Indoor Air Quality Testing

Does the air in areas of your home have an elevated amount of mold spores?

An Indoor Air Quality test can help you find out.

How this test works- Air is sampled from two outdoor locations and two indoor locations.  A lab will analyze these samples. If the indoor air samples have more mold spores than the outdoor samples, then the indoor air had elevated mold spores where sampled at the time the samples were taken.

This test will indicate 2 things:

1. 1. The test will give you a general sense of how contaminated the indoor air was when tested.  Ideally, you want the number of mold spores in the indoor samples to be no higher than the outdoor samples.
   2. The report will also list the kind of mold spores in the air, so you’ll have an idea of what’s in the air you’re breathing, even if it’s not elevated.

Cost: $400 when bundled with a Home Inspection and Termite/WDI Report, or $425 as a stand-alone service.

What now?  If the lab report indicates elevated mold (more mold spores inside than outside), that means there’s mold that needs to be cleaned up.  It also means there’s excess moisture in the home that needs to be reduced or eliminated.  That’s because mold spores are found almost everywhere, and elevated moisture is what causes the spores to grow into mold.

Before doing a mold test, you should understand that mold testing has many limitations.  Here are 7 Poor Reasons to test for mold from the Minnesota Department of Health.  (Click the link to see why they are considered poor reasons.)

1. To find out if there is mold
2. To identify what type of mold is present
3. To learn if the mold is the toxic kind
4. To find the cause of health complaints
5. To determine if the environment is safe
6. To decide how to correct a mold problem
7. To make a party respond to the problem

Here’s a Sample report.  

• On page two of the sample report, columns 2, 3, and 4 (samples taken Outside, Living Room, and Bedroom) show the results of the Air Sample.  In this case, the indoor samples did not have elevated mold spores when compared with the outdoor control sample.
• Column 5 (Bathroom) shows the results of the Tape Sample.  This test confirmed a type of mold called Stachybotrys.

Since the inspector is not a licensed physician, anyone with concerns about the health effects of mold exposure should seek the advice of a healthcare professional.

Mold Information From The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

Basic Mold Facts

• What is mold? -EPA.gov
• 10 Things You Should Know About Mold -EPA.gov

The test results indicated elevated mold.  What do we do?  How do we clean it up?

• Mold Cleanup in Your Home -EPA.gov

How do we keep the mold from coming back?

• What are the main ways to control moisture in your home? -EPA.gov

Key EPA statements about mold:

• In most cases, if visible mold growth is present, sampling is unnecessary. (The next point explains why.) EPA Source
• No EPA or other federal limits have been set for mold or mold spores. Sampling cannot be used to check a building’s compliance with federal mold standards (since there aren’t any). EPA Source
• It is impossible to get rid of all mold and mold spores indoors; some mold spores will be found floating through the air and in house dust. EPA Source
• If there is mold growth in your home, you must promptly clean up the mold and fix the water problem. Mold spores will not grow if moisture is not present. EPA Source