Mold Testing EquipmentAn essential part of the mold remediation process is the testing, where the exact amount of mold is estimated. Mold may be present on the surface of the rooms, but it can also be present within the atmosphere of the room. Mold can grow on concrete, wood, asbestos, lead, wherever. Some molds are toxic and give out chemicals like radon and carbon dioxide in the environment. This seriously spoils the air quality. There are products available that can be used for the inspection to determine the amount of mold in the building. The presence of mold depends directly on the level of humidity in the room, because mold required humid conditions for growth. Hence, professional mold testers would first test for the presence of humidity. If there is humidity beyond a certain point, it almost certainly ensures that mold is present already, or will make its presence soon. Testing of humidity is the basic concept that mold testing equipment follows. The following is a list of some of the mold testing equipment that is used commonly based on this principle:- Mold Testing Moisture Meters - Mold testing moisture meters are used in determining the exact amount of moisture present within the walls, furniture, carpets and other such surfaces of the rooms. They consist of a probe which can be inserted within the surface and a calibrated meter that shows the level of humidity. Recent moisture meters do not need probes inserted, since by using infrared techniques, they can estimate the amount of moisture within a surface just by contact with the outer surface. Mold Testing Humidity Meters - The difference between mold testing humidity meters and moisture meters is that the humidity meters can find out the total amount of humidity present within a room, while the moisture meters can only test that within the surface. Most humidity meters, which are also called as humidity gauges, can even find out other values such as the temperature and pressure conditions within the room apart from the humidity. Mold Testing HVAC System Filters - HVAC stands for Heating Ventilating Air Conditioning. All heating, cooling and ventilating devices for rooms have their own air filters to absorb spores of molds among other pollutants. However, these filters are most times ineffective. In such cases, mold testing HVAC system filters are used to monitor the level of mold spores and increase the efficiency of filtration. There is a rating for mold testing HVAC system filters provided by the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air Conditioning Engineers. Typically, a level of MERV 8 with an efficiency of about 50 to 60% of filtration is ideal for rooms in homes and offices. Humidistat - A humidistat is a device that works in conjunction with HVAC systems. It is a type of a control arrangement for checking the humidity level within a room. If the humidity level within the room increases beyond a point that has been preset, then the humidistat turns on the HVAC filter automatically, and a filtering of the room is enabled. This keeps the humidity of the room in check. Boroscope - A boroscope is a high-end device that is used by some topnotch professionals in the mold testing business. It is a kind of a periscope with the difference that a mini video camera is attached at the end of it. It contains a flexible tube to the end of which the video camera is attached. The tube can be maneuvered in difficult corners of the room such as the area above the awnings or narrow crevices in wall surfaces and ceilings and a magnified image of the surface will be displayed. This shows the presence of mold infiltrations, if any. There are also sampling kits available, where you can send the samples of the kit to a lab to estimate the amount of the infestation. Most mold testing kits will have a version of the above equipment so as to operate like a proper mold testing laboratory. If the situation is too much proliferated, then you might want a professional company to send mold testing inspectors over to your place. |