• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • About this Site
  • E-Booklets
  • Shop
  • Resources
  • Consulting

My Chemical-Free House

A Guide to Creating a Healthy Home

  • Healthy Building
    • Insulation
    • Windows & Window Treatments
    • Glues & Caulks
    • Grout & Mortar
    • Drywall
    • Drywall Mud & Wall Texture
    • Showers
    • Doors
    • Pressed Wood Products
    • Sheathing & Subfloor
    • Siding/Cladding
    • Pipes
    • Alternative Building Systems
    • Building for the Chemically Sensitive
    • Non-Toxic Prefabs
    • How to Test Materials
  • Healthy Interiors
    • Flooring
    • Gym Flooring
    • Flooring Underlayment
    • Mattresses & Bedding
    • Sofas & Furniture
    • Leather Furniture
    • Desks and Chairs
    • Kitchen Cabinets
    • Countertops
    • Sealers
      • Paint
      • Mineral Paints
      • Linseed & Tung Oil
      • Natural Wood Pigments
      • Natural Plaster
      • Natural Countertop Sealers
      • Concrete Sealers
      • Wood Finishes
    • Bathroom
    • Rugs
    • Wallpaper
    • Lead Free Faucets
    • Cookware
    • Kitchen Appliances
    • DIY Sofa
    • Heaters
    • Reduce Flame Retardants
    • Reduce New Home Offgassing
    • Reduce Fragrance & Smoke
    • Air Purifiers for VOCs
    • Cleaning Products & Air Fresheners
    • Personal Care Products
    • Green Certifications
    • Gift Guide
  • Tiny Homes and Trailers
    • List: Simple Homes & Shelters
    • List: Trailers & RVs
    • List: Emergency Housing
    • Cargo Van Conversion
    • All Metal Tiny Home
    • Simple Insulated Shelter
    • All Aluminum Travel Trailer
    • Cargo Trailer Conversion
    • Teardrop Trailer
    • Tiny House Systems
    • Flooring for Vans, Trailers
    • Composting Toilets
    • How to Offgas a New Car
    • Building for Chemically Sensitivity
  • Mold-Free Building
    • The Causes of Mold in Tiny Houses
    • A Detailed Mold Preventative Build
    • How “High Performance” can Help Prevent Mold
  • Mold-Free Interiors
    • Mold Testing Overview
    • Air Purifiers for Mold
    • Ozone to Kill Mold
  • Mold Avoidance
    • Decon your Car
    • Camping Gear
    • Planning a Sabbatical
    • Traveling with Environmental Sensitivities
    • Locations Effect Ebook
    • The Locations Effect – Canadian Locations
    • The Locations Effect – Caribbean Campsites
    • Interview: Healing MCS with Mold Avoidance

mold free interiors

Using Ozone to Kill and Denature Mold

July 6, 2019 by Corinne 32 Comments

The Effectiveness of Ozone Generators on Mold, Mycotoxins, Fragrance, and Smoke 

Ozone kills and denatures mold on surfaces, and breaks down many VOCs and odors such as perfume. It can also remediate smoke smell in certain materials. 

For those who prefer a video format, I have explained the process of a shock treatment and the risks in this video.

This post contains affiliate links to relevant products that I use and recommend. Upon purchase, I earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.

Please take full responsibility for your safety when using ozone. Make sure you read and understand all the precautions in this post. Full disclaimer is here.

For individual help with using ozone safely for your application, you can schedule a consultation with me here.

Does Ozone Denature Mold and Mycotoxins?

Some say that ozone kills mold spores but does not denature the toxins (EHC). 

These two studies show it can denature the toxins.

Based on these two studies (that use very very high amounts of ozone), and the experience of me and those extremely sensitive to mycotoxins, I do think it is accurate to say ozone actually kills and denatures mold. 

It can still be a good idea to HEPA vacuum after ozonating to clean up dead spores. 

A shock treatment is either a very high doses for shorter amounts of time or very long treatments (from 24 hours to 48 hours). You really have to experiment if you want to denature mold and see what works for you, and be prepared for byproducts (discussed more below).

The main drawback is the dose of ozone needed to denature mold also breaks down and oxidizes many other materials.

You should never be in the room with any device that is producing ozone for any amount of time. Read ALL the safety precautions in this post.


Which Ozone Generator to Use


I started with the Jenesco Ozone Generator with an output of 100-2100 mg. This is a high-quality unit with a timer and dosage control. 

I liked this unit because it’s well made and, the timer settings and dosage control setting were useful.

This one comes in around $400


I have the little Airtherial 5000 mg one (pictured left) this is the lowest cost one I have seen.

If you are doing a shock treatment for mold you need one with a hold setting like this one.

If you are using it at low amounts for fragrance you will only need the basic timer.

You cannot control the dosage with these little inexpensive ones, but you can find them for under $100 on Amazon.



For only a little more than a hundred, you can buy this Ivation model which can dial down the dose from  6000 mg to 500 mg.

This is what I would use for going after fragrance and smoke as well as cleaning product residue.

You don’t want a high dose for these applications, start as low as possible. You should still be out of the space at low doses.


Results with Offgassing, Mold, Fragrance, Smoke

Using Ozone on Offgassing

  • Chemical smell in Camplite (metal) trailer reduced after a few treatments
  • Glue smell reduced in brand new metal cargo trailer (this seems to work really well on the new glue smell in basic trailers).
  • I would not use this is a new house or conventional trailer (that is full of plastics and upholstery) to reduce offgassing, it’s too risky and does not work that well

Using Ozone to Break Down Mold

  • Mold remediated in an all-metal trailer after 48 hours of a high dose.
  • I also had a mold problem in another house I was living in. After the mold was remediated I was still very sick – throat swelling, extreme POTs and terrible insomnia. I then ozonated each room for 24 hours with the machine and was able to come back without any symptoms. I removed all the fabric and cushions from the area before ozonating and there were no adverse chemical reactions with the wood or anything else in the house.
  • Dozens of folks extremely sensitive to mold have had success with long shock treatments which allowed them to renter cars, trailers, and homes.
  • I’ve used it 4 times now in post remediations with a 24-hour shock treatment. I feel certain this denatures mycotoxins. I have also done 48 hr shock treatments in metal trailers that were very effective. (I let in oxygen during that time).
  • However one of these times the 24-hour treatment created horrible byproducts in a wooden house. Even after excessive airing out, I got extremely sick. I overdid the ozone or did not have enough oxygen coming in. Big risk here. It was a long time before I could go in that house again.
  • Some people found it useful to shock a room or tent and to “flash” belongings before any mold toxins could take hold.

Using Ozone to Eliminate Fragrance, Smoke and Funky Smells

  • Smell removed from funky smelling fabric (towel that had a smell that washing would not remove). 
  • BUT: gave some fabrics like wool and cotton a strange smell after doing an intense 24 treatment 
  • Ozone can help a lot with fragrance in a car or house as well as smoke smell. Car dealerships use ozone but not super high amounts of for long amounts of time. 
  • This is very useful if the fragrance and smoke smell are your big concerns. Go low and slow on fragrance, cleaning product residue and smoke until you start to see a difference. 
  • To remove odors the time needed for treatment is much less than the shock treatment for mold. This will reduce a lot of the risks. Car detailers run ozone for 15 min to 2 hours, typically, or until they can remove the smoke or other problematic odor. 

You have to be sure you are using it safely and understand the limitations.

Do not be in the same room as ozone gas, ever, for any amount of time and make sure you understand the risks of oxidization of materials.

How to Use Ozone Safely

  • Ozone is a very toxic gas.
  • People and pets should not be in the building when an ozone machine is on. Do not even take one whiff of it. Make sure you have a plan to turn it on and off while holding your breath. Ideally, turn it off without entering the room (through the electrical panel or extension cord). It clings to your clothes even if you hold your breath and walk through – this is not safe.
  • Ozone can be harmful from 100 ft away or more if it’s a high dose, it can harm others in the area including neighbors. Clear 200 ft in every direction before a high dose.
  • Ozone needs to be 5-10 x above safe levels for humans to impact bacteria and mold (Pinto). You cannot treat mold and be near it.
  • The place should be aired out for 25 hours minimum after using ozone to make sure that the gas is not inhaled. Ozone is unstable and will dissipate, but it does not dissipate as fast in a closed space with no airflow. If other VOCs form (see below) then it is necessary to air out the place for a while.
  • The half-life of ozone is 40 min-25 hours. If byproducts have been created then give it a few days at least. Make sure there are tonnes of open windows for the air out.
  • One reason government health sites do not recommend the machines is the shock treatment used to kill mold toxins is a very harmful level if inhaled (deadly if you stay in there). Even the low levels recommended as safe by some manufacturers is probably harmful to anyone sensitive to toxins (certainly it is harmful to me). So there is a huge risk if someone does not know how to use it safely. It’s also difficult to recommend in most houses because of the negative reactions outlined below. In many conventional houses, it might not be possible to avoid all those secondary reactions with materials.

Limitations of Ozone 

  • Ozone cannot remove carbon monoxide or formaldehyde (EPA).
  • It cannot get into porous materials to remove mold or chemicals (EPA). My experience suggests that it does denature mold that is near the surface of porous materials. I don’t think it goes very deep.
  • It will not help with chlorinated hydrocarbons (vinyl, plastics etc) (EHC) nor phthalates (Arlene Blum)
  • May not work on clothes and shoes (Pinto). My experience is that there is a bad reaction with any fabric in high amounts. But lots of folks have had success remediating clothing and shoes including leather shoes. Though not all types of leather will hold up the same and some rubbers in shoes will eventually break down. 

Negative Reactions and Byproducts of Ozone – What Can go Wrong!

Ozone reacts negatively with some compounds creating more VOCs. Some of the substances it reacts to are:

  • New carpets (EPA)
  • Active tobacco smoke (EPA)
  • Terpenes (to form formaldehyde) (CDH)
  • Styrene (EHC)
  • Floor finish that contains pinine (Pinto)
  • Ceiling tiles (from a client of mine) 
  • Old carpet (from a client of mine)
  • Fabrics (from my experience)
  • Wallpaper (from a client) 

I have found there is a negative byproduct left with almost every porous material if you do this in high enough doses for long enough. Ozone oxidizes everything and this leaves an odor behind that can be harmful.

High doses of ozone used to really clear out mold toxins will also degrade or harm certain materials such as:

  • Plants can die
  • Natural latex/natural rubber is extremely vulnerable to break down.
  • Styrene-butadiene rubber (SBR) is vulnerable (tires, many shoes, some gaskets, liquid waterproofing in basements, parts of electronics like in speakers, in lithium-ion batteries, and gasketed-plate heat exchangers).
  • Nitrile rubber will break down easily (some rubbers are fairly resistant).
  • Some Plastics, see these two lists of how vulnerable different types of plastic are.
  • Fabric
  • All types of nylon are extremely vulnerable to break down.
  • Some artwork
  • Steel will rust

This is not a comprehensive list, there may be more household materials that contain these components. And many other materials have not been put to the test.

I have done many high dose (shock treatment) ozone treatments and not broken down any coatings on electrical wires. Most wires are coated with PVC which is fairly resistant to breakdown from ozone. It will eventually be damaged by ozone.

Though if you have electrical lines coated in a different type of plastic or rubber it could break down and become dangerous. I haven’t’ seen this happen, but it’s possible. Please double-check the types of wiring you have. There may also be SBR in electronics, which is much more vulnerable.

Folks do ozonate electronics with success. It could be risky if you don’t know what plastics are in it, there is a risk of breaking down electrical component leading to electrical shock.

These eight plastics have more resistance to ozone.

I have seen Taylor guitars remediated with success. 

How to do an Ozone Shock Treatment

For a shock treatment, remove everything fabric or wrap them in plastic, this includes mattresses. 

Remove plants, pets, and artwork that is not behind glass. Tape up electrical outlets. Remove all electronics. Make sure you have everything you need before turning the machine on. 

Hold your breath while turning it on and while turning it off (or use an extension cord or cut it from the breakers. Air out the place with fresh air for 25 hours. This is based on my experiences.

Make sure you research if this is safe for you and worth the risk. Understand why the EPA does not recommend it. It is too easy to do something wrong where you could breathe some in. Treat it like the deadly gas that it is.

If you are not sure if it will react with your carpet, walls, ceiling then it is a last resort treatment.

I consider all shock treatments to be a last resort.

You can also test a low dose first to see if any weird smells form.  

Make sure it is dosed correctly for the space and if running it for 24 hours it needs an oxygen source.

Overdoing it can make your place intolerable. I recently had a bad experience where I overdid it with the ozone, it took a month to be able to go back in. 

How to Dose Ozone

I generally use 3500 mg/hr in a single medium-sized or large room for a shock treatment. A shock treatment which is what kills and usually denatures the mold is usually 1000 milligrams per hour (mg/h) per 100 sq feet (at 70 degrees with relative humidity at or below 20%).

The level you are aiming for is 6 to 10 parts per million. Many people shock for 1-3 hours but those of us super sensitive tend to keep going until the substance is denatured. I have gone as high as 5000 and 7000 mg/hr in a very small trailer for 24 – 48 hours. 

The machines I like are the Jenesco Ozone Generator with an output of 100-2100 mg. And the little 5000 mg ones on Amazon that are low cost with a “hold” setting.

Sources:

  • EPA: www.epa.gov/iaq/pubs/ozonegen.html
  • CDA: www.ct.gov/dph/lib/dph/environmental_health/eoha/pdf/ozone_generator_fact_sheet.pd
  • EHC: www.environmentalhealth.ca/summer96ozone.html
  • Michael Pinto: www.moldsensitized.com/ozone-generators-and-interior-mold-remediation-a-recipe-for-disaster/
  • Arlene Blum, Chemist: www.sixclasses.org
  • CraftTech Industries: www.craftechind.com/top-8-ozone-safe-plastics/
  • Ozone solutions: www.ozonesolutions.com/knowledge-center/ozone-compatible-materials.html
  • Apple Rubber: www.applerubber.com/hot-topics-for-engineers/understanding-the-link-between-ozone-and-rubber-deterioration/
healthy home build consult

Corinne Segura is a Building Biologist with 6 years of experience helping others create healthy homes.

Did you find this post helpful? If so you can buy me a coffee to support the research behind this blog. Thank you!

Filed Under: Mold Avoidance, Mold-Free Interiors Tagged With: mold avoidance, mold free interiors

The Best Air Purifiers for Mold – A Review of PCO

January 3, 2019 by Corinne 88 Comments

Updated 2020

PCO Air Purifiers – Which Ones Reduce Mold and Which Ones are a Scam.

PCO (photocatalytic oxidation) is a technology that breaks down mold, VOCs as well as some pathogens.

My interest in these air purifiers comes from first-hand accounts of this helping people with mold and VOCs and from the studies showing the eradication of mold and mycotoxins.

This is a technology that is extremely promising for those sensitive to mold and it’s important that we test this out as much as we can. I’m really urging the mold sensitive community to gather more data on this by trying some of these machines.

I am really excited about this technology as something that can safely break down mycotoxins and odors. Some people may be interested in its effects on breaking down viruses and bacteria as well.

What is PCO?

In photocatalytic oxidation, UV light hits a catalyst, usually titanium dioxide, creating hydroxyl radicals (OH). These OH molecules bind with and break apart pollutants into harmless molecules.

My recommendation is based on the most affordable and effective products that I have found. Upon purchase, I earn a small commission through affiliate links at no extra cost to you.

The Best PCO Air Purifiers for Mold

What I’m Using – The Best of Inexpensive PCO Air Purifier – Vornado

I use the Vornado air purifier. The Vornado PCO300 (now PCO375) and PCO500 are air purifiers with a great value. It is a PCO air purifier, plus it has true HEPA and activated carbon. Most PCO units are much pricier or don’t include all three air purification methods.

True HEPA and activated carbon capture dust, pollen, pet dander, smoke, bacteria, mold spores, dust mites and odors including VOCs.

PCO and carbon are the main technologies used to reduce odors and VOCs. (Ozone can as well, but it is very risky, I have a post all about ozone).

PCO actually breaks down molecules including molds and mycotoxins. I like that it has all three main air purification methods.

Why I chose this machine:

-The PCO component has true UV and titanium dioxide
-Respected brand name
-Noticeably brings down odors in new apartment and new cargo trailer
-Has a 5-year warranty
-Replacement parts are reasonably priced ($25 bulb every year, $35 titanium dioxide screen every 5 years – for the PCO related parts)
-Does not put out ozone

What I don’t like about it is that the unit itself offgasses, though not everyone thinks so. After two weeks I found it to be good.

The difference between the two sizes is that the 500 has a lower low speed and a higher high speed. The 500 has 2x the HEPA and activated carbon of the 300.

They both have the same PCO technology – so if you want to increase the effectiveness of the OH molecules in a large space you would want two of the 300 instead of one 500.

The 500 moves 184 CFM and is advertised for 265 sq ft – which is around 5 air exchanges per hour.

What are Air Exchanges per hour (ACH) – Air exchange per hour is how many times you are “replacing” the air in the room per hour, this is a key area of comparison with air purifiers.

ASHRAE (The American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers) recommends a minimum of 4 ACH for patient rooms in hospitals, 5 for intensive care units and 25 for operating rooms. For the purposes of those extremely sensitive to mold and VOCs, we want about 5-10 air exchanges per hour.

To maximize how much air in the room the air purifier can process, put it in a central location.

How do you Calculate the ACH from a Unit Specs – You always want to find the CFM of the unit. The CFM is the capacity of the unit to move air – how much air it moves through the machine. CFM stands for Cubic Feet Per Minute. You need the CFM to calculate ACH. I made two calculators to calculate ACH from CFM and CFM needed from the room size and desired ACH.

Some other PCO units are more or less the same unit re-branded: Continental Fan CX1000, Catalytic Pure Air, Field Control Trio / Sun Pure SP-20C. They seem to use a very similar PCO catalyst style to the Vornado with a titanium dioxide plated metal screen.

GermGuardian – Something Smaller

Another brand that is very affordable that also incorporates HEPA, carbon, and PCO is GermGaurdian. I have heard of people using it in trailers and being happy with. At $89 it’s a steal. And it has 5.5 ACH in 171 sq ft.

Top Pick for PCO Air Purifier – Molekule

The Molekule –  If I had to go back and pick one right now, I would choose Molekule. Though I still might want another unit with HEPA.

And if I was dealing with off-gassing, I would add in one of these air purifiers with lots of carbon.

Molekule.com

Molekule (CFM 80, 1 air exchange per hour in 600 sq ft, $1200) is a slightly different technology called PECO. 

Here is a summary of their studies – very promising results on eradicating mold. The data they showed me showed it worked better on mold than PCO.

This company has well respected big names behind the design. The inventor of Molekule is the person who discovered PCO. He has an impressive resume.

I will be trying this machine out as I think it is very promising.

The company started in 2016 and with the momentum they have had since then, I do think they will be around for a while.

The warranty is only 1 year, which is short compared to the others.

If you can afford it, if design is important to you, and you’re using this in a relatively small space like a bedroom, this is my top pick. 

This requires $100 a year in replacement parts.

The new Molekule Mini which is coming out soon provides 1 air exchange per hour in 250 sq feet.

The average-sized bedroom is around 130 sq ft and could be up to 250 sq ft.

I’m aiming for 5 air exchanges per hour. So the regular-sized Molekule would still be insufficient in a 250 sq ft room in terms of what I need.

Even in a 150 sq ft room, the original Molekule cannot provide 5 air exchanges per hour. I would stick with the regular-sized Molekule for almost any sized room.

Here is my calculator that helps you size an air purifier for your room based on how many times you want to overturn the air in an hour.

Brands I Ruled Out

Air Oasis and HiTech, as well as Airocide.

Review of Air Oasis for Mold Reduction 

The Air Oasis 3000G3 model is rated for 3,000 sq ft and only moves 11 CFM of air. 3,000 sq ft at 11 CFM is 0.02 air exchanges an hour. That is very little air movement.  (I am using 8 ft ceilings in my calculations of CFM to ACH). But that’s not important if you are using this as an ionizer.

Air Oasis does more than just filter air that moves through the machine like other PCO air purifiers it also, as the company states, “creates ionized hydroperoxides” (AKA it’s an ionizer) which puts out ions and ozone. tt is now meeting California levels of safe ozone (CARB).

You can have one made without the ozone production component but that seems to be a key component in its air cleaning abilities. I do not consider any level of ozone unless it is minuscule, to be safe to use in occupied spaces.

It has a 3-year warranty and the replacement parts are $80 every 2 years.

I know this brand because it is being promoted by top doctors. I was surprised when I dug into it to see how ineffective it would be at moving air through it, and that it gives off ozone (it was not approved by CARB at the time of writing the original version of this).

There is more of a discussion of this brand and its technology in the comments, as this machine claims to be doing something different than just a PCO or just an ozone machine.

The newer Idapt Air is similar but claims to produce 0 ppm of ozone. This is something I would be more likely to try.

It contains a HEPA filter, a carbon filter, PCO technology and a bipolar ionzier.

Most ionizers give off ozone but it is possible to produce ions with minuscule ozone. They claim 0 here.

Review of HiTech Air Solutions – Is it a Scam?

HiTech Air Solutions, a brand known among some extreme mold avoiders, makes Air Reactors that claim to be PCO machines. And wow, what I found out was very disturbing to me.

To start, the 101 model ($2000) is very expensive relative to the other PCO machines. From looking at the inside of the machine they use basic components that total under $150 for all visible parts: four foam/coarse dust filters, two UVC lights, two computer fans, and a 4U 19″ rack case.

The claim here is that some of these filters are photocatalysts that produce OH molecules – that there is something invisible called “Technosite®” (no evidence of this trademark with USPTO) impregnated onto the filters.

They may be using something similar to PALCCOAT (confirmed not partnering with this brand) which is a clear titanium dioxide catalyst (FYI $13 per square meter). I have found no evidence of a patent held by HiTech or Ray Robison, owner, on anything in the machine.

I have also seen two other odd claims from sales reps of the company – one, that the filters are coated with Sporax (I have seen pictures of their filters with Sporax, though they later denied this.) And that both the filters and the bulbs are also coated with something proprietary – both things that I would want to know are safe to use with UVC light.

HiTech makes some pretty astonishing claims that not only have not been backed up by evidence but feel free to ask a chemist about how this is even possible:

They claim their OH molecules (which are produced by the PCO process) last much longer in the air than the other air purifiers’ OH molecules (~6 weeks instead of ~15 seconds) based on “a study by Texas Tech”, though this study cannot be produced by the company. Dozens of phone calls were made to track down the existence of this study and nothing turned up. Even more, the University claims it does not conduct studies give the results on the phone and then withhold the report for large sums of money (as the reps claim).

I have not found any evidence that this “study” exist or that this produces a totally different kind of OH molecule. Just ask a chemist how you can have a stable but also reactive OH molecule.

I would like the company to disclose what they are using in this machine so we can know if it is safe and effective, or, provide real studies that show which molecules and byproducts this machine produces.

The burning smell is worrisome to me. I have seen photos of users machines showing the filters having being burned through by the UV light. That will produce offgassing. The accounts I have seen of bad reactions are also worrisome.

HiTech claims it produces 99.9% pure air. I have seen no studies to back up this very broad claim. What is the level of contamination in the air to start, and what is “pure air”? Also note, PCO technology does not filter particulate pollutants (EPA).

I have contacted a technical rep, sales rep and the owner for these studies – they responded but were not able to provide them. Others have contacted them as well for this information.

The HiTech 101 is 142 CFM and claims it can be used in 1600 sq ft which is only 0.7 air exchanges per hour. Their bigger units are ~$5000 and ~$6000 dollars!

The HiTech sales reps make 25% commission off each unit and they usually recommend multiple units for houses. The commission for the three sizes is roughly: $500, $1000 and $1500! The cost of the replacement parts are $140, $190 and $295 per year, for the three different sized units.

HiTech has not submitted their Air Reactors to CARB at the time of writing, to confirm they give off a safe level of ozone. However, the bulbs they are using are USHIO brand UV bulbs with a 2G11 / PL-L base which do not give off ozone. They use another brand as well, LSE Lighting UV bulbs, with the same base. From what I can tell this bulb would not be any different from the USHIO brand.

I’m calling on HiTech reps, especially doctors to consider the following:

  • We don’t know what is in the machine – it is invisible, not disclosed, and the company has not backed up the claims of which molecules and byproducts this machine produces
  • The company has made numerous unsubstantiated statements – there is no evidence of any university studies, no evidence of FDA approval, no evidence of a patent, no evidence of a trademark (on Technosite)
  • I have seen people have bad reactions – it is not proven to be safe
  • This machine is an unnecessary financial burden on patients in my opinion when there are well-established brands selling verifiable PCO machines on the market for a fraction of the cost
  • Making $1000+ off each (medium-sized) unit is certainly a nice incentive for sales reps, though ethical concerns must take priority

FDA Approval of PCO Machines

The FDA approvals I have found are one for a PCO machine involving titanium dioxide (it proved to destroy some bacteria, viruses and mold) for specific commercial uses.

The Airocide and Odorox also have FDA approval as type 2 medical devices for use in hospitals. These all use titanium dioxide and UV; The FDA approval cannot be stretched to make safety or health claims on any device that deviates from this technology or has unknown additional technologies.

HiTech claims to be FDA approved, I can find no evidence of that. Anyone can search for FDA approvals here.

HiTech did respond to this article, some of the statements have changed from what I have records of, and the updates are in the comments. They have since put out some “study result photos” with no evidence of a study.

Review of Airocide Air Purifier 

Airocide

Another popular PCO machine that has been around for a while is Airocide (CFM 14 “Cleans any size room” which I suppose is technically true, but is not going to get you 5-10 air exchanges in most rooms).

This doesn’t move a lot of air, but I like that the website has studies confirming that it doesn’t give off ozone, and a short study on breaking down mycotoxins.

It looks cool which is a major plus.

The claims about removing dust, dust mites and allergens are not all that accurate since PCO machines do not filter particulate pollutants (EPA).

It has a 5-year warranty and 60-day money-back guarantee which I like. The main drawback here is how little air it moves.

100 a year in replacement parts.

Most of the PCO machines do not include HEPA and activated carbon like the Vornado, they are more expensive, they don’t move as much air, and their replacement parts are more expensive. (Airocide has a unit that contains a charcoal and MERV filter for $900.)

Adverse Reactions to PCO Hydroxyl Generators

I have heard of people having bad reactions to HiTech. I have heard only one bad reaction to Airocide, and a couple of bad reactions to AirOasis.

I do not know what accounts for these bad reactions. It does not appear that there is an ozone issue (apart from AirOasis). Dr Daniel Cagua Koo has also noted that some patients simply don’t do well around this technology.

Since writing I have heard of some bad reactions to Molekule with about 50% of sensitive folks buying it being happy with it, and the other half not, and one bad reaction to Germ Guardian.

It is possible that PCO is creating harmful byproducts in high VOC buildings.

If you are in high VOCs I would focus on a filter that has a lot of carbon – like these I review here.

My interest here is for a house with extremely low VOC levels and already extremely low levels of mold. And the hope here is to keep the air as low mold as possible.

HiTech reps speculate to buyers that the bad reactions may be helpful (some kind of detox or herx), which is ethically unsound in my opinion. With no data to suggest this is detox, we should take a precautionary approach.

I would love to hear from more people who have tried these other brands. Let me know if you have had good results or a bad reaction to a PCO machine.

Do PCO Machines Give off a Burning Smell

According to Airocide, the UV bulbs themselves emit a bit of a burning smell at first. They burn theirs in for two days, but sensitive people can smell it for up to a week.

The Vornado PCO had a very slight burnt smell at first which seemed like the smell of carbon.

HiTech states that the burning smell is mold/mycotoxins breaking down. I see no evidence for this claim.

Airocide made a statement that mold does not produce a smell when broken down by OH molecules.

A HiTech user also stated that the UV lights have burnt right through the “reactor pads”. This is consistent with a theory that the UVC lights are burning the “reactor pads” and causing a smell.

healthy home build consult

Corinne Segura is a Building Biologist Practitioner with 6 years of experience helping others create healthy homes.

Buy Me a Coffee at ko-fi.com

Did you find this post helpful? If so you can buy me a coffee to support the research behind this blog. Thank you!


This post is not sponsored.

This post was written with the technical assistance of an electrical engineer, though the opinions and conclusions are my own.

Filed Under: Healthy Interiors, Mold-Free Interiors Tagged With: mold avoidance, mold free interiors

Simplified Mold Testing Overview – Pros and Cons of Different Methods

October 25, 2016 by Corinne 5 Comments

First I want to talk about the most reliable test which is how you feel in the house compared to other places. Unfortunately, this is not always as simple as it sounds to execute. There are different ways to undertake this experiment.

Some have to start in a tent, car or trailer outside their house, but you need to be 100-200 ft away from a moldy house, and your outdoor air quality might be a problem as well.

The next option would be to stay somewhere where other people recovering from mold illness (and MCS) have felt better. This could be a campground, KOA cabin, Airbnb or other rental. I have a lot more details on this in my post on the Locations Effect and Mold Sabbatical.

Once you have gotten “clear” and done some recovering you might be wondering how do you test a house to find out if it’s good? Some people can walk into a house and know if it’s good for them. But even the most sensitive people usually need to request to spend 3 nights trialling the house.

This is not always an option, but you should ask. Usually, people sleep better in a house that is mold-free, but me and other CIRS patients have found that there is some mold that puts you into a zombie sleep where you sleep more (and then get sicker). So even a three-night test can be tricky.

This post contains affiliate links to relevant products that I use and recommend. Upon purchase, I earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. Disclosure: I was given the Tape Lift test to see if I liked and recommended it.

Mold Testing

It can be a good idea to verify the house is safe with mold testing. The most common test for CIRS (mold patients) is the ERMI. It is highly recommended by Shoemaker certified doctors as the test to use. The range of the ERMI scores goes from minus 10 to positive 20. You need a score or 2 or lower to be treated and recover from mold illness according to Dr. Shoemaker.

Other types of mold tests can also be useful. A tape lift will get you definitive results on visible mold. I look at the options below. This is a very simple overview just to give you the general idea of what is out there in a way that is not overwhelming – you may want to look more into each of these different methods.

Please note that my sources were biased towards mold advocates Lisa Petrison from Paradigm Change, Greg Muske from Biotoxin Journey, Dr. Shoemaker and Cheryl Ciecko, an architect who specializes in mold prevention.

I have attempted to cross-check their information. However, going with information from the companies that do house inspections can be biased and contradictory. (All sources at end of post, which you can read for more detail).

Let’s Compare Them:

1. ERMI

Cons

  • Doesn’t work well in brand new houses.
  • You need dust that has settled for a while (wait 4-6 weeks to re-test an area).
  • Having very little dust or a high amount of dust can skew results.
  • Having a high amount of outside dirt inside can skew results. Having high or low outdoor spores counts can skew results.
  • May not be an even distribution of spores throughout the house if mold is only coming from one place and the house is large.
  • It is known to miss major mold problems when people are very sick in their house. Similarly, after a remediation, a CIRS patient can still be sick from the mycotoxins left behind despite a low score.
  • “Only the ERMI and HERTSMI have been associated with sequential activation of innate immune responses, not air testing.” Dr. Shoemaker. Meaning it is the only test that he found that is consistently in line with lab results for CIRS, despite its drawbacks.
  • The vacuum method can pick of heavy spores like Stachy and the Swiffer method can also be used to pick up places with accumulated dust that has been there for 4 months. John Banta always tries to use the vacuum method over the swipe method.
  • It’s pretty affordable at $300. You do it yourself. The lab recommended is Mycometrics.

HERTSMI-2

Similar to ERMI but tests for a handful of molds most commonly associated with water-damaged buildings. It is cheaper than ERMI. I would go for the full ERMI and you can still calculate your HERTSMI value from that. Shoemaker certified doctors will consider your HERTSMI score as well as ERMI score.

2. Tape Lifts

Cons

  • You need to have visible mold.
  • It assists you with what type of mold it is and not how widespread the problem is.

Pros

  • Tells you what kind of mold you have when you have a visible sample.
  • Allows you to know if this is a toxic mold.
  • You can do it yourself.
  • It’s a cheaper way to test for visible mold.

I used this DIY Tape Lift to test a few areas in a house I go into often. The results came back showing me what type of mold it was. It confirmed that the mold was one that is toxic that comes from water damage. Though you need to get a decent amount of mold on the tape otherwise your results will just show scattered pieces.

3. Spore Traps (Air Test)

Cons

  • Needs to be taken near the source, so you have to know where the source is.
  • Shoemaker says: “The industry standard of sampling the air for spores is not an acceptable substitute for many reasons. One of the main limitations is that over 99% of the particles that carry the inflammagens from water damaged buildings are smaller than 3 microns. Spore traps can only detect particles that are larger than 3 microns and therefore, miss over 99% of the inflammagens.”
  • Spore traps identify round, intact spores. So they will not catch evidence of past problem that have left mycotoxins.
  • Can miss/underreport certain heavy species like stachy.
  • Expensive.

Pros

  • The test is more standardized than tape lifts, swabs, cultures, and mold-dogs, they claim.
  • It is the most widely used mold test.
  • You can compare inside and outside air.

4. Dishes

Cons

  • Hard to know where to place the dish to get capture the mold if you don’t know where the mold is coming from.
  • Doesn’t get you an accurate relative reading since some mold is harder to catch and some proliferate faster in the dish than others.
  • Stachy is a slow grower compared to other molds in the dish.

Pros

  • Can be used in multiple places to compare and for general observation.
  • Can give you more details on the exact type of mold than other tests.
  • Inexpensive.
  • John Banta does a culture of the dust used for ERMI to compare and get more details

Here is one you can do yourself.

5. Mold Dogs

Cons

  • Can only detect a handful of molds.
  • Hard to know if they are well trained, look for good references for the company.
  • They can’t tell you if it’s high amount of mold or a trace from after remediation.
  • The dog can only sniff in areas where they can reach.

Pros

  • They are good at finding the source if it is within their reach.
  • The dog can smell both live and dead mold.
  • You can pinpoint the area where you need to do further testing.

6. Mycotoxin and mVOC testing

Cons

  • There is controversy around the accuracy of this testing.
  • Not widely used.

Pros

  • Test the levels of mycotoxins and other VOCs in the air.

Here is a company that does this kind of testing that is recommended. It goes to an AIHA accredited lab.

Since I first wrote this post, EMMA test by Real Time Lab has become more popular. This tests for 15 mycotoxins using the dust from your AC or heater filter.

Sources:

http://biotoxinjourney.com/mold-testing/
http://paradigmchange.me/testing/
https://www.nachi.org/tape-sampling-mold-inspection.htm
http://healthybuildingscience.com/2013/02/14/mold-testing-air-quality/
Public postings by Cheryl Ciecko (Architect)
John Banta interview
Dr Shoemaker Q&A

For individual help undertaking mold avoidance, you can schedule a consultation with me here.

Corinne Segura is a Building Biologist with 6 years of experience helping others create healthy homes.

Buy Me a Coffee at ko-fi.com

Did you find this post helpful? If so you can buy me a coffee to support the research behind this blog. Thank you!

Filed Under: Mold-Free Interiors Tagged With: mold free interiors, mold testing

Primary Sidebar

Follow along for the latest!

  • Facebook
  • YouTube

ABOUT ME

Hi, I’m Corinne, I am a Certified Building Biologist Practitioner with 6 years of experience helping people create healthy homes.

More about me…

Footer

Categories

  • Healthy Building
  • Healthy Interiors
  • Mold Avoidance
  • Mold-Free Building
  • Mold-Free Interiors
  • Tiny Homes and Trailers
  • Uncategorized

Amazon Affiliate Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Privacy Policy, Disclaimer, Disclosure

Do Not Sell My Personal Information

Resources

Business inquiries

Copyright © 2021 · Corinne Segura | My Chemical-Free House Consulting