Health Information

Indoor Air Quality, Mold, and Sick Building Syndrome.
At Clean Air Solutions, we believe that a healthy employee is a happy employee. Our job is to keep those employees healthy. We have provided a bit of information related to our areas of expertise. Please contact us for more detailed information.

What Is Indoor Air Quality?

Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) is a term used to describe the actual air quality within all buildings and structures, both commercial and residential. This term directly relates to the levels of microbial contaminants, such as mold and bacteria. It can also refer to the presence of harmful gases, such as carbon monoxide and radon. Indoor air quality has quickly become an increasingly important part of our health and well being concerns.

Mold

Mold is very common in our everyday life and can be found all over the world. Outdoor airborne molds are very common. However, given the right conditions, indoor airborne molds can develop with a commercial building without proper maintenance, cleaning, and treatment of the HVAC systems. Mold requires two conditions to grow indoors. The first is moisture, both natural (humidity) and artificial (a leak). The second is a place to grow, such as a ceiling tile, carpet, wallboard, or within the sub-ceiling of an office. Mold can grow just about anywhere when the proper conditions exist, and reproduces via airborne spores.

There are as many as four hundred thousand types of mold that exist in the world. Most are relatively harmless and easy to get rid of, however, some can affect individuals adversely. Symptoms such as asthma can be common even with a small amount of mold present in the air. However, some molds are harmful to all individuals. Even mild molds can be harmful in extremely contaminated situations.

Sick Building Syndrome

Sick Building Syndrome is a term used to describe a variety of ailments associated with poor indoor air quality.
A WHO (World Health Organization) study determined that up to 30% of buildings worldwide may be linked to symptoms of Sick Building Syndrome. Most frequently, these ailments are caused by flaws in the heating, ventilation, and air condition (HVAC) systems. These issues can include improper, or lack of, air duct cleaning, system component cleaning, and the presence of unwanted bacteria in the system. Mold is also a major factor in the presence of Sick Building Syndrome. Sick Building Syndrome can cause a variety of asthmatic related symptoms, including irritation of the eyes, nose and throat. It can also cause skin irritation and headaches.