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Healthy House

From "Best Built Home"
episode DBBH-105F

There's a new certification program that builders apply for that gives homeowners some assurance that their house will be healthy and safe to live in. In this segment host Lynda Lyday discusses what this American Lung Association Health House certification is, why it is becoming more popular and what goes into getting it. Some of the things a builder needs to do in order to secure the rating include better air filtration, installing a central vacuum system, controlling moisture and keeping harmful gasses from hot water heaters and furnaces from entering the house.

In this segment host Lynda Lyday explores an American Lung Association Health House®.

One of the vital keys to any "healthy house" is to have a state-of-the art air-infiltration system.

Figure A

The homebuilding industry is increasingly focused on ensuring that homes they build are healthy and safe. One builder has even teamed up with the American Lung Association to build what's called a Health House®.

"The benefit of having an American Lung Association certified Health House is that you know you are living in the most healthy indoor environment that you can have on the market today," Kori Titus, director of American Lung Association, Sacramento, said.

California homeowners Rhonda Fox and Wesley Herman, who you first met in Episode DBBH-102 -- "Comfortable", love their new home, and with Rhonda's allergies they can appreciate that their new house is certified as a Health House. "If you can find a home that allows you to have the healthy-home feature, the certification, definitely go for it," Rhonda said. "I think in the long run it's just going to be fantastic for me. I'm not going to have these seasonal allergies, you know, that slow you down, and I'll productive throughout the year."

Home builders and the American Lung Association -- commonly known as ALA, might not be obvious partners, but their relationship makes perfect sense. "The American Lung Association is obviously very concerned with our lung health and that's going to mean healthy air quality both indoors and out," Kori said. "A lot of research shows, unfortunately, that a lot of Americans spend 90-percent of our time indoors -- 60-percent of that is in your home, so if you're living in an unhealthy environment and you have a respiratory illness such as asthma, you're going to be exposed to those kinds of triggers in your home -- dust, pollen, mold. So you want to try to remove as many of those triggers as possible so that you can live a more healthy life."

One of the basic steps to getting the ALA certification is to have good ventilation. "When we talk about filtration, we're actually talking about cleaning your air, taking particles out of the air we're breathing. And, of course, probably the most classic example in any home is the filer on your heater," Lori said.

Note: Be "sure" to change the filter to your heating and cooling systems regularly -- manufacturer's recommendation.

"We have an infiltration system that's 20-times more effective than a normal house," Wesley said. "You have fresh air coming in from the outside of the house every hour." In Wesley's and Ronda's house there is a Merve 11 filter (figure A), which is a 4" pleated media filter that is vastly more efficient than a standard 1" filter.

Note: The ALA points to standard household vacuum cleaners as a major source in air-born dust and allergens.

In a traditional vacuum setting you can see the dust coming out the bags, but with a central-vacuum system, such as Wesley and Rhonda have, it's all piped to the garage. "All you do is plug in this tube (figure B) and it goes straight into the wall and start vacuuming. All of the dust and everything from the carpet and floor goes straight out into the garage into a big vacuum-sealed [container] (figure C)," Rhonda said. "As soon as it fills up you just empty it, and those particles are never in the home."

Another criteria required to get a Health House certification is to have a air cycler (figure D), which is an efficient use of bringing air into the house where you want it -- and filtering it at the same time.

Controlling humidity and moisture in the home is an essential step, also, in meeting the Health House criteria. With moisture you breed mold, which is definitely a big trigger -- especially for someone with asthma. Any time you have a wet environment, such as a basement, bathroom, etc., it could be harbor mold.

Figure B

Figure C

Figure D

One way to mitigate moisture problems within bathrooms is to install a 90 CFM fan (seen here), low zone, and a hemostat switch, which senses the humidity in the bathroom and comes on automatically and continues running until the humidity has dispersed out of the room.

Mold Prevention Tips (Web Extra):

Mold feeds off moisture and organic materials such as wood. When moisture is removed during construction and building materials are treated, it reduces the likelihood that mold will grow later on during the life of the home.
Mold spores are always present in the air; however, by using mold-resistant drywall and paints and by installing ventilation in the bathrooms and kitchen, you can lower the risk for mold growth due to construction practices.
To deter mold, during construction keep all wood studs and organic materials covered and dry. If you know it's going to rain, make sure you cover all unused wood with a tarp. If the framing structure gets wet, allow it to dry fully before putting up the drywall. This way moisture will not be stuck in the walls -- allowing mold to grow.
Another step that can be taken is to use mold-resistant paints. Although there is no guarantee that mold will not grow with mold-resistant products, they are higher quality products and do claim to deter mold from growing.
In kitchens, laundry rooms and bathrooms make sure to plan for adequate ventilation. When builders provide vents above stoves and showers, humidity is lowered and exhausted to the outside.
Another method is to ensure the home is waterproofed because water intrusion is one of the leading causes of mold and wood rot. So it's important to have a proper drainage plane and flashing installed during construction.
Within 48 hours of being wet, exterior and interior building materials can start showing mold spores. When builders install drywall over wet studs or fail to install exhaust vents in bathrooms and kitchens, they are creating the perfect habitat for mold. This could result in costly decontamination once construction has been completed.

By following these practices during construction, we can help prevent the growth of mold and have better air quality throughout the house.

Homeowners like Rhonda and Wesley love the fact that builders are partnering with the ALA to make these kinds of features standard in new homes. Getting a healthy house doesn't have to cost a whole lot more. In fact, some simple steps can be taken to make a house healthier and safer.

In the next segment find out why the building scientists say it's so important to control the moisture in the air of your home.