What Is The Cause?

The main cause of Toxic Home Syndrome is the under-ventilation of a property.

As homes have become more airtight in recent years, due to the aims of governments to reduce wasted energy, this has sealed houses and prevented the air from ‘changing’ (existing air is allowed to escape from a room, new air comes in from outside).

The indoor air pollutants, emitted from computers, TVs, furnishings, pets etc then build up and can’t escape.

The England & Wales Building Regulations and the Technical Standards in Scotland have included the need for various levels of ventilation in new buildings for a number of years, however these aren’t always applied well by builders, due to bad installation, or utilised properly by householders because they are unaware how to use them.

The Regulations don’t cover improvements to existing properties in as much detail, so when windows are replaced with much improved, tightly sealed ones, ventilation isn’t improved as a result.

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