The Industrious Hygienist: New Equipment for the New Year! Featuring Extech.

So, no surprise, starting and operating a business is a tad expensive. But Spore Consulting needs to have equipment in order to actually do work and provide services. Go figure.

I really wanted to purchase fancy equipment, but I also wanted to be able to eat and pay my bills. The whole idea of depreciation on equipment is cool for tax purposes, but less cool when you remember that you still have to pay for it up front (usually).

So I went shopping on Amazon. Spouse and I buy pretty much everything but food on Amazon, thanks to living in a rural-ish area. FYI, no promotional consideration from Extech or Amazon was received for these reviews - I just wanted to let the industry know that there are lower-cost alternatives available for new consultants starting out in indoor air quality and industrial hygiene.

What I've purchased so far:

Thoughts on the Extech MO260 Moisture Meter

This is modified from my Amazon review. The pin and pinless availability is nice - I don't always like to poke holes in walls and other water-damaged materials to evaluate the moisture content. Property owners tend to get flinchy if I put holes in their walls. Bonus: the meter comes with extra pins (look in the battery area).

The meter's indicator sound for the yellow and red ranges is somewhat annoying - I'll eventually read the manual to figure out if this sound can be turned down or off. Last time I used this, the tenant representatives were freaking out every time it made a sound, asking, "Is is bad? Should we be worried?" Gaah. I'd like it to be quieter so I can attempt to be discreet. More on that later.

This meter is larger than the other moisture meters I have used (i.e. Protimeter Surveymaster). It is handheld-ish but doesn't fit great in my back pocket. Remember that this meter requires "D" batteries, so keep extras on hand. The black fabric case is decent quality and roomy, so you can fit a pen-size temperature and humidity meter in the case as well.

Thoughts on the Extech EA80 IAQ Meter

This is also modified from my Amazon review. I imagined this would be a similar size to the TSI IAQ meters and Graywolf sensing meters that I used to rent for IAQ surveys, but it is not. It's smaller (think hand-held) and the wand is also tiny (a little bit bigger than a standard highlighter). It has a built-in stand so that you can lean it on a surface while collecting measurements. All in all, I am pleasantly surprised.

The meter itself is green but has a bright orange form-fitted case for if you accidentally drop it (not that I ever would!). The meter requires 6 AAA batteries (comes with 6) and software for graphing data points for use in reports. This comes in a fairly large black plastic case - I use it to hold the IAQ meter and a moisture meter. I haven't used it in the field yet, but have used it in my house and outside. It looks like it will fit my needs for limited IAQ surveys.

Calibration appears to be simple.

Thoughts on the Extech Temperature and Humidity Pen

Ditto on the Amazon review. I needed a temperature/humidity meter that I could use with my moisture meter for initial site assessments after water damage - at the time, I had super-limited flexible income and couldn't afford the EA80 IAQ Meter. I bought this one because it was cheap and readily available.

My two issues with it:

It turns on (and stays on) while in the case because the buttons are really sensitive, so sometimes it is out of batteries when I have hardly used it.
The clip in the back snaps off pretty much the first time you try and clip it to anything (fail).

It does what it needs to and works as anticipated. I just have to keep extra batteries in the case.

View of my lovely new equipment:

The Industrious Hygienist's starter IAQ arsenal. Highlighter to show the relative size.

What I plan to purchase in the future:

Other equipment on my wish list:

I plan to post my *unbiased* reviews after I purchase the remaining equipment.

Monday, January 6, 2014

New Equipment for the New Year! Featuring Extech.