Drying Water Damaged Buildings in the Hot Humid Summer

Drying a water damaged building in the humid weather is much different than drying a building in the dry weather. In many areas of the world there is a dry season and a wet season.

In the dry season it is often so dry that the use of dehumidification in a water damage is only necessary to remove excess moisture created by evaporation of moisture from wet building materials and contents of the home. The facility is typically dry in one to three days with minimal use of dehumidification.

When the season changes and we get hot, humid weather everything changes. In humid weather dehumidification is used not only to remove moisture created by evaporation but its used to create an atmosphere conducive to allow evaporation to come to pass. When the air is humid water does not readily evaporate.

How can you tell whether or not the air is conducive to allow evaporation? You can only do this by measuring the relative humidity and temperature of the affected air space and then make the necessary calculations to find the absolute humidity or humidity ratio of the air space. This absolute humidity is measured by the number of grains of water there is in every pound of air in the airspace.

If the air is not dry enough, it is highly unlikely that structural materials like concrete, wood and stone will dry. In any water damage situation the water damage technician should be closely monitoring the moisture content of all structural materials in the facility. Many disaster restoration companies use infrared cameras to help track areas that are affected by moisture.

It is extremely important to deal with disaster restoration companies that are concerned with drying your facility until their meters show that your structure is dry. If the company you are dealing with is not providing you with this information then you are exposing yourself to possibly horrific consequences. Sinister mould grows easily in water damaged buildings. Mould can grow very quickly in improperly remediated buildings.

General contractors and carpet cleaners are often the first people called in to remediate a water damage situation. These type of contractors may or may not be able to properly dry a building. Do your homework and ask your contractors questions to determine whether or not they have the training to be able to dry a building.

Ask them if they have the moisture meters (not sensors) to be able to track the process of drying. Ask them whether or not you get a copy of the records at the end of the job. Ask them whether or not there are hard to dry structural items in your structure. Ask them how they are going to dry them. Ask them what their drying goals are. Ask them whether or not they have water damage remediation training. Ask them when they received their certification. The water damage business has progressed significantly over the past five to ten years. There are dramatic changes in the Standards for water damage and someone without recent upgrades in their education may no longer understand the new findings of the drying industry.

James (Lee) Senter is an IICRC Approved Instructor on the subjects of Water Damage Remediation, Applied Structural Drying and Health and Safety. Mr. Senter teaches at The Center For Disaster Recovery and several industry distributors across Canada. Lee is a well known speaker and writer on the subjects of mould remediation and water damage restoration. Lee owns a company that performs large and small water damage remediations and can be found at http://www.dryit.ca.

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Controlling the Speed of Infectious Disease in Educational Buildings

To effectively stay ahead of flu season, universities must analyze their current air conditioning system to determine its indoor air quality (IAQ) effectiveness. Know more on how the right air conditioning in Florida Universities can help prevent the flu with this article

In 2004 Dr. Mark Mendell published a study in the Journal of Epidemiology contending that people who spend a lot of time in air conditioned buildings have more health problems such as breathing difficulties, skin irritations, headaches and exhaustion. The study targeted poor a/c ventilation, which trapped bacteria and germs then disseminated them throughout the building.

Wet ceilings and walls due to humidity levels found in many South Florida universities can also become breeding grounds for bacteria and mold when the air condition system malfunctions.

The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) acknowledges that the notion of a "sick building syndrome" exists when the air conditioning system attracts pollutants and fails to effectively disseminate good quality air throughout the room.

The best way to combat "sick building syndrome" at colleges and universities throughout South Florida is to install a multi-parameter demand control ventilation conditioning system. This advanced technology automatically senses pollutants in the building. The sensor analysis then informs your university building ventilation controls so that ventilation rates can be optimized based on actually indoor environment. This system can reduce airborne viral and bacteria sensor counts by 90% in addition to identifying non-human pollutants.

Look for a Florida air conditioning contractor that offers the most innovative IAQ Solutions

To effectively stay ahead of flu season, universities must analyze their current A/C system to determine its indoor air quality (IAQ) effectiveness. A Florida air conditioning contractor can examine several areas of your system using one of these methods:

• Vacuum pump-examine the filtration and airborne particle detection ability

• Direct-reading Meter-determine the sensitivity level of detection qualities

• Detector Tube Kit-hand pump that draws air which reacts with chemical compounds

• Personal Monitoring Devices-measures the level of contaminant exposure to specific chemicals and pollutants

Detecting trouble with an existing system may identify the problem, however only a highly skilled Florida air conditioning contractor can remedy your university's air conditioning issues.

Look for an air conditioning contractor that offers the latest IAQ technology such as ventilation management and control systems. This type of system can detect and filter pollutants such as volatile organic compounds, respiratory-sized particles and carbon monoxide. Once detected, containments are diluted by fresh air which reduces the likelihood of infection and disease.

Why You Should Choose a Florida LEED Certified Company

LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification supports and encourages green building development practices, which contribute toward energy efficiency, environmental protection, health and sustainability. Demand controlled ventilation systems are a pathway toward becoming LEED certified in Florida. Installing a LEED certified air conditioning system in your Florida university can not only contribute toward the health and well being of students and faculty, but becoming LEED certified also provides money saving credits. Specific criteria must be met in order to ensure your retrofit or new construction project is given the LEED seal.

Before you seek Florida LEED certification ensure you are working with a trusted LEED certified HVAC company:

• Look for a Florida HVAC company that hires LEED accredited professionals on staff, including a LEED Charrette Facilitator.

• Ask the HVAC consultant about partnerships with other LEED contractors and consultants, which contribute toward a more efficient and complete job.

• Inquire about the company's tenure in the Florida area; the number of LEED based jobs completed and typical job turnaround times.

According to the Centers for Disease Control, 22 million sick days can be attributed to the common cold with even more due to influenza and the H1N1 virus. Most colleges and universities follow a common sense approach to thwarting the spread of infectious disease like encouraging hand washing, making hand sanitizers easily accessible and recommending sick students stay home. More and more universities are also installing multi-parameter demand control ventilation air conditioning systems to further protect students from the spread of infectious disease.

Hill York is the only MSCA Green Star Certified mechanical contractor recognized by USGBC in Florida Provides air conditioning in Florida. We offers full-service air conditioning and energy solutions including Energy Management, leed certified company Design/Build, Facility Management. For more visit http://www.hillyork.com

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