Design for Mold Resistance and Resilience

Basics

• A Part of Design for X
• While it can complicate Cost Reductions in Materials (ie Design for Cost ), and may entail certain Occupational Health + Indoor Air Quality concerns to be investigated, and if necessary managed, Mold Remediation is intensive, and in Wood Framed Housing, can also be Destructive to the structure itself
• Thus designing structures with Preventing and Managing Mold in mind is worth considering
• TLDR User: Eric watched this video and as someone in a non-HEV house got spooked being in florida

Aspects

Mold Resistance

• Ie “Prevention”

Moisture

• Positive Pressure Ventilation vs Negative Pressure Ventilation
• The Interaction of Air Conditioning , Humidity + Dew Point , and Rain Shedding / Gutters, and overall roof ventilation etc

Material Biodegradability / Mold Vulnerability

• Paper Backed Drywall vs other options
  • Need to investigate this more
• Additives akin to Pressure Treated Wood may address this sufficiently
• Could write it out as “Intrinsically Mold Resistant” vs “Anti-Mold Treated” maybe?

Ventilation

• May be able to (especially in leu of full on “tight” building + Humidity Exchange Ventilation , having a Positive Pressure (even if “leaky” ) indoor areas, with a NEGATIVE pressure ullage space / some way of circulating non-air conditioned, but non-stagnant (or even Solar Chimney style hot/dry air) through the framing/siding such that it remains dry even if built imperfectly may be worth investigating

Mold Detection

Design for Inspection

• Granted OSE / OBI’s modular construction+well defined documentation (such that a Stud Detector etc may not even be needed due to “dead reckoning” based of the prints working fine) allows for this BUT:
  • Designing removable plugs in some areas to allow an Inspection Camera / Borescope / Endscope to be inserted allowing for Inspection of Studs/Insulation
  • Designing Accesible Attics / Accesible Crawlspaces / Basements such that inspectors can do their jobs easily
    • Although again as with cost tradeoffs, crawling through insulation/stepping on fragile floors may still be needed, but a possibility to consider pre-design/installation
  • Something akin to Termite Monitoring Bait Stations but for Framing/Insulation inspection/testing could be devised

Mold Remediation

• Due to Modular Section+THUROUGH Documentation, this should be easy (at least as easy as it CAN be) in OBI/OSE Builds
• Also no concerns with Asbestos / Lead Paint in the process etc
  • Tearing down OLD walls/buildings can be difficult due to this
• Design for Chemical Compatibility such that surfaces can be doused in various cleaners/anti-microbials/anti-mold agents may be worth it as well
  • In particular QUAT / Chlorine Bleach Solutions and to a lesser extent Alcohols such as Ethanol Methanol and Isopropanol (although these come with Fire + VOC hazards so are probably seldom used, still may be worth considering

Internal Links

• Design for Termite Resistance and Resilience
  • A related concept but for Termites and related pests such as Carpenter Ants etc
• Design for Rodent Infestation Resistance and Resilience
  • Related concept but for the (albeit far easier to manage with good housekeeping etc) Rodent Infestations/The stray squirrel or so entering an attic)
• Design for Wildlife Deconfliction+Deterrence