environmental-sensitivities / Green Building & Sustainable Home Renovation Information & Advice

Given that we spend about three quarters of our time indoors (counting both home and work), it is essential that we work to ensure clear indoor air quality. Contrary to what many people believe, indoor air is often more polluted than outdoor air. How is inside air worse that outside air? The air you breathe inside orig...

LEED Platinum home in Ontario  As described by the Architects: Designed for a client with environmental sensitivities, +HOUSE is a manifestation of a sustainable and healthy approach to building that does not sacrifice design. Sited facing the bank of a stream-fed pond, this four-season house is nestled into a natural ...

Formaldehyde-free MDF made from rice - available at distributors in USA & Canada There is a natural and Formaldehyde-Free alternative to MDF (Medium Density Fiberboard) made of rice straw hitting the green building market soon! That’s a reason to breath a sigh of relief (literally and figuratively) since a lot of p...

  Is vinyl flooring safe in homes or toxic? The production of vinyl (also known as PVC- polyvinyl chloride) accounts for approximately 40% of the chlorine gas produced in North America. Vinyl is highly polluting in production, and as a building product it is susceptible to UV exposure, causing it to break down and rele...

Composting toilets: a homeowner's & pro's guide For off-grid living, tiny houses, and sustainable residential projects, the composting toilet has evolved from a rustic necessity into a high-performance sanitation solution. For those new to composting toilets, it is hard not to conjure an image of a backwoods sort o...

With the intention of reducing the speed at which flames can spread, fire-retardant compounds are added to almost all the materials we furnish our homes with: children's toys, curtains, carpets, mattresses, sofas, electronics, plastic, etc. How flame retardants work: The chemicals generally used as flame retardants are...

For those that aren't made for the bustling lifestlyle of cities, small towns can be a dream come true. The nature of small towns is one of community and accessible downtown cores. Essential services like grocery stores, banks and post offices are usually grouped closely together, as are schools, so children can often ...

Housing is an enormous source of carbon emissions, so it is also a place where we have tremendous room for improvement. This building guide will walk you through the steps than can help you minimize your personal emissions as much as possible, whether you are building, buying or renting. Keep in mind, this is not a sac...

What is the BREEAM rating system and should I get my home certified? The BREEAM rating system (Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method) is the world's longest-established method for assessing, rating, and certifying the sustainability of buildings. Launched in 1990 in the UK, it has become a glo...

The current fate of older homes is typically one of demolition, sadly, rather than deconstruction. The relatively low-cost of the industrial waste stream has made it cheaper and more profitable to indiscriminately tear down a home and load it into dumpsters for removal.   This approach results in rapidly filling landfi...

How to protect indoor air quality from smoke during wildfires in homes with HVAC? As we move towards summer in Canada and the USA, we're hoping that the last few year's wildfires are not going to be as bad again this year - but unfortunately in areas of Canada and the Midwest of the USA, there have already been air qua...