Detecting Moisture and Mould Damage in Finnish Public Buildings

Indoor air quality problems and moisture and mould damage in different structures are among biggest issues in the Finnish building stock, especially in public buildings. These are all global problems but most significant indoor air impurity varies by country. The impact of indoor air quality problems affects many people, so more efficient procedures to detect indoor air impurities are needed. When trying to create a healthy indoor environment, it is necessary to take into account all possible indoor air impurities. However, in Finland the presence of moisture in structures, and moisture and mould damage are common reasons for indoor air quality problems, so the examination of such damage separately from other indoor air quality issues is also necessary.

This thesis focuses on moisture and mould damage in structures in Finnish public buildings. The main objective is to increase our knowledge of moisture and mould damage to these buildings. One of the key factors is to identify how structures, the age of buildings or building materials have affected moisture and mould damage. It is also important to analyse how such damage has been detected. This knowledge will help us to develop new procedures and methods to improve building maintenance and help us to prevent damage in future. The research data consist of a moisture and mould damage database comprising reports of moisture performance assessments. The database has been examined by statistical analysis and case studies.

This thesis points out the structures where moisture and mould damage are most common and where the detection of damage is most difficult. In Finnish public buildings, damage is common in structures with soil contact, but that kind of damage can usually be detected quite easily. Detecting damage is most difficult in structures, which consist of many layers of different materials. Visual inspections and moisture mappings with a surface moisture detector are useful tools to evaluate the condition of many buildings. The statistical data, however, cannot be the only data for renovating individual buildings, so thorough moisture performance assessments are still needed.