Should You Sample for Mold?

Jeffrey May, IAQ Investigator, CIAQP CMC, May Indoor Air Investigations, LLC, Tyngsborough, MA

About this program:
 

What types of sampling could or should you do? Many organizations have recommendations concerning testing for mold. Most agree that air sampling alone may not be useful for a variety of reasons. Most agree that visible mold does not have to be sampled. Wall sampling can misrepresent conditions within a wall cavity. I will discuss some types of sampling that can provide very important information to your clients.

I will also include some caveats. For example, when identical samples are sent to several commercial labs, the analyses can be orders of magnitude out of agreement. Nearly all labs deal only with spore counts and leave out very important information, such as the occurrence of Pen/Asp spores in chains and clusters versus individual spores only. I will explain why practitioners must insist that the lab to which they send samples indicate the presence of Pen/Asp spores in such groups.

I discuss some of the sampling methods that will help to locate some sources of mold-spore exposures. Such sources could include buckwheat and kapok pillows, mattresses, rugs, couches, mouse-urine trails, exposed fiberglass, baseboard convectors, and even HVAC systems with inaccessible components. The presentation will include many photographs and photomicrographs from samples that illustrate my points. I will also present some case studies, including families who suffered from mold contamination in Whalen heating/cooling units.

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Learning Goals:
 

• What additional information to request in lab analysis

• The mistakes a lab may make in a spore analysis

• What samples to take in addition to air samples

• How to gather samples from furnishings

• A novel way to take an air sample from an air handler

About the Presenter:

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Jeffrey C. May of May Indoor Air Investigations has been investigating building problems for over 25 years, during which time he analyzed by microscopy over 35,000 air and dust samples. Author or co-author of five books in indoor air quality, including Edition 2 of My House is Killing Me! Jeff has given many presentations to MIAQC. A former adjunct faculty member in the Department of Work Environment at U MA Lowell, Jeff is a Certified Indoor Air Quality Professional, a Certified Microbial Consultant, and a licensed mold assessor in Florida and NH.  He holds a B.A. from Columbia in chemistry, and an M.A. from Harvard in organic chemistry. In 2018 he was inducted in the Indoor Air Quality Association’s Hall of Fame.

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Program Level:​

Intermediate 

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Content Area(s):

Residential Buildings

Mold Analysis Practices and Interpreting Mold Testing Results

Investigating Mold and Chronic Dampness

Case Studies

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