First-time home buyers often overlook red flags that can adversely affect their health. Although there are many upgrades you can make to create a healthy environment in your house, the costs can add up fast.
You want to make sure your home is safe for you and your family before moving in, but it can be challenging when you don’t know what you’re looking for. Consider these healthy home tips to save money and protect your health during home-buying.
1. Ensure Proper Detection
Smoke alarms can prevent injuries and even death from fires in your house, so ensure you have one on every floor, test them once a month and get lithium-powered batteries to make your alarms last longer. Some smoke alarms can also detect carbon monoxide, which is especially important to your health and safety. Carbon monoxide is colorless, odorless and can come from water heaters, furnaces, gas ovens and stoves.
It’s extremely dangerous and poisonous, so you want to detect it as soon as possible. Carbon monoxide poisoning can make you have symptoms similar to the flu, like headaches, nausea, dizziness and weakness. It unintentionally causes around 400 deaths annually since it’s difficult to detect without an alarm. Verify your home meets building codes and has the proper detector and alarms to protect your health.
2. Check For Leaks
Fix water leaks and keep the house ventilated, because moisture and mold can cause asthma and respiratory issues. Extra water can sustain pests that create holes that become leaks. You can test for moisture and mold when searching for a new home or hire a trained professional to check it for you.
If you want to look for leaks, start by turning off the house’s water source and wait a few minutes to check it. If the meter is still running, you likely have a leak somewhere. If someone didn’t remediate a house properly from past water damage, that can cause issues. Ensure you check crawl spaces, basements, roofs and gutters to guarantee the home’s foundation doesn’t have leaks or cracks that water can enter from outside.
3. Get Proper Ventilation
Make sure you have proper ventilation throughout your potential home. Without adequate ventilation, moisture can build and cause paint to deteriorate, attract pests and contribute to mold. Indoor air pollution can have adverse health effects on occupants, so consider getting a ventilation assessment in your house to check the air and reduce pollutants.
You can maintain good air quality in your home in many ways, like keeping your space clean. Humidifiers and air purifiers can clean your house’s air and provide a healthier environment. Indoor plants are also a natural way to strip toxins from the air in your home. Ensure the vent hood in the kitchen goes outdoors so bacteria can exit rather than circulate throughout the house.
4. Opt For Healthy Flooring
Many first-time buyers overlook flooring during the home-buying process, but they can create a toxic environment. Flooring is generally expensive, so test your house’s flooring before investing in something new. You can get a lead swab test for tile and seal plywood flooring with a non-toxic sealant to help with the off-gassing of formaldehyde that plywood often contains.
Floor and ceiling tiles often contain asbestos, leading to serious health issues. Ensure you get a survey test and inspection before moving into your new home. Some safe hard flooring options are natural linoleum, bamboo, cork flooring and hardwood. Regardless of your choice, keep your home clean to improve and maintain optimal health.
Protect Your Health With Healthy Home Tips
With the costs of housing rising, many potential homeowners are jumping at opportunities as soon as houses in their price range come across their radar. Use these healthy tips to ensure your potential home is free of harsh chemicals.
