EPA           Considering Bioaerosol Sampling http://www.epa.gov/mold/moldcourse/chapter7/lesson2.html   "remember that a negative sampling report must not be used in place of a visual survey. Factors such as barometric pressure, inside and outside temperatures, activity levels, and humidity may dramatically reduce or increase the spore levels within a building. Air sampling for mold provides information on what was in the air only for the moment when the sampling occurred. It is important, therefore, that sampling not replace visual inspection." Can your home inspector interpret your lab results?   http://www.epa.gov/mold/moldcourse/chapter3/lesson3.html   "Sampling for mold should be conducted by professionals who have specific experience in designing mold sampling protocols, sampling methods, and interpreting the results."   EPA   "Experience in interpretation of results is essential.”   EPA

American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists (ACGIH) ACGIH Bioaerosols: Assessment and Remediation states [section 1.2.3]: Some organisms and sources release aerosols as 'concentration bursts' which may only rarely be detected by limited grab sampling and may be masked in measurements of long-term average concentrations. Nevertheless, such episodic bioaerosol releases may produce significant health effects. -- thanks to S. Flappan for suggesting this citation. "Spores are not always airborne during sampling: Mold spores may not be in interior air at the time of the sample but may be present in high levels at other times."   The book "Fungal Contamination" is considered one of the best mold inspection resources documents in the country by professional mold assessors.   Fungal Contamination: "A Manual For Investigation, Remediation And Control" By: Hollace S. Bailey, PE, CIAQP, CIE, CMR www.becifl.com   "Anything can be toxic in high enough concentrations, even water!  If you drink too much water to quickly, your body fluids will become dilute.  The result is tissue damage and death."   "The overall visual observations made of the building must be considered in combination with the results of any testing, to determine the overall condition of the building. Test results alone should never be considered to give a definitive account of the building's condition."   "Testing is just another tool that provides us with information. By itself, testing does not do anything, accomplish anything, or fix anything."       "Indoor levels of fungal spores may also be elevated as a result of poor interior hygiene and housekeeping.    This by itself, or in conjunction with inadequate air movement and filtration, can easily result in elevated levels of spores both in the dust on surfaces (transitory) and in the air."       "No single type of testing or piece of information should be used to determine the condition of the building; findings made as a result of observations should never be discounted in favor of measurements."

H A R V A R D  U N I V E R S I T Y Environmental Health & Safety Indoor Environmental Quality http://www.uos.harvard.edu/ehs/ih/mold_tips.pdf "Sampling results are of limited value because mold concentrations inside and outside vary considerably, methods of collection and analysis are not standardized and no widely accepted exposure guidelines exist." http://www.inspect-ny.com/sickhouse/OutdoorMoldCounts.htm "warm weather spore counts vary during the day as weather conditions (humidity, temperature, period after rainfall) affect sporulation and spore movement. American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists (ACGIH) Section 2.4.2.2 of The ACGIH Bioaerosols: Assessment and Remediation offers: Investigators should bear in mind that samples provide information about a site as it existed at the time tested. However, the findings may not represent conditions at a time in the past or future, even the relatively recent past or near future. Changes in the kinds, concentrations, and proportions of biological agents in the air can be rapid and substantial. -- thanks to S. Flappan for suggesting this citation. "OPINION: There are severe problems in the standard practice comparing indoor and outdoor spore counts to decide if a building has a mold problem."

http://www.inspect-ny.com/sickhouse/MoldTestNegatives.htm Individual samples of particles in air show tremendous variation from minute to minute, making "ok" airborne mold spore test results a thing to view with skepticism. Examples of factors which can cause an exponential difference in particle levels in indoor residential air over short time intervals include: mechanical disturbance (walking across a carpet or moving a moldy cardboard box), operation of hot air heating system or central air conditioning system, operation of other building fans, particularly ceiling fans and vacuum cleaners, turning lights on and off, and opening or closing windows and doors "Risk of false negative mold tests: Experienced mold contamination investigators should have little confidence that a one-time low or "ok" "toxic mold test spore count" is an assurance that problematic particles are not present." http://chppm-www.apgea.army.mil/mold/TG278.pdf   "In addition, air sampling methods for some mold are prone to false negative results and therefore cannot be used to definitively rule out contamination"

MoldReport™ http://www.moldreport.com/mold_faq.html   "A professional mold inspector does not rely only on air sampling results to decide whether or not a home has a mold problem. Carefully conducted sampling is combined with visual inspections and discussions with the homeowner. In addition, many different factors affect the reliability of an air sampler. The professional mold inspector understands these variables and accounts for them in the sampling plan."

University of Minnesota fungal experts http://www.inspect-ny.com/sickhouse/OutdoorMoldCounts.htm   "The University of Minnesota fungal experts observe that an outdoor-baseline comparison to indoor air is not valid when the outdoor sample was taken during or immediately after precipitation (spore counts plummet outdoors in the rain and might soar right after it),"

New York City Department of Health & Mental Hygiene Bureau of Environmental & Occupational Disease Epidemiology Guidelines on Assessment and Remediation of Fungi in Indoor Environments   2.1 Visual Inspection "A visual inspection is the most important initial step in identifying a possible contamination problem."

Martin Yerfino, CIE http://www.moldtestingflorida.com/   Many Mold inspection companies only perform "Mold Testing". Mold testing should not be confused with a Mold Inspection. Mold testing refers to collecting air or surface samples which are analyzed by a laboratory, this procedure will only determine the  mold spore count and spore identification. This process will not help determine what caused the problem, the source or the solution to it; but is very helpful when performed in conjunction with a full inspection. A mold inspection report should at least include: ·   Air and or surface sampling ·   Findings of visual assessment ·   Boroscope inspection ·   Air Conditioning test and inspection ·   Identification of water intrusion sources ·   Relative Humidity and condensation readings ·   infrared thermal imaging inspection ·   Particle counts ·   Building pressure test ·   Moisture detection ·   Prevention and correction Recommendations

We feel that a buyer’s request for mold remediation should only be performed based on a written mold assessment report from a qualified Indoor Environmental Professional (IEP or CIE or CIH or CMI) that has determined that mold growth or conditions conducive to mold growth (i.e. wet building materials) exists within the subject property or if the indoor air quality conditions are not consistent with normal fungal ecology that must include supporting documentation that identifies the source or at least the potential origin resulting in the airborne amplification.

List of some of the factors that can cause a False positive Mold Test:  "Conditions that Cause High Variation in Indoor Airborne Particle Levels" http://www.inspect-ny.com/sickhouse/MoldTestVariables.htm "A carpeted room with someone walking across the carpeting will produce a higher particle count than an un-carpeted room, other conditions being equal." "A room occupied by several people walking about or a bedroom with a child bouncing on a bed will produce higher airborne particle counts than the conditions listed above." "A room with windows open in a tall building will have considerably more air movement (due to convection currents in the building) and may have considerably higher airborne particle counts than when the window is shut." "Outdoor mold counts are tricky to compare with indoor mold spore counts because the same genera counted by a lab, say Pen/Asp may both be the same genera (say Aspergillus but the species may be completely different, making comparison of these two numbers meaningless."

Effects of Biological Sampling on Real Estate Value Jeffrey Deuitch Microbiologist & Mycologist Int'l Microbiology & Mold Group Palmetto, Fla. http://www.ieconnections.com/archive/jan_06/jan_06.htm#article6   "The lack of support from the investigator resulted in a buyer with many questions and no answers. In the spirit of "playing it safe" the buyer exercised a release from contractual obligations. The deal was broken, but that was not the end of the ordeal. My friend's real estate agent, believing that the results of the mold testing constituted a defect in the property, felt ethically obligated to disclose the existence of the mold to all subsequent prospects."   "My conclusions after examining the lab results, and after the inspector was contacted to explain the protocols employed, was that the house did not have any defects and that the inspector implemented flawed protocols. Unfortunately by that time, the damage was done."

Most Common Mistake For Outdoor Air Sample Collection. Outdoor or base line air sample must be collected at least 10 feet from the structure according to the Indoor Environmental Standards Organization (IESO).    This is the only standard for mold testing approved by the American National Standards Institute. Environmental Solutions Association (ESA) requires outdoor air sample to be taken at least 5 feet from the structure. (good stanard but not approved by ANSI) Common example of not following accepted industry standards: Many Home / Mold Inspectors collect outdoor air samples on the lanai or balcony (not to standard).  This can possibly cross contaminate the outdoor sample, resulting in a false spore count.

Many local inspectors use this for air samples.  The Z-5 collects mold spores from 25 liters of air as compared to the AOC that normally collects mold spores from 150 liters of air.     PRO LAB advertisement for Z-5   http://www.reliablelab.com/store/index.html?lang=en-us&target=p32.html 5 liter x 5 minute air sampling cassette made by ZEFON exclusively for PRO-LAB. The Z5 sampling cassette is a cost effective, first-line mold screening tool that efficiently and reliably collects mold. It can be easily used by home inspectors to get preliminary information on whether a mold problem may exist and further investigation is warranted.

Who is RESPONSIBLE? When a home is labeled as having a mold problem (mold remediation needed) the inspector is responsible.  With just having a mold test and no report identifing the origin, location and extent of mold problem, no one is responsible. This is appears to be unfair to the buyer and the seller. Mold report should also include recommendations for corrections based on nationally accepted industry standards not he inspectors best guess.

Question:  NO mold E&O insurance ..... No Responsiblitiy?

As we understand the CURRENT NABOR contract requirements:   "if molds test at levels within the interior of the dwelling exceeding the levels of the same molds existing on the exterior of the dwelling." Also required: "As in the previous contract, the molds still must be shown to be of a toxic or pathogenic species to be the subject of a buyer's remediation request."   To identify the species of a mold: 1. Requires a viable sample (collected sample is grown in lab for several days). or 2. Collected sample is analysed to determine the mold's species based on it's DNA.   This seems to be an unusal requirement to determine if a home needs mold remediation.

Cultures a bad idea to use for determing if home has mold problem More info click here http://www.inspect-ny.com/sickhouse/cultures.htm "As an example, a dead spore in the air may be toxic but may not grow at all in a culture medium."   "Use of cultures as building screens for the presence or absence problematic mold is unreliable - only 10% of all molds of any genera will grow on any culture under any circumstances, so a mold culture screening test for mold is 90% wrong at the outset. More so if one considers that certain molds that can be grown in culture only respond to specific culture media."

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