My healthy home search checklist

Posted on Oct 10, 2009 by Susie Collins in Amy Ludwigson, Blog, Home & Garden

This is the checklist I developed and used while I was looking for a healthy home over the past year.

When you have Multiple Chemical Sensitivity, creating or finding a safe home can be one of the hardest challenges you have to face. As you become aware of the toxic chemicals in your environment, it seems like everywhere you turn there is something that could be contributing to your illness. You feel vulnerable, afraid, and helpless. People do not believe you, so you feel as if you are alone. As you are awakening out of your previous ignorance about chemicals you begin to realize how little you still know. You start making changes. Some you feel make a dramatic improvement in your health, some make you feel even sicker (which you never thought was possible). This was my story. This is my story.

I have spent the last 10 years of my life working on creating a safe home for myself. I have made plenty of mistakes, yet I have learned a lot in the process. I have studied with many of the experts in healthy home design, getting certified as a Building Biologist on the way. I have also traveled and studied forms of Feng Shui and Space Clearing, which both look at the energetic health of our homes. This checklist that I have created is by no means exhaustive, yet it is something that you can use as a guide to create your own when you are looking for a home.

This is the list I developed and used while I was looking for a healthy home over the past year. After each item I had a column for no concern, slight concern, severe concern and extreme concern. This really helped me to break down the places that I was interested in and make sure that I was not making any compromises. I sure had a lot of deal breakers, which my realtor sure got a kick out of. Yet, I was so fortunate to find a realtor that found me fascinating and not crazy! And I am happy to say that I found a beautiful studio in my favorite neighborhood in Chicago, I have been here for a month and couldn’t be happier.

So here is the checklist:

Proximity to:
Industry
Highways
Parking Lots
Golf Courses
High Tension Power Lines
Substation
Transformer
Cell Phone Tower
Radar/FM/TV station

Site Assessment:
Sprinkler system
Site drainage pattern
Rain gutter
Basement/crawlspace
Air conditioning unit
Water entrance
Electricity entrance

General Building:
Age
Remodeling
Pesticide Use
Neighbor Habits
Building Orientation
Garage Location
Materials – Inside
Materials – Outside
Insulation
Flooring Materials
Wiring (knob and tube?)
Laundry

Kitchen:
Electric or Gas Appliances
Adequate Ventilation
Age/Outgassing
Location of Appliances

Moisture:
Windows
Bathroom
Ducts
Kitchen

Indoor Air Quality:
Heating System
Cooling System
Ventilation
Duct’s Clean?
Return Vent
Combustible Gases
CO2
Humidifier
Leaks
Crawl Space, Vapor Barrier
Refrigerator Drain Pan
Plants, Mold
Exhaust in Bath/Kitchen
Filter

Other IAQ:
Asbestos
Lead
Radon
Mold

Pesticide Use:
Yes?
Storage
Neighbor Habits

Water Quality:
Age of Building
Filtration System
Local Water Report

Cleaning Supplies:
Which ones?
Storage

Electromagnetic:
Antennae Search
Visual Cell Phone Towers
Circuit Breaker Location
Geopathic Stress
Wireless (Neighbors)
Cordless Phones

Work Habits:
Computer Use
Printer Use
Hobbies

Other:
Lighting
Sunlight
Noise

I know this checklist can create a lot of questions, and probably needs a book to explain. Yet, I hope it will be a good guide for any of you looking for a place right now.

What else would you add to the list?

Come visit me at my blog Pure Habitat.

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Tags: Air, Chemicals, Children's Health, Healthy Living, Home, Indoor Pollution, MCS, Multiple Chemical Sensitivity, Organic, Pesticides, Products

11 Responses to “My healthy home search checklist”

Denise

11. Oct, 2009

Great list. Here in Honolulu with aging housing and increasing density another issue is the building of additional houses (with vehicles coming and going (or just idling) and noisy and polluting generators and other equipment running for 1-7+ years). Additional houses are built on existing lots, that often already have a house and there is also the seemingly never-ending additions and/or changes to existing buildings. Often zoning allows building right up to the lot line!!

Noisy pool filters and a/c units of neighbors are also factors to consider.

Also, will one, or more, of your neighbors be going and/or coming during the night and wake you up when s/he starts or parks her/his vehicle?

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Denise

11. Oct, 2009

Also, wood smoke/burning and cigarette smoke.

Reply to this comment
Noel

11. Oct, 2009

great list! it’s so hard to find a safe and healthy place to live. I always look for a place with hardwood floors (no carpets, ugh), no mold or water leakage issues, a washer and dryer that aren’t shared with people who use scented detergent, fabric softener, or dryer sheets, and no perfumey or incense burning roommates. i also have to smell out the windows to see if the neighbors’ dryers give off that awful chemical fume.

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judith hombravella

11. Oct, 2009

great post thank you very much

Reply to this comment
Susan E.

11. Oct, 2009

You mention one carbon gas but not the other. Sometimes this is just a typo.
CO2 is carbon dioxide. We breath it out and plants “breathe” it in. It’s necessary for their photosynthesis.
CO is carbon monoxide. This is not a win-lose or win-win planetary chemical like CO2. There has been precious little ever found to be positive for CO.
CO2 has gotten a lot of bad press lately, and it and about 3 other gases have been in measurements of outdoor air quality for some time.
CO, however, is the one that doesn’t smell and can kill you. It’s frequently found in small amounts almost everywhere, but furnaces, gas appliances, car cabins and exhaust and any form of combusion can create it, even restaurant grills. Please put it on your list. It also happens to be a major cause and etiology of MCS. You can find that info if you do your homework, but trust me. It’s my major source of MCS. It’s a long story. Please look into what you can do to measure, alarm and best yet, get as far away from it as you can. Thanks for a great starter list.

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Kimberly Shaw

12. Oct, 2009

Great list, thank you for sharing!

Reply to this comment
Dee L.

12. Oct, 2009

Amy…we are so proud of you!!!! so wonderful you have done this. Yes that compromise thing is hard isn’t it. I have a question..see a place next door for rent..daughter lives there..Seriously thinking more all the time I need to go this alone. Amy..you know anything about these whole house air filters? with the UV and catalyst?

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Susie Collins

12. Oct, 2009

Dee, Info on UV air filters here http://www.air-purifier-power.com/uv-air-purifier.html . Info on PhotoCatalytic Air Purifier here http://www.air-purifier-power.com/photocatalytic-air-purifier.html . They are not the best. There is no reliable evidence of complete ultraviolet effectiveness in air purifier applications. Many of these UVC and Photocatalytic systems produce ozone, which can create new harmful chemicals that stick around in your home. True HEPA and carbon filtration are much more useful and safe for removing dusts and VOC’s, which are the main concerns of people with Multiple Chemical Sensitivity.

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Amy

13. Oct, 2009

Love the other things to look for…So, happy you have this site up Susie! So great that we can help eachother with the things that we have learned.

yes, new construction near by is a huge thing to consider! I had a problem with that at my last place. Not only with noise and exhause fumes from trucks, but the dust that it creates. Not healthy and really who wants to dust?

Susan E. thanks for bringing up CO. It is for sure one to watch out for. So sorry to hear that it was one of the sources of your MCS.

One of the other things, that I probably do not have to mention is being sure not to be near a laundry mat. It amazes me how far fumes can travel.

I have heard of many people asking the renting agent or the seller if they can spend a night in the house, to see if it feels right before they move in. Can’t hurt to ask and it can save you a big headache.

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Amy

13. Oct, 2009

Dee,

I do not know much about the whole house UV air filters, besides what Susie mentioned. With many of those machines creating ozone it really is not a healthy option for someone with MCS, so never looked much further into it. I use an Austin Air filter that has worked great for me, and since I have a small space there is no need for a whole house filter.

I will keep an eye open for a place to open up in my building for your daughter!

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Gwyn

01. Apr, 2010

This list is wonderful and covers a lot of areas. Living in the Southwest, one has to worry about heavy metals like arsenic in the water or lead in the land. Many people living in more isolated areas end up hauling their own water which would be difficult for someone with MCS.

In the mountains, the proximity to mining and fracking is a concern and woodsmoke in the mountains can be a deal breaker.

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