Chinese Drywall and Your Central Air

If your home or addition was built around 2004-2006, you mave have Chinese drywall.

At the height of the U.S. housing boom, when building materials were in short supply, American construction companies used millions of pounds of Chinese-made drywall because it was abundant and cheap.

Now that decision is haunting hundreds of homeowners and apartment dwellers who are concerned that the wallboard gives off fumes that can corrode copper pipes, blacken jewelry and silverware, and possibly sicken people.

Shipping records reviewed by The Associated Press indicate that imports of potentially tainted Chinese building materials exceeded 500 million pounds during a four-year period of soaring home prices. The drywall may have been used in more than 100,000 homes, according to some estimates, including houses rebuilt after Hurricane Katrina.

Bad Chinese drywall can harm your central air conditioning.

The wallboard is being blamed for corrosion of metal components. Air-conditioning evaporator coils, which typically last a decade or more, are corroding and failing in homes only a couple of years old. Pipes and wiring also may be deteriorating.

Integrity Air can replace a corroded coil. However, if your coil has failed while it is relatively new, you may want to find out the origins of your drywall.

September Internet Special

Kill bacteria on your indoor coil with a Free Blue Tube UV Light.

Included with purchase of a complete central air system.

until September 30th, 2008

Various Methods of Improving Indoor Air Quality

Some folks are looking for improved indoor air quality because of allergies, pet dander or tobacco use in the home. Here are some solutions offered by Integrity Air:

1. Have your indoor coil cleaned if needed. This will also improve the efficiency of your air conditioning system.

2. Use quality filters. A quality, pleated cardboard filter, or Integrity Air can provide a metal frame and polyester, tackifed filtrers. If you can see through your filter, then it’s not good enough. Another test is to hold your filter horizontal and shake pepper on the top to see how much falls through. Anything more than a few grains should be a cause for concern.

3. Install an electronic air cleaner. Ideally installed at the same time a new indoor section is installed, this device, attached to the indoor section, sends an electric charge through particles and then collects the particles like a magnet. Most of these devices can trap up to 98% of particles 0.3 microns in diameter.

4. Install a Whole House HEPA filter. HEPA stands for High Efficiency Particulate Air filter. Like the electronic air cleaner, this device is attached to the indoor section and filters all the air going through your air conditioning system. Most of these devices can trap up to 99.97% of particles 0.3 microns in diameter.

5. Install a UV-C light in your indoor coil. A UV-C light kills bacteria, germs and other stuff growing in the condensation on your indoor coil.

If you are looking for more information about indoor air quality, feel free to call Integrity Air at 932-2665 and we would be happy to help you with whatever solution works for you.

August Internet Special

Fresh-Aire Double Bulb Germicidal UV-C Light
Mounts inside your Air Handler to kill germs and microbes. Helps to improve Indoor Air Quality
$200 off until August 31
reg $980 now $780

Study finds link...

...between indoor air pollution and heart disease.



A recent study published in the “American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine” found that the quality of the air you breathe inside your home or office (recirculated indoor air) has an effect on your cardiovascular system - especially if you’re over 50. Although scientists have known for years that air pollution leads to an increased risk of cardiovascular disease (the number one killer in America), this was the first study to study the connection with indoor air. The results will not only surprise you, they’ll point out something you can do right now to help protect yourself and your family.



I could not find the article itself online, but the Balance-Your-Health Blog has a good summary. This blog also containds agvice on how to combat indoor air impurities. A few of which is to install a HEPA filter, or get quality air filters for your central air and change them often during times of high use.

June Internet Special

$450 off

Honeywell Whole House Dehumidifier

with transition to existing supply ducts

removes 90 pints/day

Regular $4112 Now $3662

expires June 30, 2008

New Florida Building Code..

... for carbon dioxide monitors.

9B-3.0472 Carbon Monoxide Protection.

(1) Definitions: For purposes of this rule, the following definitions shall apply:

(a) CARBON MONOXIDE ALARM. A device for the purpose of detecting carbon monoxide, that produces a distinct audible alarm, and is listed or labeled with the appropriate standard, either ANSI/UL 2034 - 96, Standard for Single and Multiple Station CO Alarms, incorporated herein by reference, or UL 2075 - 04, Gas and Vapor Detector Sensor, incorporated herein by reference, in accordance with its application. Both documents may be obtained by writing to: Codes and Standards Section, Department of Community Affairs, 2555 Shumard Oak Boulevard, Tallahassee, Florida 32399-2100.

(b) FOSSIL FUEL. Coal, kerosene, oil, fuel gases, or other petroleum or hydrocarbon product that emits carbon monoxide as a by-product of combustion.

(2) Every building for which a permit for new construction is issued on or after 7/1/08 and having a fossil-fuel-burning heater or appliance, a fireplace, or an attached garage shall have an operational carbon monoxide alarm installed within 10 feet of each room used for sleeping purposes.

(3) In new construction, alarms shall receive their primary power from the building wiring when such wiring is served from the local power utility. Such alarms shall have battery back up.

(4) Combination smoke/carbon monoxide alarms shall be listed or labeled by a Nationally Recognized Testing Laboratory.

Specific Authority 553.885(2) FS. Law Implemented 553.72, 553.73(2), (3), (7), (9), 553.885(2) FS. History–New 11-18-07.

In summary, starting July 1, 2008 any new construction which has a oil, gas or coal furnace, or a fire place, or an attached garage must have a CO monitor.

While this does not apply to existing homes, if your home meets the above description I strongly recommend that you get a CO monitor for the safety of your family.

More information about CO monitors can be found here.

Sometimes, All I Need is the Air that I Breath...

…at 30,000 feet.

To save money, airlines in the United States are circulating less fresh air into the cabins of many airplanes. As a result, flight attendants, as well as some passengers, have begun to complain that the practice is causing headaches, nausea and other health problems, especially after long flights.

The reduction of fresh air is done only on newer planes. Older aircraft built before the mid-1980's provided cabins with 100 percent fresh air that was circulated every three minutes. But the newer models provide half fresh air and half recirculated air that is freshened every six or seven minutes or longer. The recirculation system enables the planes to use less fuel to cool the outside air, which is heated by the engines as it is drawn in.

This is similar to a common problem with Building Related Illness or its more severe and newsworthy sister, Sick Building Syndrome. In the 1970’s, due to energy efficiency concerns buildings were built with the air conditioning bringing in less fresh air.

In the same article, the New York Times describes some of the problems attributed to poorly circulated air.

Studies have also found that passengers with respiratory problems can infect their fellow passengers unless enough outside air is supplied to dilute the contagious effects of coughs and sneezes.

"Reducing the amount of fresh air from outside the cabin and increasing the length of time between cleaning of the vent system increases the amount of contamination in the air that passengers and flight attendants breathe," said Mr. Witkowski of the flight attendants union.

Several Government studies have shown relatively high levels of carbon dioxide in airplane cabins. At the request of flight attendants, the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health studied MD80's used by Alaska Airlines last February. The agency found that carbon dioxide averaged 4,882 parts per million, more than four times the 1,000 p.p.m maximum set by the American Society of Heating Refrigeration and Air-Conditioning Engineers.

King 5 News out of Seattle reports another problem with air in airplanes.

Mysterious illnesses have been reported by flight crews around the world, who believe they are exposed to dangerous fumes aboard aircraft.

Scientists believe they have found the culprit.

Researchers have zeroed in on a chemical found only in airplanes, a jet engine oil additive called tricresyl phosphate, or TCP.

Here's how TCP could find its way from a jet engine into humans. All commercial jetliners, from both Boeing and Airbus, use air sucked in by the engine and then fed to the cabin in what's called a "bleed air" system.

Oil and hydraulic fluid leaks in the engine, which flight crews say happen more often than airlines admit, can send toxic vapors into the breathing air system and throughout the plane.

Dr. Clement Furlong of the University of Washington genetics lab has been studying this problem for the last three years.

There have been documented cases of sick passengers, but that's usually when there's a big leak and obvious smell and vapors in the cockpit.

Dr. Furlong's team suspect that flight crews, who spend 750 hours on a plane a year, suffer from lower level exposures to TCP. They're trying to find out if it accumulates in the body.

Boeing's new 787 does not use bleed air technology.

Are There More Spores Outdoors?...

…and do they have human health effects?

Below are excerpts from an article in the December 2007 issue of Indoor Environment Connections by Dr. Harriet Burge Director of Aerobiology, EMLab P&K, San Bruno, Calif. She is an expert in the field of Indoor Air Quality. You can read the entire article here. - Way Cool

Yes, they do. Several papers in the literature document the relationship between asthma outbreaks and especially high concentrations of specific spore types. “New Orleans Asthma” is a syndrome blamed on basidiospores. Thunderstorm asthma has been blamed on a particular type of ascospore. In addition, clear relationships have been found between increased hospital admissions for asthma and outdoor spore concentrations. In the American Southwest, outdoor Alternaria exposure may actually initiate asthma in children.

Also consider the fact that gardening is considered to be a healthy form of exercise. You are outdoors breathing the “fresh” air (assuming you don’t live in the Los Angeles basin!) and are encouraging things to grow. You happily pull weeds and dig holes for the plants, breathing in the wonderful odors of the microbial volatiles responsible for the odor of new-turned soil along with all the spores (including those of Stachybotrys) that are growing on the dead leaves you are digging up.

On the other hand, gardening has never been reported to cause “toxic” symptoms such as headache, fatigue (other than that induced by using your muscles), memory loss, etc.

You Can't Smell It, But It Kills

The US Consumer Products Safety Commission estimates that between 8,000 to 15,000 people are examined or treated in hospitals for non-fire related CO poisoning each year.

The smartest way to confirm there are no dangerous levels of CO gasses in your home is to have a complete home CO check by a certified contractor. During the process your contractor should check every combustible appliance using a properly calibrated Carbon Monoxide Analyzer. Your contractor should also be checking for correct chimney draft on your fireplace, furnace and hot water heater.

Low concentrations of CO breathed over long periods of time may contribute to other illnesses.

First level (that is, most - Way Cool) U. L. approved Carbon Monoxide (CO) alarms are made to go off at 70 parts per million (ppm). (these are the type sold at home centers- JH) However, lower levels of CO can be harmful.

Low-level Exposure (less than 35 ppm): of carbon monoxide poisoning can be confused with flu-like symptoms, food poisoning, or other illnesses and can have significant long-term health risks if left untreated.

High-level Exposure (more than 35 ppm; less than 70 ppm): Severe throbbing headache, drowsiness, confusion, fast heart rate.

Crisis-level Exposure (more than 70 ppm): Unconsciousness, convulsions, cardio respiratory failure, death.

9 ppm - Maximum allowable CO in living space for 8 hours per the American Society of Heating, Refrigeration & Air Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE)

9 ppm - Maximum allowable outdoor 8 hours per the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

15-30 ppm - First level reported to cause harmful affects per the World Health Organization (WHO)

30 ppm - Earliest onset of exercise induced angina (WHO)

50 ppm - The maximum allowable concentration for continuous exposure for healthy adults in any 8 hour period, as recommended by the Occupation and Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) ina work environment.

(As you can see, the most common types do not protect - alarm at these levels. - Way Cool)

70 ppm - First level U. L. approved alarms must go off 2-4 hours.

200 ppm - Slight headache, fatigue, dizziness, nausea after 2-3 hours.

400 ppm - Frontal headaches within 1-2- hours, life threatening after 3 hours.

800 ppm - Dizziness, nausea, and convulsions within 45 minutes. Unconsciousness within 2 hours. Death within 2-3 hours.

These symptoms are typical for healthy adults. The critical or chronically ill, pregnant women, infants and others with respiratory difficulties can be impacted earlier and experience more adverse effects.

The excerpt above comes from Page 4 of the NSI 3000 Low-Level CO Monitor Owner's Manual.

Dehumidification for Health and Comfort

Some particles in the air can be removed by filtration.

However, mold can grow wherever there is enough moisture and dust mite allergens are too heavy to stay suspended long enough to get caught in a filter.

The above chart shows that to prevent mold growth it is good to maintain humidity below 50% relativity humidity, and dust mites are dormant and do not reproduce when the relative humidity is controlled below 45%.

Integrity Air offers whole house dehumidifiers/purifiers.

Not only do they use considerably less electricity than portable ones, they are also much quieter and have no tub of water that needs to be emptied.