School mold linked to cleaning

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School mold linked to cleaning

Too much water used to wash Capital High walls

Tuesday September 27, 2005

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BY HEATHER WOODWARD

THE OLYMPIAN

OLYMPIA -- The way custodians at Capital High School cleaned the

walls led to the mold growth in most of the school's classrooms and

hallways, Olympia School District officials said Monday.

Those cleaning practices -- which involved using far more water

than at any other Olympia school -- won't be allowed anymore. And

custodians throughout the district are undergoing training to ensure

cleaning methods are standardized throughout Olympia schools,

officials said.

Schools throughout the Olympia district are given a " deep clean "

every summer, while students and staff members are gone.

At Olympia's other 17 schools, custodians essentially use a dry

method to dust the walls and ceilings, using water only to eliminate

any removable stains, such as from a pencil or marker.

But at Capital, custodians in recent years were using large amounts

of water to clean entire wall surfaces rather than simply adding

moisture to localized stains, Olympia officials said.

A second-shift crew would clean the walls, and any water that

settled at the wall bases could sit there until a third-shift crew

arrived to shampoo the carpet, officials said. That allowed the

water time to travel up and get trapped behind the walls, creating

conditions for mold to grow easily.

" They did use far more water than we use even in a deep clean of the

building, " said Bob Wolpert, director of facilities and operations.

That practice appears to have been going on since Capital High

School was last renovated five years ago, officials said, and likely

extends as far back as 1995.

Wolpert declined to comment on whether any employees had been

disciplined as a result of the district's discovery, saying it was a

personnel matter.

However, he said, the district is working to step up supervision of

cleaning methods and standardize practices throughout Olympia

schools.

In addition to eliminating most of the water used to clean the

school walls, Olympia officials now plan to limit carpet shampooing

to within a foot of any wall. Custodians then will dry vacuum the 12

inches between the shampoo line and the wall.

Also, " The supervisor of building and grounds will play a much more

active role in supervising cleaning, " Wolpert said, referring to

support services supervisor Tom Kuehn.

Final numbers aren't available, but the entire mold abatement

project, which is complete, probably will end up costing the

district at least $500,000. The money will come from the district's

construction project contingency fund, which has accumulated about

$3 million from previous capital bond issues, district officials

have said.

That means less money will be available in the years ahead for

unexpected repairs and for purchasing land for future schools,

Wolpert said.

Mold history

An investigation in July by PBS Engineering and Environmental found

a significant amount of mold in two classrooms and a minor amount in

all of the others, district officials have said.

A few weeks later, abatement crews also found mold growing inside

several hallway walls bordering those classrooms.

Mold tests conducted inside six Olympia elementary schools with

similar conditions to Capital all came back negative.

An inspection at the old Elementary School found a small

amount of mold growing in a few spots but nothing state health

officials were concerned about.

Washington Middle School seventh- and eighth-graders will attend

classes at during a yearlong renovation project at their

school.

The mold found at has been removed. Recent air tests

conducted at found there were more mold spores in the air

outside the school than in any of the tested classrooms.

" We think that's the mark of a really clean school, " said Rex,

an Olympia spokesman.

Still, the experience at Capital should help the school district be

more proactive with issues related to mold in the future, officials

said.

" This has made us much more aware and much more sensitive to issues

of moisture, " Rex said.

Woodward covers education for The Olympian. She can be

reached at 360-754-4225 or hwoodwardolympia (DOT) gannett.com.