allergies

The following is taken from the Beam website. Look at our most recent blog about Beam's new Internet policy

"A Beam central vacuum system removes 100% of contacted dust, mites, dander, pollen and other allergens and carries them away from the living environment to a canister usually located in the garage or basement."

To maximize the effectiveness of a central vacuum system to improve indoor air quality, Beam offers the following cleaning tips:

"Traditional dusting: Ineffective and harmful.

Dusting your home the old fashioned way with rags and scented sprays is ineffective and can be harmful. That's because dust is recirculated, and chemicals are introduced into the living environment which can be extremely hazardous to allergy and asthma sufferers. Using dusting attachments on your central vacuum system allows you to "power" dust. Regular deep cleaning with a Beam system means you'll breathe easier and dust less often.

Carpet and upholstery: Can you live with it?

Some allergy and asthma sufferers cantollerate carpet, draperies, blinds and upholstery, others cannot. Whether you should remove these items from your home should be determined by your physician. Only 20% of the patients who are advised to remove their carpet actually do. If you decide removing these things is not for you, a central vacuum system will help control the dust and allergens in your home.

Refrigerators: Not cool for allergy sufferers.

A refrigerator acts like a powerful magnet attracting dust and allergens, which become trapped beneath and behind the unit. When the motor cycles on and off, the dirt becomes airborne creating a key source of irritation for allergy and asthma sufferers. Until now removing dust has been difficult because the refrigerator had to be moved. Now with the Beam Wonderwand Floor Hugger it is easy to clean beneath and behind refrigerators and other hard-to-move appliances and furniture. This narrow attachment slips beneath and behind the unit to remove trapped dust, dirt and allergens quickly and easily."

A central vacuum system is the best choice for cleaning if you have allergies, asthma, or just care about your indoor air quality. Click on the link below to find all the choices available to you.

http://www.vachelp.com

I'm glad I'm not Mrs. Cheapo, because my husband is insisting on metal ductwork for the house which is the most expensive way to go for your HVAC (Heating Ventilation Air Conditioning) ductwork. My husband, the typical Swede, is so quality driven that he absolutely insists upon it.

From what I've learned, there are a few good reasons. We talked to several geothermal, HVAC consultants and took a couple of classes where they have said the same thing - Metal ducts are better. Metal ductwork lasts longer, is easier to clean, doesn't get particle buildup as easily as flex duct and the air flows better (less possibility for restricted airflow, which causes A/C inefficiency!). A/C usage and inefficiency accounts for a lot of Texan's house bills, so this is pretty darn important. You must insulate the metal ducts on the exterior to keep it from sweating if it's cool air or losing its temperature if it's heat. The only disadvantage I can see besides the expense, is that there have been cases where sound travels through the metal ducts to other parts of the house. There are solutions to fix this (duct liners), but I don't know what that does to the efficiency of the ducts (which will defeat the purpose of the metal ducts!).

The alternative has been to get flexduct (the most common in new homes) or fiberglass ducts (made with a rigid fiberglass duct board). The advantage is that it's way cheaper and already insulated. The problem that occurs is that flexduct bends, restricting airflow and being a lot more inefficient. They can also bust open (some guy found a little rat's family home in one once!EWWWWWW) if little critters can get in, and they are difficult to clean.

Also, you will want to clean your ducts periodically, as there is always a danger of getting fiberglass particles, mold or dust in the ductwork. You do NOT want to breath fiberglass, as that is super dangerous to your lungs, which is why you always need a mask when putting in batt (fiberglass) insulation. With metal ducts, it is easier to clean very thoroughly with a brush. Another tip is that if you are sealing your ducts, always use MASTIC tape not DUCT tape, as mastic tape is better quality and does not wear out as easily as duct tape.

Metal ductwork will cost us about $4,000-5,000 more than using flexduct or fiberglass. But again, my husband says it's worth it! (*sigh*). I guess we're going to have to wait a little longer to get another car :-).

Yet another fabulous shopping weekend looking at eco-friendly products for the house. We discovered the Eco-wise store, which got the Best of Austin 2007 award for the most eco-friendly, green store. Good for them!

We met a very animated, yet friendly sales guy giving us the scoop on eco-friendly/sustainable flooring, countertops and rainwater collection.

Basically, there are several types of flooring:

• Bamboo flooring, which is a fast growing type of grass that is easily grown and harvested, but shipped from China. Bamboo is hard, resilient and can be made into many different beautiful patterns. There's a variety of quality, so be careful what you pay for!
• Cork flooring, which is made from the bark of cork oak trees, and when stripped, does not destroy the tree. Advantages are that they are softer on the feet, especially in an area where you stand a lot (i.e., kitchen), and are recycled and have no VOCs (volatile organic compounds).
• Linoleum flooring, which is an all natural, non-toxic flooring made of linseed oil, produced by pressing seeds from flax, an easy to cultivate and abundant plant. They are usually warm and softer on the feet than cold tile flooring and come in a variety of colors. The problem is the look of it, in my opinion, as it has that 70s retro look that doesn't evoke beauty to me, but hey, beauty is the eye of the beholder :-).
• Local or reclaimed wood, specific to your area. Check out wood that has been taken from buildings that were demolished. You can sometimes find great deals in reusing it for your flooring, banisters, ceiling beams, etc! We are checking out using hickory, which is a near diamond hard wood that is found in Arkansas and milled locally in the Hill Country. It is a beautiful wood that can be stained to your desired color and will last decades.
• Stained concrete with fly ash, which is basically the mineral residue resulting from coal plants and when mixed your concrete, greatly reduces cement production and therefore eliminating much of the carbon emissions. They are quite fashionable in homes nowadays, as it can make your home look very modern by staining or creating patterns in the concrete. It also provide a large thermal mass for your home. A thermal mass is some sort of structure (i.e. stone) that keeps a constant temperature and thereby positively affects the temperature in your home. Concrete floors are relatively cheap, as they can be part of your foundation, and you can then stain it, and then instantly have your floor ready. You can easily repair them if they crack and are durable, but the only problem is that concrete can be hard on the feet and unforgiving if you drop something on the floor.

We also looked into concrete countertops with varying degrees of recycled glass in them or using sorghum or bamboo as a countertop as opposed to concrete. There are even countertops made of recycled paper that are even stain, scratch and heat resistant! You have a lot of options to create the look you desire.... MORE HERE...

I just noticed that Sharper Image is having a big sale on their ion air filters. I was tempted to make an impulse buy, but I have heard both good and bad things about ion systems. Anyone know what is the best way to clean the air in my 1800 square foot house? PS: I have carpet everywhere, as it's a rental.

Kevin,

1. Can you have fireplaces in a straw built home?

2. Straw built homes, do they have an increase affect on people with allergies?

3. What are the resale values/market value pro and cons of a straw built home?

4. Is marble and granite amenities considered green.

Thanks Kevin, Happy Green Day.

Lucky & Mari Taylor

Hi Lucky and Mari,

1. Sure you can have a fireplace, although fireplaces are not environmentally friendly. They burn wood which causes temporary, localized, unhealthy air, when the wood could be decomposing into the earth to supply nutrients for future plant growth.

2. No. The bales are encapsulated in plaster so there is no evidence of any straw, except where one decides to add a “Truth Window” to show off the interior of the wall. Even if the walls were left un-plastered, allergies are caused by pollens and dust and not by the fibrous shafts that once contained grain.

3. Cons: ignorance of potential buyers. Pros: more beautiful homes with much greater insulation, resulting in reduced energy costs.

4. Not really. Though they are organic, those products have high embodied energy, having been blasted with dynamite, sawn into slabs, and shipped around the world. Locally made materials, from natural or recycled ingredients are better.

Good luck!

Kevin

Dear Kevin:

Came across your show for the first time on PBS this weekend.

Interesting concept with using hay, but there may be health concerns that you may have covered in previous shows. If someone is allergic to hay and if the building "breathes" it may not be good. Did you talk about this in earlier shows? I hope you discussed what parts of the country hay could be used and should not be used.

Also you talked about bluejean insulation, but you didn't talk about the cost compared to other alternatives. It appears that cost to you is a minor issue, but in real life it is important.

Will tune in again next week.

Regards,
Craig

Dear Kevin,
I fortunately caught the tail end of an episode featuring building with straw. Being the mother of a child with extreme allergies, I have been researching the prospect of building green or at least remodeling green and living in a rural farm community, and this particularly caught my attention.

Regards,
Cindy