St. James Plantation, NC new home builder Mark Johnson Custom Homes would like to share an extremely informative article on improving the quality of the air in your home. Willem Maas of the U.S. Green Building Council’s Green Home Guide summarized three levels of ensuring your home has clean air (basic, better and best) and what steps you can do to achieve those. Below is the outline and to read the steps in detail, click here!
Basic Steps to Cleaner Air
- Clean with the least toxic product that will do the job.
- Avoid having your clothing conventionally dry-cleaned, or air out dry-cleaned clothing before bringing it inside.
- Dispose of unused paint, solvents, pesticides, and other household chemicals promptly, and tightly close the containers of products still in use.
- In temperate climates, use natural ventilation to cool your home.
- Use the exhaust fan over your stove to remove gases like carbon monoxide and nitrogen dioxide, and fans in your bathrooms to remove water vapor.
- Employ other simple moisture management measures to keep your home’s interior dry.
- Replace the air filter in your furnace and air conditioner at the start of the heating or cooling season, or as recommended by the manufacturer.
- Room-size air cleaners can be effective tools for removing pollutants in one or more rooms.
- Don’t allow smoking inside your home or around your home (near your windows or doors).
Better Steps to Cleaner Air
- Remodel in temperate months of the year, when you can open outside doors and windows to naturally ventilate construction areas without reducing energy efficiency.
- Use low-emitting, low-maintenance building materials to achieve improved indoor air quality year round.
- Reduce the use of carpeting, and keep carpeting clean and dry.
- Add a fresh air intake to your forced-air heating/cooling system’s ducting.
- Install a whole house fan system.
- Design your garage to keep vehicle fumes from entering your home.
Bigger Steps to Cleaner Air
- Install an energy recovery ventilator (ERV) to provide a continuous supply of fresh air while minimizing loss of heat and water vapor.
- Use a heat pump water heater to increase energy efficiency and improve indoor air quality.
- Install a radiant hydronic heating system rather than a forced air system.
Courtesy of Willem Maas, David Bearg and Dean Sherwin of the Green Home Guide.
