The typical homeowner may believe that an energy-efficient home is a high-performing one, but that’s actually not the case.
According to Grace and Corbett Lunsford, the co-creators and hosts of TV show Home Diagnosis, energy efficiency is simply a byproduct of great home performance.
In the second part of this Indoor Air Quality IQ podcast series, “What Most People Don’t Know About Higher Performing-Homes,” they rejoin host Tyler Kern and show regular Nick Agopian of RenewAire to talk in greater depth about the role that energy efficiency and chemistry have in a healthy and high-performing home.
“High-performing homes have wonderful byproducts, and one of those byproducts is energy efficiency, but it’s not the goal,” Grace Lunsford said. “The ultimate, No. 1 thing is finding control and balance and tuning your home.”
The Lunsfords offered a simple, 1-2-3 look at the indoor chemistry and health of a home. No. 1 is chemicals, No. 2 is particles and No. 3 is microbes, all of which can have a negative effect on indoor air quality, particularly in combination with one another.
To control those three aspects, homeowners can improve their indoor air quality with balanced ventilation via energy recovery (ERVs), dehumidification strategies, and powerful air filtration as potential ways to reduce those contaminants.
In particular, ventilation is key for controlling those chemicals, particles and microbes. Installing an energy recovery ventilator can help to achieve this in a high-performing home.
However, it’s also important to remember that everything is about balance – instead of chasing one goal, like energy efficiency, chase a healthier home.
“People tend to think that if something’s good, then more of that would be even better,” Corbett Lunsford said. “And, it turns out, because the home is a system, if you chase after energy efficiency … you are creating side effects.”
If you haven’t listened to the first part of this podcast episode, make sure to do so to learn more about home performance. Additionally, don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts or Spotify for even more content on indoor air quality and the factors that impact it.
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