Ellis Environmental Mgmt. Inc.

12/10/2023

Ellis' Christmas Party 2023. Fourteen of us. Great fun.

01/19/2023

https://www.ellisenvironmental.com/blog/moisture-intrusion-and-why-flooding-means-surveying-your-building-for-asbestos-and-lead

Ellis Environmental Management serves in Southern California, Arizona, and Nevada. Specializing in asbestos testing, lead testing, & indoor air quality.

07/15/2022

Ellis Environmental is . If you are a certified Site Surveillance Technician (Cal/OSHA CSST) in Southern California and are looking for work, please get in touch.

https://www.facebook.com/jobs/job-opening/597614484530252?source=job_ats

07/15/2022

Ellis Environmental is always hiring experienced, professional, certified Industrial Technicians. Email us with your experience and availability along with your work history and we will get back to you with any immediate or future employment opportunities. Thank you.

02/14/2022

IONIZATION EQUIPMENT

Bipolar Ionization – An Indoor Air Quality Investigation

Ellis was recently contracted to perform an investigation on the efficacy of a newly installed bipolar ionization system in a large commercial client’s administrative office facility. These systems have been around for several decades but have experienced a bit of a renaissance in the age of COVID-19. The reason? These systems are purportedly able to neutralize particulate matter (PM) even smaller than 0.1 microns (µm) – so called ultra-fine particles (UFPs). This is a microscopic size where, you guessed it, bacteria, viruses, and specifically SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) live.

The client had the system installed and received a subsequent installer-generated performance report that utilized a standard dust meter to chart the efficacy of the system. Standard dust meters chart dust concentrations in the PM 2.5 µm to PM 10 µm range.

Immediately, Ellis saw deficiencies in the installer’s report. How could charting a reduction in PM 2.5 draw any conclusions about the system’s ability to reduce UFPs or airborne viruses? It seemed all the more troubling as reducing airborne viral concentrations and getting people back to the office was the impetus driving the client to seek out and complete the costly installation in the first place.

Ellis stepped in and proposed a more thorough indoor air quality (IAQ) investigation for the client; one that measured carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, temperature, relative humidity, PM 2.5 & PM 10, airborne mold, UFPs, and ozone.

The system was tested on two separate mobilizations exactly one week apart – one while the system was “OFF” and a subsequent mobilization while the system was “ON.” The elapsed time in testing was hypothesized to give the system adequate time to reach optimal performance in treating the various air masses present in the complex interior of the building. In addition to the direct system performance comparisons, outdoor concentrations on the separate mobilizations were also measured.
Significant data manipulation was required to get a better understanding of what was happening during the sampling and how it may relate to the performance of the system.

Specifically, varied outdoor concentrations on the separate sampling dates made it difficult to draw conclusions on the system’s ability to reduce PM 2.5, PM 10, UFPs, and airborne mold concentrations. Outdoor levels of these constituents measured significantly higher on the date that the bipolar ionization system was in operation... indoor concentrations, unsurprisingly, were also higher.

Ultimately, Ellis had to rely on ratios to attempt to compare the system’s efficacy. In this way, system performance was able to be measured as a function of the relative reduction in outdoor contaminant levels rather than total measured indoor levels on varied sampling dates.

The comparison between constituent ratios revealed that indoor, fine dust concentrations were slightly, proportionally lower while the ionizer system was in operation. Better still, there was no significant increase in ozone levels, a potentially harmful byproduct produced by some ionizer systems. In English? The system seemed to work... at least marginally, but perhaps not in proportion to its price tag.

Ryan Davidson, Senior Project Manager

02/08/2022

Ellis recently responded to an emergency request by a large commercial client whose office headquarters had been inundated with water following a roof leak. Water collects along the base of walls following such events. We marked out all wet areas and recommended they be removed and the walls dried prior to installation of new wallboard. Ellis has a list of contractors who can perform the work. The Owner agreed but, because of potential costs, place a claim against their insurance.

That insurance carrier refused the claim, opting instead to bring out their OWN disaster response contractor who (they claimed) could dry the area at a much lower cost. Rather than strip out the walls as recommended by Ellis, the carrier's contractor drilled a few holes, placed fans in the wet areas for a few days, then left.

A month later, employees began to complain of a moldy smell, along with mold-related health effects. Air sampling indicated INDOOR mold concentrations many hundreds of times higher than outdoor levels. In short, by not stripping and drying wet walls quickly, a hazardous environment had been created. The building was closed again, and remains closed pending a proper response action by a licensed abatement contractor.

-Duane Behrens, President
Ellis Environmental Management, Inc.

10/01/2021

INTERIOR FLOOD: Earlier this week, a sprinkler main riser failed in a multi-story office building in Burbank, CA. Camera footage shows a powerful geyser of water shooting HORIZONTALLY - through 3 layers of wallboard - and inundating multiple areas with 4 inches of standing water before the main could be shut down.

An emergency response contractor was called to remove saturated wallboard and begin the drying process. Ellis also responded. After confirming no asbestos or lead paints were present, we used our infra-red camera and conductive moisture meters to map out the extent of damaged materials. We then directed the contractor on their removal, cleaning and drying efforts.

When finished, we'll provide a final clearance inspection, air and surface monitoring for mold, and certification to the Owner and tenants.

www.ellisenvironmental.com

09/04/2021

LEAD POISONING:
Let me just put this out there.
1. My company regularly tests public facilities for lead in air, surfaces and in drinking water.
2. For floors where lead dust may be present, the Department of Health has established 40 micrograms per square foot (U.S.) as their lead "hazard level."
3. At the last shooting range we investigated, we found more than 20,000 ug/sf lead in surface dust. Men and boys were utilizing this indoor range for target practice before and after we collected our samples.
4. The effects of lead poisoning include:
Damage to the brain and nervous system
Slowed growth and development
Learning and behavior problems
Emotional outbursts and erratic behaviour ("Mad as a Hatter").
Hearing and speech problems
Lowered IQ
Decreased ability to pay attention
Ergo:
Good folks who regularly visit shooting ranges and bring lead dust home on their clothing are likely to exhibit the above characteristics, and (worse) transfer the poison - and those traits - to their family members. The fix: Establish entry and exit rules, special footwear (booties), HEPA air filtrations, frequent cleaning, respirators for shooters, etc.

Duane Behrens
EDIT: unit concentration corrected to U.S. EPA standard, "s.f."

08/10/2021

COVID Vaccination Requirement -
The following went out to employees this morning from my desk:

We just received word from Kaiser Permanente that all consultants, testing agencies, contractors, subcontractors and other vendors must now furnish proof of vaccination before being allowed on any KP property.

As always and if you haven’t already done so, we encourage you to get your vaccine as soon as possible. ADMIN - please store a copy of each employee’s vax cert in a readily accessible directory to provide to clients as needed. Thank you all.

Duane Behrens

07/12/2021

RETURNING TO THE CLASSROOM ENVIRONMENT
Ellis Environmental Mgmt. Inc., an environmental testing firm in southern California, has now assisted more than 20 individual school campuses - more than 100 buildings - in re-opening following COVID-related closures. The work was requested prior to students returning to their normal classroom environment after some months of precautionary, state-recommended absence. Monitoring was conducted for the following potential contaminants:

• Fibrous Dust & Other Fibers (PCM)
• Particulate Matter (PM2.5-PM10)
• Ultra-Fine Particles (UFP’s)
• Carbon Dioxide (CO2), Carbon Monoxide (CO), Temperature, Relative Humidity
• Airborne Mold
• Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs)
• Lead in surface Dust
• Airborne Bacteria

The work continues, as we assist each District in addressing any identified issues. (There have been very few.) We're pleased to have helped.

05/11/2021

This memo went out to our entire team this morning:

COVID 19 – TO ALL STAFF:

As you probably know, Jane and I have now both received our second Covid jabs. We did so for two important reasons. (1) we don’t want to die. (2) we want to enjoy being with and entertaining our friends again.

We’re having friends over this weekend, in fact. All of them ALSO vaccinated. And all of us will be mask-less. There might even be some hugs at the end of the evening. It’s actually quite a relief.

So. I won’t and wouldn't tell you the vaccine is mandatory. I WILL tell you I hope you get it done. Jane and I actually do care for each of you. That’s the main reason for this email. It may also come to pass that clients, airlines and regulatory agencies will require proof of vaccinations, although it’s not currently mandatory, which also pleases me.

Biden is shooting for that “herd immunity” that comes from 70% vaccination success. He’s getting close and that’s exciting. The economy is responding strongly.

04/08/2021

Environmental Technician / Site Surveillance Technician (CSST-Certified) - MUST BE CURRENTLY CERTIFIED as of 7-15-22

Ellis Environmental, Southern California's leader in commercial asbestos and lead-related testing and management services, is looking for a highly motivated CSST - (Cal/OSHA Certified Site Surveillance Technician) to join our expanding team!

MUST HAVE a minimum CSST certification from DOSH (Division of Occupational Safety and Health), great communication skills, strong verbal and written skills, legible handwriting (for field reports), strong analytical skills, along with a reliable vehicle and a current, clean CA driver’s license. Job will be part-time to start, progressing to full time. Applicant must CURRENTLY BE RESIDING IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA.

Job duties include asbestos/lead surveys and clearances, monitoring abatement projects, indoor air quality and mold/moisture assessments, Phase I site surveys, and health and safety audits occurring throughout the LA basin (Burbank, Glendale, Hollywood, Torrance, Long Beach, etc.). Some weekend and night work is required.

The right candidate must be physically capable of carrying out field sampling activities, which can include crawlspace inspections, roof sampling, and involve carrying moderately heavy equipment (pumps, ladders, tools etc.).

Ellis Environmental provides a competitive salary, training, medical and dental insurance, and paid vacation/sick time for full time employees. Mileage costs are reimbursed.

Please reply to this ad with your current resume and a cover letter indicating the city in which you live, your certifications, and why you would be a good candidate for this position.

For more information about our company, please visit www.ellisenvironmental.com.

04/07/2021

04/07/2021