mould

This keynote presented the new government guidance on the health risks of damp and mould for the housing sector in England. This guidance highlights the serious risks that damp and mould can pose to tenants’ health, the legal responsibilities of social and private rented housing providers, the imperative to respond quickly, and the practical steps that should be taken both to address damp and mould and prevent them. Research led by UKHSA found that there was a considerable burden of respiratory illness in England from residential damp and mould.

The avoidance of mould growth in dwellings is of worldwide concern. In England and Wales, therelevant Building Regulations guidance document recommends ventilation provisions to control bothmoisture and other pollutants in buildings. The performance criterion for moisture states that thereshould be no visible mould on external walls in a properly heated dwelling with typical moistureproduction.

This study aims at demonstrating that semi-quantitative dampness/mold exposure indices can predict existence of excessive building-respiratory symptoms and diseases. Those findings justify action to correct water leaks and repair water damage in ordre to prevent them.

The microbiological quality of air was studied in a bread-making factory (100t/day). It wasnoticed that the microorganism density varies along the fabrication hall, a high number of microorganisms, especially moulds, being registered in the bread cooling area and the storage room. In the bread cooling area predominate Penicilllium expansum spores, this mould being able to develop at low aw values and determining the bread spoilage.

There are two ways for unbalanced return air to produce moisture and mold problems during hot and humid weather : - the increased entry of outdoor air that substantially increases indoor relative humidity. - a negative pressure can draw moist air into wall cavities causing a moist interstitial microclimate, if indoor humidity is relatively low in the conditioned space.To prevent the creation of moisture and mold problems, properly sized return ducts should be provided.

The author advises a commitment to a philosophy of proactive preventive maintenance for home, apartment, school and commercial buildings. Preventive actions would result in considerable cost savings, and save building occupants from major health problems.

The purpose of this study was to quantify the extent of moisture problems in Danish homes. Aquestionnaire-based survey was made and a representative sample of 3800 Danes older than15 years responded. Main results are that 17.6% of the people have had moisture damages intheir dwelling during the last 5 years and among those as much as 36.4% have not yetremedied the damages. A total of 17.7% have moisture or mould spots on their walls, ceilingsor floors.

The German Federal Environmental Agency has published a ‘mould guide’, which aims at harmonizing procedures to investigate and evaluate indoor mould contamination. The policy behind the guide is not to make a health assessment for every individual case ba

This paper investigates the effect of ventilation on mould growth in a typical Japanese bathroom byuse of the fungal index which indicates the growth rate of a mould, Alternaria alternata S-78. Thebathroom was set in an artificial climate where the temperature and relative humidity (RH) werekept constant. The temperature, RH and fungal index in the bathroom were measured under severalventilation methods after taking a bath.