Air vent mold

[Guest guest]

,

I'm sorry to hear of your problem in your rental residence. It is not

uncommon for different building occupants to have significantly different

reactions to the same material. That is true of many allergies. Not everyone

has hay fever, for example. Perhaps you spend more time in the apartment

than your husband. Perhaps you simply have a stronger genetic

susceptibility. Perhaps you were already somewhat compromised by exposure

elsewhere, and the apartment was the final straw to trigger the stronger

allergic reaction.

Unfortunately, ventilation related allergy is all too common, and poorly

understood by most maintenance staffs. They often change the filter and

expect everything to be fine. That is usually only the first step. Mold can

grow on filters, fans, AC coils, or anywhere else in the system,

necessitating thorough cleaning and disinfection. An interesting discussion

of this problem was posted on the Georgia Tech web site a few years ago at:

http://www.gtri.gatech.edu/res-news/FUNGUS.html

Since this is October, I assume your reference to air vents means air

conditioning, a central unit. Do you have access to this? Mold on the

visible grill is a minor the problem, but an indication of a more serious

problem deeper inside. Perhaps the drain pan does not drain properly, and

water sits there when the unit is not running, creating a high humidity

environment at room temperature, ideal mold breeding conditions. Perhaps the

drain line is partly plugged by mold. Perhaps poor filters have allowed dust

to collect on the AC coils, coils which are always wet from water condensing

from the air, again ideal microbial habitat. The ductwork can simply be

dirty and growing mold. Cleaning with detergent and disinfecting with

chlorine bleach may help.

Ducts may be the recently used flexible variety. If not installed

properly, fiberglass insulation may be exposed at connections, creating a

possible trap for dust and moisture. Last, the plenum and/or ductwork can be

a porous material which easily traps dust and moisture, such as fiberglass

ductboard. This type of material cannot be adequately cleaned without

damage, and must be replaced. New plenum and ductwork should be a smooth

surfaced material. Lined fiberglass ductboard may suffice. Better still are

old fashioned sheet metal ducts, perhaps made from one of the newer

anti-microbial metals, such as AK Steel's Agion Technology product.

Heating season will soon be upon us. If your AC coil is sitting on top of

your furnace, the furnace heat may be sufficient to kill mold in the system,

and you may find temporary relief. However, heat pumps do not get that hot.

Also, humidifier use can promote microbial growth. I hope you will be able

to understand this problem and get your landlord to similarly understand and

remedy the situation. Or else talk your husband into moving

Gil

Date: Tue, 01 Oct 2002 20:09:49 -0000

From: " rachael_breaux " <rbreaux@...>

Subject: Help I have Toxic Mold

I Have been very sick and I'm getting worse. It started out as a cold

and now I don't know what it is. I think it has to do with having

toxic mold in my apartment. I have a friend that got very sick due to

some oxic mold at her work place, she got so bad that she ended up in

the hospital. I don't want to get that bad. I don't know what to do.

I have notified the apts. that there was some mold or something on

the air vents. They came in and cleaned, but it has come back since.

I have not told them that I had it tested, and that it is toxic. They

just keep coming up with some dumb excuse. I need to get some advice

as to what to due. I have had doctor bills, medicines, and etc. I'm

not getting any better. I'm still living there, because I don't know

what my rights are as to how to go about doing anything. I need some

advice as to which direction to go in. My husband has not been

showing any types of being sick, and I don't know about my birds. I

know that I am getting sicker every day. Please can someone HELP....

_________________________________________________________________

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[Guest guest]

Thank you, for your reply. Unfortunatly we have had the mold tested and it's a toxic mold that is and has been at the apartment. I don't know for how long, but long enough for it to have affected my health. I just don't know what can be done legally or where to go to get the correct treatment that I need. I live in Angleton, Tx.

----- Original Message -----

From: Gil Vice

Cc: rbreaux@...

Sent: Friday, October 04, 2002 11:57 AM

Subject: [] Air vent mold

, I'm sorry to hear of your problem in your rental residence. It is not uncommon for different building occupants to have significantly different reactions to the same material. That is true of many allergies. Not everyone has hay fever, for example. Perhaps you spend more time in the apartment than your husband. Perhaps you simply have a stronger genetic susceptibility. Perhaps you were already somewhat compromised by exposure elsewhere, and the apartment was the final straw to trigger the stronger allergic reaction. Unfortunately, ventilation related allergy is all too common, and poorly understood by most maintenance staffs. They often change the filter and expect everything to be fine. That is usually only the first step. Mold can grow on filters, fans, AC coils, or anywhere else in the system, necessitating thorough cleaning and disinfection. An interesting discussion of this problem was posted on the Georgia Tech web site a few years ago at:http://www.gtri.gatech.edu/res-news/FUNGUS.html Since this is October, I assume your reference to air vents means air conditioning, a central unit. Do you have access to this? Mold on the visible grill is a minor the problem, but an indication of a more serious problem deeper inside. Perhaps the drain pan does not drain properly, and water sits there when the unit is not running, creating a high humidity environment at room temperature, ideal mold breeding conditions. Perhaps the drain line is partly plugged by mold. Perhaps poor filters have allowed dust to collect on the AC coils, coils which are always wet from water condensing from the air, again ideal microbial habitat. The ductwork can simply be dirty and growing mold. Cleaning with detergent and disinfecting with chlorine bleach may help. Ducts may be the recently used flexible variety. If not installed properly, fiberglass insulation may be exposed at connections, creating a possible trap for dust and moisture. Last, the plenum and/or ductwork can be a porous material which easily traps dust and moisture, such as fiberglass ductboard. This type of material cannot be adequately cleaned without damage, and must be replaced. New plenum and ductwork should be a smooth surfaced material. Lined fiberglass ductboard may suffice. Better still are old fashioned sheet metal ducts, perhaps made from one of the newer anti-microbial metals, such as AK Steel's Agion Technology product. Heating season will soon be upon us. If your AC coil is sitting on top of your furnace, the furnace heat may be sufficient to kill mold in the system, and you may find temporary relief. However, heat pumps do not get that hot. Also, humidifier use can promote microbial growth. I hope you will be able to understand this problem and get your landlord to similarly understand and remedy the situation. Or else talk your husband into movingGilDate: Tue, 01 Oct 2002 20:09:49 -0000From: "rachael_breaux" <rbreaux@...>Subject: Help I have Toxic MoldI Have been very sick and I'm getting worse. It started out as a coldand now I don't know what it is. I think it has to do with havingtoxic mold in my apartment. I have a friend that got very sick due tosome oxic mold at her work place, she got so bad that she ended up inthe hospital. I don't want to get that bad. I don't know what to do.I have notified the apts. that there was some mold or something onthe air vents. They came in and cleaned, but it has come back since.I have not told them that I had it tested, and that it is toxic. Theyjust keep coming up with some dumb excuse. I need to get some adviceas to what to due. I have had doctor bills, medicines, and etc. I'mnot getting any better. I'm still living there, because I don't knowwhat my rights are as to how to go about doing anything. I need someadvice as to which direction to go in. My husband has not beenshowing any types of being sick, and I don't know about my birds. Iknow that I am getting sicker every day. Please can someone HELP...._________________________________________________________________Chat with friends online, try MSN Messenger: http://messenger.msn.comFAIR USE NOTICE:This site contains copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. We are making such material available in our efforts to advance understanding of environmental, political, human rights, economic, democracy, scientific, and social justice issues, etc. We believe this constitutes a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. 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