Physical plant director George W. Engram

From the beginning New Residence 1 and New Residence 2 have been riddled with a history of faulty plumbing and an inadequate two-pipe air conditioning system, according to George Engram, director of N.C. Central University’s physical plant.

The two dorms were closed in early August when unacceptable levels of Stachybotrys chartarum mold, or “black mold,” was discovered in them.

Engram said that the university decided to install a two-pipe high voltage air condition system instead of the four-pipe system designed for New Residence 1 and New Residence 2 as a cost-cutting measure.

Records regarding this decision are likely to play a significant role in any effort to assign blame for the mold problems.

Engram said that the university might have saved at least a third of the total cost of the air condition system in 1998 by going for the cheaper two-pipe system, rather than a four-pipe system.

“Simply put, instead of buying the Cadillac of air conditioners they went on to get an Escort,” he said.

Records at the physical plant show that there were 95 air conditioning-related service orders in New Resi-dence 2 and 81 air-conditioning related service orders in New Residence 1 between July 2001 and Aug. 2003. The halls were built in 1999.

Engram said the two-pipe system could not cope with controlling the humidity in the new dorms, and this may have have caused dampness leading to the growth of mold.

He also said that the thermostats in the buildings were not functioning well because they are designed for the four-pipe system that was initially planned.

“There were changes made to the thermostats to suit the system and the system never worked correctly,” he said.

According to a report by three firms who examined the buildings, the mechanical system in the buildings, construction problems and lack of maintenance also contributed to excessive moisture levels leading to the growth of mold.

Clark Nexsen Architect-ure and Engineering, Johnson Controls and EI were hired by NCCU to determine the extent and causes of the mold and ways of eliminating it. According to their report, sections of both buildings will have to be gutted and replaced.

Engram, whose department is responsible for the maintenance of the buildings, said that they did their best to keep the buildings in good shape.

“We were doing what we could,” he said. “We had many problems in those buildings and we were fixing them.”

He said that the buildings also had a history of plumbing, construction and design problems.

The records on plumbing problems for the dorms indicate that between Aug. 19, 2001 and Aug. 5, 2003 there were 118 plumbing-related service orders in New Residence 2 and 104 in New Residence 1.

Most of the problems were related to clogged, leaking and dripping sinks, showers and toilets. These problems led to complaints about water dripping from ceilings.

Additionally, ventilation ducts did not extend into the bedrooms and other livings spaces, and improper materials were used for piping.

According to Engram, bathroom tiles were not laid properly to facilitate drainage.