Almost all homes, apartments, and commercial buildings will experience leaks, flooding, or other forms of excessive indoor dampness at some point. Not only is excessive dampness a health problem by itself, it also contributes to several other potentially problematic types of situations. Molds and other microbial agents favor damp indoor environments, and excess moisture may initiate the release of chemical emissions from damaged building materials and furnishings. This new book from the Institute of Medicine examines the health impact of exposures resulting from damp indoor environments and offers recommendations for public health interventions. Damp Indoor Spaces and Health covers a broad range of topics. The book not only examines the relationship between damp or moldy indoor environments and adverse health outcomes but also discusses how and where buildings get wet, how dampness influences microbial growth and chemical emissions, ways to prevent and remediate dampness, and elements of a public health response to the issues. A comprehensive literature review finds sufficient evidence of an association between damp indoor environments and some upper respiratory tract symptoms, coughing, wheezing, and asthma symptoms in sensitized persons. This important book will be of interest to a wide-ranging audience of science, health, engineering, and building professionals, government officials, and members of the public.

"Provides a summary of what is understood within ASHRAE about dampness-related health risks in buildings along with suggestions for HVAC system designers that can help avoid such risks as well as a simple and easily recognizable description of dampness that is sufficient to increase the probability of negative health effects and practical quantitative tools and techniques that can alert managers to the risk of a building or an indoor space becoming damp to an extent that affects health in the future"--

Microbial pollution is a key element of indoor air pollution. It is caused by hundreds of species of bacteria and fungi, in particular filamentous fungi (mould), growing indoors when sufficient moisture is available. This document provides a comprehensive review of the scientific evidence on health problems associated with building moisture and biological agents. The review concludes that the most important effects are increased prevalences of respiratory symptoms, allergies and asthma as well as perturbation of the immunological system. The document also summarizes the available information on the conditions that determine the presence of mould and measures to control their growth indoors. WHO guidelines for protecting public health are formulated on the basis of the review. The most important means for avoiding adverse health effects is the prevention (or minimization) of persistent dampness and microbial growth on interior surfaces and in building structures. [Ed.]

Serving as a comprehensive resource that builds a bridge between engineering disciplines and the building sciences and trades, Forensic Engineering: Damage Assessments for Residential and Commercial Structures, Second Edition provides an extensive look into the world of forensic engineering. Focusing on investigations associated with insurance industry claims, the book describes methodologies for performing insurance-related investigations, including the causation and origin of damage to residential and commercial structures and/or unhealthy interior environments and adverse effects on the occupants of these structures. Edited by an industry expert with more than 40 years of experience and contributors with more than 100 years of experience in the field, the book takes the technical aspects of engineering and scientific principles and applies them to real-world issues in a nontechnical manner. The book provides readers with the experiences, investigation methodologies, and investigation protocols used in and derived from thousands of forensic engineering investigations. FEATURES Covers 24 topics in forensic engineering based on thousands of actual field investigations Provides a proven methodology based on engineering and scientific principles, experience, and common sense to determine the causes of forensic failures pertaining to residential and commercial properties Includes references to many codes, standards, technical literature, and industry best practices Illustrates detailed and informative examples utilizing color photographs and figures for industry best practices as well as to identify improper installations Combines information from a multitude of resources into one succinct, easy-to-use guide This book details proven methodologies based on over 10,000 field investigations in which the related strategies can be practically applied and appreciated by both professionals and laymen alike.

Evidence has accumulated that shows that the quality of indoor environments can affect the health and productivity of adults and children. One consequence is that a movement has emerged to promote the design of schools that have fewer adverse environmental effects. To examine the potential of such design for improving education, several private organizations asked the NRC to review and assess the health and productivity benefits of green schools. This report provides an analysis of the complexity of making such a determination; and an assessment of the potential human health and performance benefits of improvements in the building envelope, indoor air quality, lighting, and acoustical quality. The report also presents an assessment of the overall building condition and student achievement, and offers an analysis of and recommendations for planning and maintaining green schools including research considerations.

People's desire to understand the environments in which they live is a natural one. People spend most of their time in spaces and structures designed, built, and managed by humans, and it is estimated that people in developed countries now spend 90 percent of their lives indoors. As people move from homes to workplaces, traveling in cars and on transit systems, microorganisms are continually with and around them. The human-associated microbes that are shed, along with the human behaviors that affect their transport and removal, make significant contributions to the diversity of the indoor microbiome. The characteristics of "healthy" indoor environments cannot yet be defined, nor do microbial, clinical, and building researchers yet understand how to modify features of indoor environmentsâ€"such as building ventilation systems and the chemistry of building materialsâ€"in ways that would have predictable impacts on microbial communities to promote health and prevent disease. The factors that affect the environments within buildings, the ways in which building characteristics influence the composition and function of indoor microbial communities, and the ways in which these microbial communities relate to human health and well-being are extraordinarily complex and can be explored only as a dynamic, interconnected ecosystem by engaging the fields of microbial biology and ecology, chemistry, building science, and human physiology. This report reviews what is known about the intersection of these disciplines, and how new tools may facilitate advances in understanding the ecosystem of built environments, indoor microbiomes, and effects on human health and well-being. It offers a research agenda to generate the information needed so that stakeholders with an interest in understanding the impacts of built environments will be able to make more informed decisions.

Almost all homes, apartments, and commercial buildings will experience leaks, flooding, or other forms of excessive indoor dampness at some point. Not only is excessive dampness a health problem by itself, it also contributes to several other potentially problematic types of situations. Molds and other microbial agents favor damp indoor environments, and excess moisture may initiate the release of chemical emissions from damaged building materials and furnishings. This new book from the Institute of Medicine examines the health impact of exposures resulting from damp indoor environments and offers recommendations for public health interventions. Damp Indoor Spaces and Health covers a broad range of topics. The book not only examines the relationship between damp or moldy indoor environments and adverse health outcomes but also discusses how and where buildings get wet, how dampness influences microbial growth and chemical emissions, ways to prevent and remediate dampness, and elements of a public health response to the issues. A comprehensive literature review finds sufficient evidence of an association between damp indoor environments and some upper respiratory tract symptoms, coughing, wheezing, and asthma symptoms in sensitized persons. This important book will be of interest to a wide-ranging audience of science, health, engineering, and building professionals, government officials, and members of the public.