Is Your Indoor Air Clean? Experts May Use a Particle Counter to Check

By The Clean Trust

What you can't see can hurt you. Microscopic fragments of mold or other airborne particles can be inhaled causing health impacts, so sampling the air during and after mold cleanup may make sense to determine how effective the process has been at removing or containing these contaminants.

Restoration professionals sometimes use a laser particle counter to determine the level of airborne particles. A laser or optical particle counter draws in a sample of air, shines a laser light across the airstream inside the device, then electronically counts the particles that cross the beam path.

In contaminated environments, the numbers of particles will be quite high, whereas after cleanup with proper methods, particulates should be significantly reduced.

An optical particle counter measures the total number of particles of a certain size or range (for example, 0.3 micron and larger) without revealing what those contaminants are.  Thus, when used with direct mold or fungal detection methods, it can serve as an additional quality-control and post-remediation check by restorers and other indoor environmental professionals (IEPs).

It can also help assess vacuum cleaners and other cleaning equipment to see how well they capture dust. For example, the number of particles at the intake of vacuum cleaners is compared with the particles measured exiting the vacuum to check the effectiveness of filters. HEPA vacuums should effectively capture 99.97% of particles 0.3 microns and larger in size.

The knowledge and skills of the professionals you hire will largely determine how successful the restoration outcomes are, including how healthful the indoor environment is after cleaning. Certified technicians best understand how to use scientific measurement tools properly to ensure your home has been effectively restored.