Residential Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ)
- YOU TAKE OVER 20,000 BREATHS EACH DAY (18,000 OF THOSE BREATHS ARE TAKEN INDOORS)
- COMMON ISSUES THAT CAN NEGATIVELY IMPACT RESIDENTIAL INDOOR ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY (IEQ)
Outdoor environmental quality
- What is outdoors can come indoors
- Naturally occurring contaminants in air and soil
- Pollution-related contaminants in air and soils
Naturally occurring contaminants in air and soil
- Dust
- Pollen
- Mold spores
- Valley fever
- Radon
Pollution-related contaminants in air and soils
- Ground-level ozone
- Carbon monoxide
- Sulfur and nitrogen oxides
- Soil chemical vapor intrusion (think Love Canal)
Who regulates my home’s environmental quality?
- Exterior maintenance
- Roof
- Windows
- Landscaping
- Irrigation
- Pesticides
- Pruning trees and shrubs
- Animals
Roof Maintenance
- Remove detritus from roof
- Keep roof drains clear
- Direct draining water away from house
- Check roof penetration mastics for cracking and deterioration
Window Maintenance
- Check caulking around windows and doors.
- Replace broken glazing
Landscaping
- Irrigation
- Do not over water
- Prevent sprinkler from spraying on house
- Do not put planters against house
- Slope of landscaping away from house
- Keep hose bibs in good repair don’t let water drip down side of house
- Prune trees and shrubs away from house
- Clean up after animals, both pets and pests
- Use caution with pesticides
- Do not plant vines to grow up the side of your house
- Some vines can actually grow through the mortar of brick/block homes
Nuisance birds pose a health threat
- Pigeons, starlings, crows, etc.
- Over 60 diseases are attributed to birds
- Routes of exposure include:
- Food and water
- Inhalation of contaminated dust
- Transference by parasites (fleas, ticks, mites & other ectoparasites). Direct contact with feces.
Garage
- Don’t store gasoline indoors, or near pilot lights
- Annually inspect water sources
- water heater
- softener
- Do not block garage passive vents
- Use caution with storage of cleaning chemicals, paint, and other VOC’s in garage
Water heater
- Gas water heaters should be elevated off the ground
- Make sure the gas water heater exhaust system is in place and unobstructed.
- Check electric water heaters heating elements
Kitchen
- Inspect water sources
- Fridge ice maker
- Under sinks
- Dish washer
- RO system
- Repair water leaks immediately!
- Do not keep a bucket under leak
- Run your exhaust fan while in the kitchen
- Do not put food items in your trash compactor
- Enclose food that gets moldy, such as an orange in the bottom of the fruit bowl
Infrared camera
WHAT IS WET?
WHAT IS WET?
WHAT IS WET?
Bathroom
- Inspect water sources:
- Under sinks
- Tubs
- Toilets
- Water supply line
- Wax ring
- Don’t carpet your bathroom, particularly at the sink, tub, and shower.
- Run the water periodically in unused drains.
- Use caution with storage of cleaning chemicals, paint, and other VOC’s in garage
Bedroom
- Dust mites live in pillows, mattresses
- Burning candles
- Increase particulates in air
- Scented candles can increase VOCs
- Candles can cause “ghosting”
Living rooms
- Carpet and pressed wood furniture
- VOCs and formaldehyde
- Keep it clean
Vacuuming
- Vacuum with High Efficiency Filters (True HEPA is best technology)
- Central Vacuum is better when it exhausts outdoors (also a hearing conservation bonus)
Laundry room
- Inspect water sources:
- behind wash machine
- behind dryer
- under utility sink
- Run your exhaust fan
- Secure the washing machine drain line so it will not jump out of the drain.
- Do not exhaust dryer vents into the garage or the attic
- Make sure vent is free of lint build-up
- Do not block or cover vent
Heating and air conditioning
- HVAC
- Keep air handlers clean and free of debris build-up
- Replace filters
- Make sure filters are right size
- Check condensate pans and drains
- Don’t let water pool beneath drain
- Don’t let water run down side of house
HVAC Ducts
- Confirm ducts are connected
HVAC Compressors
- Do not block heat exchangers (compressors)
What to do you do if you done all the maintenance and a mystery odor occurs?
- Clean out pet water bowl
- Check for shrimp left in cupboards
- Cracks and leaks in sewer lines
Kids have constant runny noses
- Wash their stuffed animals and pillows in hot, hot water and dry in heated dryer.
- These harbor dust mites and other allergens
- Clean home to remove pet dander
Asbestos
- When you eat it or breath it, asbestos is bad.
- When you eat it, you can get diseases like gastrointestinal cancer.
- When you breath it, you can get diseases like asbestosis, mesothelioma and lung cancer
- Popcorn ceiling
- Asbestos containing duct tape
- Drywall & joint compound
- Plaster & stucco
- Vinyl floor tiles, floor sheeting & adhesives
Lead-based paint
- If a home was built before 1978, then assume there is lead-based paint.
- Use caution remodeling.
Light Chronic Lead Exposure
- Anemia
- Impotence
- Nervous system damage
- Hearing impairment
- Impaired mental function
- Appetite loss
- Abdominal pain Constipation
- Fatigue
- Sleeplessness
- Irritability
- Headache
- Renal (Kidney) failure
- Miscarriages & stillbirth
When should you call a professional?
- Potentially dealing with a regulated material:
- Asbestos
- Lead
- Meth lab
- When you need issues documented as well as questions answered
- Seller’s disclosure statements
- Potential health exposures
When you call professionals
- They may use personal protection equipment when in your home
- Don’t freak out when you see him/her putting on a respirator, disposable coveralls and gloves.