[Greenbuilding] Smelly SIPS

[Stephen Collette]

Hi Mike,

Chemical testing is pretty expensive for sure and something you may  
want to leave as a last resort. Typically I would charge something  
like $2000 for the top 35 chemicals in the air through an air sample  
that is mass spectrometry analyzed. It's expensive, and I'm pretty  
inexpensive compared to others. It's a lot of money, and what would it  
get you? Not always much. I know, I've done it for odour jobs. What I  
did find that was more helpful on odour jobs like this instead, is to  
use the blower door, and your nose. Go depressurize and then chase the  
odour. This will at least help narrow the search parameters down to  
something a bit more reasonable, like west wall, or master bedroom,  
etc.  Since you plan on having one anyway, then you can pay them an  
extra hours wage to keep it plugged in and wander around making notes  
and sniffing. If you get to the point that you have found the odour  
and an idea of where and what it's coming from, then if there is  
litigation or just plain yelling in the plans, then you can get the  
air sample taken and compare the results to the the suspected material  
and confirm that it is in fact coming from that.

As for the others replies with adding an HRV and positively  
pressurizing it, I would also agree. Make sure the installer balances  
the HRV and get them to show you the balance sticker. Seen it too  
often that they don't.

Stephen

Stephen Collette BBEC, LEED AP
Principal
Your Healthy House - Indoor Environmental Testing & Building Consulting
www.yourhealthyhouse.ca
stephen at yourhealthyhouse.ca
705.652.5159
>
> From: "Mike Forbes" <biodieselmike at gmail.com>
>
> Hi all,
> So i've got a dilemna with my house and hope all of you might have  
> some
> input/opinions....
>
>
> What I'm wondering:
>
> 1)How do I determine what the smell is chemically? Air sampling (what
> company, cost, what chemicals to sample for or is there a test  
> that'll look
> at many simultaneously)
>
> 2) How does the smell move through the panels (air pressure  
> differences) and
> is there a way to mitigate this through a positive pressure system  
> that
> would bring outside air in and slightly pressurize the house not  
> letting the
> smell migrate through the panel?  I would imagine that an HRV would  
> be the
> way to do this so I'm not bringing in warmed outside air to  
> pressurize the
> house. If an HRV is the solution do you all have recommendations on  
> a small
> one (my home is 1300 sq ft with 8-9' ceilings).
>
> I know a blower door test is in order to determine the ACH of the  
> house,
> which I'm guessing is low probably contributing to the problem.
>
> As always thanks for everyone's help...
>
> Mike
> Moscow, ID