INDOOR AIR QUALITY IN YOUR HOME: WHAT CAUSES INDOOR AIR PROBLEMS??

Indoor pollution sources that release gases or particles into the air are the primary cause of indoor air quality problems in homes.

Inadequate ventilation can increase indoor pollutant levels by not bringing in enough outdoor air to dilute emissions from indoor sources and by not carrying indoor air pollutants out of the home.

High temperature and humidity levels can also increase concentrations of some pollutants.

Pollutant Sources

There are many sources of indoor air pollution in any home. These include combustion sources such as oil, gas, kerosene, coal, wood, and tobacco products; building materials and furnishings as diverse as deteriorated, asbestos-containing insulation, wet or damp carpet, and cabinetry or furniture made of certain pressed wood products; products for household cleaning and maintenance, personal care, or hobbies; central heating and cooling systems and humidification devices; and outdoor sources such as radon, pesticides, and outdoor air pollution.

The relative importance of any single source depends on how much of a given pollutant it emits and how hazardous those emissions are. In some cases, factors such as how old the source is and whether it is properly maintained are significant. For example, an improperly adjusted gas stove can emit significantly more carbon monoxide than one that is properly adjusted.

Some sources, such as building materials, furnishings, and household products like air fresheners, release pollutants more or less continuously. Other sources, related to activities carried out in the home, release pollutants intermittently. These include smoking, the use of unvented or malfunctioning stoves, furnaces, or space heaters, the use of solvents in cleaning and hobby activities, the use of paint strippers in redecorating activities, and the use of cleaning products and pesticides in housekeeping. High pollutant concentrations can remain in the air for long periods after some of these activities.

Amount of Ventilation

If too little outdoor air enters a home, pollutants can accumulate to levels that can pose health and comfort problems. Unless they are built with special mechanical means of ventilation, homes that are designed and constructed to minimize the amount of outdoor air that can "leak" into and out of the home may have higher pollutant levels than other homes. However, because some weather conditions can drastically reduce the amount of outdoor air that enters a home, pollutants can build up even in homes that are normally considered "leaky."

How Does Outdoor Air Enter a House?

Outdoor air enters and leaves a house by: infiltration, natural ventilation, and mechanical ventilation. In a process known as infiltration, outdoor air flows into the house through openings, joints, and cracks in walls, floors, and ceilings, and around windows and doors. In natural ventilation, air moves through opened windows and doors. Air movement associated with infiltration and natural ventilation is caused by air temperature differences between indoors and outdoors and by wind. Finally, there are a number of mechanical ventilation devices, from outdoor-vented fans that intermittently remove air from a single room, such as bathrooms and kitchen, to air handling systems that use fans and duct work to continuously remove indoor air and distribute filtered and conditioned outdoor air to strategic points throughout the house. The rate at which outdoor air replaces indoor air is described as the air exchange rate. When there is little infiltration, natural ventilation, or mechanical ventilation, the air exchange rate is low and pollutant levels can increase.

What If You Live in an Apartment?

Apartments can have the same indoor air problems as single-family homes because many of the pollution sources, such as the interior building materials, furnishings, and household products, are similar. Indoor air problems similar to those in offices are caused by such sources as contaminated ventilation systems, improperly placed outdoor air intakes, or maintenance activities.

Solutions to air quality problems in apartments, as in homes and offices, involve such actions as: eliminating or controlling the sources of pollution, increasing ventilation, and installing air cleaning devices.

Often a resident can take the appropriate action to improve the indoor air quality by removing a source, altering an activity, unblocking an air supply vent, or opening a window to temporarily increase the ventilation; in other cases, however, only the building owner or manager is in a position to remedy the problem.

You can encourage building management to follow guidance in EPA's IAQ Building Education and Assessment Model (I-BEAM). I-BEAM updates and expands EPA's existing Building Air Quality guidance and is designed to be comprehensive state-of-the-art guidance for managing IAQ in commercial buildings.

This guidance was designed to be used by building professionals and others interested in indoor air quality in commercial buildings. I-BEAM contains text, animation/visual, and interactive/calculation components that can be used to perform a number of diverse tasks.

You can also encourage building management to follow guidance in EPA and NIOSH's Building Air Quality: A Guide for Building Owners and Facility Managers

TURTLE CLAN ENVIRONMENT TESTING INC. is comprised of a team of EXPERTS with over 100 years intellectual capital to bring to our clients.

We are A CERTIFIED 3RD PARTY MOLD TESTING COMPANY, MOLD TESTERS, MOLD TESTING WITH OFFICES IN CONNECTICUT and NEW YORK serving the Greater Tri State Area and all of Fairfield County Connecticut, Litchfield County Connecticut, New Haven County Connecticut, Middlesex County Connecticut, Hartford County Connecticut, Westchester County New York , Duchess County New York, Putnam County New York, Orange County New York

For MOLD TESTERS, MOLD TESTING, MOLD TESTING COMPANIES near Greenwich CT ,Stamford CT, New Caanan CT, Darien CT, Norwalk CT, Wilton CT, Weston CT, Southport CT, Westport CT, Fairfield CT, Easton CT, Stratford CT, Redding CT, Ridgefield CT, Bridgeport CT, Newtown CT, Trumbull CT, Shelton CT, Danbury CT, Milford,CT, Fairfield CT, Southport CT, Westport CT, Greenwich CT, Monroe CT, Lakeville CT, Sharon CT, Washington CT, Brookfield CT, Roxbury CT, Warren CT, Sherman CT, Kent CT, Salsbury CT, Torrington CT, Goshen CT, Litchfield CT, Thomaston CT, Watertown CT, Winsted CT, New Milford CT, Bethal CT, Cos Cob CT, Ridgefield CT, Oxford CT, Seymore CT, Naugatuck CT, Derby CT, Ansonia CT, Shelton CT, Orange CT, Devon CT, New Haven CT, North Haven CT, East Haven CT, Branford CT, CALL 203-380-8009 or 860-364-4694 TODAY

For MOLD TESTERS, MOLD TESTING, MOLD TESTING COMPANIES near Scarsdale NY, Eastchester NY, Armonk NY, Bedford NY, Rye NY, Ryebrook NY, Mamaroneck NY, Larchmont NY, Dobbs Ferry NY, Hastings NY, Irvington NY, Terrytown NY, Greenburg NY, Whiteplains NY, New Rochelle NY, Portchester NY, Mount Vernon NY, Yonkers NY, Tuckahoe NY , Bronxville NY, Ossening NY, Sleepy Holow NY, Poundridge NY, Chappaqua NY, Katonah NY, Mount Kisco NY, Purchas NY, Pawling NY, Patterson NY, Millbrook NY, Millerton NY, Amenia NY, Dover Plains NY, Poughkeepskie NY, Fishkill NY, Putnam NY, Croton on the Hudson NY, Peekskill NY, Cold Springs NY, Mahopac NY, New City NY, Pearl River NY, Nyack NY, - Ardsley, NY - Ardsley on Hudson, NY - Armonk, NY - Baldwin Place, NY - Bedford, NY - Bedford Hills, NY - Briarcliff Manor, NY - Bronxville, NY - Buchanan, NY - Chappaqua, NY - Cortlandt Manor, NY - Crompond, NY - Cross River, NY - Croton Falls, NY - Croton on Hudson, NY - Dobbs Ferry, NY - Eastchester, NY - Elmsford, NY - Goldens Bridge, NY - Granite Springs, NY - Harrison, NY - Hartsdale, NY - Hastings on Hudson, NY - Hawthorne, NY - Irvington, NY - Jefferson Valley, NY - Katonah, NY - Larchmont, NY - Lincolndale, NY - Mamaroneck, NY - Maryknoll, NY - Millwood, NY - Mohegan Lake, NY - Montrose, NY - Mount Kisco, NY - Mount Vernon, NY - New Rochelle, NY - North Salem, NY - Ossining, NY - Peekskill, NY - Pelham, NY - Pleasantville, NY, Port Chester, NY - Pound Ridge, NY - Purchase, NY - Purdys, NY - Rye, NY - Scarsdale, NY - Shenorock, NY - Shrub Oak, NY - Somers, NY - South Salem, NY - Tarrytown, NY - Thornwood, NY - Tuckahoe, NY - Valhalla, NY - Verplanck, NY - Waccabuc, NY - West Harrison, NY - White Plains, NY - Yonkers, NY - Yorktown Heights, NY
CALL 914-361-9703 TODAY

Connecticut Mold screening,IAQA, Connecticut MOLD TESTERS, Certified NEW YORK MOLD TESTERS, the BEST mold testing company in Connec ticut and New york