Inspection Tools
When it comes to mold inspection tools, professionals choose the right equipment that will help them effectively get the job done. These include moisture meters, hygrometers, particle scanners, borescopes, thermal imaging cameras and more. These are the tools that professional mold inspectors use to perform a thorough, accurate inspection.
During a mold inspection, inspectors look for signs of water intrusion such as dark staining, visible mold, musty odors and more. The most important tool to use for determining the potential presence of mold is a quality moisture meter, which can measure the moisture content of materials such as wood. The higher the moisture level, the more likely it is that a material will support mold growth.
Moisture is the primary fuel for mold, so a good moisture meter will enable an inspector to quickly identify high-risk areas and take additional samples to confirm the presence of mold. A quality moisture meter will detect the moisture levels in wood and other materials, and will alert the inspector when the readings are unexpectedly high.
In addition to a quality moisture meter, a professional mold inspector will also carry a hygrometer, which measures the relative humidity in an environment. During a normal occurrence, the air has a humidity of about 60 percent, but higher or lower humidity can support or inhibit the growth of mold.
If a visual inspection cannot confirm the presence of mold, a non-intrusive technique called bulk sampling may be used. Bulk sampling involves taking a sample of the suspected moldy material for laboratory testing. The samples can be taken using different methods, including swabbing, tape lifts and spore traps.
Mold Inspection Tools
Mold spores can be found in the air, in settled dust or on the surfaces of building materials and furnishings. Many air sampling methods are able to determine the types of molds present in a sampled environment, but they often miss or underestimate those that are not living and growing well on the nutrients used to incubate the spores for testing.
For a more targeted approach, particle scanners can be used to detect the presence of specific types of mold particles in a given sampled environment. These devices can be used for surface sampling and swab testing, and they are also sometimes useful for detecting the presence of fungal allergens that are not living but still can trigger reactions in some people.
Lastly, a borescope is a small camera that can be inserted into plumbing pipes or other structural components to visualize problems such as water intrusion and/or possible mold. This tool is often necessary when a problem cannot be easily identified through a visual inspection or other non-intrusive techniques such as moisture metering or thermography.
When it comes to selecting the right mold inspection tools, a professional will develop a sampling plan for their client that includes a recommended approach to testing. The sampling plan should specify the recommended methods and a suggested number of samples. The plan should also explain when and where to sample, how to record the results and what type of lab to send the samples to for analysis.