Many people in the environmental industry have heard of the terms “sick building syndrome” and “indoor air quality” (IAQ), but substantially fewer understand the concept of “building bake-out”. This technique is now well established in the environmental field and yet still has, in some respects, a checkered history of acceptance and or derision among IAQ control professionals. 

In its essence, a building bake-out is relatively simple. The term was coined to describe a process where the inside temperature of a building is intentionally elevated temporarily to speed the curing of paints, mastics, or other finishes. A building bake-out also can be used to accelerate the off-gassing of residual volatile organic compounds (VOCs) from orient-strand board (OSB), carpet, office furniture, particleboard, and various other manufactured components of the structure or its contents.