Residential

Home Sweet Home. It is where we go after a long day at work, school, or just out and about in the hustle and bustle of life. It is where we raise our children and take care of our family. Home is where we go to feel safe, get good rest, and hopefully enjoy some peace. Unfortunately, there are many factors that inhibit this from always being the case. At Oasis Indoor Environmental, we are committed to helping families have safer, cleaner air to breathe in their homes.

When you are at work or in school, your indoor environment is controlled by others. Building engineers and maintenance staff are responsible for keeping things clean and working properly, and you don’t usually have a lot of input. However, in your own home it is different. You are the “king (or queen) of your castle” and can make sure the air you and your family breathes is healthy and clean. This is why we say:

CHECK THE HEALTH OF YOUR HOME!

MOLD/MOISTURE

Figure 1 - Removal of carpet base revealed some surface mold growth. Our experience and instruments told us there was more. See Figure 2

Any discolorations on ceilings, walls, or flooring can be signs of microbial growth. When a “mildewy” odor accompanies that discoloration you can be sure it’s mold. When it comes to mold, existence of such an odor means there is active mold growth, but the absence of such an odor does not mean there is no mold. Mold goes through growth and reproductive cycles that cause it to give off odor, spores, and sometimes toxins. The only way to know for sure what you are dealing with is to have a professional assessment with appropriate sampling by an Indoor Environmental Professional (IEP) that does not do remediation (see Why Use a Third Party).

Figure 2 – Removal of wallboard reveals extensive active mold growth.

What we strongly discourage is trying to handle these things yourself. If after our assessment we determine it’s something you can DIY, we will gladly let you know and provide some helpful suggestions as to what pre-cautions you should take. However, in many cases what is visible on the surface of a wall or flooring is only the “tip of the iceberg.” (Notice please the two examples pictured here) Spraying or wiping it with bleach, or similar product, will not get what is behind the walls and it will not remove the harmful spores. In fact, spraying, fogging, or misting with chemicals will only exacerbate the problem, as the nature of mold spores is to fly away from liquids in this form. This goes the same for painting over the problem with “mold paint.” This only provides a false sense of security and allows more time for the mold colonies and spore levels to grow, and possibly cause you and yours more harm. Our assessment, and if necessary, Remediation Action Plan (Protocol) will provide a safe, thorough, but reasonable approach to your mold problem.

Make sure that any moisture intrusions are treated quickly and effectively. (See Moisture Intrusions page)

Depending on the source of the water and how long it has been standing the microbial growth can involve bacteria and viruses in addition to mold. Storm or sewer backups should not be handled yourself, they can contain E. coli, Hepatitis, and many other things harmful to us. A professional building drying company should be consulted (for a list of such in your area consult www.iicrc.org). It may be prudent to involve us at this point to provide third-party monitoring of the drying process. We can verify that proper equipment and processes are being employed. Furthermore, we can make sure that building materials are drying properly, and at a rate that will prevent microbial growth from setting in. This can save you from unnecessary equipment charges and the expense and disruption of a mold remediation down the road.

OTHER IAQ FACTORS

In addition to microbial growth, there are other things found in a residential environment that can wreak havoc on a person’s health. These include pet allergens, and allergens associated with cockroaches, rodents, dust mites, and others. In addition, there are respirable particulates such as asbestos, fiberglass, second hand / environmental tobacco smoke, carbon black, lead, and gases such as carbon monoxide, radon, and some VOCs (Volatile Organic Compounds) that can prove very harmful to our health.

If you suspect any of these things or want to just be sure, we can suggest and perform a reasonable sampling strategy to assess the quality of your indoor environment.

WHAT CAN YOU EXPECT FROM US?

If you decide to use Oasis Indoor Environmental as your Indoor Environmental Professional you will be treated with the respect and professionalism that you deserve. Our assessment usually requires anywhere from an hour to 2 hours depending on the size of the home and how much you want us to walk-through and sample. We encourage you to walk through the home with us and ask as many questions as you would like. Once our initial walk-through investigation is completed we will formulate a reasonable sampling strategy and have it approved by you before we begin taking those samples. The samples will then be appropriately packaged, a chain of custody form filled out, and shipped or delivered to a third-party AIHA Accredited laboratory. For most samples we can have results within 2 days (faster turnarounds including 3 hour and same day are available for non cultured samples). Once we start getting results from the lab we are happy to keep you informed verbally as to what we are finding. Our final written report will be formulated once all sample data is in and has been interpreted. We are not going to just be giving you a lab report and general information pertaining to the molds, particulate, or gases found. Instead, you will have a very thorough report about what was visually observed, picked up by our instruments, and all lab data will be interpreted personally by the person who walked your home. This last detail is vital to getting an accurate interpretation of data and final assessment.

Below is an outline of what is involved in our basic indoor environmental assessment:

General Inspection and Sampling:

• Third-party unbiased assessment of environmental conditions. We do not remediate and thus assess conditions and recommend solutions with no conflicts of interest.
  
• Visual and olfactory inspection of all complaint areas and any other areas where water damage normally occurs (e.g. laundry rooms, bathrooms, around windows and ceilings)
  
• Moisture testing of suspect areas where water damage is occurring or is suspected to have occurred. This determines if building materials are wet and can support microbial growth.
  
• Photographic evidence of all suspect areas and areas of sampling.
  
• Sampling:
  
  • Once initial inspection is concluded then a sampling strategy is determined and approved by client. Suspect and complaint areas are sampled in comparison to non-complaint areas and/or the outdoors.
    
  • Microbial sampling includes:
    
    • Air Testing
      
      • Spore-trap (direct microscopic exam)
        
      • Anderson Impactor viable testing (culturable media)
        
    • Source Sampling at site of suspected microbial growth
      
      • Tape Lift (Direct microscopic exam)
        
      • Swab (Cultured)
        
      • Bulk (Direct Microscopic exam and/or cultured)
        
    • Vacuum Dust of carpets or other surfaces (Direct Microscopic exam and/or cultured)
      
• Other sampling available:
  
  • Allergen testing
    
    • Dust Mite
      
    • Cockroach
      
    • Rat
      
    • Dog
      
    • Cat
      
    • or package samples of the above
      
  • Water testing
    
    • Legionella (Legionnaire’s Disease)
      
    • Lead
      
    • other
      
  • Real Time Q-PCR (EPA method based on DNA sequences)
    
    • Rapid turnaround
      
    • Accurate
      
      • Speciation
        
      • Viability
        
      • Quantitative Analysis
        
    • Good For
      
      • Mold
        
      • Bacteria
        
        • Legionella, E. coli, etc…
          
• VOC testing (gas and odor – chemical sensitivities)
  
• Full Particle testing
  
• Lead
  
• Asbestos
  
• Radon

• Complete report with visual observations, photographic evidence, moisture testing findings, laboratory findings, interpretation of data, recommendations, remediation action plan (protocol), and more.
• Unlimited telephone consultation
• Verification inspection and testing is available to assure completion of remediation and verify that conditions are returned back to an acceptable level, and that other areas were not cross-contaminated in the process.
• Project oversight available

We look forward to serving you any way we can. Please feel free to call Oasis Indoor Environmental, and we will be happy to set up an appointment and answer any additional questions that you may have.