What Are You Breathing Inside Your Home?

When we purchase a new home, healthy indoor air is something we assume we will get, but that may not always be the case. According to the EPA, Americans spend an average of 90% of their time indoors where, most often, the concentrations of some pollutants are 2 to 5 times higher than is typically found in outdoor air.

Ironically, some of those concentrations have increased over the last decade due to improved energy efficient construction practices that don’t provide proper mechanical ventilation to ensure an appropriate fresh air exchange. Another reason is the increasing growth in the number of products that contaminate indoor air.

So how can you lower the risk of poor indoor air quality—especially if someone in your family has respiratory problems like asthma, allergies, and chronic sinusitis? It’s easy!

The simplest solution is to look for a home certified in the BUILT TO SAVE™ and/or  ENERGY STAR® programs that use a third-party inspector to verify compliance in areas that improve indoor air quality. As well, the best certification or label to look for is the EPA’s Indoor airPLUS label, which requires construction practices and product specifications that minimize exposure to airborne pollutants and contaminants.

The good news for home shoppers in the Rio Grande Valley is that Divine Custom Homes includes the airPLUS label as an extension of its 100% commitment to the ENERGY STAR® program.

Olga Trevino, builder/owner of Divine Custom Homes, is to date the only builder who has qualified her homes as Indoor airPLUS. True to her company’s culture, she is not satisfied unless she is giving her customers the best—and mediocre to poor indoor air quality is not the best. Buying a home with an Indoor airPLUS label is not just ideal, it’s DIVINE.