Question
I am concerned about the VOCs from the 6 commercial gas dryers in my building. My condo is over the laundry room.
I purchased a carbon monoxide detector (so far has shown no activity) and I am working to plug all entries for the dryer exhaust to enter my home (e.g. plugging up an outdated kitchen wall fan that was permitting fumes to blow in, sealing affected windows shut with weatherstripping tape).
Answer
I think that creating a solid air barrier between the laundry room and your living space is a great idea.
However, it is going to be very difficult to know this was achieved without a little professional assistance. I'd recommend finding a BPI Accredited Contractor or BPI Building Analyst (www.bpi.org) near your home and hiring them to perform an inspection.
- They should do analytical testing with a blower door to determine how leaky your house is and if there is a solid/continuous air barrier between your home and the laundry room.
- In addition, they should have some fancy indoor air quality (IAQ) testing equipment to determine if any CO, VOCs, gas, or other unfriendly substances are entering your home.
If the basic work you performed has not solved the issue, then it would be wise to have a BPI professional take it from here. Air sealing can be complex, technical, dirty, and dangerous work.
Kind regards,
Lucas
