Matt Kelly explains why bathrooms and kitchens need ERMI testing despite lab warnings against it. These wet rooms are where mold starts: behind showers, under vanities, under sinks, basement leaks. Testing them properly matters because that's where the problem lives.
Matt, your ERMI video says to test bathrooms and kitchens and basements. The lab instructions say not to. What's going on? All right. You'll notice if you watch my ERMI video on how to do an ERMI properly. It goes against what some of the lab's instructions are. That come on the paper that's included with it. But let me explain. Okay, so the lab, I'm not sure if they came up with their own instructions or if they're like the original EPA ERMI instructions. Well, no, because that would have been vacuum testing. Whoever came up with the instructions that's passed on by the lab saying not to ermia a bathroom, not to ermia a kitchen, and not to ermia a basement are wrong. Okay? I just said it. It's wrong. And I do give you instruction that's different from the lab because that's what we need to do to get the best data. Now think about this for a minute. The bathroom and kitchen are your two biggest wet rooms. Where do most problems in a home start? Near water. In wet rooms like bathrooms and kitchens. Where does it happen in bathrooms? Behind showers, under toilets, Under. Behind or under the vanity. You know, people washing their hands goes up, hits the mirror, goes down to the mirror. And if that's not silicone there, which is in my mold proof your home master glass water gets behind the vanity. I've seen these vanities come out where everywhere it touched, the wall was just black with mold. I've seen mirrors come off because that same moisture goes up behind the mirror, and it's just mold all up behind the mirror. Of course we check bathrooms for mold because that's where mold starts. We. We check kitchens because people get leaks under their sink, their dishwashers leak. Of course we're going to test in the kitchen. But here's the difference. You have to check properly. And that's why it's in my video telling you how to test those rooms properly so that you're not wiping grease off your stoves. The fan above your oven, right. That's going to wreck your ermi. Okay, so they tell you not to do it because you could get into trouble there, but we need to do it there because these are the highest fan, potentially moldy places in our home. You just have to do it right. Same with the basement. When the lab says not to test a basement, our basement is where our kids are all the time. That's where our family room is. That's where bedrooms are. It's not like it's a crawl space or something. It's where we live. And of course, you want to test your basement because, you know, we've got all that plumbing running in the ceiling above there. You've got, if you had a foundation problem and a crack and moisture coming in the basement. Basements and crawl spaces are notorious. And now you're not going to earn me your crawl space along with your house, but you are if you have a finished basement or not even finished, even if it's just connected to your same H vac. Okay. You know, like my heat that comes into my office here blows into the basement. The cold air return in my office here matches up with the air that goes in. The cold air returns from the basement. So, yes, my instructions do differ from the lab, but you have to check these other places, and you have to check them properly and safely. And that's why I made that video on how to do an ermine. So be sure to watch that, but don't worry about ignoring the lab's instructions. I know if you're a rule follower, it seems wrong, but trust me, we want to test these spaces because they're very. They could very well be the sources where your mold is. Hope that helps.
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