These days there are too many “TRENDS” to count.
With the online world, trends move fast and furious. Things that hadn’t existed days ago, all of a sudden are being replicated by millions of people across the world. Most trends are fleeting, and some last the test of time. Thankfully, one major trend consistently gaining traction across the world right now is HEALTH.
Within that can of worms there are hundreds of trends to dive even deeper into!
Physical health: What you are putting in your body?
Mental health: What you are putting in your mind?
And for us as Home Builders: What are you putting in your Home?
There is a massive sliding scale when is comes to how far you go with making your home a “healthy home”.
Unfortunately, it IS more expensive to build with the highest quality building materials which are sourced ethically, perform optimally, and contribute to a healthy lifestyle. The other way to look at it is, if your health is important to you, you ought to prioritize spending your hard-earned dollars on contributing to it!
On one end of the spectrum we have large scale, natural construction like Earth Ships or Straw Bale Houses. If you have the necessary connections, resources and time, this end of the spectrum is as natural and healthy a home you can live in. Using as many recycled building products as possible being a main theme, natural construction CAN also be quite affordable. With all natural, highly breathable building products, natural constructions homes can produce optimal living conditions. The downside is they are a lot of work, there are very few people who know how to construct them correctly, and they require a lot more ongoing maintenance than conventional construction.
In my humble opinion, the epitome of a healthy home is a Passive Built home with as many of these natural components as possible. Passive Built homes have a major focus on the energy efficiency of your home which improves comfort by keeping the climate consistent, reduces your energy consumption and ecological footprint, and also reduces your monthly utility bills!
Features of a Passive Built home are:
- Air tightness to minimize air leaking in or out.
- High insulation values to maintain a consistent temperature.
- Mechanical systems to keep the air inside moving and fresh.
- Window placement to capture the sun’s energy.
Depending on the climate you live in, this can require different levels of attention to each of these areas. Here is a great video from Riser Homes on his own passive home construction.
In a perfect world, we all have the opportunity to invest our time and money into one of these types of homes. The reality is that just isn’t always in the cards! So what can we do?
Here are a handful of areas and products to keep in mind when going through the process of your own home build, renovation or DIY project:
- Insulation: On a more extensive project, insulation is an important focus and can make a huge impact to the comfort of your home. Sheep’s wool is natural, moisture regulating, and will help reduce the potential for mold in your home while also delivering top level R-Value and comfort. Rock wool is another great option which offers many of the same benefits as well as a fire rating!
- Stainless steel: This one can be a double edged sword. You need to be cautious in colder climates as steel can cause negative thermal bridging from a cold exterior into your home. If insulated properly though, steel is strong and lasts “forever” which will reduce your eco footprint over a long period of time. Again, steel will not mold. We spend so much time in our homes that air quality is key.
- Indoor Air Quality: Speaking of air quality, when planning the mechanical components of your home, a key piece is your HRV (heat recovery ventilator) or ERV (energy recovery ventilator). Watch this video on a comparison on the two and their differences.
- Natural Light: There is an overwhelming amount of studies telling us how vital sunshine and natural light is for so many functions of our human bodies. From energy levels, to circadian rhythm (sleep), and our overall mood! For us in the Northern Hemisphere, our Winter sunshine comes from the south. Understanding window placement and where the natural light is coming from can not be overlooked when designing a home. On the interior, using glass partitions, even frosted glass on doors or walls can help natural light travel through the home.
- Solid Wood: Though typically more expensive, it’s hard to put a price on health. Fake wood products and laminates often contain more formaldehyde than real, solid wood. Fake wood is also usually installed with toxic adhesives. Think about things like replacing the laminate countertops with a solid butcher block counter!
- Paint: Paint is easily the biggest bang for buck when it comes to transforming your home for a budget! Just make sure you are looking for paints labelled LOW VOC (volatile organic compounds) as these are not good for the lungs! Focus on water based or latex based paints.
There are countless more ways to optimize the health of your home and family. These are a few, but each person, family and project have a different set of factors that you have to work with. This is where hiring a builder or contractor who understand these factors is SO important. The industry has not focused on the health of a home as a whole. If these factors are important to you then make sure you consult a builder who knows their stuff!
