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"Best Indoor Air Quality Test Kit for Sick Building Syndrome Testing" "What's the best indoor air quality test kit or monitor to accurately and easily test for causes of Sick Building Syndrome?"
This is a question I get asked frequently by those who are suffering from indoor allergy symptoms associated with Building-related Illness. This page provides the best air test solution I have yet found.
The best air quality test kits are the air sampling types used by the Healthy Home Specialists or Home Inspectors who, let's be honest, often charge an arm and a leg for their in-home testing services.
Their price usually starts above $500 and quickly goes up from there depending on how many and which contaminants they test for.
It is no wonder most allergy sufferers want to cut out the middle man and do their own indoor air quality testing with lower cost diy kits.
This page will help you do just that, but without having to skimp on quality or pay more for it. In fact, you can get much more for a much lower cost by going directly to the pros' source.
The below advanced air sampler kits are the same ones currently being used by many of the Indoor Air Quality Experts to accurately test for evidence of the most common causes of indoor air pollution and Sick Building Syndrome, such as:
- Formaldehyde gas
- >400 Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC)
- actively growing Mold colonies
- Secondhand Smoke / Thirdhand Smoke (residue) / Environmental Tobacco Smoke
Now you can get the same advanced professional-grade air test kits, accurate results, and expert remedial recommendations for a fraction of the cost the pros would charge.
You can easily and quickly test your own home for the above indoor air pollutants to a greater and more accurate extent, yet a much lower price than even the many inferior test products being heavily marketed to homeowners.
Many of the diy air test kits for sale all over the web are not very reliable or sensitive and usually only test for a very limited scope of contaminants. And they are very expensive for what little you get.
Just as an example, one such popular "chemical vapor VOC test badge" designed for diy home use only tests for 40 compounds, costs a whopping $260 for just one test, and has a long 10 day turn-around time for the analysis and results to be returned.
The passive "badge" type tests also tend to be a lot less accurate compared to the below higher quality professional-grade air samplers which actively collect the air with a small integrated pump.
And many of the so-called badge air test results provide difficult to decifer mundane details with little to no guidance on specific action steps to improve indoor air quality based on the results.
Unless you are a Chemist or Material Scientist, it can be difficult to figure out what the test results mean - for example, what the likely sources of all those VOC chemical gases are, which is key to knowing how to improve indoor air quality through source control.
On the other hand, consider the following best of breed indoor air quality test kit the professionals use.
Out of all the other air test kits on the market today, I believe this one is hands down the best in quality, accuracy, ease of use, quantity of VOCs tested, actionable results, expert support, and overall value (see my 24 other reasons below).
 | | The Home Air Check™ Indoor Air Quality Test Kit Used By the Experts, and Now Available to Everyone | The best indoor air quality test kit is supplied by Home Air Check™ and includes analysis by Prism Analytical Technologies, an AIHA-accredited air testing laboratory in Mt. Pleasant, Michigan.
Watch the short video below for a quick overview of just how insanely simple the Home Air Check sampler it is to use.
Prism Analytical Technologies has a twenty year track record as an industry leader in advanced air testing and they are at the top of my short A-list of premier healthy home partners.
Based on almost 15 years of Analytical experience and research into the competition, I believe Home Air Check is simply the best air test kit value and diagnostic solution for anyone interesting in learning how to create a more healthy home.
With Home Air Check's professional-grade indoor air quality test kit you can quickly and accurately test for over 400 Volatile Organic Compounds, plus Mold Volatile Organic Compounds (MVOC), plus Formaldehyde gas - all for only $125.
Discount: if you buy more than one VOC + Formaldehyde Kit the price drops to only $99.50 each - this is an unheard of bargain for a pro-grade air test.
Overview Video of the Best Indoor Air Quality Test Kit
Home Air Check provides 10 times the scope of indoor air pollution testing, and for less than half the cost of most other inferior diy test kits.
And I really like how they interpret the results in a practical way anyone can understand, and also provide specific action steps to help fix the problem sources, with a team of professionals always readily available for support and guidance.
And it takes only about 3 hours to collect the air sample and only 5 days turn around time to get the results once the kit is received back by the lab. That is twice as fast as most other indoor air test kits.
One clue the analysis is more sensitive than any other indoor air quality test is their ability to detect Mold Volatile Organic Compounds which no other test kit on the market is sensitive enough to do.
Having Analytical Lab experience myself, I know the ability to measure MVOC means the Home Air Check test kit AND the analytical methods and instruments used by Prism Analytical Technologies is state-of-the-art, and provides the lowest detection limits compared to any other indoor air quality testing service.
By detecting the specific gases released by actively growing hidden mold colonies (MVOC) you get a more accurate test for the presence of mold and can often detect the problem before mold growth becomes obvious.
Most mold tests only test for mold spores - which, unlike gases, may settle out of the air or be physically impeded by walls or flooring which makes hidden colonies less detectable.
MVOCs on the other hand are gases given off by actively growing mold colonies, and unlike mold spores, the gas molecules can easily travel through or around parts of the structure allowing for more sensitive detection of hidden mold.
So you get more sensitive mold testing included in the above kit, whereas others charge that much for less reliable mold spore testing kits alone.
24 Reasons Why Home Air Check is the Best Indoor Air Quality Test Kit
- Simple easy setup and the most advanced, accurate, cost-effective, and sensitive testing.
- It only takes about 3 hours to collect the air sample which is much faster than most other test products.
- Professional-grade air test kit at half the cost of most other labs and free after-test support.
- State-of-the-art air testing laboratory provides simultaneous and automated testing which keeps the test cost half that of other labs.
- Tests for Over 400 Volatile Organic Chemicals (VOCs).
- Tests for 21 Mold Volatile Organic Compounds (MVOCs), produced by actively growing Mold colonies.
- The only laboratory that will perform a full detailed Gas Chromatograph / Mass Spectrometer analysis (GC-MS) for under $300.
- U.S. Leader in the use of Thermal Desorption Tubes (TDT), which enables low-cost air collection and analysis.
- The best home air quality test available for testing of total VOCs and MVOCs.
- Can detect some solvents from illegal drug production such as those found in Meth Labs or once Meth Houses which often contain hazardous chemical residues that may become airborne.
- Covers large area (2000 square feet).
- High quality air sampling pump and tube design for accurate sampling.
- Pre-paid, pre-addressed shipping container for analysis return included.
- Sophisticated lab analysis performed by a degreed Chemist.
- Test results supplied by Prism Analytical Technologies, Inc. which is an industrial hygiene air testing laboratory fully accredited by the AIHA (American Industrial Hygiene Association).
- Easy to understand comprehensive results reports.
- Predictive report suggesting possible sources of VOCs so you can begin to improve your indoor air quality.
- Quick analysis turn around time of 5 days from kit return, much faster than average.
- Phone, email, or chat support and follow up to answer any questions you may have before or after the test.
- Team of air quality professionals ready to answer questions and provide guidance.
- Determines the chemical fingerprint of your home so you identify sources and begin control measures.
- Prism provides additional recommendations on how to control elevated VOC or MVOC levels and can provide a consultation or referrals to additional testing or help from a certified Industrial Hygeinist or other indoor air quality expert.
- Many Indoor Air Quality Professionals use Home Air Check for their air quality assessments.
- Choice of test kits: Formaldehyde Test, VOC Test (VOCs & Hidden Mold), Tobacco Smoke Test (Secondhand and Thirdhand Smoke), VOC + Formaldehyde Test (VOCs, Hidden Mold & Formaldehyde) - volume discount available.
Just keep in mind that Home Air Check, by nature of its design and methods, can not test for Asbestos fibers, Dust mites, Lead dust, or Radon Gas.
Asbestos, Lead, and Radon are not usually closely associated with Sick Building Syndrome cases, but they are still proven to cause serious life-threatening chronic diseases and other health risks over the long-term.
So you can never go wrong by testing for these additional indoor air hazards - especially Radon gas - which the government recommends EVERY homeowner test for.
Radon is the SECOND leading cause of Lung Cancer and many homes in North America (especially in areas with granitic rocks) tend to have fairly elevated levels the homeowner will likely not become aware of unless they test for it.
Radon gas is colorless and odorless so you won't be aware of inhaling it. But it can seep into your home from the earth below and can deliver radiation and radioactive decay products directly into your lungs causing cancer when you inhale them over the long-term and especially if you smoke cigarettes during that time.
The best indoor air quality test kit for Radon gas testing, Lead dust, Asbestos, and Dust Mites will be added in the near future.
Related Pages Complete Guide to Radon Gas
Complete Guide to Lead
Complete Guide to Asbestos
Complete Guide to Sick Building Syndrome
Return to Home Air Purifier Index from Best Indoor Air Quality Test Kit
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Marc says...
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