SENDAI—A Fukushima-based insulation company is installing special transparent sheets in the windows of temporary housing for quake victims to address problems with condensation and mold inside the units.
SENDAI—A Fukushima-based insulation company is installing special transparent sheets in the windows of temporary housing for quake victims to address problems with condensation and mold inside the units.
Hideki Tomita, 38, president of Nihon Eco Dannetsu Film, put up the aluminum adiabatic sheets in prefabricated units in Miyagino Ward in Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture, on Nov. 24.
He wore a tiger mask, a reference to the comic book wrestling character Naoto Date, who has become a symbol of charitable giving in Japan. Between late 2010 and the start of 2011, the Japanese media was filled with stories about a wave of anonymous gifts to children’s institutions made in Date’s name, which became known as the “Tiger Mask” movement.
Nihon Eco Dannetsu Film, which was founded in Fukushima Prefecture, came to the aid of the quake victims after a 60-year-old resident of the housing units hit on the use of the sheets after hearing one of the company’s radio advertisements.
Residents have been complaining of condensation on the windows and walls of the units because of the humidity inside the structures and the large gap in temperatures between the interior and exterior. The kerosene heaters being used for heating contribute to the condensation.
"The curtain is moldy in my place because I live at the edge of the building," a 50-year-old resident said. "I hope the situation will get better with the adiabatic sheets."