Indoor air quality continues to remain a popular topic among today’s homeowners as it has been linked to a variety of health concerns and issues including asthma, respiratory ailments, cancer and even death. Poor indoor air quality stems from inadequate ventilation, high temperature and humidity, which can all cause indoor air pollution and damage to your home’s structure by a variety of volatile organic compounds and airborne pollutants including mold, radon, carbon monoxide and toxic chemicals.
The good news is that there are a host of companies responding to the need to improve our homes’ indoor air and reduce health issues attributed to these issues. These systems are a major step in the direction of protecting us from the air we breathe.
Below are three of our favorite companies offering innovative, eco friendly products that clean up the air you breathe:
1. Venmar
Venmar provides an array of products to improve your indoor air quality including attic ventilators, air exchangers, range hoods and whole house filtration and ventilation systems. Our favorite is the Venmar Air Exchanger that moves the polluted and humid air from inside your home to the outdoors and replaces it with fresh air throughout the day. Visit www.venmar.ca for more information.
2. Genteq
Genteq offers a whole house comfort system that improves your indoor air quality through a HEPA (high efficiency particulate arrestance) air cleaner that removes odors, smoke and microscopic airborne particles that can trigger allergies and asthma. The system also includes a humidifier that is attached to your ductwork, bringing your home to a comfortable humidity level. The Genteq comfort system further reduces your home energy costs as it uses the Evergreen high-efficiency motor that uses up to 74 percent fewer watts than a standard motor blower. Check out www.genteqcomfort.com for more information.
3. Dynamic Air Quality Solutions
Dynamic Air Cleaners are installed into the existing tracks of your heating and cooling systems and use electronic polarized-media technology, meaning the system captures even the smallest particles that pollute the air you breathe. Visit www.dynamicaqs.com for more information.
Improving your indoor air quality is an important step to safeguard the health of your family. Even better, many of today’s companies offer whole house filtration systems that allow you to breathe easy, go green and save money!
Stay tuned for more updates from GreenBuild 2009!
GreenBuild is an international conference and expo on bringing green living to Main Street. It is being covered for BobVila.com by the editors of EcoNewsNetwork.org, a blog that provides news, trends and commentary on ecological issues, challenges, products, processes, science and leisure.
What does the H1N1 virus fear the most? If you guessed "a vaccine," "the World Health Organization" or "Purell," you are wrong. No, the unfortunately-named Swine Flu's greatest enemy is a hand-held vacuum-cleaner.
The new Raycop is no ordinary Dust-buster (it retails for about $199). This stingray-shaped sucker of soot has a built-in UV-C sterilizing lamp that allegedly kills 99.9% of the H1N1 virus, as well as other germs, dust mites and bacteria. It also has a vibrating pad that helps agitate the dust mites to release them from bed mattresses and other furnishings and a 2-stage micro allergy filtration system that eliminates the pesky purveyors of asthmatic allergens and their feces.
So while the surviving .01% of H1N1 may go on to mutate into a new "bison flu," "chicken flu," or "what-have-you flu," at least your home will be pretty safe against The Swine.
Does your home contain contaminated Chinese Drywall? This testing advice from the New York Times can help a homeowner determine if he or she is one of the thousands in over 30 states with the poisonous plasterboard.
Some ways to tell if you have Chinese Drywall in your home:
- Sulfuric smell. (Also a sign that you have descended into the less-favorable Afterworld. It's best to inspect for fire, brimstone and the tortured souls of the eternally damned to eliminate this possibility)
- Blackened metal on bathroom fixtures and copper wires, coils and pipes. (Excessive blackening may also be the work of an enthusiastic cook in the home with a penchant for Cajun recipes.)
- Appliance failure due to corroded wiring. (Could also be failed payments on electric bill, or a burglar at the electrical panel having trouble finding the main circuit breaker).
On a serious note, there are some legitimate health concerns surrounding the contaminated product, and some of the signs that your home has Chinese Drywall include headaches and difficulty breathing.
Take the test, just to be safe.
If you do have it, you can choose to rip and rebuild, or there's a new treatment option that involves decontaminating the home with chlorine dioxide. The jury is out on that process, though.
The new R-Plus Insulation from Terminix is like the kid in high school who did everything well. As most plodded along pulling B's and girls' braids, this Renaissance Man hit home runs for the baseball team, played drums for the popular high school rock band and wrote brilliant plays in rhyming iambic pentameter. So does Terminix's new insulation relegate all others to the realm of mediocrity. What, your insulation only keeps out the cold? Boooooring.
Here's a bulleted list of what R-Plus has going for it:
- Saves the environment. R-Plus is made from 87% recycled materials, like old newspapers.
- Kills termites. The insulation is bonded in a patented process with boric acid, which controls pests like termites, cockroaches, ants and silverfish.
- Qualifies for Federal Tax Credit. You could save up to $1500 by purchasing R-Plus.
- Saves up to 20% in heating and cooling costs. R-Plus is Energy Star-rated. Ever heard of it?
It's quite a resume. Sadly, R-Plus could not be reached for comment. It was volunteering at the local soup kitchen before heading off to a Chemistry study group.
Would you consider R-Plus for your insulation needs? How about for Homecoming King?
It might be too late to spare China's embarrassment over the contaminated drywall mess, but apparently it isn't too late to right their wrong.
That's what Sabre Technical Services is doing, with their chlorine dioxide decontamination process which -- once injected into the tainted drywall -- renders the problematic reduced sulfur compounds inert.
The company claims that the process requires homeowners to vacate their home for less than a week and costs less than the "rip and rebuild" alternative, which doesn't sound like much fun at all.
What would you do: Hope this is a great fix or start from scratch with new drywall?
The company that redefined "clean" is taking the flu head-on, by giving away 1,500 free shots at the South Central Family Health Clinic in South Central, Los Angeles, on Wednesday, October 21. The free flu shots will be available from 10:00 AM - 3:00 PM, and both adults and children will be eligible.
Clorox seems intent on preparing its faithful customers for Outbreak 2010, with an entire page on their site devoted to the latest flu strain.
With homeowners sealing up their windows, doors and walls against the oncoming winter and all its accompanying germs, viruses, and what-have-you, it's a good time to evaluate the indoor air quality (IAQ) of the home. Now might be a good moment to consider an air purifier, or run down this list of the top 10 contributors to poor indoor air quality.
In the meantime, are you getting the flu shot and/or the H1N1 shot this season?
Here's a convincing argument for chlorine-free pools: Children who spent more than 100 hours swimming in chlorinated pools are up to six times at risk of having asthma and allergies as other teens. "There is little doubt that pool chlorine is an important factor implicated in the epidemic of allergic diseases affecting the westernized world," said head researcher Alfred Bernard. According to Bernard, chlorine in swimming pools affects children's respiratory health more than secondhand smoke.
The study surveyed 814 teens ages 13 to 18 before arriving at the surprising (to this writer) conclusion. Researchers speculate toxic chemicals in the water and hovering in the air promote respiratory allergies. No coincidence that the most cases of asthma are in the countries with the most swimming pools. Learn more about switching to a self-cleaning chlorine-free pool.
