The first quarter of the year passed fairly quickly. How are you doing this spring? Allergies acting up?
Finding yourself congested when waking up? There is much information on the quality of our indoor environments. I want to tackle a few things starting from the outside of the home and working inward.
1-Look at the exterior drainage-does the water drain away from your home or toward it?
2-Does moisture gather under your home?
3-Are your windows sealed around them to keep moisture intrusion out?

Next time I will raise some more questions on the home.....then we will look at some solutions in a couple of weeks.

Welcome to a New Year.

Hello Everyone,
I took some time off from writing to spend time ramping up the marketing in my company. I am starting a new schedule with renewed interest in keeping you, my readers, healthy. We will look at many new ideas, some old ones, and discover products to keep you healthy and comfy in your indoor environment.
 I want to deliver great content so I will share other great information from the leaders in the industry. 
So thanks for reading and I hope you will share the information with those you care about.
See you next time.

Condensate Drains

The primary condensate drain lines normally drains into the household sewer system through an open connection to an active p-trap. In some cases, these active p-traps are the bath tub or bathroom sink p-trap; should this be your case, be sure to read the special instructions in maintenance, below. Should the evaporator coil's primary drain line become clogged or should the primary drain develop a leak, condensate should overflow or leak into the emergency drain pan thence into the emergency drain line. The emergency condensate drain line, drain line, drains to a conspicuous place outside the home. Water dripping from the emergency drain line is a warning indicator that something is drastically wrong with primary condensate drain
system. You should not delay in calling a service technician.

Problems- With primary condensate drain lines stem form plant pollen, fungus spores and other particulate matter entrained in the air stream passing over the wet evaporator coil. They are captured by the condensate draining off the coil and are carried into the drain system. There they produce algae, mildew, and fungus growths which can clog the primary drain system. While the emergency drain lines are normally dry and clear, they are open to the atmosphere. Wasps, called "mud-daubers", are known to nest in these open drain lines, there by rendering them useless; always at the wrong time.

Maintenance- Test both the primary and emergency drains with water. If a restriction is detected, he or she clears the obstruction with compressed air. Blowing out a drain line will usually open a clogged drain line, but it cannot remove growing algae or other deposits from the pipe wall. Our technician will place algicide tablets in the primary drain pan. While algicide is used prevent algae buildup, algicide kills any existing algae. The dead algae may slough off the pipe wall and pass into the sewer system or drift down stream to a restriction and accumulate there resulting in a clogged drain.

Special Instructions- Bathtub or bathroom sink p-traps. If the active p-trap in your system is the trap for a bath tub or bathroom sink, there is the possibility that material flushed from the condensate drain system may combine with bathroom debris already in the trap, to begin formation of a clog. Should one of these plumbing drains clog, condensate will fill the sink or tub and overflow without any warning such as water dripping form the emergency drain line. After any work on your condensate drain system, the drainage of the sink and tub should be observed. If either drains slowly or backs up, plumbing maintenance is needed.

Other measures our technician may recommend are the installation of a float switch in the emergency condensate drain pan and an Easy Klear clean out valve. Should both the primary and emergency drain systems fail, the float switch functions to turn off the air conditioning system, stopping the production of condensate until the clog is cleared and the drain pan emptied. The Easy Klear helps improve drain line maintenance.
Despite all of these precautions, there can be no guarantee that your condensate drain system will remain clear. Your condensate drain system can become clogged at anytime and should be watched closely after it has been serviced, especially when algicide has been applied. Older systems with accumulations of algae can become clogged anytime algae breaks loose from the pipe wall and drifts downstream to a restricted point. At a restriction, algae will accumulate and grow unit it blocks the drain pipe. These restrictions can grow into a fully clogged drain line in less than one month.
Should a problem occur or our technician detect a problem with the p-trap or plumbing drain line (household sewer system), he or she will recommend the services of a licensed plumber. In our opinion, blowing out a large diameter plumbing drain line is not and effective repair. The household sewer system, beginning at the open connection to the condensate system, is the domain of the licensed plumber.

Liabilities- Whenever the air handling unit of an air conditioning system is located in an attic or the upper stories of a building, the risk of water damage due to drain stoppage and condensate overflow is inherent and unavoidable. Proper design and installation coupled with timely and consistent maintenance can minimize the probability of an overflow, but cannot absolutely prevent it. Therefore, our warranties specifically exclude liability for water damage due to condensate overflow, and special, consequential or incidental damage caused by stoppage of a condensate drain system.

My Property Went Underwater Now What?

We will continue on condensate drains next time. I came across this interesting article on "The Great Indoors Blog" on IAQNet--by Bob Krell an IAQIH.
It does bring out some great information.

My Property Went Underwater...Now What?
If you were one of the unfortunate people that was flooded by Hurricane Sandy yesterday, here are a basic list of considerations for helping you get safely back on your feet:

1. Don't Go Back Into Your Property Until Emergency Officials Give the OK - As bad as things might seem, rushing back into a recently flooded building may be a significantly worse idea!  In addition to any damage to your contents, the water may have caused structural damage that could make it unsafe to enter your property.  Another concern is a potential electrical hazard. Once power is restored to your area, your electrical wiring may still be wet and dangerous!  It is best to have all potentially water-damaged electrical components checked by a professional electrician prior to any re-energizing or re-occupancy of the building to reduce the risks of electrical shock or electrical fires.
2. Contact Your Insurance Carrier - Begin the process of creating a claim for losses that are covered under your insurance policy. 
3. Document, Document, Document! - Take photos and video detailing the extent of the damage to both the structure and the contents. Hopefully you have pre-loss photos/video, as they can be helpful with establishing the extent of the damage. If not, definitely begin photo documentation ASAP! 
4. Get It Dry, Get it Clean - This may clearly be easier to say than actually achieve under the circumstances, but whatever you can do to get your building's structure and it's contents dry fast will help to minimize your subsequent damage. Try to salvage irreplaceable items like family photos, rare collectibles, etc, and get them to a safe place where they can be dried out. Gypsum board (AKA sheetrock) doesn't fare well when submerged, despite what some insurance adjusters would like you to believe. Once saturated, it can be structurally compromised, and very prone to subsequent mold growth. When in doubt, tear it out! The same goes for any wet fiberglass insulation, carpeting, or upholstered furniture, bedding and any unsealed food items. Floods are considered Category 3 (Black Water), since they are contaminated with sewage and other unsavory contents. For a period of time after a significant flood event, the risk of bacterial contamination is greatest, so protect yourself from exposure if you're going in (PPE or Personal Protective Equipment is strongly recommended, including respirator, gloves, eye protection at minimum).
5. And Then, There's Mold? - If all this wasn't bad enough, the fungal invaders may start appearing anywhere from a few days to several weeks after the flooding. Mold tends to attack processed wood products and leather goods quickly, but can colonize on virtually any surface with sufficient nutrients and moisture--so pretty much any dirty and damp material will do!  Let it suffice to say that I won't be warning of "Deadly toxic black mold", but rather offering a more objective viewpoint in lieu of the hysterical approach. Mold growing outdoors-normal. Mold growing indoors-NOT normal.  I really don't get into fungal racism; pretty much any species of mold growing indoors in quantity is undesirable, period. It needs to be addressed. And not with bleach! 

For more information contact us:
R&L Envirocare
417-942-2451
800-526-4978

Cold Humidity Solutions -Part 2

The other problem creating "cold humidty" is leaky ducts. If the air is leaking out of your ducts, chances are good that humid unconditioned air is leaking in when the system is off. The other problem is that if the return air ducts are leaky, you are sucking in air from an unconditioned space like attic or crawl space--yucky stuff!
The leaks can be manifested with a smoke bomb placed in either plenum. The simplest would be just to seal every exposed joint with a duct mastic. If there are doubts hire a professional duct leakage testing company.
Next time we will cover condensate drains and how much this can affect your system.

Cold Humidity Solutions 1

To help combat humidity getting back into home via the metal ducting one should do the obvious--insulate the ducting. The cleanest and easiest method is to use an insulation called "Reflectix" which is a foiled backed bubble wrap. All you need is enough to cover your ducting, spray adhesive, duct tape, and possibly some baling wire for certain sections. Measure diameter of ducts or measure around the circumference with a string, add about 3 inches and cut, put wrap up on duct, spray wrap (inside) and duct, let set for a couple of seconds and put pressure to wrap it around. You can add baling wire around long sections, and tape the seams. It will be a clean job and definitely not "itchy". Next time we'll cover checking the air leakage.

Mold In The News

Take a look at this video from 2009.  Keep in mind it was a new home at the time. Our energy efficiency

standards hurt our health.

Fox News report - mold sickens family

Fox News reported that a Virginia family was sickened by mold in their new, custom built, home. Watch it here... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V5tXlKN5uFA

If you come across any recent issues with mold please share them here. Next week we will discuss how to deal with this low temp high humidity problem we are having in Southwest Missouri.

Cold Humidity Part 2

Well again no responses to look at some issues out there. Come on folks lets get some interaction here.
Anyway I'll go over some items I have ran across. Metal ducting under house in crawl space. No insulation. What happens? Here are some scenarios: Crawl space is well insulated, well ventilated......hot summer day the air in crawl space will rise with ambient temperature....the humidity level is high... air in ducting from AC system is cool.... condensation forms inside and outside of the metal ducting. On the outside of ducts it "rains", on the inside...there is humidity being put back into airflow but a cooler temperature. Inside the building the temperature is cooling down but the humidity level is not being lowered much.  Next time a solution. Send us your issue.

"Cold Humidity" Part 1

Well no one responded to last week's post, so I guess I don't have anyone reading this but me. Well I'm going to give you content anyway.
Pay attention to the "feel" of the air during this air conditioning season. Does it feel cool but still "clammy", is there cooling but then warm spots in your building? Is there a persistent moisture odor?
I will discuss some these things next week. Check out your system, dirty blower? Dirty coil? Water sitting in condensate pan? Metal ducts not insulated?
Send me your issue, let us diagnose it here.
See you next week.

Is Anybody Out There?

This week I would like to put it to you all out there in blogger land. Is anyone reading this information?
I have taken a few weeks off trying to figure out how I can offer the best up to date IAQ and HVAC information to you and I need some feedback.
So any of you blog experts--comment here or email me @       rick@rlenvirocare.com
I want to give you the best content I can every week.
Till next Friday

Proper Air Volume

Did you ever feel too hot, too cold, or just stuffy in a room or office? All to often duct sizing and configuration is left to chance or just not addressed at all to get a job knocked out, or to save money.
When you get the lowest bid for a HVAC installation, what are you sacrificing?
 It has been my experience a good air flow rule is 1 cfm per square foot. That is "cubic foot per minute" of air flow per square foot of living area floor space in a room. This translates over to the duct size of what it is rated to carry in a nominal situation. Of course this is not necessarily applicable to commercial applications.
This by no means takes the place of load calculations....this should be the minimum. For instance ever see a 14x14 bedroom with 2 outside walls with a 6" round duct feeding it??  It is too small. A 12x12 bedroom would be just "skating by". These issues affect comfort, as well as health and indoor air quality.
Contact me by email with your comfort issues, I'll provide a free consultation.
rick@rlenvirocare.com
Next time we'll cover register placement.

Should I Be Concerned About Mold?

ASK A NORMI EXPERT

This article is a reprint as it was published in www.ForSaleByOwner.com Vol 7 Issue 7 New Orleans, LA
"Should I be concerned about mold and mildew or is this just another scare tactic?"
I recently performed an aerobic (air) mold test on a house near the beach in St. Petersburg, Florida. This came from a lead I received from an ASHI (American Society of Home Inspectors) Home Inspector with whom I work closely on such problems. He had seen some mildew in the master bedroom closet ceiling and was concerned that it might be more than just your average strain. Because he is very aware of the potential problems with toxic molds, he decided to give the realtor my name and she called to inquire about our services.
I told her about our Microbiological Test Kit for all types of mold and mildew and that it would be important to know what kind of mold is present before you start any remediation process. She responded by asking, "Should I really be concerned about mold and mildew or is this just another scare tactic? Why can't I just bleach this stuff and paint over it?" I was shocked by her question and wondered how she could be so unaware of the real health concerns now associated with toxic molds.
Molds are microscopic organisms found virtually everywhere, indoors and outdoors. Many of our building materials are especially susceptible to promoting mold growth and so our indoor environments can readily become incubators for all types of mold and mildew. When you add a little more moisture and a cool place to hide, mold and mildew can take over an area very quickly. One professor at LSU said, "Our homes are just giant petri dishes!" Therefore, the sources of mold problems in your home or office can be: flooding, leaky roofs, humidifiers, damp crawl spaces, constant plumbing leaks, excessive numbers of house plants, steam from cooking, shower/bath steam, wet clothes, and even your air conditioning system itself. Once disturbed, mold sends out spores (similar to seeds) and those spores can reek havoc on your sinuses and respiratory system.
Exposure to mold can be a health concern for anyone but is especially troublesome for infants, children, elderly, immune compromised patients, pregnant women, and individuals with existing respiratory conditions. A wide range of health problems including wheezing, nasal and sinus congestion, watery and red eyes, nose and throat irritation, fevers, asthma, emphysema and other symptoms result from ingesting these mold spores. The cause may be mold that you cannot see.
But what about toxic mold? Stachybotrys Chartarum. Sounds ominous, doesn't it. Stachybotrys is a greenish-black toxic mold that colonizes particularly well in high-cellulose material such as straw, hay, wet leaves, dry wall, carpet, wall paper, fiber-board, ceiling tiles, thermal insulation, etc. Before drying, Stachybotrys is wet and slightly slimy to touch. The toxic mold grows in areas where the relative humidity is above 55%. Sounds like New Orleans, doesn't it? So it shouldn't surprise us to find cases of the toxic mold in the Crescent City and surrounding areas. Remember the family in Chalmette that moved out of their apartment last year because of toxic mold? Stachybotrys produces a mycotoxin that causes mycotoxicosis. This type of mold is thought to be a possible cause of the "sick building syndrome" and a multitude of "building related illnesses". Children's exposure to this mold is thought most likely to cause pulmonary hemosiderosis (bleeding in the lungs). Wouldn't it be important to know if Stachybotrys is present in your indoor environment? When the Florida realtor asked me about toxic mold, I only needed to direct her to her favorite Internet search engine. By typing in "toxic mold" she was introduced to a whole new world of articles and news stories regarding the real dangers of toxic mold. So here's the happy ending for her and her client: I was able to test the house for mold presence, suggest a reasonable remediation process, and assure the homeowner that toxic was NOT present.
D. Douglas Hoffman is a licensed Indoor Air Quality Consultant, State Certified General Contractor, State Certified Roofing Contractor, and State Certified Plumbing Contractor who is recognized as an Environmental Expert in the field of indoor air quality and water pollution.

Source for filters?

I believe in proper filtration for every HVAC system both commercial and residential. We have a source for everyone to purchase the proper size filter with the minimum Merv rating I would recommend. It is important to have the proper filter size, coverage area, and rating to keep your space clean. Contact us if you have any questions. To order directly go to www.filterfetch.com/contractor-link/C337
 We also offer free consultation to design your air filtration system. Remember the filter area needs to be correct, the installation needs to be properly sealed and constructed.
Send us your questions. Till next time.

Fresh Air Ideas

Good April 12th to you! Sorry I missed last month but I have been busy in the field solving air issues. I also received my Mold Inspector Certification. As a Certified Mold Inspector I will be bringing more air quality news to my followers. This week however I would like to post a video for a solution to some of the residential IAQ problems out there. I would also like for all of you to send subjects you would like to know about in the IAQ industry. Please e-mail   rlfreshair7@gmail.com
Please enjoy this informative video.   http://youtu.be/xu0nRBATVzo

Why Is Humidity A Problem?

Why would humidity pose a problem in our homes? Excess humidity can create a haven for growth of fungi, mold, bacteria, etc. Too low a humidity content and we have static electricity, dry skin, dry sinuses, etc.
Let's address excess humidity and the issues that arise.
Mold loves dark moist spaces to grow. The moisture on building materials along with the microbes that are food for mold creates a "dining haven" if you will. When there is water damage the moisture of course is soaked in and no longer just a surface problem. The mold spores that are in the air already settle down in the moist environment to "feast" and grow. The moisture on our air conditioning coils is a great place for fungi and mold to propagate (dark & moist).
How do we combat these problems? We'll cover that another time.
Next time Temperature.

What Gases Should We Be Concerned About?

Gases--another component of unhealthy IAQ. What are examples of these? Any spray fragrance, perfume, deodorant, insect spray, and repellants to name a few. Other examples are the "off-gasing" that occurs from flame retardants in fabrics, chemicals in carpets, furniture, paint, etc. Our cleaners under our sinks produce unhealthy gases. We are bombarded with these gases in our sealed up energy efficient homes.
Sometimes there are odors associated with these gases sometimes they are just silent and slowly deadly.
Sounds pretty overwhelming doesn't it? What is the solution?
We'll cover that another time. Next time humidity.

What Are Bio-Pollutants?

What are bio-pollutants? The term sounds ominous doesn't it? Well it can be.
Bio-pollutants are things like mold, e-coli, salmonella, and other such bacteria, viruses and fungi. They all can affect our health if absorbed by our bodies.
These organisms are in the air, on surfaces and can be transmitted by contact of any kind.
Some of the ways to avoid these are being careful to clean surfaces when preparing food, making sure trash and garbage does not overflow, use green cleaning supplies, use air purifiers, use proper air filtration, and last but not least common sense.
Next time  we'll cover Gasses.

Are Odors Just Bad Smells?

What are odors? Why is it a concern for IAQ? First of all odors are an indication of something else going on. For instance: musty odors could signal mold growth and off gassing. Rotting odors could signal bacteria growth. Odors signal something beneficial or harmful in our indoor environment. Odors can signal VOC off gassing which is harmful to the occupants. Odors can signal mycotoxins as small organisms digest their food source of dust, skin cells etc. All of which cause our bodies to have to react to the invaders in our breathing passages. Odors are to be taken seriously, not just a bother.
Closely related are the bio-pollutants which we will cover next time.

7 Facets of IAQ

What are the 7 facets affecting indoor air quality? Particulates, odors, bio-pollutants, gases, temperature, humidity, and comfort. What does this mean? We are going to break it down over the next couple of posts.
 Particulates--particles of matter floating in the air that we breathe. What are these particles?
Some of it includes dirt, small insect parts, smoke (if fireplace is present or smoker in home), pollens, and what we all refer to as "dust". What is dust in our indoor environment? Scientists tell us over 80% of dust floating around in homes is dead skin cells from humans and pets. On those dead skin cells are dust mites eating the cells and digesting them. What happens after digestion? Well you know what it is and we wind up breathing it. Since our homes are more energy efficient we are kind of living in a bubble as far as air is concerned. Our pets put off 5 times as many skin cells as we do--resulting in--pet dust mite--well "stuff" that we breathe-politely called dander. Great huh? Next time we'll discuss odors and why it is a concern.

Hurricane Sandy-Recovery & Illnesses

The thing that flooding brings to a community is the mixture of all the wrong things together to the breathing environment and the drinking water. The bacteria from sewage and the mold that starts to propagate makes the area affected quite contaminated. See this story from Hurricane Sandy   http://alturl.com/aghnj
 But what about the rest of us?  What goes on in our environment? Look around you right now, see the dust on the table, the cobweb in the corner, the little black bug looking things by a closet. Look at your HVAC filter, see any dust? What is living on that dust right now? Is your home energy tight? Or does it "breathe?"
Do you know our pets put off 5 times the amount of dead skin cells that we do? Are they indoors? Can we clean it up? Does it cost much? How much is indoor health worth?
 I think it's time to take a serious look at things affecting us indoors, and look for solutions. We also need to think in terms of how much is it saving us in health care to have a solution, instead of what does the solution cost.