Alas! A fun take on Indoor Air Quality (IAQ), by one of the most fun individuals in the business. You guessed it - Josh Winton, in the flesh! Whether you're a consumer looking to get insight on indoor environmental factors, a mold remediation professional that's new to the industry or even a seasoned veteran looking to discuss ideology and methodology in the comments section of videos - Welcome!
As one who is involved with a few environmental companies, you'll find different sections within this channel. Some videos relate to mold remediation services, which Discreet Restoration performs. Other videos relate to investigative assessment and consulting, which are the services performed at Discreet Air Quality. Don't worry, this is not a channel geared at solicitation of services. Promise!
Welcome again to IAQ Josh, and all the craziness that comes along with it! Please feel free to comment or reach out via email - josh@learniaq.com.
Unfortunately, determination of insurance coverage should be discussed with either a licensed public or independent adjuster. In my experiences during the mold remediation process, when homeowners have filed insurance claims, I’ve heard of quite a few people not seeing their claim covered due to this being long term damage. It’s very rare that this much mold accumulation develops within a short period of time. Although, it’s certainly not impossible.
first off love your videos man, ive learned alot from you! keep the great work up! just a little tip for the cabinet sealing. id suggest taping the back edge along the wall aswell. most bathroom cabinet drawer construction (specially hanging ones) has a super thin board just slid in or none at all at the back. and most aren't siliconed or caulked at either side or bottom.
I appreciate the kind words! As for additional preparation around cabinetry, there is no such thing as too much. Good call on the edges, as I too have seen what you’re talking about.
Hey there! In general, I’ve been using Tramex, Delmhorst and Vaisala meters for some time now. Currently, I use the Tramex ME5 non-penetrating moisture meter and Delmhorst BDX-30 pin moisture meter for checking dampness in building materials. When I’m evaluating moisture in the air, I use a Vaisala HM-40. Some specialty meters that I use on occasion is the Tramex MEX5 and Tramex CME5. You’ll find all of these on Google, or you can check out the manufacturers’ websites.
"Professionals" I've seen don't even go to this extent of doing things properly. You have no idea how often contractors come and bust people's walls up ignoring that there are potentially asbestos in the drywall / joint compound. No containment, no negative air pressure systems. It's wild.
Believe it or not, I actually have quite the idea, as I intentionally put myself out there in various FB groups and other forums where property owners and tenants often share their horror stories when dealing with some professionals. Asbestos is coincidentally a big topic for me of late, as I’ve personally gone through the process of certifying my companies to be able to perform ACM sampling. Through this process, I’m learning more and more about the disregard for asbestos containing materials by some companies. Fortunately, I was also happy to hear that some prioritize this type of testing before any work is performed!
Thank you! A few questions: how long were you going to run the air scrubber and how often were you going to change the filters? How does one know the scrubber is no longer needed?
Thank you for watching! Operation of an air scrubber will vary from situation to situation, but I tend to operate these devices for at least a day or two following mold remediation services. Our equipment often ends up running for a number of days between the time that work is complete and an IEP comes back with test results. As far as filter changes go, you should change them as needed. Once the remediation process is complete, most folks will change the filters and then run a single set of filters for the duration of air scrubbing. Unless the environment is very dirty, which would be odd post-remediation, not much airborne debris will be picked up by the pre filters. However, the HEPA filters should be changed regularly, given the contaminate that we are working with and the warehouse locations in which this type of machinery is often stored. One way to gauge when the air is clean enough and an air scrubber isn’t doing much is by evaluating particulate with a laser particle counter. If one was to use this type of device to check the particles in the air right after remediation, and then continue to measure over each day thereafter, you’ll see a point when the particulate levels stops going down. That’s generally a good time to remove the equipment.
Hi Josh, how do you feel about collecting air samples from a crawl space? I've heard other inspectors say that the data is irrelevant, but I disagree. Since much of the air in your home originates from the crawl space, and many modern crawl spaces are sealed from the outside and contain a vapor barrier, I think air samples help identify mold issues in a crawl space.
Fantastic question, Ben! I think the real answer is, “it depends”. And before I explain that answer, I am pro sampling anything, so long as you can justify your reasons for doing so. If the crawl space is encapsulated, as you mentioned, this area now falls within the building envelope. As a result, conditioning of the area needs to now take place. Based on this, I can make an argument that an air sample within this area may provide some useful data. However, I don’t know that I would personally collect an air sample here, as I would like to see as close to a 100 seal between the living area and the crawl space. I can also measure how successful the seal between both areas are using a number of tools like traces gases, cinematic fog, etc. Even so, I wouldn’t knock someone for air sampling, so long as their reasoning is just. However, when it comes to a traditional crawl space, which communicates with the exterior of the home, I couldn’t see much value in an air sample within this area. Surface sampling on the bottom side of the flooring, nearby openings to the living area would be more valuable, in my opinion. Also, air sampling within the living area, nearby these concerning openings, would also be a value add for me.
While I am certainly not an electrician, would you please explain to me why schedule 40 PVC conduit, which is rated for the outdoors, cannot be used outside?
Is this instance, the insulation that is coming in contact with the HVAC ducting is the problem. Unfortunately, this is a crappy situation that you run into in older homes. With the location of metal ducting in small attics often spanning across the top of the ceiling framing members, there isn’t much room to get insulation underneath and not touch the ducting. One additional problem here is the poor sealing job of the duct connections, where you can see tape lifting off of the surface. This fix is relatively easily, so long as there aren’t underlaying issues with duct leakage. Simply improve upon the duct connections with better sealing methods. As far as the main issue with the ducting and insulation contact, not a whole lot you can do except trying to maintain an air gap between the two.
That’s an excellent question! In many situations, there isn’t really a benefit. In this instance, we were working for an individual with great mold sensitivities, so we needed to expose as many surfaces as possible to thoroughly clean and then encapsulate. By removing the foam overspray, our team was then able to HEPA vacuum and wipe the wood, before ultimately applying an encapsulate via an airless sprayer.
I don’t believe that I made comparisons between the electrostatic switch on and off during usage. Do feel free to share any input that you have, if you go this route!
Hello Josh, this is Uli from South Fl. I have a situation as when I look into my brand new bathroom (one month old). When I run the meter its detecting moisture at the base. We gutted the bathroom and there is no visible cracks on the tile or grout. Any idea what could have happened? We did not seal the grout, can this be it? Any advice would be appreciated. Thanm you
Hi Uli. Sorry to hear about your situation, but there is some good news! More often than not, finding “elevated” moisture toward the base of a of a tile wall or floor is a false positive. Well, by false positive, I simply mean that it’s likely not actually wet (beyond normal moisture levels). Assuming you’re talking about the base of a wall, or even wood baseboard, there can be a number of reasons for findings abnormal moisture levels here as well. As I don’t have enough information to fully understand your situation, I would recommend shooting me an email and possibly attaching some photos of what you’re dealing with. Definitely include some additional information regarding the surface(s) that you’re collecting moisture from. The best way to reach me is at josh@learniaq.com
I have a beard and was working in an attic. The insulation, however, my beard was covered in unseen insulation also with a fuzzy black mold that embed itself in my face I did not know this happened while it was occurring, but days later, the insulation had glued my beard to my skin and was making my beard grow splotches along with the extra fuzz from the black mold. It was all over my face , arm, and leg hair.
why does it look like a misting/fogging machine. Is this good for spraying lawn chemicals and insecticides around my house? Sometimes I have to spray grass-weed killer on larger areas, will this tool be good for that?
I’m certainly not an expert of the use cases for this sprayer, and others like it. However, I have seen others use these types of sprayers for applying lawn care products. I would recommend downloading the user guide for this sprayer and reviewing it.
Excellent question! For starters, you need to have an idea of what you are looking for. Unfortunately, if you were to call up most companies that perform environmental assessments, they would lead with proposing mold testing. The term “indoor air quality” is a broad term to begin with. Furthermore, a much smaller number of environmental companies perform anything more than mold testing & assessment. In general, a mold assessment is the most common type of indoor air quality check. While it is limited to evaluating the mold/fungi load within your property, it does address one of the more common indoor environmental hazards - moisture and mold. Assuming you are looking for more than just mold, such as VOCs, Formaldehyde, excess dust, etc.,, you’re going to want to research companies in your area and call to discuss your specific wants/needs. A true professional will listen to you and ask questions, as opposed to pushing services your way. The conversation should lead to an obvious service need, in which you and the professional should agree is needed.
I’d be lying if I even took a guess, as my skill set and knowledge base lays elsewhere. My recommendation would be to consult with a qualified HVAC company in your area.
Thats great bro.. but keep in mind tho, you need to run a disconnect box from service box. Its a lots of work that you must prepare ahead than you think. Having said if you are handy diy then it's very simple project.
I really want to do the same at my new house, it will be my first project but I need it to run on solar battery energy. I don’t want the extra energy cost
Not a bad idea! You probably know that you’ll need to do some cost-benefit calculations, as it takes a fair amount of solar panels to power devices. We were going to add solar to our house, until I calculate the ROI. I do think there’s a happy medium, where you invest into just enough solar panels to power high energy consuming devices.
I’ve heard about this type of “craftsmanship” happening WAY too many times. Albeit, ive only read about these stories online, but it’s still terrifying
It’s especially prevalent in rental communities, where the maintenance staff changes the filters monthly. Unfortunately, that’s about the only service that’s done to these units, for extended periods of time. I personally find this less in single family homes, when homeowners have maintenance contracts with an HVAC company. Granted, I’ve seen some where I ask myself what the maintenance contract consists of, as they’re clearly not doing much. Terrifying, indeed.
I’m assuming you’re referring to Consumer Reports? I’m not a member, so I’m not sure what they had to say about it. In general, TVOC measurements aren’t outstanding amongst consumer-level devices. Some are much better than this device though.
While I cannot provide you with the 3 best particle counters, I can share with you my experiences with the only 3 I’ve used. These are the Particles Plus 8306, TSI Q-Trak XP 7585 and the Dylos DC1700. All 3 of these devices have worked well for my needs, providing with me comparative information between different areas. As the Dylos unit is only a 2 channel particle counter, my use for this device was exclusively for evaluating our containment areas post-remediation. As clean is clean, we should read very low numbers on this device. If and when I saw abnormal numbers (double digits on up), I would use this to warrant additional cleaning of the work areas. The TSI and Particles Plus (PP) units are often used during the assessment process, with my personal favorite being the PP. Both are excellent tools for comparing one indoor area to another, as well as the outdoors. I could look at the multiple channels displayed and identify any anomalies amongst the channels. My favorite is the PP, as this device has one sole purpose, which is particle counting. I’m a firm believer in having specific tools dedicated to a single function.
While this is an excellent question, it’s “above my pay grade”, so to speak. I am no expert in products or device that kill mold, as I know and understand that mold holds allergenic properties - whether alive or dead. I would encourage you to request information from the varying manufacturers, as well as perform your own research. There are numerous white papers out there regarding UV lamps and other HVAC add-on components.
Been watching a lot of videos given by other businesses customers explains how incorrectly the air samples are taken and it misses a problem for like 2-3 more years. Are you guys liable for damages after you’ve given the “ok clear” regarding a false reading and mold actually is present? What about the mycotoxins being so small they’re invisible and coming from hidden mold?
Thanks for the detailed comment and questions, Drew. As far as liability goes, I would defer to an attorney on that question. However, I will say that as long as you have just reasoning for your actions and opinions, I’m not sure how a mold assessor can be held liable for anything beyond the scope of their assessment - type of samples included. Mycotoxins in a whole other animal… As you may or may not know, there are mycotoxin sampling panels that can be performed. Of late, there is also now the ability to collect airborne mycotoxin samples. There is still a great deal of debate and research going on associated with mycotoxins.
@@IAQJosh Totally man. Yeah that all makes sense. Sorry about all the typos in my questions, thumbs faster than brain 😂 I’m in California, Ventura area. Mold seems underestimated in my county and I recently have actually built up enough to have gotten sick. Recently learned about mycotoxins due to that exposure. Can you recommend a brand or device that the mycotoxin air samples are measured with? What PPE do you typically wear when doing a remediation? Appreciate it bro.
If we’re talking about the same thing, a higher concentration of hydrogen peroxide would be your best friend, when it comes to remove growth from surfaces that are not smooth and easy enough to surface clean and damp wipe. Growth that has embedded itself into the substrate somewhat can also be lifted to the surface for HEPA vacuuming, using a system like Serum (hydrogen peroxide cleaning process).
Depending on your definition of “affirm”, I will answer both yes and no. Can an assessor objectively affirm that there is mold, without testing/sampling? No. However, an assessor may affirm with a high level of confidence that something is mold, subjectively speaking. I for one will often make professional judgments on what is or isn’t mold, based on characteristics I can see and touch. The biggest limitation comes down to reporting, as an assessor should only make statements that they can defend. So long as an assessor is clear about their findings, both objectively and subjectively, statements may be made that either affirm or elude to mold being present.
Hi Josh I absolutely love your videos, please keep making more! By any chance you can share the brand or link to buy the bigger hard case with the foam?
