Non Toxic Environments Home Health & Wellness – Details, episodes & analysis

The first rule in real estate is that you should NEVER waive your right to an inspection before closing the deal. The second rule is, make sure your inspector understands building biology, as well as the typical home systems and materials.  Your inspector needs to understand moisture, mold, chemical emissions and electro magnetic fields, in addition to structural concerns, windows, HVAC, etc.  Amanda Klecker joins us today to discuss what's all entailed in doing a substantial and truly informative home inspection and how we can avoid costly and unhealthy mistakes.

Amanda is a Certified Building Biology Practitioner through the International Institute for Building Biology where she has learned the holistic approach to keeping a home healthy, free of moisture intrusion and free of toxins. Amanda has trained with the International Association of Certified Home Inspectors and received their national certification.  Amanda is also trained with the Water Quality Standards Academy, learning the important components of healthy drinking water.  

Amanda's website Healthy House on the Block

Starting on April 22, I will be speaking at a wonderful online summit called My Healthy Home.  Hosted by Caroline Blazovsky, there will be over 40 experts in the multi-faceted "healthy home" space, to discuss all aspects of this incredibly important topic.  Caroline is my guest on this episode of NTE live to tell us more about the summit and to discuss why this is so important to her and should be to all of us.

Caroline Blazovsky has over 20 years experience with specialized training in residential homes. She has CMR certification (Certified Microbial Remediatior) and CIE (Certified Indoor Environmentalist) training through the American Council for Accredited Certification (ACAC). Ms. Blazovsky has completed a Sustainable Design education from Boston Architectural College. Ms. Blazovsky's work has been featured by Martha Stewart, Jenny McCarthy, Ronald Hoffman M.D., SiriusXM, Shape and Reader's Digest, as well as hundreds of podcasts, radio, and print interviews. She is also certified as a Healthy Home Specialist through the National Environmental Health Association. In her spare time, Caroline studies public health at the University of Southern California.

My Healthy Home Summit

Sign up here for FREE

Jeff and I have a similar history. Besides the fact that we've personally known each other for probably 30 years, we both grew up in businesses that were involved in the contruction industry.  That always gave us a lot to talk about when we saw each other at family functions.  When I started healthy home consulting several years ago, he and I began talking about the possibility of working together on some projects. Jeff is a custom home builder and finish carpenter, so his attention to detail is superb.  He's also very confident in the materials and systems he normally uses, so when the opportunity came recently to collaborate on a healthy home build, we both were excited to see the end results.  

On today's show, of course we'll talk a little bit about that project and how it has already positively impacted how Jeff is building all of his homes.  But what we really get into detail on is the general process for planning, designing and constructing a custom home.  Whether you need to go deep into material selection and IAQ details because of health concerns, or you just want to do the best you can, this discussion will be extremely informative. 

Please visit Jeff's website: https://jfkdesignbuild.com/about/ 

Jenny Johnson joins today to discuss chemical and mold sensitivities, therapies and treatments,  and her extensive work within the CIRS community.  

CIRS - Chronic Inflammatory Response Syndrome.  CIRS is a multi-symptom, multi-system illness resulting from a faulty immune response to environmental toxins and  inflammagens (most commonly, those in water-damaged buildings).   It occurs primarily in genetically-susceptible individuals, which includes roughly 24% of the population.

Please follow this link to join her group:

https://simplifiedwellnessdesigns.com/cirs-healing-collective 

The CIRS Healing Collective is an encouraging and educational community for people navigating Chronic Inflammatory Response Syndrome (CIRS) who are looking to share their journey to whole-person wellness in solidarity and hope, with others who understand. 

Imagine painting the exterior of your home and not having to think about it for at least the next 20 years.  No fading, no peeling.  Maybe think about painting the inside of your new home with no worries of trapped moisture or the smells of unhealthy latex paints. This is what mineral paints can do for you.  What is a mineral paint? Why do we want to use them? How do we make the switch from latex to mineral?  All these issues will be discussed in this episode with Roy Suttles, the manging director of Keim USA.  Keim is the world's leading manufacturer of mineral paints and I think you're going to love what you hear about them.

Brian Libby is a Portland based architectural and design writer and critic who is a contributing writer to prestigious media outlets such as Dwell, Metropolis, Elemental Green, Architectural Digest, Architect, The Atlantic, The Wall Street Journal  and The New York Times. Brian is also the architecture critic for the Portland Tribune newspaper. 

Brian joins us today to discuss the trends he is seeing in healthy and sustainable home design as Portland is known for being a hub and innovator of healthy and green living. As a contributing writer to the popular magazine Dwell, Brian has his finger on the pulse of the most creative spaces that including nature and other healthy home amenities. He shares some of his favorite articles, architects and healthy architecture ideas with us today.

Elemental Green – Sustainable and Inexpensive Homes https://elemental.green/18-inexpensive-sustainable-homes-almost-anyone-can-afford/

Portland Tribune – award winning architects and new designs for award-winning restaurants, historical building and more…..https://www.portlandtribune.com/columns/portland_architecture/award-winning-portland-firm-linden-brown-s-buildings-balance-bold-sculptural-forms-and-an-open/article_8a699494-b8c8-52c0-b35a-38243c0737b1.html

Dwell: affordable and creative healthy homes - ADU's - work sheds - incorporating nature into healthy home builds https://www.dwell.com/@brian_libby/articles

Whenever Im working with a new client who is trying to figure out an IAQ issue in their home, I'll suggest the use of a Home Air Check test kit. Able to measure VOC's, formaldehyde and active mold, these kits are an invaluable asset, giving us quick and accurate numbers at a very affordable price.  We have been working with Sarah Mack and her team for many years and Im excited to discuss their process, how they developed these kits and whats on the testing horizon for Enthalpy.  

Order your test kit here: HOME AIR TEST KITS

Join our FREE online community NON TOXIC ENVIRONMENTS

Allison Evans will be joining us to tell us all about the wonderful products her companies produces as how it all got started.  Spoiler alert: Allison's Aunt, Marilee Nelson, is not only one of the founders of the company, but she and I go way back and used to have many of the same clients.  Its really exciting to see how well this company is doing. 

We'll also chat about the mold remediaion and remodeling done in her own home that I was a part of.  Healthy flooring and finishes for sure!  

Sign up for Allison's "Toss the Toxins" course here 

My friends, this is going to be an extremely emotional, hard-hitting conversation that I know you dont want to miss.   Ash and Sam Brockington have a story to tell about how their dream house turned into a nightmare. But through the grace of God, some helpful people and their own hard work, they are managing their way. 

I've had countless clients over the years find out the hard way that the home they bought was toxic from mold and chemical offgassing.  But Ash and Sam's project is unique due to the extensive nature of the damage, both in the home and the occupants.  So much to be learned from this about how we remodel and test.  Please join us.     

Michelle Ifversen is the founder and Environmental Wellness Design Director of Design Well Studios in Portland, OR. Michelle specializes in biophilic design, building biology and project management. DWS offers education, creative design solutions, products and services to help remedy homes and workplaces so people can thrive and be well.  She joins us on the show today to discuss her background, career and what motivates her to keep her on her quest of improving the lives of others. 

Design Well Studios

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