Changes in the wind

Just looking back, it appears as its been forever since the last blog posting. Yes, I hear there's a recession going on, but no - that's not why there hasn't been an update since May. Its been quite the opposite of a recession around here, actually. Things are really busy and there's no signs of change - a great thing, in the midst of all the doom and gloom.

Douglas Environmental Solutions is adding to the product and services being offered. We've always offered air treatment and odour elimination services, but in some cases, I felt we could do better - especially with odours. Yes, for people installing our purification systems, odours are not going to be a problem as the active purification we deploy will continually scrub both air and surfaces not only destroying any and all germs & viruses contacted, but also oxidizing chemicals. Most odours we come across are caused by organic molecules - some referred to as "volatile organic compounds" or "VOC's" for short. These are simply carbon-bearing molecules that our noses can detect.

Purification works here by oxidation - breaking apart the long-chain molecules into shorter and shorter ones. This eventually will break down most substances to CO2, H2O and NO2, or the components of over 99% of outdoor air. (This is one of the reasons one of our brand names carried is actually called "Fresh Air" - because that is exactly what it creates.)

This part of the equation remains unchanged, we are still offering the complete activTek lineup. Where I have felt we fell a little short was for properties that needed dramatic air quality improvements in a really short period of time. Fire damage, flood damage, mold remediation, properties that have been smoked in, or have perhaps had pets and associated lingering odours.

We are now offering ozone "Shock Treatment" for these properties. This is different from our typical lineup, in that while we're performing these shock treatments, the homes cannot be occupied. We bring in large, industrial ozone generators and bring the levels in the entire property up to about 10 parts per million (ppm) or above for a matter of hours, or perhaps days - as the case by case situation warrants. (By comparison, if you were to go outside after a thunderstorm, that fresh smell you probably love is actually ozone - but that would be at a concentration of about 0.05 ppm. For shock treatments, this is about 200X more ozone per cubic inch than what is considered "healthy.")

Ozone is ideal for this purpose because it is not a "masking agent" like Febreeze or some other spray deodourizers. This actually converts whatever the odour is into simpler, non-odour-causing molecules - eventually converting them to fresh air.

There is no lingering smell or after-effects from ozone either. Most people know that Oxygen is represented by "O2" as an element. Ozone is simply an oxygen molecule that has one more atom of oxygen bonded to it - it is represented by "O3." Ozone is very unstable it really "wants" to go back to the natural state of "O2" and will react with many types of things - in this case, smoke and other odour problems. The same process that eliminates the odours causes the O3 to convert back to O2 - which we can't smell and we know will not cause problems in homes and offices.

The process is relatively simple; we determine the amount of time and the level of ozone required to eliminate the problem, we evacuate the property and turn on the equipment, which runs on a timer. The ozone generator runs for as long as it needs to, then we let the ozone do its work. After a day or two, the ozone and the odours are permanently eliminated, and the property is left smelling fresh and clean.

This also will kill germs, viruses and molds in the property, leaving the place properly sanitized. We then just remove the equipment and people can return to using the property however they need to - just now without the odours!

For more information on this service, please contact us at info@douglasenviro.ca or call the office at 780-410-0837.