EXPOSURE TO AIRBORNE MICROBES DURING THE REPAIR OF MOLDY BUILDINGS

Concentrations of airborne microbes, studied during the repair of seve n moldy buildings, showed that concentrations of airborne fungi increa sed during the repair work. This was especially true during the demoli tion of moldy building materials, even though the total dust levels re mained low. Concentrations of viable fungi sampled with a six-stage ca scade impactor were 10(3) - >1.9 X 10(5) cfu/m(3), and the total conce ntrations of fungal propagules, as determined by the Camnea method (i. e., air filtration method with epifluorescence microscopic counting of acridine-stained organisms) showed 10(5) - 10(6) counts/m(3) during t he demolition. Penicillium was the main genus throughout. Concentratio ns of viable total bacteria also increased, but this change proved les s noticeable than that of the fungi. However, rather high concentratio ns of viable actinomycetes up to 10(4) cfu/m(3) were detected during t he demolition. Results show that construction workers are exposed to h igh concentrations of microbes, perhaps causing health problems. Thus, personal protection of both the respiratory system and eyes is strong ly recommended for workers as they repair moldy buildings. In addition ,the repair room should be isolated from other areas to protect occupa nts or any other people present.