IAQ Test Kit from Air Quality Sciences

Indoor air quality testing, as most experts will tell you, is immensely complex. Different testing procedures are required for different types of contaminants, and the equipment used for identifying and measuring biological and chemical contaminants, particularly VOCs, is very expensive. The new IAQ Test Kit from Air Quality Sciences (AQS) expands the options for air quality testing with a relatively affordable kit.

The IAQ Test Kit measures formaldehyde levels and total VOC (volatile organic compound) levels, lists the three primary VOCs detected, and identifies mold and other particulates collected. Formaldehyde and VOC levels are measured with separate passive monitors. The monitors are uncapped and hung up for exposure to the indoor air for a period of time—typically 5 to 7 days. Following this period of exposure, the monitors are re-sealed and returned to AQS for evaluation. In both of these passive monitors, specialized sorbant materials capture the formaldehyde and a wide range of VOCs. In the AQS laboratory, these absorbed gases are driven off with heat, and the gases analyzed using advanced equipment (gas chromatography, mass spectroscopy, and UV-visible spectrophotometry). While low-cost passive formaldehyde monitors have long been available, most of these measure higher levels of formaldehyde found in occupational situations, not background levels experienced in commercial buildings or schools.