Hydroxyl Generators

11/19/2020 (Permalink)

The main benefit of using a true hydroxyl generator is that they are safe to use in occupied areas for deodorization purposes. Insurance companies do not have to cover a homeowner’s hotels or meals. Business owners do not have to shut down and loose precious business.

If people and animals can be removed from the treatment area, ozone will always do the job faster. And the general rule of thumb is if a strong ozone generator would take one day to do a job, a true hydroxyl generator will take three to five days to do the same job. But insurance companies don’t seem to have a problem paying for the extra time it takes a hydroxyl generator to do the job because they are saving on hotel and food costs and their customers are much happier staying in their own homes and businesses. In saying this, hydroxyl generators are commonly one of the first pieces of equipment installed on the job and can be run the entire length of the job. These machines are already in Xactimate and bring in some $200 per day on a rental. With the price of the hydroxyl generators on the market, there would be a 100% return on investment within the first week of use.

These generators have been successfully tested on fires and other restoration and bio jobs, including protein fires, floods, dead body situations, skunk odors, pet urine odors, musty odors and many types of VOC odors. Many restoration contractors have converted existing deodorizing chambers or added their own hydroxyl rooms with great success. You can run a hydroxyl room 24 hours a day and enter the room at any time with no threat to your health. True hydroxyl generators also will not bleach wet fabrics so they can be run on damp carpet without fear of lightening the color.

However, it’s important to note that hydroxyl generators are not intended for use on mold remediation jobs where there is a large infestation on surfaces or behind walls. The established protocols should always be followed in these instances. But generators with good filtration are excellent for airborne microbial remediation where bacteria or fungi have become aerosolized.