SOURCES – The Healthy House by John Bower: Environmental Protection Agency
Here are some questions, compiled by Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp., to help determine if you may have a problem with indoor pollutants.
If you answer “yes” to any of the following, your home may have poor air quality:
- Do you notice an odor as you enter the house?
- Do you feel better outdoors than inside?
- Do you feel better in other people’s homes than your own?
- Are there times when you feel sick inside your house?
- Do you associate specific symptoms with particular odors?
- Are they worse in certain areas of the house?
- Are they worse at particular times of the year?
If you answer “yes” to any of the following, you may have problems related to chemical contamination:
- Is there a “new smell” or chemical odor (similar to that of a new car, new wood, gas, paint, fabric shop, carpet store, etc.)?
- Has a pest control company ever treated your house?
- Has the house been recently renovated?
- Is there new furniture or furnishings (such as carpeting or drapes)?
If you answer “yes” to any of the following, you may have problems related to biological contamination:
- Does your house have an “old smell” (stale, musty, or earthy)?
- Does your house have a crawl space or basement?
- Does the crawl space or basement have a dirt floor?
- Do you sense that your basement is unhealthy for you (feeling of dampness, aversion, or discomfort)?
- Does water come into the basement at certain times?
- Is there flooding when it rains or during spring thaw?
Biography Magazine/May 2003
