Healthy Building Tips: How to create a healthier living environment for you and the world around you

Some questions you should ask yourself before building are: How can we build causing the least amount of damage to the land? How do we build with using more than we need? How can we build and create something that is inhabitable, and healthy to live in?

Firstly, we need to work with the environment not against it. Some examples of limiting the impact of building are not removing hill sides in order to place a building in a better view because the better view is artificially created and has many external costs. A way to improve this example is to use topographical map. Using environmental maps will give a lay of the land identifying hills, trees, pools of water. Crystal Waters even went so far as to identify and conserve the better agriculture areas. This type of pre-planning would limit the amount of land harvested for buildings as well as a natural order to the building process.

A building is nothing without the materials used to maintain its structure. Rated materials such as dual pane windows or insulation from sheep’s wool are better alternatives to fiber glass or windows that actually let outside air in and inside air out. (not really fulfilling its purpose). Though rated materials are great in the long run, reused materials are also beneficial in that they are the long run. Reused materials tend to be a cheaper alternative to the rated materials but where cost cuts are made, beauty is retained. Antique doors, windows, floors and bathroom features are swanky. Compromises are made but the premise is still there. Stores such as Habitat Restore offer reusable materials at a cheap cost and a potential chance to meet others interested in your project.

Following this, Working with the natural elements will decrease energy throughout the life of the building which is a part of the health of a building. Controlling room temperatures via trees or positioning to the sun will greatly benefit comfort and cost of the building.

Buildings are designed to have people in and around them. The problem is that the buildings are producing harmful chemicals from the building materials. Healthy building is “health” as in human health, not just environmental. Chemicals such as Chloroform from showers, Asbestososis, and Formaldehyde in furniture are deathly. Sadly, We are unaware of these poisons that we breathe in daily. Porous, Breathable, Good smelling buildings are the goal, not painted walls that are impermeable to natural air circulation. I may sound hypocritical that the windows are badly designed because they allow air in and out but painted walls is bad because it does not let air in and out. Buildings are like a human body, the interior and exterior needs to breathe just like our skin. The conclusion is, we also need to breathe and since we are living and working in these buildings, the air should be neutralized.

Healthy Building is not just about materials, its about our health. Being more aware about the environment around us will benefit not just our health but our pocket.