interior-air-quality / Green Building & Sustainable Home Renovation Information & Advice

It is well-documented that the indoor air in homes is filled with contaminants, mostly due to cooking (specifically burning) and improperly vented combustion appliances like woodstoves and gas ranges. Other significant sources include formaldehyde, VOCs, and chemicals from building materials and furnishings. In recent ...

Mold in homes is a bad sign, so how to get rid of it or prevent mold in drywall? Mold and mildew in homes develop in conditions of high humidity, most often in bathrooms, kitchens, and basements, unless caused by roof leaks and other building envelope failures. Along with affecting the durability of your home, mold and...

Is polyurethane floor seal non-toxic? In North America, polyurethane varnish is used almost exclusively as a wood floor finish, but the majority of them are high in VOC's which are detrimental to interior air quality and health. For this reason non-toxic wood floor finishing oils are gaining in popularity. There are a ...

Carbon monoxide prevention and detection: protecting your air quality from dangerous gases Carbon monoxide (CO) is often referred to as the silent killer in homes because it is an odorless, colorless, and tasteless gas that can reach lethal concentrations inside a home without occupants ever realizing it. For homeowner...

Prefab LEED Platinum kit house in Montreal   Ellen and Roman Szumski earned LEED® Platinum certification for their home in Labelle, in the Laurentian Mountains of Quebec and EcoHome took a look. LEED is a point-based green building rating system, so we must emphasize the exceptional performance of this house, particula...

  Taping sheathing as an air barrier for walls There has been a steady evolution in the way we build homes over the last couple of decades, and the old standby wall recipe of 2x6s, fiberglass insulation and polyethylene doesn't measure up anymore with building codes, nor the trend towards high performance housing. One...

If you’re anything like me, you’ll have daydreamed on more than one occasion of having the luxury of being able to work from home. Oh, the thought of not having to deal with the daily commute, of being able to put your laundry on before the weekend rolls around and being able to spend your lunch break in the luxury of ...

Protect your home air quality during renos Any renovation or building project is exciting, but it can also be exhausting and emotionally taxing. Don't forget to keep your air safe to breathe in the process. Right at the end when it's time to furnish your new space can be one of the hardest times to stick to your enviro...

Indoor air quality monitors: a homeowner's & pro's buyers guide You wouldn't buy a car without a dashboard, so why live in a home without a window into its air quality? Indoor air quality (IAQ) is the invisible dashboard of a home's health, telling you what you're breathing and how your home's systems are performin...

Walls in residential homes are almost exclusively finished using gypsum board (either recycled or synthetic) because it is cheap and easy. It is however, not the only option for interior walls, and it has some other competition - especially in areas that may get humidity. We will start with drywall, but also list off a...

Find non-toxic adhesives and sealants: Modern homes have a lot more caulking and adhesives than older homes. Adhesives are liberally applied to many surfaces for ease and speed of job completion, as well as to prevent squeaking between flooring and joists, for example. Functionally speaking, caulking is used to prevent...