Sustainable actions against mould and odour in buildings Many reports on the increasing incidence of allergies and hyper sensitivities among both adults and children - together with reports on poor indoor climate conditions, damage to buildings and poorly cared for and maintained ventilation systems - indicate a need to improve the indoor environment in many buildings. Particular attention has been paid to premises where children and young persons are present, with investigations of schools and day-care centres finding substantial shortcomings not only in design and in the choice of materials, but also in general operational care and maintenance. Residential buildings, offices and other premises also need to be renovated and improved in this respect. However, before starting to tackle the problems in a building, it is necessary to know what has caused the problems and how they should be put right. All too often, 'improvements' are carried out without knowing if they are really appropriate, or in the same way as was done originally. There is a considerable risk of failure if the underlying causes of the problem have not been carefully investigated. The report discusses various types of damage to buildings, how they should be investigated and how they can be rectified. It describes surveys of moisture-damaged buildings, how they are carried out, what measurements need to be made and how the underlying problems can be identified. It also describes the methodology of investigating sick buildings, i.e. those in which the occupants experience health and similar problems that can be linked to the building. It is often very difficult to investigate the conditions in sick buildings, as there can be many causes of the problems. Several faults or defects can often interact with conditions that are unrelated to the building, to produce problems for the occupants.