Environmental Health Home Assessment

Knowing the age of the home helps us determine if certain materials were used in the making of it. These materials, like lead-based paint and pipes, are potential health hazards to the people living in the house. If there is someone living in the basement, they could be exposed to moisture, molds, radon, and carbon monoxide. Having the furnace or other combustion appliances located in the basement can increase the risk of carbon monoxide exposure. It is the homeowners’ responsibility to address any home-based environmental health risks that they find within the house. They should be the ones who reach out to professionals who can test for lead and radon. They must also be proactive in the choices they make in terms of pesticides and air fresheners used, and food consumed. It is also their responsibility to make sure smoke and carbon monoxide detectors are present and functional, and that they have a plan of action should an emergency happen.

 As for where I am living now, it is a fairly new home (three years old) so it checks out on many of the environmental health risks on the assessment. While there is an attached garage, my land lords park with the exhaust towards the garage exit and they never leave the car on while parked inside. There is proper ventilation for all the necessary appliances. Since they rent out their rooms to students, they make it a point to emphasize that smoking is not allowed while at home. Based on my personal assessment, I don’t see any alarming environmental health risks where I live. Things related to emergencies like a fire extinguisher, evacuation route, and disaster plans can still be worked on and shared with the tenants since our land lords are responsible for our safety and not just providing us with food and a place to stay. I think that since the house is a relatively new one, it was built with the knowledge of potential environmental health hazards in mind.


Comments

  1. UnknownSeptember 2, 2018 at 11:22 AM

    Hi Chris,
    You are so lucky to be living in a newer home. This is truly a blessing because you are exposed to a lot less hazardous things such as lead, etc. My home is older but we have had it checked out before and everything checks out okay. I'm glad that your tenants are super concerned about the smoking in the house because many people don't realize how much that can affect their environment. I think it's a great idea for you to come up with some kind of emergency plan and share it with your tenants and roommates.

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  2. Emebet AkliluSeptember 2, 2018 at 12:00 PM

    Chris,
    Thanks so much for sharing. Living in a newer home must be nice, because they make sure to point out all of the amazing new safety features. My home is not that old, but not so new and it is interesting because I dont remember our leasing agent talking about all the things that make this unit safe. There is such a different emphasis on what is important when things are new vs. old.

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