Smog and Particulates

Particles_Blue Oxygen
Smog and Particulates How Fine Particulates Affect Exterior and Interior Air Quality No matter how well our “Green and Healthy” homes are designed and built, our interior air quality can only be as good as our exterior air quality (our “source air”), unless we add active air filtration into our building design.  But how do
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EMI and LEDs – Not all LEDs are the same!

Dirty Electricity from LEDs
EMI and LEDs –  Not all LEDs are the same! Electromagnetic Interference (EMI, aka: “Dirty Electricity,” or “High Voltage Transients”) is a term coined for quick transient pulses, harmonics, spikes and dips in the electrical power in a home’s wiring that deviates from a purely 60Hz sine wave.  These often occur due to computers, other
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How to Clean Up Mold?

Mold Clean Up - When to Call in Professional Remediators
Most of this blog on how to clean up mold is from the “Help Yourself to a Healthy Home” guide from HUD. We generally suggest hiring an established remediation company with professionals certified by the IICRC… but many cannot afford to pay for that service or don’t feel it’s necessary. Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for
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Mold in the Home – What to do?

mold in the home
Mold in the Home – What to do? What to do about mold in the home, how to avoid it, how to clean it up, is mold testing a good idea? etc. This blog focuses on residential mold tips. Many of these best practices are drawn from the following government-sponsored resources on healthy homes: Help
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Sick Building

What is a Sick Building?
What is a Sick Building? There is often confusion over the definition of a sick building syndrome. We hear questions like, “Is my building sick?,” and, “How do I know if my building is sick?” Therein lies much of the confusion. Buildings don’t get sick, people do! Sick Building Syndrome (SBS) Determining if occupants suffer
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How to Measure EMF

ElectroMagnetic EMF Spectrum
How to Measure EMF: The Art of Knowing What You Are Studying There are a lot of people concerned about electromagnetic fields (EMF) and electromagnetic radiation (EMR or also known as radio frequency (RF)).  People want to know how to measure EMF. So much so, that they purchase detectors and meters for themselves and attempt to
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Healthy San Francisco Earth Day!

Healthy Building San Francisco
Healthy San Francisco Earth Day! We had a lovely, healthy San Francisco (420) day – April 20th!  Our Healthy Building San Francisco Earth Day booth was in the center of Civic Center Plaza with a great view of happy, healthy people AND San Francisco City Hall! See a few Thermal Portraits below… Healthy San Francisco
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EMF from LED Lights – Magnetic Fields and Recessed LED Lights

Lutron Dimmer 2
EMF from LED Lights and Recessed LED lights Is there significant amounts of EMF from LED Lights? A designer client of mine had a job she was working on, where her client, a homeowner, was concerned about the magnetic fields in her home.  She was designing a remodel, which included the kitchen, and the designer had
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LEED EMF ID Credit Application

LEED EMF Credit Denied
LEED EMF ID Credit Application The USGBC/LEED recently denied an Innovation in Design (ID) credit application for Magnetic Field (EMF) Reduction. This post includes the official LEED EMF ID Credit Application. The following text is in the traditional formal of an ID credit application and request for a Credit Interpretation Ruling (CIR). Unfortunately the USGBC
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LEED EMF Credit Denied

LEED denies EMF credit
EMF LEED Credit Citing the need for more research on human health effects, and questioning long-established Building Biology approaches to minimizing electromagnetic fields (EMF), the USGBC and denied a recent application for a EMF LEED Credit. Healthy Building Science was the LEED for Homes (LEED-H) consultant for two residential properties (CA and NH) that intended
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