A Comparison of the Wet Wipe and Tape Lift Methods for Sampling Surface Char in Residential Properties Impacted by Wildfire Smoke
By Joe C. Spurgeon, Ph.D., Franco Seif, and Euginia Mirica, Ph.D.
INTRODUCTION
This study had three objectives. The first objective was to compare the wet wipe and tape lift sampling methods for the collection of wildfire smoke residues. The comparison of sampling methods was based on the collection of replicate (side-by-side) wet wipe and tape lift char samples from 48 houses potentially impacted by wildfire smoke plumes. The second objective was to compare the use of perimeter (interior window sills) and interior (hard surfaces) sampling locations for evaluating the impact of wildfire smoke residues. The third objective was to compare the two sampling methods on the basis of percent char as well as the assessed impact of char using example guidelines established by the authors for this purpose.
The initial inspection of a property following a wildfire is often limited to a walkthrough visual inspection, odor evaluation, and surface sampling to detect wildfire smoke residues that may be present on surfaces. Surface residues typically include char, soot, and ash. These residues can be sampled using tape lift, swab, wet or dry wipe, or microvacuum sampling methods.1, 2, 3 Samples collected using those methods can be analyzed by optical microscopy and/or submitted for analysis using methods providing more detailed information.
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