Paper on physical cleaning of gypsum wallboard contaminated with stachybotrys - EPA states it does not recommend this.

[Guest guest]

We all, as well as the EPA, as stated here, know that physical removal

is best. But, as we know, many people often won't take that advice.

Its my understanding from reading this that this scrubbing with borax,

etc, is whats suggested in the not unusual worst-case scenario when

the owner is too cheap to remove the sheetrock. But if stachy is found

on the front, stachy which requires high humidity to grow, what is on

the back? There is a need to know. There is a need to remove that

sheetrock to replace it, but also to find out whats on the back. The

back has probably been just as wet as the front if not wetter.

I really don't like the fact that they are giving the benefit of the

doubt to people to make this decision in this dangerous and

financially-skewed situation,

but its also probably unrealistic for us to think that in the current

political environment we could hope for laws that would require

replacement either.

Whats growing on the back, unseen?

What if the building where this was done was a home or workplace?

I think they published this in an attempt to address 'what is the best

soap-and-scrubbing like method' to physically remove stachybotrys from

porous materials as a prelude to rinsing it away and then following

with water.

Stachy sheetrock needs to be removed. What you don't know, CAN hurt

you. (Often there is much more mold on the back than on the front)

what do other people think? I don't think borax is a good alternative

to removal in either homes or workplaces. But there are uses for this

knowledge.

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Environ Sci Pollut Res Int. 2007 Nov;14(7):523-8.

Testing antimicrobial cleaner efficacy on gypsum wallboard

contaminated with Stachybotrys chartarum.

Menetrez MY, Foarde KK, Webber TD, Dean TR, Betancourt DA.

US Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Research and

Development, National Risk Management Research Laboratory, Air

Pollution Prevention and Control Division, Research Triangle Park, NC

27711, USA. menetrez.marc@...

GOAL, SCOPE AND BACKGROUND: Reducing occupant exposure to indoor

mold is the goal of this research, through the efficacy testing of

antimicrobial cleaners. Often mold contaminated building materials are

not properly removed, but instead surface cleaners are applied in an

attempt to alleviate the problem. The efficacy of antimicrobial

cleaners to remove, eliminate or control mold growth on surfaces can

easily be tested on non-porous surfaces. However, the testing of

antimicrobial cleaner efficacy on porous surfaces, such as those found

in the indoor environment such as gypsum board can be more complicated

and prone to incorrect conclusions regarding residual organisms. The

mold Stachybotrys chartarum has been found to be associated with

idiopathic pulmonary hemorrhage in infants and has been studied for

toxin production and its occurrence in water damaged buildings. Growth

of S. chartarum on building materials such as gypsum wallboard has

been frequently documented.

METHODS: Research to control S. chartarum growth using 13 separate

antimicrobial cleaners on contaminated gypsum wallboard has been

performed in laboratory testing. Popular brands of cleaning products

were tested by following directions printed on the product packaging.

RESULTS: A variety of gypsum wallboard surfaces were used to test

these cleaning products at high relative humidity. The results

indicate differences in antimicrobial efficacy for the six month

period of testing.

DISCUSSION: Results for the six types of GWB surfaces varied

extensively. However, three cleaning products exhibited significantly

better results than others. Lysol All-Purpose Cleaner-Orange Breeze

(full strength) demonstrated results which ranked among the best in

five of the six surfaces tested. Both Borax and Orange Glo

Multipurpose Degreaser demonstrated results which ranked among the

best in four of the six surfaces tested.

CONCLUSIONS: The best antimicrobial cleaner to choose is often

dependent on the type of surface to be cleaned of S. chartarum

contamination. For Plain GWB, no paint, the best cleaners were Borax,

Lysol All-Purpose Cleaner-Orange Breeze (full strength), Orange Glo

Multipurpose Degreaser, and Fantastik Orange Action.

RECOMMENDATIONS AND PERSPECTIVES: These results are not meant to

endorse the incomplete removal of mold contaminated building

materials. However, it is recognized that complete removal may not

always be possible and solutions to control mold regrowth may

contribute to reduced occupant exposure.

*Current recommendations of removal and replacement of porous building

materials should be followed*.

*It is not the intension of this discussion to endorse any product.

Reporting on the performance of these products under the stated

conditions was and remains the only purpose.*

PMID: 18062486 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]