Ozone Treatment

Ozone Shock Treatment 

If you've been searching for ozone generators online, no doubt you've discovered plenty of conflicting information in regards to ozone shock treatments.  Some vendors suggest running their machines for up to 48 hours to treat larger areas.  Folks, that's not how ozone works!  Ozone oxidizes organic compounds to a greater or lesser extent according to the ppm ozone concentration.  A low ppm concentration caused by inadequate ozone output in a large area will never reach the ppm concentration needed to permanently remove the offensive organic material causing the odor in the first place.  To make matters worse, ozone over long periods of time will begin to solicit a reaction with certain foam and rubber products, mainly furniture foam and carpet padding.  Those chemical reactions require time to reach a "flash point" in which the chemical bonds are broken and off-gassing of the material is achieved.  Why don't other ozone generator vendors tell you this?  Perhaps they want you to believe that their one over priced ozone generator is capable of performing a "big job" which frankly just isn't the case at all.

What then is the time tested standard for ozone shock treatments, the guideline that most restoration professionals use?  1g of ozone per 100 sq ft with 10 foot ceilings over short periods of time (1-6 hours) is all it takes to do the job fast, professionally, and effectively.  High ppm, short duration ozone shock treatments also have the added benefit of not having time to fully interaction with foams and carpet padding.  You'll kill the organic material without breaking down chemical based solids, except for airborne VOC's and chemicals which will be quickly broken down with shock levels of ozone.

Here is some information regarding ozone generators that can help you determine if your ozone generator is up to the task:

1) Ambient air contains 21% oxygen.  A high voltage ceramic ozone element such as the one we use fed at least 100 cubic feet a minute and powered by at least a 3KV (3000 volts) power source (ours are 4KV) can produce up to 3600 mg/h of ozone per hour.  Fed 2000 CFM of air from say a box fan will not however increase the ozone production! Only feeding the plates pure oxygen can increase ozone production.  NOTE:  One ozone generator vendor who claims to have a 1 HP "ozone engine" without disclosing the CFM of his air source is actually using a Spa blower that produces only 105 CFM and used 4 amps of electricity. (power hog).  Just an example of the three ring circus that is the ozone generator industry.

2) Attaching 2-4 ceramic ozone plates to one 4KV power transformer will not double the amount of ozone.  It will still only produce up to 4000 mg/h if you use a 4KV power source. The plates will turn a dark purple in the dark when powered by 1 transformer.  Two plates powered by 1 transformer will glow half as bright as the electricity is being divided, and also the ozone production.

3) In order to produce 16,000 mg/h of ozone, you  need to utilize at least a 16,000KV transformer (cost over $250, not likely)   Higher power transformers are not as stable as lower power transformers and require added cooling.  For this reason, we've found that using multiple 4KV transformers in our higher output units is better than using 1 high powered transformer that could feed several plates.

4) MICA plates with their stainless steel mesh are only capable of producing around 400 mg/h of ozone when fed ambient air.  Viewed by the naked eye in the dark, they will barely turn purple (very little electrical spark going on to split 02 into 03). These types of ozone plates also pose a fire hazzard.

Ozone Shock Treatment Precautions:

No humans, pets, or plants.  No soft rubber items should be present during a shock treatment.  (More detailed information, guidelines, and tips in your owners manual).   Remove speakers if possible. (stereo equipment and tv's okay)  Remove if not sure or cover air tight in a plastic bag. 

Set-up

Before you start a shock treatment, make sure you have enough ozone capability to treat 100 sq ft with 1000 milligrams of ozone, that is, if you want to make the results permanent and if you want to reach down deep and remove even stubborn odors.  It's all about the concentration.  Highly diluted ozone will not reach anywhere near the concentration needed to do a professional job.  Don't take our word for it.  If you own a competitive product that claims 1000 mgph is all you need to do an ozone shock treatment, try it, see how that works (or doesn't work better said) at permanently removing odors.

If you only have one machine that produces say 3600 mgph, then you'll want to go room by room.  In the larger open areas, try to use plastic sheets and duct tape on the hall ways, doors, etc to seal off as much area as you can.  If on the other hand  you have enough ozone power to shock the entire structure in one shot, and the structure has an HVAC system, set the HVAC system fan to the "on" position to circulate the air.  If it's summer time, set it to 70 in dry areas of 60 in humid areas to remove humidity from the air and help with the shock process.  

NOTE: Lower levels of ozone over longer exposure times will not permanently remove stubborn deep odors. It takes x amount of ozone concentration over x amount of time to break down embedded organic material regardless of what some ozone generator vendors falsely claim.

If you are shocking area by area, first buy a plastic tarp and duct tape.  Use the tarp and duct tape to seal all vents.  We like to use a piece of tarp and duct tape to cover doors when we perform shock treatments in our local business. This works better than a wet towel under the door. (which also works to a lesser extent)

Duration:  No longer than six hours per shock treatment!  If you go longer, you'll risk a week long ozone after smell!  When we perform a shock treatment in a furnished home with cheap petroleum made carpets, we perform several 1-2 hour shock treatments (1-2 hour shock, air out, repeat as needed) vs a six hour shock treatment.  In basements or unfurnished residences, we don't hesitate to go for six hours straight.  Other vendors who recommend 24 to 48 hour shock treatments or shock treatments to remediate mold damage are not trained remediation professionals or they'd know that there's much, much more to mold remediation than an ozone shock treatment!  That's another subject all together. 

After

Allow at least 1 hour (at room temps) for the ozone to convert back into oxygen.  Open windows and air out the area when you return 1 hour after the ozone machines are turned off. 

How Ozone Purifies the Air

Ozone oxidizes airborne pollutants, then reverts back to oxygen, transforming polluted air to pure and re-freshened air.

Here is how the process works:

.    Oxygen molecules (O1 and O2) are converted to ozone (O3) by either a high-voltage electrical charge (such as from lightning), or by ultraviolet light (such as from the sun rays).

.    One oxygen atom (O1) splits off from the ozone molecule, and reacts with other particles when it comes within range of a particle and/or pollutant. Ozone is highly reactive, so it never fails to initiate this reaction with other particles.

.    As the 2nd most powerful oxidant in existence, the single oxygen atom proceeds to "oxidize" the particle it reacts with. This means it burns the particle, which changes its physical properties. As a result, the particle will no longer be toxic, and will no longer be able to reproduce if it is biological. In other words, the particle becomes completely harmless.

.    When the single oxygen (O1) molecule oxidizes the particle, it too is destroyed. This leaves behind the O2 it split away from, or pure and clean oxygen.

What is Ozone? 


Chemically, ozone is oxygen with an extra atom added. Electrically, ozone is oxygen with a higher energy level. It is unstable and highly reactive.

There is a cycle of oxygen just as there is a cycle of water. Oxygen is released in photosynthesis by land plants and ocean phytoplankton (mostly diatoms), and rises up in the atmosphere about 25-30 miles, where it is energized by a part of the ultraviolet spectrum of energy from the sun, producing ozone. Ozone is heavier than air and begins to descend. It immediately attaches itself to airborne particles. It contacts them, oxidizing them, cleaning the air. If it encounters water vapor, it can attach itself to it, forming hydrogen peroxide. Rain and snow both contain hydrogen peroxide naturally. That is why plants grow better from rain water than from irrigation.

At ground level, ozone attaches itself to all pollutants, oxidizing them and cleaning the air. It has been incorrectly blamed for smog. Ozone is present in smog only transiently at around 25 parts per hundred million.

Carbon monoxide is present in smog at about 3000 parts per hundred million, and hydrocarbons at about 100 parts per hundred million. Smog is produced by the photoelectric effect of the sun's rays acting on carbon monoxide and nitrogen dioxide in the atmosphere, which are the end products when hydrocarbons are burned.

Ozone cannot be produced in the internal combustion engine because the hydrocarbon fuel quenches the spark gap. The ozone that exists in the atmosphere is produced by nature and it is attracted to pollutants because of opposite charge -- it attempts to oxidize them and clean the air. The problem is one of too little ozone to complete the job, not too much. 

Ozone is also created near the ground by lightning. The fresh smell in the air after a thunderstorm is ozone. The amount of ozone created in an average thunderstorm is about three times the safe limit according to US EPA regulations. 

Ozone (O3) is an allotropic form of oxygen: it is oxygen in its most active state; therefore it is a more generous supply of oxygen - the life giver.

Through the action of lightning flashes, and the photochemical reaction of the UV light of the sun on atmospheric oxygen, nature produces ozone for the purpose of purifying the air, and to destroy all organic decay upon which disease, germs and bacteria thrive.

Ozone is triatomic oxygen. As a gas it is blue; both liquid ozone (-112 C) and solid ozone (-193 C) are a deep blue color. It is this blue ozone in the atmosphere that causes the sky to be blue. At altitudes from 25-30 km. ozone is created by a portion of the sun's ultraviolet spectrum. It exists as a gas in concentrations of 10-20 parts per million. (ppm). In these concentrations, ozone is a powerful absorber of a narrow portion of the sun's ultraviolet radiation. At ground level, ozone exists in a greatly diluted state and is always present in minute quantities (.001-.003 ppm) which we breathe in. It does not become an irritant until levels above .1 ppm are exceeded for over eight hours. Below those levels there have never been any permanent detrimental effects from inhaling it. Ozone is created naturally by crashing surf, white water rapids, and lightning storms. Recently, ozone has come to public attention as an alleged pollutant in smog. In order to measure hydrocarbon air pollution, an index is required. High levels of hydrocarbons have a corresponding ozone level (since the ozone is attracted to the pollutants), so by measuring the ozone, scientists can measure indirectly how bad the pollution is. What is not mentioned is that the ozone molecule lasts for a maximum of 20 minutes as it busily eats up the hydrocarbon pollution by oxidizing it. Carbon monoxide, benzene, chlorides, sulphur and many other pollutants are swiftly oxidized on contact by ozone, thus cleaning the air.

Ozone has long been internationally recognized as the most powerful oxidant next to hydroxyl; which is a mixture of ozone with hydrogen peroxide. 

Low Levels of Ozone to Purify Indoor Air

Putting small amounts of ozone into the air has been shown in many studies, mostly in Russia, to have positive health benefits.  For legal reasons, we can't recommend adding ozone to indoor air because we just can't ensure the end user will not over do it and add too much ozone which does pose a health risk to certain folks (very young, old)    However, we've been injecting small amounts of ozone into our HVAC system for years with very possitive results.  To do this, you need to buy a "countdown timer" that can be set to run for a few seconds every few minute and then place your ozone generator near the air duct return.  Here are a few studies on this subject:  

Studies conducted at the Academy of Medical Sciences in Russia, Dr. Gubernskii and Dr. Dmitriev found that 0.005 ppm (parts per million) to 0.02 ppm of ozone added to normal indoor air (0 ppm) increased animals' resistance to the cold, to infection, to toxic substances, and to oxygen deprivation. A general increase in the immune "biological potential" and the vital capacity of the lungs was reported.

Dr. Gubernskii and Dr. Dmitriev also performed tests using less than .01 ppm of ozone in an air-conditioned office building, which revealed that "the levels of oxygen in the blood increase relatively quickly and remain at a high level for the duration of the experiment." They also stated that: "Atmospheric ozone has a positive effect on animals and people. It is important to note its positive effect on the breathing system, blood composition, arterial pressure, immune system, general feeling of well-being, and mental and physical work capability. The ozone-ion complex is a necessary component of fresh air that gives it a curative effect."

This same study, featured in the Russian journal Priroda, also reports a decrease in complaints of stuffiness (3.8 times fewer complaints).

Russian scientists performed a study to see how effective ozone was at improving indoor air quality in schools. Respiratory-related illnesses were drastically improved after the ozone systems were installed. The ozone concentration produced by the systems were 0.015 ppm (parts per million).

In testing performed by two scientists by the name of Elford and Van den Ende, it was found that ozone effectively destroyed bacteria at 0.04 ppm.

Many publications have published studies showing the effectiveness of lower concentrations ozone (0.01 to 0.03 ppm) at removing odors and pollutants. Some of these include the Refrigeration Service Engineers Society (RSES), U.S. Air Force technical publications, and Manufacturing Chemist.