June is National Healthy Homes month – and with the current crisis, homeowners are showing a renewed, growing interest in healthy, virus-free homes. As a result, there is a LOT of information out there about how to address these concerns, and trying to navigate through it all can be challenging and overwhelming. In this webinar, we spoke with Energy Vanguard's Allison Bailes and Jeffrey Sauls about practical ways to help your customers create healthier homes they feel good about living in. Allison and Jeffrey discussed what works and what doesn't when it comes to indoor air quality (IAQ) measures including filtration, UV lights, and more.

1. A Conversation
with Energy
Vanguard
Empower Your Customers to
Step into Healthier Homes

2. Pearl Certification documents efficiency and solar
installations to provide investment-grade
documentation which helps the home appraise for
more – with Pearl Contractor installations as the
contributing factor! Pearl works with an elite
group of contractors in HVAC, solar and home
performance. Our national partners include the
Department of Energy, ENERGY STAR®, National
Association of Realtors, and the Appraisal
Institute. Pearl Certified homes are appraising and
selling for 5% more on average.
ABOUT US
Empower Your Customers to Step
into Healthier Homes
A Conversation with
Energy Vanguard

3. The Building Performance Association is a membership-
driven 501(c)6 industry association dedicated to
advancing the home and building performance industry.
Built upon three decades of experience, the Association
is well-positioned to provide industry support through
key areas including advocacy, education, programs,
networking, publications, and community.
We represent almost 10,000 members who work to
deliver improved energy efficiency, health, safety, and
environmental performance to people in their homes
across the United States and Canada. For more
information, please visit www.Building-Performance.org.
ABOUT our Sponsor
Empower Your Customers to Step
into Healthier Homes
A Conversation with
Energy Vanguard

4. BIO
Allison Bailes founded Energy Vanguard in
2008 and has been writing the Energy
Vanguard Blog since 2010. He has a PhD in
physics, has built a house out of structural
insulated panels, and has spent thousands of
hours in crawl spaces and attics. He is now
writing a book (A House Needs to Breathe…Or
Does It?), which should be out at the end of
2020.
Allison A. Bailes III, PhD
President
Energy Vanguard

5. BIO
Jeffrey is an experienced home energy
efficiency professional who provides building
science consulting and training, along with
managing the day to day operations of Energy
Vanguard. His primary focus is Consulting,
HVAC Design and energy/water efficiency
ratings via the FHBA Certified Ratings
Program.
Jeffrey L. Sauls
Chief Operating Officer
Energy Vanguard

6. The Big Picture of Healthy Homes

7. “Poison is in everything, and no
thing is without poison. The
dosage makes it either a poison
or a remedy.”
~ Paracelsus
“The father of toxicology”

8. Indoor Air Pollutants
● Particulate matter
● Secondhand smoke from
cigarettes (SHS)
● Nitrogen dioxide (NO2)
● Carbon monoxide (CO)
● Ozone (O3)
● VOCs
● Mold
● Allergens
● Radon
● Bioeffluents (e.g., CO2)
● Viruses

9. Airtightness

10. Moisture Control

11. Source Control

12. “Don’t do stupid
things!”
~ Joe Lstiburek

13. Air Filtration

14. Mechanical Ventilation

15. Pressure Balancing

16. The 7 Keep It Commands
● Keep it dry
● Keep it clean
● Keep it pest-free
● Keep it safe
● Keep it contaminant-
free
● Keep it ventilated
● Keep it maintained

17. A house is a system!

18. COVID-19 & Buildings

19. How Coronavirus Spreads
Person-to-person via big
droplets

21. Less Likely Means of
Spreading Coronavirus
Small droplets (aerosols)

22. Less Likely Means of
Spreading Coronavirus
Surfaces

23. Less Likely Means of
Spreading Coronavirus
Sex

24. Less Likely Means of
Spreading Coronavirus
Air conditioning systems

25. What’s a home performance
contractor to do?

26. Focus #1: Ventilation

27. Mechanical Ventilation

28. Focus #2: Filtration

29. Filtration
● High-MERV filters can capture big & small
droplets
● ASHRAE recommends MERV-14
● System may not be able to handle high-MERV
filter
● Rule of thumb: 2 sf per 400 cfm of air flow

30. Understanding UV Lights

31. UV lights
● They can kill viruses
● Better for keeping coil clean than killing
pathogens in the air stream
● Make sure they’re ozone-free!

32. Other Air Cleaners
● They may help
● Watch out for ozone generation
● See resources

33. Home is the safest
place to be!

34. “The connection between
health and the dwelling of the
population is one of the most
important that exists.”
~ Florence Nightingale

35. Resources
Energy Vanguard Blog
Can Your HVAC System Filter Out Coronavirus?
https://www.energyvanguard.com/blog/can-your-hvac-
system-filter-out-coronavirus
Do UV Lamps Really Improve Indoor Air Quality?
https://www.energyvanguard.com/blog/do-uv-lamps-
really-improve-indoor-air-quality

36. Resources
ASHRAE
https://www.ashrae.org/technical-resources/resources
US EPA
https://www.epa.gov/coronavirus
EPA Air Cleaners Resources
https://www.epa.gov/indoor-air-quality-iaq/air-cleaners-
and-air-filters-home

37. Resources
Jeffrey Siegel, PhD
Search his name + filter or coronavirus for good resources
Shelly Miller, PhD
https://shellym80304.com

38. For More Information:
Allison Bailes Amy Beley
abailes@energyvanguard.com
amy.beley@pearlcertification.com
Jeffrey Sauls Katie
Arnoff
jsauls@energyvanguard.com
karnoff@buildingperformance.org