Episode 7 - What Do Mold and Major League Baseball Have in Common‪?‬ Indoor Environmental Quality Podcast

Hey everyone, thanks for tuning in to Episode 7 of the Indoor Environmental Quality Podcast. I’m Chris White, a project manager with Wynn White Consulting Engineers in Baton Rouge.
Major League Baseball teams have started Spring Training, so my favorite time of year is here.
Today we’re going to talk about how mold and major league baseball are related. Yes, really.
If you visit our blog, you’ll see that I have two recurring themes when I write about mold problems. The first is, ironically, recurrence.
Mold problems often return if we only clean up the mold and don’t correct what caused the original problem.
The second recurring theme is that most of our mold related work occurs between Major League Baseball (MLB) Opening Day and the end of the World Series.
Soon we’ll resume Daylight Savings Time, which means longer days, and running our air conditioners wide open until sometime mid-November. And we’ll start seeing some mold problems.
Remember that mold problems go hand in hand with moisture issues. If you don’t find the moisture source and correct the problem, you may get to play a mold remediation double header.
The late, great Mr. Cub Ernie Banks was known for saying, “Let’s play two!”, but that’s baseball. No one wants to repeat mold remediation. That involves more aggravation, time, and money.
I’m glad when baseball season comes back – but building owners don’t want mold to return.
And once temperatures start rising, lowering the thermostat only exacerbates moisture and mold problems (not to mention increasing your energy bills!).
We see many problems related to the times of year when it’s hot outside and we’re getting more of those afternoon thunderstorms that show up, dump a ton of rain, then leave us with an environment that feels like a steamroom.
Most of our buildings are under negative air pressure with respect to outside. So that means we make outside air come into our buildings. On the surface that’s not a bad thing – we need fresh air to have a good indoor environment.
But we run into problems in hot-humid climates like ours when hot, moist air comes into our buildings and runs into a cold surface. Condensation can occur, and with that water damage and mold – unless we’re super careful. And this isn’t limited to just hot-humid climates.
Common problems are ductwork condensation – this can lead to moldy sheetrock or ceiling tiles.
But if we fix that window leak or building pressurization, we can correct the cause of the moisture problem and only have to clean up mold once.
Now would be a good time to look at how you manage mold and moisture issues- instead of letting those problems manage you. I know it seems early – but it may be a good idea for you to have your own Spring Training.
When the weather goes from hot to cold, many of these problems “go away” until next year. Then they come back.
A good question to start: what recurring problems have you had at your home or business? Are they tied to certain climate patterns or time of year?
Make sure you’re taking a proactive approach to your mold and moisture problems. Developing and implementing a Proactive Moisture Management Plan is a good idea.
Maybe you’ll avoid the problems altogether and you’ll have more time to listen, watch, or even go to more baseball games!
If I can help you solve a mold problem, or if you are a Cubs fan like me and want to talk baseball, send me an email at cwhite@wynnwhite.com, or visit our website or you can find me on Twitter and Instagram: @chriswhitepe.
I hope you have a great Spring and Summer. I hope you get to enjoy baseball season. For me, I’m looking forward to watching as much LSU baseball and Chicago Cubs as I can.
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Thanks for listening.