Mold & Mildew

 

MOLD – A GROWING INDOOR AIR QUALITY CHALLENGE

 

Mold is an increasing menace in homes, work places, schools and public buildings. Every year millions of dollars are spent trying to eradicate the problem. It can damage or destroy property, leading to expensive and time-consuming clean up and renovation projects. Indoor spaces that are wet, and have organic materials that mold can use as a food source, can and do support mold growth.   

Mold spores or fragments that become airborne can expose people indoors through inhalation or skin contact and has been shown to have serious negative consequences for respiratory health. Certain fungi and mold are known to be responsible for allergies, hypersensitivity pneumonitis, infections, mucous membrane irritation, and many others ailments. Mold reproduces through microscopic spores, which readily become airborne, and it can produce its own noxious MVOCs (microbial volatile organic compounds).
 
A 2001 report by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (Mold Remediation in Schools and Commercial Buildings) attributes much of the evident increase in problematic indoor mold to changes in building construction over the past three decades. These changes have resulted in buildings that are tightly sealed for energy efficiency, but potentially lacking adequate ventilation that would allow for quick moisture evaporation. The same report warns that four other key factors may be contributing to the growing mold problem: 
. Portable Classrooms and Temorary Structures
. Remodeling and Building Use Changes
. Delays in Maintenance or Changes in Maintenance Procedures
. HVAC Systems Without Properly Maintained HEPA Filtration Systems
 
One of many ways to help improve your indoor environment is to coat mold prone interior surfaces with a mold inhibiting coating. MOLDon't™ TopCoat, manufactured by GLOBAL Encasement, Inc., is an environmentally advanced, high performance, high solids content acrylic coating with biocide that prevents mold from growing on the surface. 

 

Moldon't Environmentally Advanced Protective Coatings

Moldon't™ is tested to ASTM E-1795-97, the Standard for Liquid Coating Encapsulation Products for Leaded Pdaint in Buildings; and when tested in accordance with ASTM D3273/D3274 and G21, exhibited 0 fungal growth.

Moldon’t Lab Photos Taken by D.L. Laboratories During the Testing Period.

 

Mildew Resistance ASTM D3273 After 2weeks Exposure       Mildew Resistance ASTM D3273 After 20weeks Exposure

                  Mildew Resistance ASTM D3273                        Mildew Resistance ASTM D3273 After 2weeks Exposure

The above photos show that MOLDon’tTM TopCoat exhibited zero fungal growth when subjected to Test methods ASTM D3273 “Standard test method for resistance to growth of mold on the surface of interior Coatings in an environmental chamber”, and ASTM D3274 “Standard test method for evaluating degree of surface disfigurement of paint Films by microbial (fungal or algal) growth or soil and dirt accumulation”.

The coating was applied to pine test panels, and allowed to cure seven days. An uncoated pine test panel was placed alongside the coated panels, and were then exposed to fungus spores of Aspergillus niger, Aureobasidium pullulans and Penicillum, for 4 weeks in an environmental chamber maintained at 88-92°F and 95% Relative Humidity.

In an unrivaled move, GLOBAL Encasement, Inc. requested the lab to extend the 4-Week testing period. The specimens remained in the mold/fungus environmental chamber, and the fungus spores were reintroduced every four weeks for an additional 58-week period. After a total of 62-weeks, the specimens still exhibited 0 fungal growth and no surface disfigurement of the paint film.

To the best of its knowledge, GLOBAL Encasement, Inc. is the only manufacturer to subject its mold-inhibiting topcoat to such unrelenting and rigorous conditions.

Fungus Resistance ASTM G21 After 4weeks Exposure 
 Fungus Resistance ASTM G21 After 4weeks Exposure

The above photo was taken at the end of a 4-Week testing period and shows two petri dishes that contain a free film square of MOLDon’tTM TopCoat, and a third dish that is without TopCoat, all prepared in accordance with ASTM G21 “Standard Practice for Determining Resistance of Synthetic Polymeric Materials to Fungi”.

 

The three specimens had been exposed to a mixed fungal spore suspension consisting of Aureobasidium pullalans, Aspergillus niger, Chaetomium globosum, Gliocladium virens and Penicillium pinophilum.

 

The fungus resistance and the zone of inhibition surrounding the squares of coating were observed over the 4-Week incubation period.  At the end of the testing period no fungal growth had been or was observed on the coated surfaces.

The zones of inhibition surrounding the coating were an impressive 17 mm.

 

Moldon't™ Uses:

Moldon't™ is excellent for walls, ceilings, trim, pipes and all non-friction surfaces.  It can be used over treated or untreated wood, stone, metal, wallboard, sheet rock, cracked and painted plaster, stucco, masonry, concrete and various fibrous materials.