Study Finds Building Mold Can Become Airborne, Highlighting Need for HVAC Test and Balance Services

A recent study by The National Veterinary School of Toulouse in France revealed that mycotoxins can be inhaled and should be investigated as parameters of indoor air quality. This means that food fungus formerly thought to have no effect on air quality can actually become airborne and dangerous to building occupants. The results were published in Applied and Environmental Microbiology, which is the American Society for Microbiology’s journal.

 

The researchers were interested in the fact that far less research exists on the dangers of airborne fungal toxins compared to fungal toxins in foods. The research team focused on three fungi commonly found in contaminated food: Penicillium brevicompactum, Aspergillus versicolor and Stachybortys chartarum. The research team conducted this study by creating a flowing stream of air over a piece of wallpaper contaminated with the three fungi and then analyzing the samples of air.

 

The results showed some toxins from the contaminated wallpaper were present on tiny particles of dust that were considered to be easily inhalable. If you own a restaurant, hotel, retail location or supermarket, these results should be eye-opening. These findings should amplify the importance of performing regularly scheduled HVAC test and balance services to ensure your HVAC system is operating as designed, and not contributing to organic growth.

 

As a business owner, it’s extremely important to make sure that your building’s HVAC system is working properly, not only for health reasons like the airborne fungus we specified above, but for first impressions of new customers. An unbalanced HVAC system may cause humidity problems, and this may result in fogged over windows in the morning, which prevents customers from being able to see inside. Poor air pressure can even make it difficult to open doors.

 

An unbalanced HVAC system can also result in uncomfortable temperatures and humidity that does damage to ceiling tiles and creates slippery floors which can become both a safety issue and legal liability. In kitchen environments, an unbalanced HVAC system can also cause smoke and odors to flow past the hood and  seep into the dining area.

 

Here at Melink we provide HVAC test and balance services, HVAC commissioning, indoor air quality tests and water balancing services that will help to alert you to dangerous conditions within your building.

 

 

 

Our 100 percent self-performing network of technicians ensure consistency across your locations. Mechanical systems fall out of alignment over time, you should keep your HVAC at peak performance by rebalancing it every three to five years. We also offer comfort investigations that can be conducted after HVAC complaints or negative building pressure issues.

 

Many of the largest chains in the US recommend Melink because of the convenience, consistency and cost effectiveness of our service. They also know that our reputation for integrity, quality and service is proven. As we’ve demonstrated, not only can overlooking the air quality of your building be dangerous for the health of the building’s occupants, but it can also cause a business owner to lose customers. In order to best help business owners decide if it may be time for an HVAC Test and Balance service, we’ve provided these questions to ask yourself:

 

Is there a draft at the front door of my building?

Is there leakage from units in the ceiling?

Is there condensation dripping from diffusers?

Are there noticeable hot and cold spots?

 

If you answered yes to any of these question, you are likely due for some servicing. Reach out to us today to improve the conditions of your building and increase the quality of your business!

Meet Jason O’Connell, Intelli-Hood Technical Support Specialist

Jason has been with Melink’s technical support team for 2 and a half years. If you have ever called in with a question or need help troubleshooting for Intelli-Hood, Jason may have been the man on the other side of the phone! He has a passion for solving problems and learning more about every person he helps.

Business Unit and Job Title

Intelli-Hood Technical Support

What does your job entail?

Fielding calls and emails from sites which employ one or multiple versions of our Intelli-Hood system. I help to troubleshoot and in most cases can either repair remotely or diagnose the issue and supply the appropriate parts to rectify the issue.

What is your personal philosophy?

Work smarter… not harder.

 What did you do before coming to Melink?

Field Service Engineer – Extremity MRI

What is your favorite aspect of working at Melink?

People. The ones I work with and the ones I help.

What do you like to do in your time off?

Spend time with my family and work on my MINI.

Tell us something that might surprise us about you.

I love sci-fi and horror movies and listen to EDM when I’m in a bad mood

What are you most proud of?

My son. I never thought I would actually be a father until I was. Now he is the most important thing in my life and I will move heaven and earth to make sure he is taken care of and knows he is loved.

What are your hopes for our industry?

My hope is that everyone wakes up and realizes how much in their lives is truly wasteful. So many products we use every day are sold in containers that cannot be degraded yet we throw them away and they get to fill a giant hole in some landfill. Reduce the products we buy that use these containers, reuse the containers for other purposes or recycle the container appropriately.

Motto or personal mantra?

Love yourself because being loved starts inside. If you CAN’T love yourself, you need to rethink where you are or what you are doing.