Acoustic ceiling tiles can be beautiful but also a potential health hazard.
Acoustic ceiling tiles not only reduce the noise in a den or music room but can reduce heating bills by lowering the total area of a room, and add to the d cor. However, many molds thrive within these tiles if the humidity of the room remains high over a period of time. These molds can disperse throughout the room causing various infections and illnesses when they come into contact with skin or are inhaled.
Stachybotrys atra (S. atra) a form of "Black mold"
S. atra, a dark, slow growing fungal spore, thrives on high cellulose, low nitrogen building material such as acoustic tile.
According to the Advanced Mold Inspection website, Stachybotrys atra or "Black mold" produces chemical toxins or mycotoxins inside the mold spore, becoming toxic mold, which can be inhaled, ingested, or come into contact with skin causing fever, cold and flu symptoms, headaches, dermatitis, nose bleeds, cough and general malaise. Awareness of the dangers of this health problem occurred when a study was done after infants in Cleveland, Ohio in the 1990s died of pulmonary hemorrhaging. Researchers found that the babies had been exposed to high levels of S. atra in their homes.
Cladosporium, another "Black mold"
Also found on acoustic ceiling tile, Cladosporium, one of the most common "black molds," contains a black pigment, a protection from ultraviolet light. Although it does not produce any major mycotoxins it causes severe illness and infections when it enters abrasions or small cuts. The immune system can weaken after prolong exposure, allowing the host to get infected by viruses and bacteria.
Penicillium/ Aspergillus spp.
Commonly found together, Penicillium and Aspergillus spp are difficult to differentiate even under a microscope and are known to be both toxigenic and allergenic.
Penicillium and Aspergillus spp. contaminate acoustic ceiling tile, and according to John C. S. Chang, et al, at the Air and Energy Engineering Research Laboratory, a division of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, even new tiles can contain both Aspergillus ssp. and Penicillium fungi if the environmental conditions are right. These fungi thrive on tile where moisture content (MC) is greater than 2.2% and the relative humidity (RH) is as low as 85%. Chang further claims that used tiles may be even more susceptible to these molds than new tiles.
Dr. Thad Godish , PH.D., C.I.H., a Ball State University professor of natural Resource and Environmental Management, reports that a 6-inch spot infected with Penicillium produces millions of spores which are tiny and tend to remain airborne longer than other mold spores which make them a more ubiquitous inhalant.
With more than 160 species of mold, 16 causing human disease, the genus Aspergillus spp. causes a disease known as aspergillosis that, according to The Toxic Black Mold Information Center as of July, 2010, "is now the second most common fungal infection requiring hospitalization in the United States."
Alternaria
The ubiquitous Alternaria, found on interior horizontal surfaces such as acoustic ceiling tile, exhibits larger spores that attach to oral, nasal or other pulmonary walls and is associated with baker’s asthma, invasive infection, sinusitis and intrinsic asthma. More serious symptoms are bronchiospasms and edema which, over time, can develop into pulmonary emphysema.
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