Indoor Air Quality - Mold, Bacteria, Allergens, and Chemicals
Most homeowners are not aware of their family’s exposure to toxic levels of mold and other airborn microorganisms. Allergey symptoms and hypersensetivity have been on the rise, particularly in children. The culprit is often mold in the indoor environment. As a result, many families have opted to replace their warm and cozy carpet with hard surface flooring such as wood and tile. What many home owners do not realize is that regular carpet “steam cleaning” is the number one contributor to indoor mold.
A typical educated family household has their carpet steam cleaned in 6-24 month intervals. What most home owners do not realize is the tremendous amount of moisture that is used in the process. After a steam cleaning, carpet fibers may remain wet for 2-36 hours, depending on the equipment and process used by the service provider and the home indoor humidity (RH) level. However, the carpet pad underlayment, subfloor and carpet backing act as a barrier and sponge for water that soaks in deep-down underneath the carpet fibers. After 2-36 hours, the carpet may feel dry to the touch, but there is likely still a significant amount of moisture below the touchable surface of the carpet fibers. This is the case because water molecules are simply too heavy for even the most powerful hot water extraction (steam cleaning) systems.
Even some companies that call themselves “dry” are in fact steam cleaners. Some of these companies even use the word “dry” in their name. Make no mistake, many of these companies, including the #1 carpet cleaning service in the U.S. actually is a ”steam cleaning” service. When steam cleaners leave your home, the water and chemicals that they use will make their way to the bottom of the carpet pile, through each yarn. Then the liquid will permeate the carpet backing and soak into the carpet underlayment (foam padding), before reaching your subfloor. This occurs due to the fact that gravity is a far more powerful than the evaporation process that eventually removes the H20 from your floor into your interior atmosphere.
During the evaporation process, much of the soil, chemicals and microbes that were forced to the bottom of your carpet will actually travel back up through the carpet fiber yarns, with water as the transport vehicle. This phenomenon is referred to as “wick back”. As the pure H20 evaporates and chemicals “off gas” into your home’s interior, chemical residues and microbal agents are left behind in your carpet fibers. Furthermore, wherever water has traveled in your floor, microorganisms will follow.
Wet carpet and underlayment is an ideal habitat for a variety of bacteria, fungi, and viruses. Nearly all microorganisms, particularly mold and mildew, thrive in wet environments. Once mold and mildew colonize, they are often able to sustain life by utilizing air moisture (humidity). You will rarely see mold colonies in low moisture environments, but once an environment is exposed to large amounts of moisture (liquid or humidity), mold and mildew and other fungi can colonize rapidly. At the point of colonization, fungi can be very difficult to get rid of, since it can typically sustain life from the moisture in the air. The same is often true for other types of microorganisms, including bacteria and viruses. In fact, wet carpet can create an entire ecosystem, leaving your carpet far more dirty after steam cleaning than before, technically speaking – from an indoor air quality and health risk exposure standpoint.
The term Building Related Illness (BRI), otherwise referred to as, Sick Building Syndrome (SBS), describes health symptoms that one experiences while inhabiting or working in a home or office which has an interior. Pertaining to these terms, such symptoms only occur while occupying the interior of the building or home. Substandard Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) is the primary cause of BRI / SBS. Poor IAQ is caused by a number of factors, including poor ventilation, high humidity, above average levels of air particles, such as house dust, airborn allergens, dust mites, cockroaches, animal dander, mold, pollen, and bacteria; exposure to chemicals and off-gassing from materials or cleaning agents, pesticides, smoke, and carbon monoxide.
Most people spend at least 90% of their time indoors, leaving most Americans suceptible to exposure to harmful toxins and pollutants which affect indoor air quality. These pollutants may significantly affect quality of life and health, to a far greater degree than oudoor pollutant levels – as much as 10-50 times greater according to the Environmental Protection Agency. Poor indoor air quality has been shown to lead to higher medical expenses and lower human productivity.
The Dangers of Mold
Mold, which is sometimes referred to as mildew (a type of fungus), is one of the most prevalent causes of BRS and SBS. According to several studies, indoor mold can cause respiratory illness, asthma, and allergies, and is particularly dangerous for children. Mold actually produces allergens, irritants and toxic substances (mycotoxins) which can have immediate or delayed health effects. Human exposure to mold can cause irritation to the eyes, nose, skin, throat, and lungs and mold does not discriminate between allergic and non-allergic individuals. It is potentially harmful and dangerous to all people. (refer to www.epa.gov for reference material and more information on the harmful effects of indoor mold)
A 1999 Mayo Clinic Study finding determined that 96% of chronic sinus infections were caused by molds. Other toxic effects of mold include nausea, headaches, fatigue, respiratory discomfort, eye irritation, and difficulty in concentrating.
