Screening report
Indoor air quality screening
Soot is showing up indoors, and the kitchen needs action
The lab found fire related soot in three rooms, with the heaviest load in the kitchen. Outside had none of it, so the source is inside your home.
Lab-verified air samples, by room
Counts in particles per cubic meter. Every room is read against an outdoor control taken the same visit. Household dust (skin cells, fibers, hair) is normal indoors; soot, fiberglass and construction dust point at a source. The lab counts and identifies; the verdict on each room is Cornerstone's, from a written rule set.
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DenIndoor2,45396% below outdoorElevated
Soot and charred wood fragments both showed up here. Neither was found outside.
- Fire Related Soot 911 (37% of the sample, outside had none)
- Charred Woody Fragments 228 (9% of the sample, outside had none)
The types above are what our rules flagged as an indoor source.
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KitchenIndoor6,79789% below outdoorNeeds action
Most of what the lab saw here was fire related soot, the kind that comes from a fire, candles or a fireplace. Outside had none.
- Fire Related Soot 5,796 (85% of the sample, outside had none)
The types above are what our rules flagged as an indoor source.
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Primary bedroomIndoor4,04993% below outdoorElevated
A clear share of soot in here too, and again nothing like it in the outdoor sample.
- Fire Related Soot 523 (12% of the sample, outside had none)
The types above are what our rules flagged as an indoor source.
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OutsideOutdoor control59,382Outdoor baselineBaseline
- Minerals 58,705 (98% of the sample)
- Low Contrast Amorphous 208 (under 1% of the sample)
- Amorphous Organic Debris 114 (under 1% of the sample)
What this means
Outdoor air is mostly minerals, which is normal, and outside showed no soot at all. Indoors is a different picture. The lab identified fire related soot in the kitchen, den and primary bedroom, and charred wood fragments in the den. That pattern points to something burning inside the home rather than anything drifting in. It could be a fireplace, candles, cooking, or an appliance or flue not venting the way it should. This screening identifies particles only. It does not tell us where the soot is coming from or how far it has spread, so the next step is finding the source.
What to do next
- Stop using any fireplace, candles or suspect appliance until the source of the soot is found and corrected.
- Have the venting and flues on your fireplace and fuel burning appliances checked, since poor draft is a common reason soot ends up in living space.
- We can introduce you to a vetted indoor air or HVAC specialist from Pros We Trust for source testing in the kitchen, den and primary bedroom.
- Text us a photo of your fireplace, range hood and furnace area and we will tell you what we notice.