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NRMRL-RTP-P- 530a Foarde, K.K., VanOsdell, D.W., and Menetrez*, M.Y. Investigation of the Potential Antimicrobial Efficacy of Sealants Used in HVAC Systems. Published in: Journal of Air and Waste Management Association 51 (8):1219-1226 (2001). 07/06/2000 The paper gives results of an investigation of the potential antimicrobial efficacy of sealants used in heating, ventilation and air- conditioning systems. Recent experiments confirm field experience that duct cleaning alone may not provide adequate protection from regrowth of fungal contamination in fiberglass duct liner. Current recommendations for remediation of fungally contaminated fiberglass duct materials specify complete removal of the materials. But reemoval of contaminated materials can be extremely expensive. Therefore, a common practice in the duct cleaning industry is the post-cleaning use of antimicrobial surface coationgs with the implication that they may contain or limit regrowth. The paper describes a study to evaluate whether three commercially available coatingts, placed ona cleaned surface that 1 year previously had been actively growing microorganisms, would be able to prevent regrowth. The three coatings contained different active antimicrobial compounds. Test results showed that two of the three antimicrobial coatings limited the regrowth of fungal contamination, at least in the short term. The third did not. Before use in the field, testing of the efficacy of antimicrobial coatings under realistic use conditions is recommended because antimicrobials have different baseline activities and interact differently with the substrate that contains them.

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