ERTH: the house of wellness

In this covid period, one of the most used sentences was “Stay at home”. How is the indoor air quality (IAQ) of our homes? Are our homes really healthy? How can we improve the IAQ without spending too much?

A couple of years ago I met in Toronto Mr. Andrew Guido: he is an expert in this field and he just launched his brand new company ERTH. I’m very happy I recently interviewed him.

Ps: we both love timber structures, but we also share another passion: homemade pizza!

When and why did you come up with the idea of the company “Erth”?

In 2016, I had just left my job as an executive with a large real estate development company and was investigating several different business interests. Wellness real estate was on the top of my list and the more I looked into it the more I got excited about it. Despite being involved with significant real estate projects involving thousands of units, I hadn’t made the connection between our health and well-being with the built environment. Until that point for me, all of the attention was on energy conservation, resulting in tighter and tighter building envelopes. The unfortunate consequence of this was trapping toxic chemicals from offgassing building materials inside our homes. I wondered was this why my daughter had severe asthma even into her 20s?
My curiosity would eventually lead me to the Building Biology Institute in Sante Fe, New Mexico where after 3 years of part-time study, I eventually graduated as a Certified Building Biologist (BBNC) in 2019.
Simultaneously I started developing the ERTH “healthy home” prototype taking a holistic approach borrowing from Building, Environmental and Health Sciences.

Is it possible to find cost-effective solutions to create better-living environments for people?

Absolutely! There are many simple solutions that everyone can do, and of course there are more elaborate solutions that require special skill and larger budget.

On the no cost side, here are some easy non construction fixes:

• Increase the introduction of outdoor air by opening windows, when weather conditions allow, to dilute indoor pollutants and to reduce the concentration of any potential viral particles that are higher indoors than outdoors.[1]
• Keep indoor humidity level between 40 to 60% RH as many studies have shown this to not only be the optimal level to fight against respiratory infections, but it is also deactivates viruses including COVID-19.[2] [3]
• Let the water run first thing in the morning to clear the pipes of sediment that can include lead and chemicals.[4]
• Always close the toilet lid before flushing. A recent peer reviewed scientific study showed that 40% to 60% of the total number of potential virus containing aerosol droplets can rise above the toilet seat during flushing.[5]
• Take off your shoes when you enter your home as you could be carrying hundreds of thousands of bacteria units.[6]

Here are some small cost interventions:

• If you have a whole house air filter, use the highest MERV rating the manufacturer recommends for their furnace. A MERV 13 filter or higher is the preferred option.[7] If you can afford to install a HEPA filtration system that is even better as it will catch particulates as small as 0.3 mm or 99.97% efficient.

• Filter tap water for the most common chemicals and pathogens that are not removed from your municipal water system. There are many 2 and 3 stage systems available that will remove lead, pesticides, herbicides, insecticides, and biological pathogens that make their way into the drinking water system.[8] [9]
• Most homes now use LEDs for their lights and although they are energy efficient that are not generally human friendly. LEDs can produce a high level of blue light that promotes alertness. However, in the evenings this will disturb our bodies natural biological clock also known as circadian rhythms that will suppress the manufacture of melatonin essential for sleeping. According to the Canadian Association of Optometrists, evidence suggests that exposure to blue light in the 470-490nm wavelength range (lower energy) is less damaging to the eye than blue light in the 400-470nm wavelength range (higher energy) and essential for maintaining a healthy circadian rhythm.[10] [11]

In the case of a major renovation or new build consider the following:

• Select building materials with low to no formaldehyde or volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Many manufacturers of engineered wood, composite woods, CLT, cabinets, paints, stains, caulking, adhesives, insulation, and other building materials offer low emission alternatives. Look for products that have labels and certifications in your country as validation. The cost difference can be fairly negligible or low.
• Waterproof the foundation even if the building code in your country does not require this. By doing so, you protect the concrete from damage from natural soil moisture, and water infiltration that can create mould. The cost for doing so is relatively low in comparison to the cost to repair any future damage.
• Include hygroscopic building materials that can help regulate indoor moisture levels and hence increase occupant comfort. Hygroscopic building materials have the capacity to absorb and release water as a gas. Given that the average family of 4 can produce around 15 litres of water in a 24 hour period you have to question where does all this water go? Examples of hygroscopic materials are porous materials like wood fibreboard, cellulose insulation, cork, unsealed woods, unfired clay bricks, and lime or clay plaster.[12]
• Design with natural light in mind. Narrower floor plates with tall ceilings will allow an abundance of natural daylight (5 times ceiling height). Consider adding skylights for deeper floorplates. Optimal orientation of the building with the long axis will minimize solar heat gain and glare.
• Ensure you have ample operable windows to allow occupants to introduce fresh air weather permitting.  
• Include indoor air quality (IAQ) sensors to allow you to measure and track several important metrics for good IAQ including CO2, radon, humidity, TVOCs, and particulates (especially PM2.5). These are relatively available and no longer expensive. They can be run standalone or integrated as part of your HVAC system.
  
  

Which are the most common diseases due to the low indoor air quality?

Poor indoor air quality can lead to a number of serious illnesses. High levels of radon gas that can seep through the concrete slab or foundation is responsible for about 16% of all lung cancers in Canada, the United States and in Europe.[13] Other common indoor pollutants include particulate matter, nitrogen dioxide, carbon monoxide, volatile organic compounds and biological allergens. These can increase the risk of allergic sensitisation, acute and chronic respiratory disorders and lung function impairment, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), autism, Parkinson’s, and emotional disorders.[14]

Because of the COVID-19, people are spending much more time at home. Do you foresee they will try soon to improve the environment in which they live?

The positive side of COVID-19 is the increased awareness of the importance of clean indoor air to human health and well-being. With most people in the developed world being confined indoors we suddenly appreciate the benefit of so many things we took for granted before…the benefit of being able to open a window, having a private outdoor space, having good indoor lighting, being able to isolate from other family members if you are infected, the ability to connect with the nature outside, and many other elements. We have been buying air purifiers, IAQ sensors, hygrometers, and downloading apps to help us be more comfortable indoors. These are all the things and more that we have been designing into an ERTH Home.

Is there any relationship between using mass timber and occupant health?

Although wood has been used as a building material for thousands of years, only relatively recently are we understanding its health benefits. There seems to be more and more studies being published making this connection. We have an innate connection to nature. It’s why we enjoy walking in the woods and being outside.[15] It increases our physical health and mental well-being. In fact, in the UK GPs are providing ‘green prescriptions’ to encourage patients to walk in nature. Psychophysiology is a field of study of the relationship between mental and physical processes. Design psychophysiology is part of biophilic design, of which the use of wood creates internal environments that support mental and physical health in occupants. This field has been at the center of a design direction by architects and designers around the world driving mass timber use for building envelopes.

Essentially wood is good medicine. This connection was made in a study “Wood as a Restorative Material in Healthcare Environments” by Sally Augustin and David Fell. They found that “the mind and body are looking for a connection with nature when it is absent the type of nature and the type of building are secondary. Wood is a natural building and finishing material and therein is the fit with using it more in healthcare settings.” Wood has been found to reduce stress, decrease blood pressure, lower the pulse, and have a calming effect and hence accelerates healing.

I heard you’re designing your new home in Toronto: will this be a sort of showcase/place where to test different solutions? Is it easy to find on the market the materials/equipment you’re looking for?

I am really excited to finally be in the design stage of the first ERTH Home pilot in Toronto, Ontario in Canada. We are hoping this becomes a “living lab” for a while for developing, testing and improving our ideas. We will be testing new wall assemblies for resilience, energy conservation, moisture management and sound control. We are designing an integrated IAQ system that will include AI and the ability for the system to autonomously self modulate based on the environment and occupant behaviour. We are also including biophilic design elements to reconnect occupants with nature. This is not only been proven to make us happier but also to heal faster when we are ill. We have identified 20 key areas that will keep us safe, healthy, connected with nature and protect the planet.

[1] https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/community/ventilation.html
[2] https://building.ca/feature/why-the-fight-against-covid-19-must-include-indoor-air-humidity/
[3] https://40to60rh.com/
[4] https://www.aces.edu/blog/topics/home/water-corrosivity-and-your-plumbing-system/
[5] https://aip.scitation.org/doi/10.1063/5.0013318
[6] https://www.ciriscience.org/a_96-Study-Reveals-High-Bacteria-Levels-on-Footwear
[7] https://www.ashrae.org/technical-resources/filtration-and-disinfection-faq
[8] https://www.nrdc.org/stories/whats-your-drinking-water
[9] https://www.euro.who.int/__data/assets/pdf_file/0007/98449/E76521.pdf
[10] https://opto.ca/health-library/blue-light-is-there-a-risk-of-harm
[11] https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/blue-light-has-a-dark-side
[12] https://web.ornl.gov/sci/buildings/conf-archive/2004%20B9%20papers/002_Simonson.pdf 
[13] https://www.euro.who.int/__data/assets/pdf_file/0006/97053/4.6_-RPG4_Rad_Ex1-ed2010_editedViv_layouted.pdf
[14] https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15636485/
[15] https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/blog/2020/08/walking-in-woods/

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