Living and working from home, particularly during lockdowns, may not be good for your health.
CEO of building performance technology company Tether, Brandon Van Blerk, said an outdated New Zealand Building Code
means most of us are living in houses that do not hold in heat and are poorly ventilated.
"Creating healthy home standards was a good first step, but New Zealand's Building Code desperately needs an update if
the country's poor respiratory health statistics are to be reversed," Van Blerk said.
While the Government accepts public submissions about the Building Code annually, the Building Act 2004 legislation
hasn't been updated for nearly two decades.
Given the rising rate of asthma and other respiratory illnesses in New Zealand, Van Blerk said both the Code and the Act
are long past due for a refresh.
Tether is a homegrown New Zealand tech company that creates a range of software and hardware products designed,
developed, and manufactured from the ground up in New Zealand. The company's proof-of-performance solutions enable
data-driven insights into building performance through modelling, monitoring and data analysis.
"The Building Code is slowly going through an upgrade to improve critical factors like thermal efficiency of homes. But
until those rules are changed, developers will continue to build as cheaply as possible."
A drastic overhaul of housing standards does not mean aligning with Canada, the US, or Europe, where temperatures can
drop below freezing. New Zealand deserves a unique approach, but it can still learn from these other jurisdictions.
"New Zealand's poor-quality housing is the victim of our temperate climate. The Building Code here is generally 30 years
behind standards in the US, Canada and Europe.
"I am optimistic the Government will make a good decision and write into law some of the requirements the sector needs,
such as better insulation, ventilation and glazing.
"Things will start to shift once the updates are through. But even then, it will be important to measure the success of
those changes even if the models predict they will improve health and efficiency," he said.Changes to the Building Code can't come soon enough.
According to the Asthma Foundation, more than 600,000 Kiwis take medication for respiratory illnesses, while 2922 people
die from various illnesses each year. Asthma alone costs New Zealand $1 billion in public and private medical costs.
Van Blerk said the onset of respiratory illnesses is often due to people living in poorly built homes, resulting from
the current relaxed building standards.
"Most people are exposed to terrible air entering their homes and terrible air inside their homes. That's why asthma and
respiratory diseases are so high. People just can't get away from the causes.
"Simply put, Kiwi houses aren't constructed to deal with poor environmental quality correctly. Tether's sensors prove
that many homes are infested with particulates like break dust, pollen or car exhaust fumes. On top of this, homes are
Petri dishes for mould due to fluctuations of temperature and large amounts of relative humidity," Van Blerk said.
But until the Building Code changes, Van Blerk said there are a handful of things homeowners and landlords can do to
improve the health of their homes.1. Tighten the thermal envelope
This is a fancy way of saying, "make sure you can control what comes in and what goes out of your home all year round,"
said Van Blerk.
The exact upgrades for a house will, of course, depend on the individual home, including its local climate, number of
bedrooms, ventilation, windows, heating, extraction, appliances, and other factors. The house is a complicated system.
"But as a starting point, a key change is to improve insulation in the floors, walls and ceiling. Single-glazing windows
also have a massive impact on how buildings perform thermally, so consider upgrading to double-glazing instead," Van
Blerk said.2. Better ventilation
The current impact on a house from poor ventilation and moisture control can be calculated, said Van Blerk, and the
correct fix could be to set up a balanced ventilation system provided by a number of reputable ventilation companies.
The solution may not need to be so drastic, however.
For instance, if a bathroom consistently fogs up during shower use, that means the extractor fan isn't working
correctly. Instead of buying a new fan, Van Blerk suggested placing a dome over the shower to capture the steam and dry
the bathroom.
"There are hundreds of cheap, small interventions people can do. After all, to do a good job renovating for optimal
health can be expensive," he said.3. Mind the gap
The poor quality of New Zealand's housing often means thousands of small gaps can be found between the framing, windows,
floors and ceiling, which means the house leaks air like a sieve.
Closing as many of these gaps as possible can drastically improve a home's thermal comfort and lower the chances of
developing respiratory illnesses while also reducing the cost of heating.
"It makes no sense to heat a box full of holes, which is what most houses are. The heat will just escape and drive up
the power bill. There is a lot of people can do to fix the smaller issues like gaps," Van Blerk said.
For more information visit: https://www.tether.co.nz/