Blog Archives

This is a continuation of a paper presented by me on September 30 in Vancouver, BC to the Air and Waste Management Association. The first part on regulatory activities was in last month’s issue. Standards The S-520 Project In the year 2001, members of various organizations involved with providing services related to the indoor environment […]

We continue to read and hear about the dangers of toxic mold. In getting ready for the start of the school year, there were numerous reports of schools engaging in last minute project to clean mold out of classrooms. The Kulua Tower at the Hilton Hotel in Honolulu just reopened after being closed for a […]

The voting members of ASHRAE Technical Committee 1.7 (Operation and Maintenance Management) recommend that a Standards Project Committee be established to develop the following Standard: The vote was taken at the regular committee meeting on July 1, 2003 In Kansas City, Missouri. Two other ASHRAE Technical Committees (TCs) formally endorsed formation of the committee to […]

A question I have received frequently over the past 15 years is, “How good is the air in airplane cabins?” Normally the person asking the question observes that it is a very small space with often crowded conditions and it seems that the level of contamination has to be high. When smoking was discontinued on […]

Severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) is a disease syndrome that has recently emerged from the interior of China and appears to quickly spread from infected individuals. In a very short time, this disease has sickened thousands and killed hundreds worldwide. How SARS Spreads Public health experts think that SARS is spread by close contact between […]

In March 1998, I wrote in this column about testing of buildings for mold and other contamination. I had recently returned from attending a forum on indoor environmental testing at the ASHRAE meeting in San Francisco and reported that opinions shared by experts in the field during that forum included: There are few if any […]

A subject we are hearing more and more about these days is certification. First California passed a toxic mold law that suggests “certification” of individuals investigating buildings for the possibility of mold contamination. Discussions about certification are currently being held in several states and the Federal Toxic Mold Bill introduced in Congress by representative John […]

Everyone knows that a coil with 0.05 inch of dirt, Biofilm, or other contamination buildup operates 32% less efficient. Or was that 42%? Or 5 microns? Or 23%. Oh well, why get hung up in the details. We have all seen the claims. They are posted on Internet sites, quoted in articles, and listed on […]

A couple of years ago a friend compared me to Paul Revere only she said I rode through the world of indoor air quality crying, “Legislation is coming; legislation is coming”. I must plead guilty, as, for the past several years, I have been stating that, unless the industry establishes standards and methods that bring […]

Dear IAQ Colleagues, Attached below is a letter recently signed by Marcia Mulkey, Director of the Office of Pesticide Programs, outlining concerns the Agency has regarding the use of antimicrobial products (most often sanitizers and disinfectants) in heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration systems (HVAC&R). This letter is the first step in a series of […]