Adults breathe in 17,000 litres of air per day and spend 90% of their lives indoor ...

... most general household chemicals are not adequately tested for human health effects ...

... poor indoor air quality is the main cause of asthma in Australia.

EKO Building Biology specialise in creating healthy indoor environments.

Home arrow Case Studies arrow Case Study - Jay 2007
Case Study - Jay 2007

Jay had an allergy to his own home

Jay contacted EKO Building Biology after he had gone to great lengths to find someone who would assess his property as he could not sleep in his new home without suffering from symptoms such as fatigue, coughing, depression and metallic taste in his mouth. Jay had tried the EPA, CSIRO, architect institute and industrial hygienists only to be told it would cost him thousands of dollars for an in home assessment. Jay had even contacted Dr Dingle from the SBS show “Is your house killing you” who had representatives from the show call to question him, but that’s where it ended.

EKO building Biology inspected Jay’s house, which at first had no obvious signs of what may be causing the problem, we tested for mould and moisture, assessed all stored chemicals and cleaning products, looked in the roof cavity for mould and insulation type as many of these have binding chemicals such as formaldehyde, no issues were found. We assessed the age of his bedding, furniture, renovations and so forth but all seemed like they should not be causing the problem, especially as he had owned everything in a previous house with no problems.

Gas leaks and combustion by-products were assessed. Accessible pipes were tested for leaks and combustion appliances were assessed for efficiency.  We found leaks at the external gas meter at most joins and a leak under the gas stove at the regulator, we also found that the gas stove had yellow tipped flames, which suggests incomplete combustion.

The gas leak from the gas meter could gain entry through your external air vent into the internal wall cavity and could then gain entry into the building through a detected airflow through the power point near the bed.

 

Recommendations

EKO Building Biology recommended that Jay turn off all gas supply to the house and ventilate the house well to determine if his symptoms persisted. We also recommended that Jay call an accredited plumber to assess and fix all leaks and make sure his appliances are combusting efficiently.

Jay’s symptoms did abate after sleeping in the house after all gas had been shut off and the house had been well ventilated.

Jay’s response

“Thanks Nicole and Luke for all your help, it seems like you made the effort to care about how I was going and keep in contact with me.”