May 20th, 2010
Norwalk Maritime Center, Ct.
Norwalk Aquarium Center and CTGBC sponsored a seminar on Indoor Air Quality, IAQ for residential homes. Experts explain the realities of home indoor air quality and how to improve and protect the air you breathe at home.
Speakers include: Dr. Marybeth Smuts, air toxicologist, US EPA; Dr. Gary Ginsberg, toxicologist, Connecticut Department of Public Health; and Foster Lyons, local building science expert and co-owner of Coastal Point Construction, Conn.
The average person is indoors 80% to 90% of the time. 20% of families have an asthmatic in the home. Home buyers surveyed for green build rated the following items as important: – Health 42%, Energy Savings 17%, and Environment 12% in the decision of buying a home. The EPA’s program ‘Indoor AirPLUS’ is for new home construction that is the next tier to the EPA’s program of ‘Energy STAR’. Many of the requirements though should be used in every home. Test for Radon gas, Test Well Water, Carbon Monoxide and Smoke alarms, Low VOC’s paints, Moisture control, proper storage of poisons and cleaning materials.
Major contributors to bad IAQ are Mold, Building Materials, Consumer Products, and Exterior Environment. A general rule of thumb is that if there is a strong order, then it is most likely off-gassing chemicals. Such examples are ‘new car smell’, paint smell, new carpet smell. If these projects are done it is recommended that you first use safe materials such as low VOC’s paints, Green Label Carpets, No formaldehyde kitchen cabinets and secondly do the work in the warmer months when you can open doors and windows to allow the circulations of fresh air. Off gassing can take days to months depending on the materials.
Another source of bad IAQ contributors are consumer products:-
DO’S & DON’TS
Don’t use Pesticides sprays carry in house, Do use bait traps.
Don’t use cleaning materials ammonia & chlorine, Do use natural cleaners, baking soda, hydrogen peroxide, enzymes, citrus oils.
Don’t use any aerosol can they contains petroleum distillates, Do use pump bottles and liquids.
Don’t use spray furniture polish they contains hydrocarbons, Do use natural oil base products.
Don’t use acid base drain cleaners, do use snake-it to clear drains.
CFL lights contain mercury, use where they cannont be broken, use LED’s lights (Light Emitting Diode).
Paints & varnishes, Arts & Crafts…glues, matting, rubber cement use outside. Do use low VOC’s products & lots of ventilation.
Don’t use Mothballs, do use natural cedar chips/wood.
Exterior Environment also contributes to bad IAQ such as radon gas, poor water quality and the stack effect. The stack effect is created in your home when a vacuumed is created and not enough fresh air enters the home. Up to 30% of the makeup air can be sucked up through your attached garage, basement, crawlspace and cracks in the foundation. In the ground you could have Radon gas or another possibility is that pesticides, dry cleaning chemicals, gas station pollutants, landfills leach into the groundwater and travel where vapors can get into your home from underground.
The solution for such problem is:-
1. Source Control, sealing building, materials used radon remediation.
2. Ventilation, ERV- Energy Recovery Ventilator, demand control ventilation and dehuminfining units.
3. Filtrations, installing MERV 8 filters on ductwork.
For further information please refer to the following websites:-
Dr. Ginsberg website http://whatstoxic.org/
EPA’s Indoor AirPlus program http://www.epa.gov/indoorairplus/
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention http://cdc.gov/Healthyhomes/
Licensed Connecticut Realtor Licensed Connecticut Home Improvement Contractor Member USGBC & CTGBC, accredited LEED GA
WILLIAM RAVEIS REAL ESTATE, DARIEN, CT.