Advanced Inspection Services Inc
Seattle, Olympia, Puyallup, Kent, Auburn, Tacoma Washington Home and Building Inspection Services
Air quality is defined as a measure of the condition of air relative to the requirements of one or more biotic species and or to any human need or purpose. Wikipedia Article
Every minute you take in twelve to twenty-four gallons of air
into your lungs. In
addition to the life-sustaining oxygen-nitrogen mix, there are an increasing number
of chemicals and pollutants.
According to the EPA, indoor air and its
pollution is one of the top five urgent environmental risks to public health. In
fact, the quality of the air inside most homes could be up to five times more
polluted than the air outdoors.
Many studies have consistently shown that
heating and cooling systems do play a significant role in causing or aggravating
allergies and other problems by harboring and re-distributing contaminants such as:
| Bacteria | Pet Dander | Construction Dust | Household Chemicals |
| Radon | Mold | Mildew | Viruses |
| Pollen | Mites | Humidity | Biological Pollutants |
A Better Environmental Choice
Most people do not realize the air they breathe in their home can be a worse source of pollution than their car. The ENERGY STAR Program has helped to save millions of pounds of carbon dioxide from our atmosphere. The less energy wasted in our homes, the less pollution we generate.
Home Energy Assessment (Audit)
A Home Energy Assessment has two specific phases. The first phase consists of an inspection and testing, taking inventory, and report the current conditions in your home including the following:
- - Health and safety
- - Carbon Monoxide levels
- - Moisture problems
- - Air infiltration rates
- - Insulation levels
- - Domestic hot water system
- - Heating system efficiency
- - Central air conditioning efficiency - if applicable
- - Lighting
- - Major appliances
Home Energy Assessment (Audit)
The second phase consists of developing a plan for proposed improvements, including a cost and energy savings estimate.We uses a number of diagnostic tools during the first phase of your Home Assessment. Some of the tools used are:
- - Carbon Monoxide (CO) Analyzer
- - Blower Door – Measures the air tightness and integrity of a home, identifying areas where air leakage occurs.
Your Home Energy Assessment is customized to identify the particular needs of your home, based on our professional testing and analysis. The information that we gather from our testing and inspection gets entered into a program that helps us determine the most cost-effective measures that you can undertake to make your home more efficient, healthy and comfortable.
Additional Resources:
- American Academy of Allergy, Asthma And Immunology
- American Lung Association
- Medical and Health Information
- National Safety Council Environmental Health Center
- Indoor Air Quality EPA
- Intro to Air Quality EPA
- Indoor Air Quality in Homes EPA
- Intro related to Carbon Monoxide (CO) EPA
More about Indoor Quality
Home Energy Audit
Home comfort and system performance applies current building science to address the following issues:
Efficient energy use
Efficient energy use, sometimes simply called energy efficiency, is the goal of efforts to reduce the amount of energy and cost required to operate HVAC, appliances and lighting while providing cost saving and overall efficiency within these systems.
Durability
That the improvements and or equipment upgrades are quality, and such that they will provide service in working order for a good number of years.
Indoor Air Quality
Indoor air quality (IAQ) is a term referring to the air quality within and around
buildings and
structures, specifically as it relates to the health and comfort of building
occupants.
IAQ
can be affected by microbial contaminants (mold, bacteria), gases (including carbon
monoxide,
radon, volatile organic compounds), particulates or anything in a home that can
induce adverse
health conditions.
Indoor Air Quality is quickly becoming a concern related
to health
hazards that can occur from poor Indoor Air Quality than outdoor air. Using
ventilation to
dilution, filtration, and source control are the primary methods involved for
improving indoor
air quality in most homes.
Thermal Comfort
Related to temperature control within a home. Having the right temperture is not only comfortable, it is a healthy way to exist in a home. When temperatures in different parts of a home exist, there are generally issues with homes distribution system or flue system. These problems need to be considered when having an energy audit.
Indoor Moisture Sources
A cracked foundation or cracks in basement walls contribute to excessive moisture in a home. An elevated humidity condition in a home can cause a myriad of health issues. Excess humity can contribute to mold growth, which left unchecked and susequently remediated, can cause severe health problems.
A professional home performance energy audit results in home energy retrofit recommendations to improve the comfort and efficiency of the home, the most common of which include:
- Sealing air holes and gaps in the building envelope and subsequently adding insulation
- Sealing ducts
- Upgrading heating and cooling systems, appliances and lighting by replacing them with energy efficient ENERGY STAR appliances or devices, compact fluorescent lamps, or LED lamps
- Adding heat recovery ventilation or other means to control and upgrade fresh air ventilation