Common swab, swab-in-a-tube, and nylon-flocked swab are currently available for indoor surface microbial sampling. Common swab is designed to take clinical samples for presence/absence results. It can be used to collect loose bacteria and mold spores on a smooth surface. However, its long handle designed for patient's comfort is too soft and flexible for collecting mold growth. Its Q-Tip type head also has limited capacity to collect fungal biomass. The sponge or gel in the container to keep the swab tip moist will retain portion of the sample and reduce recovery rate in laboratory preparation, thus create negative bias in the results.

Swab-in-a-tube (3M Swab-Sampler) has a short handle and no sponge or gel in the container. It's designed for collecting environmental samples. However, the collection and recovery efficiency is still limited by the Q-Tip type swab head. MoldSense SweepSwabs are nylon-flocked swabs, which has a brush-like head full of small nylon fibers. Both the collection and recovery efficiency are higher than common swabs. If quantitative analysis result is desired, MoldSense SweepSwab is the right choice of sampling device.

We have been helping companies that were frustrated with unsatisfying services from their microbiology labs on issues such as:
(1) poor technical support
(2) no personal attention
(3) questionable results
(4) project delay; slow turnaround time
(5) reports not making sense
(6) lack of ethics

Call us today, and understand how we can help you with that!

Host: Joe Hughes/Cliff Zlotnik

Episode Notes: Building Science! Why do buildings fail? What is being done to solve the problems? How do we stop IAQ problems before they start? This week on IAQ Radio we have Bob Wendt a research architect specializing in building science investigations of residential buildings. Bob retired from the Oak Ridge National Laboratory's Buildings Technology Center in January 2008. He is currently an independent consultant and an adjunct professor in the Mechanical Engineering Department of Tuskegee University. Bob's current activities include research into the impact of mold and contaminants on residential building materials that have been subjected to flooding or other water damage. This work has been in support of the Department of Homeland Security's Disaster- Resilient Homes project. Join IAQ Radio and this weeks special guest to discuss how we can build better buildings.

Scheduled Time:
Date: Fri, October 17, 2008
Time: 12:00 PM EDT