat, and skin irritation as well as nasal congestion. Particles also trigger asthma symptoms. Such unhealthy building conditions lower morale and productivity and could lead to more serious conditions.
Who Needs Mold Clearance Testing
Managers of commercial buildings must deal with problems affecting IAQ. This includes the following:
- Schools and universities
- Hospitals and other medical facilities
- Gyms and spas
- Restaurants and retail
- Commercial residential buildings
- Places of worship
In short, mold clearance testing ensures safe IAQ conditions for any building where the public gathers.
What is a Mold Clearance Inspection
A mold clearance inspection follows remediation. It is a part of our Building Science suite of services to verify the effectiveness of remediation efforts. The assessment includes visual inspections but also the logging of temperature and humidity levels.
Building Science services include:
Building Health Check
This baseline IAQ evaluation uses field and lab assays to determine the biological conditions and performance of a building. Tests and analysis include visual inspection as well as the testing of surface samples for mold and bacteria. It includes the measuring and logging of factors such as temperature and relative humidity as well as wall moisture.
HVAC Assessment
The HVAC Hygiene Assessment gauges the impact of the system on the indoor environment. For example, the system becomes clogged and dirty over time. As a result, the threat to IAQ increases. However, the assessment finds and addresses these conditions as they occur in the evaporator coils, blower, drain pan, and ductwork. Samples taken from within the AHU go to the Lab at WTI to determine the presence of mold and harmful bacteria. After testing, a report follows that includes advice for clearance testing for mold if needed.
IAQ Guard 2.0 Ensures Mold Clearance
To ensure the continued health of the buildings, monitoring is the answer. With a system such as IAQ Guard® 2.0, the indoor environment undergoes observation around the clock. Using monitors placed throughout the building, a remote team tracks any changes affecting IAQ. When conditions become ideal for mold, these issues get addressed fast.
Emergency Response Services
Risks to the health and safety of building occupants need immediate action. To meet these challenges, WTI | Pure Air Control Services offers emergency response services to address the after effects of disasters such as water intrusion. We help local, state, and federal agencies recover after disasters. In addition, we provide our services to schools and other organizations under a declared State of Emergency by identifying baseline IAQ conditions and providing specific, definitive remedial recommendations. Our emergency response includes clearance testing for mold in buildings, lab analysis, and remedial efforts.
Learn More About Clearance Testing for Mold
Address the dangers posed to building occupants with mold clearance testing. Contact WTI | Pure Air Control today.
Article Source: Clearance Testing for Mold in Your Building (pureaircontrols.com)
