Download Here - James L. Schaller, M.D., M.A.R., P.C

Environmentally Friendly Mold Remediation Techniques That Significantly Reduce Childhood AsthmaOnce the contamination size has been established, the appropriateapproach to remediation including the type of protective equipment andthe type of containment should follow EPA guidelines as described inMold Remediation in Schools and Commercial Buildings [EPA 402-K-01-001, March 2001] which can be downloaded fromhttp://www.epa.gov/mold.Remember that mold remediation contractors make money buildingcontainments. That’s what they want to do, build big expensivecontainments. The bigger, the better. Typically the remediationcontractor learned their trade from an asbestos contractor where bigcontainments and moon suits make sense…. though they rarely makesense for mold work.Typically a large fan in an outside door or window should be used toclear the work area of mold during demolition and one or more airscrubbers can be used outside the contained area after remediation asa safety precaution. If there is no outside window or door in the workarea, then a plastic containment hallway/ tunnel would typically bebuilt to connect the work area to the outside. The same principlewould apply … exhaust the contaminants to the outside.In SummaryUsing a window fan during remediation to exhaust contaminantsoutside is recommended by the EPA in their mold handbook (EPA402-K-02-003). Mold remediators usually choose more complex andexpensive ways to do the work. But in the case of mold, due to themold fragments and potentially hazardous construction dusts createdduring remediation, the less expensive way (exhausting outside) is alsothe best way to bring the home or office to “like-new” condition.Again, exhausting to the outside with a fan is not only much cheaperbut is far superior to the traditional containment approach to moldremediation that is based on asbestos remediation which does notallow exhausting to the outside.64