Just in Time for Son's Birthday, Stratford Family Wins Gault Energy 2011 Indoor Air Quality Contest

Westport-based Gault Energy has announced that two families, one from Fairfield and one from Stratford, have won the company’s 2011 Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) contest. 

The contest selection committee chose the two families’ essays from among the more than 120 online essay submissions, and, unable to decide between the two, chose to award an AtmosAir whole-home air purifying system to both.

According to the selection committee, the winning essays both focused on children whose severe allergies had significantly diminished their quality of life. The selection committee feels confident that the AtmosAir systems, which were installed last week in both homes, will enhance the indoor air quality in both homes, making it possible for both children to breathe more easily. 

Kelly Ryan of Stratford learned about Gault Energy’s Indoor Air Quality contest on WEBE 108, which partnered with Gault Energy and Fairfield-based AtmosAir Solutions for the month-long “Breathe Easy” Indoor Air Quality public education campaign.

With indoor air quality listed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency as one of the top five health concerns in the country, the four-week “Breathe Easy” campaign’s mission was to educate Fairfield County residents about the common causes and health effects of indoor air pollution, and the EPA recommended solutions to breathing healthier air indoors.

Residents were also invited to submit a short essay describing their Indoor Air Quality issues for the chance to win a free AtmosAir system, valued at $2,000 installed. 

For Stratford resident Kelly Ryan, whose 8-year-old son Matthew has suffered numerous health issues since his premature birth, learning six months ago that he is allergic to dust mites, a common indoor allergen, was the last straw.  “Because of his health issues, we have to spend a lot of time indoors, and dust mites are everywhere inside the home, even if you keep your house really clean, as I do,” said Ryan. 

“Matthew is my first priority and because he misses 30-plus days of school a year, I can’t work full time. He’s on a nebulizer and inhalers, and yet still takes several trips to the emergency room each year.

"We’ve tried to manager his symptoms with medicine but nothing seems to work. When I heard that we won this contest and would be getting an AtmosAir system, I was so happy I cried.

"I’m really hoping that this system will help jumpstart a more normal life for Matthew, who turns 9 on May 19, the day our new AtmosAir system is being installed.

"He doesn’t know what it’s like to feel good. I’m hoping this new air purifying system gives him that chance. We can’t think of a better birthday gift.”

According to the indoor air quality experts at AtmosAir, the common causes of indoor air pollutants in both commercial and residential structures include mold, bacteria, germs, pollen, dust, pet dander, chemicals and volatile organic compounds (VOCs), which are emitted in the household by wall paint, building materials, furnishings and cleaning products. 

According to the EPA, these hidden and often odorless indoor air pollutants contribute to a variety of health issues including allergies, asthma, influenza, respiratory infections, fatigue, headaches, dizziness, eye, nose and throat irritation, and overall malaise.

Gault Energy’s Breathe Easy education campaign offered guidance on how to eliminate or control pollution sources within the home; ventilate the home to dilute and exhaust pollutants; and, finally, clean the air by removing pollutants through proven air cleaning methods. 

AtmosAir’s patented bipolar ionization technology was developed nearly 100 years ago by Albert Einstein. When his sister became ill with Tuberculosis (TB), her doctors sent her to one of the many sanitariums located in the Swiss Alps to recover.

Curious to know how the Swiss Mountain air was able to cure his sister so quickly, Einstein analyzed how the mountain air differed from that of the city. He discovered that the mountain air had a natural conductivity – a greater amount of electricity or ions – that naturally purified the air.

This aha! moment led Einstein and a colleague to develop a machine that virtually duplicated Swiss mountain air.  “AtmosAir uses Einstein’s bipolar ionization process to remove airborne pollutants such as mold, bacteria, pollen, chemicals and odor-causing organic compounds from the air in your home,” says Steve Levine, CEO and president of AtmosAir Solutions. “ This process will certainly make the air in the Ryan home cleaner, and help Matthew breathe easier when he is indoors.”

Gault Energy President, Sam Gault, was inspired to launch the company’s Breathe Easy public education campaign in response to his home’s own indoor air quality issues. “I’m so pleased to share this solution with two deserving Fairfield County families, and hope that, starting this week, Matthew will be able to enjoy the healthy childhood every child deserves.  Happy Birthday Matthew!”