Hurricanes are one of nature’s most destructive forces, as witnessed in 2005 when Hurricane Katrina pummeled the Gulf Coast. FEMA estimates that Katrina killed over 1,300 people, displaced 450,000 people, and wrecked over 300,000 single-family homes throughout Louisiana and Mississippi. Most of the havoc caused by Katrina was flood-related, due to levee failures in New Orleans. Storm surges created waves that were more than 20 feet high in some places and carried debris that destroyed buildings.

Wind and water are the ingredients for disaster during any hurricane. Wind puts external forces on the walls of a home, causing a range of cosmetic and performance problems. Wind can lift the roof off a home, break the connections between levels of a home, and cause walls to slide off the foundation. All of these problems open the home up to air, moisture, and water infiltration. In the case of Katrina, the most common type of structural damage occurred when roof sheathing panels weren’t properly attached to the supporting framing. Without sufficient attachment, the roof lifts off a home and allows water to enter.

Hurricane Katrina demonstrated the need for better disaster preparedness. Many of the communities that were heavily impacted by Hurricane Katrina had not adopted up-to-date building codes that incorporate flood and wind protection or had no building codes at all. Builders are now working to improve the performance of homes, so that they can withstand hurricanes and protect buyers from the devastation that Hurricane Katrina brought to the people of Alabama, Louisiana, and Mississippi.

Hurricane resistant design
Most structural failures during a hurricane are a result of inadequate design and construction practices. Conventionally, homes have several weak points, such as windows, doors, corners, connections between floors, and connections between the roof and walls, all of which make homes vulnerable to wind damage. Builders need to keep these weak points in mind, applying design and construction methods that enable homes to resist hurricane winds. These general guidelines help ensure a home is built to withstand hurricanes.

• Build the home low. The lower the home is, the better, because the wind has less area on which to blow and exert pressure on the home. 
• Build a hip roof. Hip roofs reduce winds better than gable roofs. 
• Build a roof with a 5:12 slope. A shallower slope reduces the wind forces against the roof. 
• Build a wind-resistant roof. If you install shingles, use wind-resistant shingles. If you install tiles, attach them with mortar or foam, and secure them with four to six fasteners per tile. They won’t be blown off the roof as easily. 
• Reduce the sizes of overhangs. Smaller overhangs are harder for wind to lift up. 
• Don’t locate windows near corners. Any opening you put in the corners will weaken the home. Windows built at corners make the home more susceptible to being racked out of shape when the wind blows.

Roof sheathing
Builders can use several strategies for keeping the roof on the home during a hurricane. Plywood is preferable to OSB decking, because it’s sturdier. High-quality fasteners and hurricane-proof nailing patterns help keep the roof from lifting up. Decrease the spacing of fasteners on the roof deck to 4″ on center. Closer spacing keeps the roof more secure to the home and prevents it from lifting up. Use nails and screws with a longer shank and larger head, and use a closer spacing pattern with more nails and screws. It’s important to check your work, because you can easily miss areas with a nail gun. To protect the home against water intrusion, the gaps between plywood sheets should be sealed with a peel and stick tape.

Shear panels
In zones with a high risk of hurricanes, conventional wall bracing isn’t enough. Shear panels are required at critical areas, usually at the corners. A shear panel is a wall segment that’s engineered to resist hurricanes more effectively than the average wall. The strength of shear panels comes from additional fasteners, thicker sheathing, additional studs, anchors, and hold downs. The shear panels can be either constructed at the jobsite or supplied as preassembled units, ready to install. Preassembled panels are a convenient solution for builders, because they’re constructed and inspected by the manufacturer. Builders need to worry only about fastening them in place properly and checking the installation.

Reinforced garage doors
As the largest opening, a garage door is the weakest point in any home. Garage doors are typically made of lightweight materials, making it easy for hurricane winds to tear them apart. Once the garage door is destroyed, wind can rush into a home, causing building failure. The best way to prevent damage to the garage door is to install a preassembled reinforced garage door. Several manufacturers offer garage doors that are strengthened with a bracing system of aluminum bars, brackets, and a steel track. These features prevent the door from blowing in.

Storm rooms
Storm rooms provide a place for homeowners to survive a hurricane without injury. Debris, such as signs, roofing material, and small items left outside become flying missiles in hurricanes. Storm rooms are built with stronger materials than standard homes that allow them to resist wind loads and penetration by these flying objects. Some of the materials that have been proven to withstand impact include concrete masonry walls with vertical and horizontal reinforcement, plywood-covered wood stud walls filled with dry-stacked concrete blocks, and steel sheets combined with plywood sheathing and wood studs.

Like shear panels, storms rooms can be built onsite or installed as manufactured units. They’re designed to be a “room within a room,” so that they will remain intact even if the surrounding home is destroyed. The storm room should be accessible from all parts of the home to allow homeowners to reach it quickly and safely during a storm. The walls should be anchored to the foundation to resist overturning and lifting up. All sides of the room, including the walls, roof, and door, must be able to resist penetration by windblown objects.

Homeowner education
Studies show that homeowners who live in coastal areas are willing to pay more for hurricane protection and peace of mind. In addition to providing buyers with a hurricane resistant home, give them information about what to do after a hurricane strikes to ensure their health and safety.

Make sure homeowners are aware of what needs to be inspected and what precautions they should take before entering their home. They should have the heating and cooling system checked by a service technician before running it. If water has entered the system, mold can be blown through the home if the system is turned on. If the electricity is off, homeowners should have a portable generator on hand to power equipment and remove standing water. In the basement or crawlspace, you can remove standing water by using a wet-dry shop vacuum, an electric-powered water transfer pump, or a sump pump. To aid drying, open windows and doors, and use fans and dehumidifiers. Fans should be placed at windows and doors to blow air out of the home.

To learn more about protecting homes and homeowners from hurricanes, visit:
www.fema.gov

An Introduction to Indoor Air Quality (IAQ)

Pollutants and Sources of Indoor Air Pollution

• Asbestos
• Biological Pollutants
• Carbon Monoxide (CO)
• Formaldehyde/Pressed Wood Products
• Lead (Pb)
• Nitrogen Dioxide (NO₂)
• Pesticides
• Radon (Rn)
• Respirable Particles
• Secondhand Smoke/ Environmental Tobacco Smoke
• Stoves, Heaters, Fireplaces, and Chimneys
• Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs)

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Read “The Inside Story: A Guide to Indoor Air Quality” Also read “Care for Your Air”

Contents

• What Causes Indoor Air Problems?
• Pollutant Sources
• Amount of Ventilation
• Indoor Air Pollution and Health
• Additional Resources
  • There are three basic strategies to improve indoor air quality
  • Measuring Pollutant Levels and Weatherizing Your Home
  • What if You Live in an Apartment?
  • Do You Suspect Your Office Has an Indoor Air Problem?

Please Note:  The Information provided here comes primarily from EPA’s “The Inside Story: A Guide to Indoor Air Quality“.  The information provided here is based on the current scientific and technical understanding of the issues surrounding indoor air quality and is reflective of the jurisdictional boundaries established by the statutes governing the co-authoring agencies.  Following the advice given will not necessarily provide complete protection in all situations or against all health hazards that may be caused by indoor air pollution.

What Causes Indoor Air Problems?

Indoor pollution sources that release gases or particles into the air are the primary cause of indoor air quality problems in homes. Inadequate ventilation can increase indoor pollutant levels by not bringing in enough outdoor air to dilute emissions from indoor sources and by not carrying indoor air pollutants out of the home. High temperature and humidity levels can also increase concentrations of some pollutants.

Pollutant Sources

There are many sources of indoor air pollution in any home. These include combustion sources such as oil, gas, kerosene, coal, wood, and tobacco products; building materials and furnishings as diverse as deteriorated, asbestos-containing insulation, wet or damp carpet, and cabinetry or furniture made of certain pressed wood products; products for household cleaning and maintenance, personal care, or hobbies; central heating and cooling systems and humidification devices; and outdoor sources such as radon, pesticides, and outdoor air pollution.

The relative importance of any single source depends on how much of a given pollutant it emits and how hazardous those emissions are. In some cases, factors such as how old the source is and whether it is properly maintained are significant. For example, an improperly adjusted gas stove can emit significantly more carbon monoxide than one that is properly adjusted.

Some sources, such as building materials, furnishings, and household products like air fresheners, release pollutants more or less continuously. Other sources, related to activities carried out in the home, release pollutants intermittently. These include smoking, the use of unvented or malfunctioning stoves, furnaces, or space heaters, the use of solvents in cleaning and hobby activities, the use of paint strippers in redecorating activities, and the use of cleaning products and pesticides in house-keeping. High pollutant concentrations can remain in the air for long periods after some of these activities.

Amount of Ventilation

If too little outdoor air enters a home, pollutants can accumulate to levels that can pose health and comfort problems. Unless they are built with special mechanical means of ventilation, homes that are designed and constructed to minimize the amount of outdoor air that can “leak” into and out of the home may have higher pollutant levels than other homes. However, because some weather conditions can drastically reduce the amount of outdoor air that enters a home, pollutants can build up even in homes that are normally considered “leaky”.

How Does Outdoor Air Enter a House?

Outdoor air enters and leaves a house by: infiltration, natural ventilation, and mechanical ventilation. In a process known as infiltration, outdoor air flows into the house through openings, joints, and cracks in walls, floors, and ceilings, and around windows and doors. In natural ventilation, air moves through opened windows and doors. Air movement associated with infiltration and natural ventilation is caused by air temperature differences between indoors and outdoors and by wind. Finally, there are a number of mechanical ventilation devices, from outdoor-vented fans that intermittently remove air from a single room, such as bathrooms and kitchen, to air handling systems that use fans and duct work to continuously remove indoor air and distribute filtered and conditioned outdoor air to strategic points throughout the house. The rate at which outdoor air replaces indoor air is described as the air exchange rate. When there is little infiltration, natural ventilation, or mechanical ventilation, the air exchange rate is low and pollutant levels can increase.

• Read more about ventilation in buildings

Indoor Air Pollution and Health

Health effects from indoor air pollutants may be experienced soon after exposure or, possibly, years later.

Immediate effects

Immediate effects may show up after a single exposure or repeated exposures. These include irritation of the eyes, nose, and throat, headaches, dizziness, and fatigue. Such immediate effects are usually short-term and treatable. Sometimes the treatment is simply eliminating the person’s exposure to the source of the pollution, if it can be identified. Symptoms of some diseases, including asthma, hypersensitivity pneumonitis, and humidifier fever, may also show up soon after exposure to some indoor air pollutants.

The likelihood of immediate reactions to indoor air pollutants depends on several factors. Age and preexisting medical conditions are two important influences. In other cases, whether a person reacts to a pollutant depends on individual sensitivity, which varies tremendously from person to person. Some people can become sensitized to biological pollutants after repeated exposures, and it appears that some people can become sensitized to chemical pollutants as well.

Certain immediate effects are similar to those from colds or other viral diseases, so it is often difficult to determine if the symptoms are a result of exposure to indoor air pollution. For this reason, it is important to pay attention to the time and place symptoms occur. If the symptoms fade or go away when a person is away from home, for example, an effort should be made to identify indoor air sources that may be possible causes. Some effects may be made worse by an inadequate supply of outdoor air or from the heating, cooling, or humidity conditions prevalent in the home.

Long-term effects

Other health effects may show up either years after exposure has occurred or only after long or repeated periods of exposure. These effects, which include some respiratory diseases, heart disease, and cancer, can be severely debilitating or fatal. It is prudent to try to improve the indoor air quality in your home even if symptoms are not noticeable.

While pollutants commonly found in indoor air are responsible for many harmful effects, there is considerable uncertainty about what concentrations or periods of exposure are necessary to produce specific health problems. People also react very differently to exposure to indoor air pollutants. Further research is needed to better understand which health effects occur after exposure to the average pollutant concentrations found in homes and which occurs from the higher concentrations that occur for short periods of time.

Additional Resources
 

• Basic Information About Indoor Air Quality
• There are three basic strategies to improve indoor air quality
• Measuring Pollutant Levels and Weatherizing Your Home
• What if You Live in an Apartment?
• Do You Suspect Your Office Has an Indoor Air Problem?
• “The Inside Story: A Guide to Indoor Air Quality”

Hidden Mold Growth

Most mold is found by simply looking. Mold beneath corkboard.
Click image for larger version

In some cases, indoor mold growth may not be obvious. Mold does not need light to grow: it can grow in dark areas and on hidden surfaces, such as the backside of drywall, wallpaper, and paneling; the top side of ceiling tiles; and the underside of carpets and pads. Possible locations of hidden mold also include damp areas behind walls and in crawlspaces, inside pipe chases and utility tunnels (areas in walls where water and other pipes are run), on acoustic liners in ventilation ducts, and on roof materials above ceiling tiles.

Investigating hidden mold can be difficult and may require a professional with experience investigating water- and mold-damaged buildings. Specialized equipment such as borescopes and moisture meters, and in some cases special sampling techniques, may be helpful in locating and identifying hidden mold areas. Investigating hidden mold requires caution since disturbing moldy areas may spread mold throughout the building. Opening and closing air handlers, for example, can send high levels of dust and mold into the air. Personal protective equipment (PPE) is not always needed when looking for mold, but it should always be available. If mold might be released into the air, investigators should use PPE to reduce exposure.

Homes

Basement apartment (3-4 feet below ground) with mold on painted gypsum board, baseboard, and carpet.
Click image for larger version

Areas that are always or often damp, such as bathrooms, laundry/utility rooms, and basements, are common locations for mold growth in homes. Regularly check areas that have been or are likely to get wet. If you hire a home inspector, building inspector, or other professional to locate a water or mold problem, make sure the professional has experience identifying and locating mold and water problems. Check references and look for membership in professional organizations.

GIVE YOUR HOME A FACELIFT BY ENHANCING YOUR FRONT ENTRANCE
If you long to give your home that sought-after “curb appeal,” consider starting with your front entrance. Your front entrance is so important when making that “first impression,” because it’s really the ‘face’ of your home. So try following these 10 easy improvements to help give your home a facelift:

1. Repair the Walkway:
Patch cracks and replace loose bricks and pavers. Rent a power washer or purchase a chemical treatment to clean up embedded stains in concrete, stone or asphalt.

2. Illuminate the Path:
Lighting helps ensure guests arrive safely and also acts as a theft deterrent. Clean light fixtures and replace burnt-out bulbs with energy-saving CFL bulbs, replace outdated fixtures and add landscape lighting to brighten walkways and shrubbery.

3. Use Foliage and Shrubbery:
Strategically-placed plants can conceal any unattractive aspects of your house or surroundings. Place large pots or hanging baskets around the stoop or porch. Bushes or hedges hide air conditioning units or propane tanks, and flower beds and window boxes will stylize a stark facade.

4. Prune and Mulch:
Prune dead branches, trim back overgrown shrubbery or remove obstructive plantings. Spread mulch or bark around trees, shrubs and flowers for a weed-free, well-kept look.

5. Decorate Your Door:
Restore the luster of your door by polishing the hinges and knobs. Paint or stain the door with a color that stands out, yet complements, the trim and siding. Hang a pretty wreath to finish the look. If your front door is weak or unattractive, invest in a replacement door or storm door for security and energy efficiency.

6. Focus on Windows:
Fix broken windows and torn screens and paint sashes, trim and shutters in a neutral color. Add window treatments and keep the glass crystal clear.

7. Accessorize:
Choose a few lawn and garden ornaments. Match a decorative handle, door knocker or kickplate with shiny new house numbers and a mailbox.

8. Feature Furniture:
Spray a fresh coat of paint on furniture and replace the cushions. Fill an empty spot on the porch or stoop with a quaint bench or porch swing.

9. Keep it Clean:
Sweep the sidewalk and stoop, clear away cobwebs, tighten wobbly railings and repaint posts and supports.

10. The Finishing Touch:
Put out a clean, new welcome mat and make sure the doorbell works because you’re sure to attract more visitors now!

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, in cooperation with Lennox Hearth Products, announced on March 25 a voluntary recall of the Nashville, Tenn., manufacturer’s Superior VFGL Vent-Free Gas Log Sets and VF Vent-Free Fireplaces.

The front burners of vent-free gas log set fireplace inserts and the vent-free fireplaces can fail to ignite, allowing gas to escape and pose a fire or explosion hazard.

Lennox received two reports from installers of the log sets failing to light, but no injuries were reported.

The recalled products are Lennox Superior brand VFGL Log Sets and VF4000, VF5000 and VF6000 fireplaces.

The log sets are comprised of ceramic-fiber logs with a dual gas burner system and are designed to be placed in a wood-burning fireplace or a ventless firebox enclosure.

Fireplaces are comprised of log sets, a ventless firebox enclosure and accessories.

Each product has a metal rating plate attached to the grate of the log sets or to the frame of the fireplaces containing the unit’s model number, serial number and other information. Click here for the CPSC news release, which specifies the models that are affected by the recall.

Included in the recall are units with serial numbers starting with “6408C” through “6408M,” and those starting with “6409.” Units that had repairs made to the burner assembly between March 2008 and December 2009 are also included.

The units were manufactured in the U.S. and sold by various fireplace and HVAC retailers and installers from March 2008 to December 2009 for approximately $540 to $775 for the log sets and $1,300 to $1,850 for the fireplaces.

Consumers should immediately stop using the recalled log sets and fireplaces and contact Lennox for information about how to arrange for a free inspection and repair.
For additional information, contact Lennox Hearth Products at 800-826-8546 between 8:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. Central Time Monday through Friday; or visit the firm’s Web site at www.lennoxhearthproducts.com.

Lower Your Lighting Costs –
Start with this easy task: Replace current light bulbs with energy-saving compact fluorescent (CFL) bulbs. They screw in just like standard bulbs, but use a fourth of the energy and last up to 10 times longer. An 18-watt CFL bulb provides as much light as a 75-watt standard light bulb. Average savings: $10 – $50 per year

Having smoke and carbon monoxide (CO) detectors in your home is essential, so make sure they’re working properly in order to protect you from harm.
With proper maintenance, smoke and carbon monoxide (CO) detectors can help to protect you and your family. There are different types of detectors available for purchase. You can buy separate detectors or combined detectors. Separate detectors detect only smoke or only carbon monoxide. Combined detectors sense both smoke and carbon monoxide.

Some detectors are hardwired to your electrical system; these detectors usually come with a battery backup in case the electricity in your home goes out. Other detectors are stand-alone units that run only on batteries. No matter which type of detector you have, it’s absolutely essential that your detectors work properly in order to protect you from harm.

TIP!

Different detectors use different types of batteries. Check the manufacturer’s instructions to find out what type of battery your detectors take.