It’s allergy season and many are coughing and sniffling with seasonal allergies from pollen and mold. If you suffer from the common “hay fever” then it’s probably because you were exposed to allergens, probably mold, as a child. Your immune system developed an inflammatory response in the presence of any allergens. So now you know why it’s important to give children a clean, healthy environment to grow up in so they won’t have to fear allergy season as adults.

Right now, a high school in Easley, SC is scrambling to deal with their mold problem before summer vacation ends and a herd of high schoolers fill its halls. School started August 17, but mold was found just two weeks before during routine HVAC maintenance and repair.

The school district isn’t springing for a commercial mold removal company, but taking on the job themselves by vacuuming all surfaces with a HEPA vacuum, wiping all surfaces with an antimicrobial cleaner, and spraying with an antimicrobial disinfectant. They plan on removing moldy tiles and giving that HVAC system a thorough cleaning.

They wisely have looked into the root of the problem, which they attribute to faulty equipment in the units and exhaust fans. These have been replaced.

I give Easley points just for taking action and for looking into the underlying HVAC issue that caused the mold. But their clean up efforts are questionable. They have not used a mold removal service to identify where the mold is growing and are simply planning on cleaning everything. Their use of “antimicrobial disinfectant” could spell disaster as many such products do not work as well as advertised and only result in feeding the mold with water.

At least they are planning on testing the air quality and will not allow school to begin until it has passed. It will be interesting to see how their efforts paid off.

I would not recommend such a large mold removal project in-house and instead suggest a mold removal company. This is usually avoided for fear of cost, but you can find some surprisingly affordable mold remediation estimates. Guardian Preservation has a unique mold removing method that is both effective and inexpensive. I suggest you take a look at the Oceanic mold remover when considering toxic mold removal.

Tagged as: air quality, allergies, EPA, hay fever, health, HVAC, hvac system, immune system, inspection, mold, mold problem, mold remediation, Mold Removal, Oceanic, school, seasonal allergies, toxic mold