What You Can Do Now

• Test for radon or determine how to fix high levels of radon.
• Reduce asthma triggers.
• Prevent mold by controlling moisture.
• Keep your home and car smoke-free.
• Install carbon monoxide (CO) alarms. Change the batteries in existing CO and smoke detectors.
• Use and properly maintain your ventilation system.

Home Remodels and Energy Upgrades

The benefits of home upgrades are tremendous — improving quality of life for occupants, protecting the environment, and sustaining American jobs. Integrated healthy home and energy efficiency upgrade activities can simultaneously lower utility costs and improve indoor air quality. Leading energy efficiency upgrade programs have demonstrated the feasibility of integrating many indoor air quality and safety improvements. However, home energy upgrade and other remodeling and repair activities might negatively affect indoor air quality if the appropriate home assessment is not made before work begins or if work is performed improperly.

• Read the latest guidance on protecting IAQ during energy upgrades and other remodels.
  • Energy Savings Plus Health IAQ Guidelines for Multifamily Building Upgrades
  • Healthy Indoor Environment Protocols for Single Family Home Energy Upgrades
  • Publications about IAQ
• Specific Home Remodel Environmental Concerns
• What to Do When Remodeling Your Space
• Building a Home Addition?
• IAQ Best Practices for Remodeling 
• Save Energy while creating a healthier home.
  • Review the Protocols for Home Energy Upgrades
  • Learn about the Indoor AirPLUS and ENERGY STAR new home labels
  • ENERGY STAR "Energy Savings at Home" Tool

Consumer Product Safety Commission Remodeling Resources

• Biological Pollutants in Your Home. This document explains indoor biological pollution, health effects of biological pollutants and how to control their growth and buildup. One third to one half of all structures have damp conditions that may encourage development of pollutants such as molds and bacteria, which can cause allergic reactions — including asthma — and spread infectious diseases. Describes corrective measures for achieving moisture control and cleanliness. This brochure was prepared by the American Lung Association and the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission.
  • Biological Pollutants in your Home [EPA 402-F-90-102, January 1990]​
• Healthy Indoor Painting Practices (EPA 744-F-00-011), May 2000. This brochure by EPA and the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission discusses safety practices for residents, property managers and painters.
  • Healthy Indoor Painting Practices​
• What You Should Know About Using Paint Strippers (CPSC-F-747-F-95-002), February 1995. Paint strippers contain chemicals that loosen paint from surfaces. These chemicals can harm you if not used properly.
  • Some paint stripping chemicals can irritate the skin and eyes, or cause headaches, drowsiness, nausea, dizziness, or loss of coordination.
  • Some may cause cancer, reproductive problems or damage of the liver, kidney or brain.
  • Others catch fire easily.
  • Proper handling and use of paint strippers will reduce your exposure to these chemicals and lessen your health risk.​​
• An Update on Formaldehyde: 1997 Revision (CPSC publication #725) The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, with assistance of EPA, developed this brochure to provide information about formaldehyde in indoor air. The brochure tells consumers where they may come in contact with formaldehyde, how it may affect their health and how their exposure to formaldehyde might be reduced.
  • An Update on Formaldehyde: 1997 Revision

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Multifamily Housing

In the U.S. one out of five people -- about 80 million -- live in some type of multifamily building. These structures are often referred to as "multi-unit housing" or "multi-housing" and include:

Example of Mid-rise Apartments or Condos

• Attached townhouses
• Low-rise apartments and condos
• Mid-rise apartments and condos
• High-rise apartments and condos

Multifamily buildings pose unique indoor air quality (IAQ) challenges because pollutants may move from unit to unit and residents have limited ability to make changes to the building structure itself.

Comprehensive Indoor Air Quality in Multifamily Buildings

• Energy Savings Plus Health Indoor Air Quality Guidelines for Multifamily Building Upgrades. New EPA guidance for everyone involved in energy and other building upgrades in mutlifamily housing.
• DOE Multifamily Guidelines for Home Energy Professionals Exit

Radon

• EPA Radon Guide for Tenants: This guide is for people who rent their apartments or houses. The guide explains what radon is, how to find out if there is a radon problem in your home and what you can do if there are high radon levels in your home.
• Radon-resistant construction: Low-Rise Multi-Family Housing (PDF) Exit(4 pp, 78 K). This fact sheet is intended to provide a basic understanding of strategies to reduce radon levels for people involved with the design and construction of low-rise (three stories or less) multi-family buildings. Produced by the National Center for Healthy Housing (NCHH)
• 2013 Housing Notice to include radon assessment in the Multifamily Accelerated Processing (MAP) Guide. Issued in 2013 by the U.S. Housing and Urban Development (HUD)
  • HUD Radon Policy Notice (PDF)(7 pp, 197 K). Notice H 2013-03 Exit
  • HUD Mortgage Letter (PDF)(7 pp, 197 K) 2013-07 January 31, 2013 Exit
• Radon Testing and Mitigation Standards for Multifamily Buildings. American National Standards Institute (ANSI) – American Association of Radon Specialists and Technologists (AARST). For a fee, order a copy from the AARST Bookstore. Exit

Smoke-Free Policies

• Change Is In the Air (PDF)(100 pp, 2.3 MB) Exit: An Action Guide for Establishing Smoke-Free Policies in Public Housing and Multifamily Properties by the U.S. Housing and Urban Development (HUD)
• Smoke-Free Toolkits Exit: Toolkits for residents and owner/managers who live, and work, in federally assisted housing. Created by U.S. Housing and Urban Development (HUD)
• Healthy Homes Manual on Smoke-Free Policies In Multiunit Housing (PDF)(40 pp, 7 MB) Exit. This manual is designed for state and local healthy Homes program that are working to reduce secondhand smoke exposure in multiunit housing. The manual provides field tested strategies, recommendations, best practices and tools. Created by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)

Pest Management

• EPA Citizen's Guide to Pest Control and Pesticide Safety (PDF)(53 pp, 4.2 MB)
• EPA Controlling Pests: Resources for Residents of Multi-Family Housing

Build Your New Home with Improved IAQ

• Build an Indoor airPLUS Qualified New Home
• Build Using Radon-Resistant New Construction (RRNC) Techniques

Additional Resources for New Buildings

• The Indoor Air Quality Guide: Best Practices for Design, Construction and Commissioning (ASHRAE)Exit
• ENERGY STAR Multifamily High Rise (MFHR) Program