New article on inspecting for dust

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Use this thread to discuss the entry New article on inspecting for dust at the InterNACHI Blog

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Some dust can explode? While the statement may be true, conditions and actual explosions are quite rare.

I was trained on dust and dust explosions years ago. I worked for a company that used to produce corn starch.

While dust explosions can happen, the subject being covered in a home inspection-related article is preposterous. Bizarre, really.

Not only do the conditions leading to a dust explosion need to be right, there needs to be a static discharge and considerable quantities of airborne/concentrated dust present for it to occurr.

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**Conditions for dust explosion
**
There are five necessary conditions for a dust explosion:

  • A combustible dust;
  • The dust is suspended in the air at a high concentration;
  • There is an oxidant (typically atmospheric oxygen);
  • The dust is confined;
  • There is an ignition source.[1]

With the exception of #4, the absence any of these five conditions means there can be no dust explosion or deflagration.

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Joe incorrectly assumes:

I don’t see the word “home” in the article. Remember, InterNACHI is the world’s largest commercial property inspection association. The article was posted in the commercial forum of the message board: Commercial Inspections / CCPIA - InterNACHI®️ Forum and listed under the commercial section of Library of Inspection Articles - InterNACHI®

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Does this sound like a commercial location?

Dust Remedies

  • Change or clean your furnace and air-conditioner filters according to the filter manufacturer’s instructions.
  • Ensure that the clothes dryer vents directly to the outdoors. Inspect the vent duct for obstructions, kinks and holes, and make sure it is attached securely to the dryer.
  • Leave your shoes at the door so you don’t track dirt into the house.
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Yes, predominantly.

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I think it is great to have these articles,but would love to see more detailed follow up past 101 education level on some of them .

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Some advice in the commercial property inspection articles (checking shoes so as not to track dirt) apply to home inspections and vice-versa.

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Bob, we hear ya about the articles. We try to walk a fine line where we don’t let the articles evolve into full-blown course materials.

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Seriously?

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Yes. Here is the exact quote from the article referencing the explosion:

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What does that have to do with taking your shoes off before entering the house, venting your clothes dryer outside and changing your furnace filter?

You are being totally unserious IMHO.

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What does an explosion have to do with taking your shoes off? Uh, nothing. The explosion reference I quoted was to show the article included commercial properties, although some advice (like not tracking the dirt around) would be appropriate for home inspectors inspecting a shop at a residential home too.

I think the coal references were properly attributed to commercial properties with the section’s intro:

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I’m sorry Nick but the article is amateurish at best and mixes commercial with residential.

Consider a do over.

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Commercial and residential inspections (like commercial and residential construction) often overlap much, and so will our articles.

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You’re dancing Nick.

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Some things can be split up, but dust isn’t one of them. Dust is created and can be an issue in commercial and residential settings both.

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As a side note: We wrote the article at the offices here, which is located in live/work (mixed use) zoning district.

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Nothing wrong with explaining the risks of dust in commercial applications.

But would you care to cite some residential dust explosions?

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Got ya.
Perhaps Hyper links would do the trick.