Archive of posts tagged air quality
How To Clean Up Mold
Most of this blog is from the “Help Yourself to a Healthy Home” guide from HUD. We generally suggest hiring an established remediation company with professionals certified by the IICRC but many cannot afford to pay for that service or don’t feel it’s necessary. Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for Mold Protect yourself when cleaning up […]
Sealing The Basement
Sealing a crawl space prevents moisture getting into the house from the ground. It is also a very effective way to reduce air infiltration, particularly around the rim joists and seams of the stem walls. Tom’s crew has laid polyurethane liners down on the basement ground and up the stem walls. While 6-mil to 10-mil […]
A Day At The Green Festival
This 13th annual Green Festival in San Francisco in early November had over 300 businesses and organizations under one roof displaying their sustainable products and services. It’s like a marketplace for you with all sustainable vendors. A few products/services that suit a green home particularly well. Healthy Building Science was demonstrating eletromagnetic signals caused by […]
Mold in the Home – What to Do?
What to do about mold in the home, how to avoid it, how to clean it up, is mold testing a good idea? etc. This blog focuses on residential mold tips. Many of these best practices are drawn from the following government-sponsored resources on healthy homes: Help Yourself to a Healthy Home, US Department of […]
Least Toxic Pest Control at Home
The Pest Management Workshop, held in Moraga, CA early October, was organized by Parents for a Safer Environment (PFSE), a very dedicated advocacy group of parents in the San Francisco Bay Area founded by Susan JunFish. The workshop taught attendees to use less toxic, long-term and economical methods to control common insects, rodents, and weed […]
Is Gas Cooking Safe?
The safety of gas cooking has long been investigated by the research community. Gas burners can produce nitrous oxide, carbon monoxide, sulphur dioxide and other pollutants. Here are highlights from two recent specific studies. A project by the Lawerence Berkeley Laboratory (paper submitted to the Environmental Health Perspectives earlier this year) found that these pollutants […]
How to Choose Healthy Interior Paint
Many state air quality boards have set the VOC (volatile organic compound) content of indoor house paint and stain to be 50 grams/liter or lower as a minimum requirement. VOCs are carcinogenic, can cause headaches, dizziness and respiratory problems, and are linked to pollution and smog. Even after the new paint smell goes away, it […]
Health Tips for Interior House Painting
Spring is just around the corner. If you are thinking to paint the interior of your house, spring and fall are the best time to do it. Everyone is aware of the new paint smell, which is caused by the vapor as the paints/stains dries. The vapor may contain gases, including VOCs (volatile organic compounds), […]