Nanotechnology and Coatings

In helping our clients choose healthy building materials, I tend to be weary of coatings in general, but nanocoatings are of particular concern. In building materials, manufacturers advertise nanocoatings on carpets, upholstery, photovoltaics, and even toilets. I’ve seen these coatings used as stain repellants, waterproofing coatings or as finishes that create a smooth and easily
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Safe Cookware

safe cookware
Does Stainless Steel Leach Chemicals? There is a lot of information in the blogosphere about health and safety in cookware, but when a client asked whether stainless steel leached dangerous chemicals, I was unable to find a quick answer to her question. I decided to look into the issue of safe cookware myself. In one 2013
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Not All LED’s are the Same (Addendum)

LED Dirty Electricity
Dirty Electricity Concerns? In the recent blog of September 10th, 2013, EMI and LEDs – Not all LEDs are the same! we described dirty electricity and examined several brands of CFLs and LEDs.  This blog tests several more brands of LEDs to determine which produces the least amount of LED dirty electricity . It has
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Magnetic Fields – EMF Consulting

Magnetic Fields - EMF Consulting
When performing EMF surveys many “EMF consultants” only evaluate low-frequency magnetic fields.  When folks call and say they “have an EMF meter” and are measuring “high emf,” they generally have a Gauss meter and are measuring magnetic field field strength or magnetic flux. Most Building Biologists focus on Alternating Current (AC) electromagnetic fields, and in addition
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Alliance Against Greenwash

Greenwash Green Building
Sierra Club, GreenPeace, and Natural Resource Defense Council (NRDC) are getting behind a new initiative called the “Alliance Against Greenwash.” Launched by Jason Grant in San Francisco, the Alliance Against Greenwash sets out to fight false advertising around environmental impacts. As wealthy corporations continue buying air-time to proclaim their greenness… there is still no third-party
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Building a Home for Peace of Mind & Security

building a healthy home
When most people build or remodel their homes, they pay close attention to indoor air quality, comfort and aesthetics. The task of building to survive natural disasters like earthquakes (as the San Francisco Bay region is prone to) is left to building codes and local code enforcement. And the task of ensuring the home maintains livable
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Energy Star now “Elder Star” Certified Design

Energy Star now
Energy Star now ‘Elder Star’ certified design I recently heard the term “Elder Star” compliant homes, just like the “Energy Star” appliances and lights that we have grown so familiar with. And I thought it was so apt! It’s high time we all spent a little more time thinking about meeting the needs of our
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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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Blown-in-Cellulose Insulation

blown-in-cellulose insulation
Blown-in-Cellulose Insulation Test Results On a recent project, we recommended a homeowner try Blown-in-Cellulose insulation as a healthy alternative to other insulation choices. Blown-in-cellulose is known in the healthy materials world as a pretty safe insulation choice. But just to be sure the product was safe, we sent a wet sample to a lab for
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EMF at High Performance Schools

Kids Going To High EMF School?
Do you want to send your kids to an EMF hot-spot with unknown health ramifications? Are some existing symptoms a result of EMF? Reducing exposure to Electromagnetic Fields or Radiation (EMF or EMR) is a contentious debate in public health and green building circles across the United States. OSHA does provide rather liberal exposure limits for
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