Mold and mildew have become ahuge concern in construction andmaintenance of buildings of alltypes, including correctional facili-ties. A mold problem can add costsand delays to a construction pro-ject and plague facility and mainte-nance personnel with an unendingmaintenance cycle. Mold thrives inwarm, damp, poorly ventilatedenvironments such as a showerarea in a bathroom.

What is mold? Mold (andmildew) is fungus that is light-weight, small and travel on air.They are abundant and foundalmost everywhere throughoutthe world. Biologically, all fungihave defined cell walls, lackchlorophyll and reproduce bymeans of spores. The vast majorityof fungi feed on dead or decayingorganic matter—they are one ofthe principle agents responsiblefor the natural recycling of deadplant and animal life. They canbe white, orange, green, black andalmost any other color.

Mold has a root system, a vege-tative stalk, and a seed pod. Formold, the root system is made upof hyphae (pronounced “hi-fee”).As hyphae grows into a mass dur-ing the vegetative state, itbecomes a mycelium (“my-sill-ee-um”). The spores, designed forreproduction, are similar to seeds.Like a weed, mold needs food and

water to survive. Formold, the food of pref-erence is organic mat-ter such as organicdust and dirt, leather,skin flakes, body oils,etc.

Three keys are neces-sary for mold growth—available food source, appropriatetemperature/humidity and consid-erable moisture. A correctionalshower provides an ample supplyof food (skin flakes and body oils),warm temperature, plenty of waterand high humidity, making it theperfect habitat for mold growth.

Mold growth starts when moldspores land on a food source (eventhe oil from your skin that is leftwhen you touch an otherwiseunsuitable surface, like stainlesssteel, or the soap residue left froma shower will provide sufficientnutrients to support it) andremain there patiently waiting formoisture. If the substrate theyland on should contain sufficientmoisture, or water comes fromanother source, the spore germi-nates and hyphae develop. Thehyphae grow, secrete enzymes tobreakdown food, form the myceli-um, and absorb nutrients whichfuels rapid growth.

Hyphae seeks out ideal places toanchor such as porous substrateslike tile grout and pinholes in

painted concrete and concreteblock and proceeds to consumethe substrate, it can also create it'sown anchor points by dissolvingpathways into the material. This isone of the reasons it is so difficultto completely remove mold. If youremove only the surface growth,bits of hyphae remain, burrowedin the substrate ready, to re-colo-nize upon the return of moisture.

Damage Mold CausesOver the past few years mold

has experienced high profile presscoverage. There are a variety ofinciting news reports concerningmold in homes, courthouses andother buildings. Insurers haverefused to write policies coveringmold damage and parents haverefused to send their children to“sick” school buildings. Whilemost mold groups cause littleharm, it is important to note thatall molds have the potential tocause negative health effects.Molds can produce allergens thatcan trigger allergic reactions or

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even asthma attacks in people allergic to mold.Others are known to produce potent toxins and/orirritants. Potential health concerns are an importantreason to remediate/clean up any existing indoormold growth.

Controlling Spread of MoldAs noted, mold requires an available food source,

appropriate temperature/humidity and considerablemoisture to grow. Because a correctional shower con-tains the perfect breeding ground for mold, it isextremely difficult to eradicate mold growth but it ispossible to control mold growth.

A major contributor to mold growth is painting andcaulking over mold and/or painting with products,such as oil based paints, which are actually a foodsource. Because mold is difficult to completely kill,once trapped beneath a fresh coat of paint or caulk itcan rapidly grow undetected beneath a pigmentedlayer of food. Anyone who has placed a sealant intheir shower at home has seen mold grow beneath, onand around the bead of caulk. Mold must be com-pletely removed prior to painting and caulking and itis imperative that a product be installed that is not afood source for mold and preferably one with a non-leaching anti-microbial.

Poor ventilation is another key factor in rapid moldgrowth and uncontrollable mold infestation. Manycorrectional facilities fail to maintain adequate air flowand air exchanges in their shower areas. Most majormold outbreaks occur at or above 70% RH. Maintaininggood air flow and RH below 60% (ideally 30-50%) willhelp control mold growth. It is important for correc-tional facilities to perform regular building/HVACinspections and to maintain these systems.

An often overlooked culprit in mold infestation isbar soap. Bar soap often contains talc, animal fatsand other components that become food for moldand worse become a Petri dish for mold growth. Overthe past years Reed Ashpole, jail administrator forCarver County in Chaska Minnesota, has experiment-ed with various soaps in his facility. Reed’s findingswere that liquid soaps leave little to no soap scumcompared with the bar soaps he tested. The reduc-tion of soap scum has had a direct impact on hiscleaning procedures and has reduced his mainte-nance cleaning costs.

While it is impossible to eliminate water from ashower stall it is possible to eliminate standing waterand water absorption. Proper sloping of showerfloors and eliminating bird baths (puddling) andporous materials will help to maintain lower RH.

Design SolutionsShowers in correctional facilities have typically

been built using concrete (cast in place and precast)and/or concrete block (CMU). The finishes on thesessubstrates have typically been tile or epoxy paint.

Tile has performed poorly because the grout used tofill the space between the tiles is extremely porousand holds water supporting mold growth. Epoxypaints do not adequately fill the concrete or concreteblock providing abundant nooks, holes and cranniesfor the hyphae to root. Both of theses finishes lackan anti-microbial to help fight against mold growth.

Over the past decade new finishes have come tomarket specifically designed for shower applications.These systems can be applied over concrete, concreteblock, steel, gypsum materials and almost any sub-strate and provide a seamless fiberglass reinforced lin-ing over walls, floors and ceilings in shower areas.These materials are non-absorbent, extremely hardand create unmatched bond strengths (in excess of900 p.s.i. per ASTM D 4541). They are high build sys-tems and completely fill and level the substrate, elim-inating nooks and crannies. They also contain a non-leaching anti-microbial to repel hyphae and keepmold from gaining a foothold.

While mold may never be completely eradicatedfrom shower areas it can be effectively mitigated. Byunderstanding how mold grows, taking steps to makeshower areas less hospitable to mold growth and uti-lizing the latest building materials, the costs,headaches and health effects associated with moldcan be drastically reduced. J

Christopher O’Brien is with Primecoat Coating Systems.

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