Robert E Miller Elementary drydown and mold prevention
Student and teacher/public safety is the priority in handling this situation. The affected wing has been isolated during treatment
· The source of the water leak has been repaired
· Excess water has been extracted from all surfaces
· Hospital-grade disinfectant has been applied to wet surfaces to inhibit microbial/fungal growth
· Any remaining moisture must be removed by converting it to water vapor using heat and fans and removing it from the air using dehumidification procedures combined with negative air
· Commercial drying equipment is in place following IICRC drying standards to dry the building as quickly as possible before microbial growth can become a concern
· Building air handlers have been disabled only in the affected areas during the drydown to isolate this wing from the rest of the school heating system that is currently populated
· Commercial air scrubbers are in place cycling massive amounts of air through HEPA filtration to catch and remove any dust or spores stirred up during drydown and cleaning
Water extraction
Water is being extracted from a hallway by multiple teams Monday morning to prevent it from migrating farther into the building
Water extraction
Water is being extracted from a classroom Monday morning using a carpet cleaning wand. Remaining moisture will need to be evaporated and dehumidified
Dehumidification
Picture of actual dehumidifier reading: 52% humidity is reduced to 19% and returned to the classroom. The air moisture is converted back to liquid and eliminated from the dehumidifier through tubing.
Drydown process
COmmercial Drying trailer
Trailer mounted drying unit (2 being used) to force dry air into the building to increase the water evaporation rate.
dry air from trailer
Measured at the opening inside the building of the ducting from the trailer this incoming air measured 117.5 degrees at 9.6% humidity Tuesday morning
Evacuating moist air
Moisture content is being measured in one of the many tubes blowing moist air directly out of the building to speed up the dehumidification process (negative air)
More drying process
Venting walls as needed
Bottoms of walls are removed or 'vented' to allow liquid water or moisture to escape and dry air to be introduced. Any wet insulation is also removed, allowing airflow behind damp walls
Infrared technology
An infrared camera is used to quickly identify problem areas. Cold, wet areas appear in blue or purple, warmer dry areas are yellow or red depending on temperature
Air Filtration
Air scrubbers are in place cycling the air through HEPA filters to ensure any dust or spores released during the dry down and cleaning process are captured. These are the same scrubbers used at Kirkwood Mall to prevent that flood from becoming a public safety concern
Day 3 drying process
air injection
Hard to access areas and wall cavities require special treatment. In this photo, an air injection system is being used to force dry air into hard to reach spaces
dry standard
Several of the classroom walls and carpet are already at ‘dry standard’ which is the appropriate moisture content as measured in unaffected areas of the building. Over drying can cause additional problems.
Here, the drying cuts made earlier are being replaced prior to re-gluing wallpaper and attaching baseboard materials
keeping it clean
When they are dry, carpets are re-cleaned to remove dirt and dust before it can become airborne. A final cleaning will be done after reconstruction is complete
Day 4 Progress
Cabinets going in
As of Thursday afternoon, cabinets are back in a few of the classrooms, at least two rooms will be ready for teachers to start bringing desks and teaching materials back in
final cleaning
Some classrooms are dried, cleaned and ready! The remaining wallpaper and baseboard material will be completed later in order to get the kids back into their normal classrooms as quickly as possible
Thank you staff!
We can't forget to thank the teachers, staff and administration who pitched in to save as much as possible from the initial flood. Make sure to thank these good folks who now have to put everything back to get it ready for students
Final day
Wing open again
Picture from Thursday night, equipment and workers are finished and gone. The school will be able to save some money by completing the wallpaper and trim work
classroom complete
Picture from Thursday night, this classroom is completely ready for chairs and then students!
Friday morning students return
Students arrive Friday morning. Teachers and staff did a great job getting the classrooms completed as quickly as we were able to finalize our work in them
