Here’s another IAQA Tech Tip video on the ideal temperature.

For a direct link to the video, use this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=munKVtxqpOs&hd=1

In my not-so-new role as Indoor Air Quality Association (IAQA) Technical Director, I am developing some educational videos. The videos are posted on YouTube and are freely available to everyone, not just IAQA members.
As these videos come out, I will provide a link here on my blog.  Enjoy!

If you’re looking for more information on indoor air quality, check out the 50 classes I developed for the IAQA:

http://www.iaqa.org/iaqa-university

Do people, especially children, get sick in damp buildings? Is it because of the mold? Or is it the bacteria, insects and rodents attracted to the moisture causing the problems? Or is it a combination of these exposures having a negative synergistic effect?

Although the answers to these questions are not well understood, the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) just released a 2-page statement to clarify some issues.

To the question, “Do people get sick in damp buildings?” here is what the statement says…

CDPH has concluded that the presence of water damage, dampness, visible mold, or mold odor

in schools, workplaces, residences, and other indoor environments is unhealthy.

• Pregnant women in the U.S. are exposed to multiple chemicals. Excellent research article: http://goo.gl/xo27w ->
• Current evidence does not support measuring specific indoor microbiologic factors to guide health-protective actions http://t.co/4b6hXko ->
• Climate Change, the Indoor Environment, and Health: http://t.co/TZj1tg5 via @NASciences ->
• I'm just about to fly out of Texas. Keep up with the tweets so i can follow along with the action. Great conference! #indoorair2011 ->
• "We need a IEQ professional practice degree" -Andy Ask. #indoorair2011 ->
• Andy Ask advocates 7 years of formal education for practicing professions related to indoor environments. #indoorair2011 ->
• Attending a session on the professional practice of IEQ consulting. After this i have to fly back home. #indoorair2011 ->
• Filtration of outdoor air entering buildings may be feasible to reduce exposures and health effects in specific applications. #indoorair2011 ->
• "Indoor air = Outdoor air (with exceptions )" #indoorair2011 ->
• "43 chemicals found in virtually every pregnant woman" #indoorair2011 ->
• Endocrine disrupting chemicals found in dust and targets children. #indoorair2011 ->
• Im the session chair for odors! come one come all! Room 18. #indoorair2011 ->
• High ERMI score at age 1 increases risk for asthma at age 7 (2.6 times). #indoorair2011 ->
• Increased risk of asthma for high visible mold with young children. #indoorair2011 ->
• Endotoxin and fungi have synergistic effect on health. #indoorair2011 ->
• Mark Mendell presentation- quantitative sampling of microorganisms not able to identify causal relationship with symptoms. #indoorair2011 ->
• Presenter with T-shirt… "keep it simple, clean, and dry and ventilate" #indoorair2011 ->
• Assessments esp. needed when patients don't respond to regular treatments or they are needed year round. #indoorair2011 ->
• Medical treatments don't address the underlying problem in environmentally induced allergies and asthma #indoorair2011 ->
• Attending workshop on physician informed indoor environmental assessments by Grimes and others. #indoorair2011 ->
• Question for Joe… "What are your thoughts on natural ventilation?" #indoorair2011 ->
• In Chinese study, 84% preferred naturally ventilated building. #indoorair2011 ->
• People have a wider comfort range in naturally ventilated buildings. #indoorair2011 ->
• Next plenary session from Dr. Yingxin Zhu, an expert on thermal comfort. #indoorair2011 ->
• Joe promoting sealed combustion appliances. You don't need a hole in the wall for combustion air. #indoorair2011 ->
• You need to seal the return ducts to not kill anyone from carbon monoxide. #indoorair2011 ->
• The cost of fixing a leaky building is less than testing the building. #indoorair2011 ->
• Blower doors only calculate equivalent leakage area. You don't know where it's coming from. #indoorair2011 ->
• Joe Lstiburek offends Texans in first 10 seconds of his presentation! #indoorair2011 ->

• 2011 Threshold Limit Values have been published. http://www.acgih.org/store/ProductDetail.cfm?id=2147 ->
• IAQ problems at EPA. http://goo.gl/NkjTE #iaqirony ->
• I finally got a chance to read ACOEM's updated statement on the health effects of mold: http://goo.gl/Q9Cj4 ->

The trend continues to make buildings more energy efficient, which I support 100%.  All commercial building codes require these high performing buildings to ventilate.  The problem is residential building codes, that rarely require mechanical ventilation.  Mechanical ventilation typically uses the HVAC system or supplemental fan to bring in outdoor air.  This is in contrast to natural ventilation that comes in through an open window, and infiltration that comes in through a closed window.

Although homes are being built more for greater energy efficiency, mechanical ventilation is only required in five states that I know of.  These include Washington, Minnesota, California, Vermont and Maine.

My state of Illinois doesn’t require mechanical ventilation in homes.  New efficient homes don’t have the means (other than opening windows), to air out the VOCs from new construction.  Until mechanical ventilation gets adopted into building code, I will remain busy dealing with indoor air quality issues that are totally preventable.

Homes can be both energy efficient and well ventilated.  I would like to see more homes installing mechanical ventilation, but I’m afraid that won’t happen until codes force people to have improved IAQ.

Does your state require residential mechanical ventilation?  Have you seen similar problems in your area?  Please make a comment on my blog!

• I have a new role at the IAQA… I'm their new Technical Director! Here's a blog post with more information: http://goo.gl/aCuaF ->
• There is no easy way of filtering carbon monoxide. Media filters, activated carbon, and ozone don't work well. ->
• The importance of ventilation on asthma: http://goo.gl/eVUgx. Care of Aspergillus blog. ->

I have some exciting news to share.  I have just been appointed as the Indoor Air Quality Association (IAQA) Technical Director.  This is a brand new position that was created by the association’s Board of Directors to coordinate the technical committees and contribute to publications, among other activities.  The most important responsibility of this new position is to oversee the launching of IAQA University.

The IAQA University will have classes for everyone: those wanting to learn a little about indoor air quality all the way up to industry professionals seeking continuing education credits.  Classes will predominately be online, but it is anticipated they will also be taught through the IAQA local chapters and perhaps as a pre-conference program before the annual meeting.

The IAQA University will go live in early summer.  It will initially be seeded with 50 short classes one-hour in length on a wide range of topics.  These classes will be at the  ”100-level,” with future plans to expand the breadth and depth of offerings.  As time goes on, more 100 level classes will be added as well as 200 and 300 level classes.  I will be contributing a lot of content, but subject matter experts will also be tapped for higher level classes.

So what’s going to happen to this blog?  I will serving as Technical Director with half of my time.  In the other half I will still contribute to this blog, consult in the Chicagoland area, and educate the world about indoor air quality.  My blog posts may come out less frequently, but I’m committed to sharing great information with my readers.

• School district installed extensions to sewer vents on roof to prevent gases from being pulled back in. #iaqa2011 ->
• "ozone requires high levels to be effective, 9-12 ppm" #iaqa2011 ->
• I just finished an IAQA board meeting, heading to the expo hall #iaqa2011 ->
• Thanks EMSL for a great party. Checked out the San Antonio River Walk with Andy Ask. Time for bed… presentation tomorrow. #iaqa2011 ->
• http://drclaudiamiller.com/ resources on mcs /tilt toxicant induced loss of tolerance. #iaqa2011 ->
• A hallmark symptom of gulf war syndrome is inability to drink alcohol. Speaker talking about loss of chemical tolerance. #iaqa2011 ->
• MCS in most cases "your guess is as good as mine"… symptoms are non specific. #iaqa2011 ->
• Manufactured housing units that were aired out… 375 passed and 1 failed. #iaqa2011 ->
• Composite wood panels aired out for 3 weeks. Sheet vinyl and plastic wall panels for 3 days #iaqa2011 ->
• Many manufactured housing units are able to achieve low levels of formaldehyde (below 16 ppb) #iaqa2011 ->
• Elliot Horner describing how to air out plywood before being used for manufactured housing. #iaqa2010 ->
• FEMA uses NIOSH'S limit of 16ppb of formaldehyde #iaqa2011 ->
• Despite formaldehyde problems, advantages to modular housing… Tighter QC, stronger, dry, resource efficient, faster, etc.. #iaqa2011 ->
• Formaldehyde background up to 30 ppb #iaqa2011 ->
• Done with technical sessions for the day at IAQA's Annual Meeting, heading to the expo hall. #iaqa2011 ->
• First question I ask for a home health assessment, "Are you under a doctor's care?" -Carl Grimes #iaqa2011 ->
• "When assessing the indoor environment, put people first" #iaqa2011 ->
• Microbial volatile organic compounds (mVOCs) greater than 8 ng/l indicate mold growth. Speaker recommends using sorbent tubes #iaqa2011 ->
• Where are fragrances worst? Middle school where the whole bottle gets used #iaqa2011 ->
• Folk belief in some communities that asthma will "transfer" to Chihuahua dogs! #iaqa2011 ->
• "Watch your facial expressions" when doing a home health assessment in someone's house. #iaqa2011 ->
• The future of sampling is microarray… "lab on a chip". Not commercially available, qualitative only. Star Trek scan of air. #iaqa2011 ->
• "Wood rot fungi doesn't release a lot of spores" therefore not a huge IAQ issue. #iaqa2011 ->
• OSB board can have little surface contamination, yet have lots of interior mold growth. "Eating it from the inside out." #iaqa2011 ->
• "Wood rot is not mold (micro fungi). They have special enzymes" #iaqa2011 ->
• "OSB holds on to water longer than plywood" #iaqa2011 ->
• Presentation "fungal ecology of engineered wood" by Jason Dobranic, PhD #iaqa2011 ->
• Spore release appears greatest in low relative humidity #iaqa2011 ->