Buildings

Advanced Energy Healthy Homes Research

The key steps in creating a healthier home are:

• Exclude, dilute & trap indoor and outdoor pollutants (VOC, particles, ozone, NOx, CO, radon)
• Suppress and exclude biological contaminants (prevent condensation, manage moisture, exclude mold and other pests)
• Design/locate for access to personal safety, physical activity, community connections, natural light, access to clean outdoor air, and transportation access to jobs

Advanced Energy partners with many experts to find ways to improve peoples health through healthy, high performance buildings, including HUD, Department of Energy, the Environmental Protection Agency, the National Institutes of Environmental Health Science, UNC Center for Environmental Medicine and Lung Biology, Habitat for Humanity, and various product manufacturers.

Recent Advanced Energy Health research results include:

• Does an outdoor air intake create acceptable levels of formaldehyde in energy-efficient housing (tight envelope and ducts)?
  –     Ventilation Results from Healthy Homes study (2003-2006)
  –     Study Presentation (powerpoint and mp3)


• Moving to a newly-built home does not necessarily reduce allergens
  –     Study Presentation [ppt]


• Can a dehumidifier, filter, and ventilation reduce dust mites and indoor pollutants in energy-efficient homes?
  –     Power point presentation on results of Healthy Homes Phase 2 Study
  –     Study description
  –     Interim moisture results (12/2008)
  –     Healthy Homes, Healthy Lives Phase 2


• A robust closed crawl space manages moisture beautifully to suppress mold and wood rot, but may not create dust-mite-suppressing levels of RH in the living space.
  –     Conference Paper [pdf]
  –     Power Point Presentation [ppt]


• Southeastern wall-vented crawl spaces are documented to be a source of mold inside the home.
  –     Study Results [pdf]
  –     Study Presentation [ppt]


• Closed crawl spaces keep crawl spaces dry and provide energy savings, but must be tested for radon.
  –     Closed Crawl Spaces website. Everything from “Field Guide for the Southeast” to detailed technical research reports

What else can I do to my house to improve my health? A new report from the National Center for Healthy Housing compiles the evidence from many research studies to show what’s been proven to work, what clearly doesn’t work, and what needs more research.

• Other topics in indoor air quality can be found on Advanced Energy Buildings Knowledge Library, including articles about moisture, radon, and combustion safety, and other pollutants.
  

Advanced Energy offers the National Healthy Homes Practitioner training course in North Carolina, in partnership with the NC State University Department of Family and Consumer Science (Cooperative Extension) and the National Center for Healthy Housing.

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