A grading system was developed to rate the moisture damage profile of dwellings and to study the relationship between moisture-induced indoor air problems and occupant health. A total of 630 randomly selected houses and apartments, built between 1950 and 1989, were visually inspected. Moisture observations were standardized into three damage levels. Thus, a system to classify the homes into three grades was devised. The two grades of homes associated with the highest levels of damage were graded as index homes.Overall, 51% of the sample had some kind of moisture fault in them and one in every three homes (33%) was classified as an index home. The mean number of damage incidents in the index dwellings varied from 1.4 to 2.6. The mean number of damage incidents in the reference homes was 0.28. Prevalence of index dwellings was significantly higher (p < 0.01) in houses (38%) than in apartments (26%). There was no major difference in the prevalence of index buildings in houses built in any particular decade (30-35%). Moisture was observed in 28% of bathrooms, in 10% of kitchens, and in 17% of other spaces. Indoor relative humidity (RH) levels were low in most homes. IMPLICATIONSThe grading system developed in this study provides a method of analyzing moisture findings and their intensity in dwellings. This knowledge is needed both for understanding the profile of existing moisture damage, particularly in cold climates, and for assessing how different levels of moisture damage relate to mold exposure and on occupant health. Therefore, the grading system may be useful both in assessing the condition of a building as a surrogate of exposure in epidemiologic studies, and as a decision-making instrument in assessing need for repair.
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