The short answer is, Foreverbreathe™ specification ticks every box in the sustainable development criteria. Our Common Future, also known as the Brundtland Report makes it very clear Sustainable Development is development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs Health Based Building believes this very specific definition was brought to the world to prevent the situation we find ourselves in today and the definition leaves no room for building materials or specifications that do not provide this outcome.
We believe a more detailed response as to why your home should breathe to be healthy and of best performance can be made easier to understand via a comparison to how you feel and how you perform when you have a common cold.
The conventional new home specification is based non-breathable construction materials. Plaster boards, cement boards, wood fibre boards, EPS insulation, XPS insulation glass fibre insulation, plastic wraps, tapes and acrylic paint layered into what is commonly referred to as an airtight specification. The term airtight refers to the limiting of air exchanges to reduce energy use. The airtight aspect in the specification makes entire sense until you learn this non-breathable material combination establishes high moisture contents within the home environment and within the materials themselves. These moisture congested layers are now in conflict with their airtight specifications, energy saving intentions.
As with a common cold, when breathing is restricted congestion enters to establish performance impacts. In the airtight specification home, these performance impacts are visible as condensation, mould, reductions in R-value and higher energy use. The home is now performing below the level it was built to achieve. The outcome can be compared to how you feel and how performance is impacted when you catch a cold.
When you catch a cold, the common remedy inclusive of medication is to be within a warm environment with fresh air and maybe a ventilator if congestion has impacted your respiratory system. This should bring you back to good health in a short space of time. In the airtight specification home the proposed remedy is very similar. Mechanical ventilation, heating and fresh air. Unfortunately, in your airtight specification home the condition is chronic and embedded for the life of the home. The ventilation and heating system must be working continuously to prevent condensation and mould. The energy cost is too high hence this does not happen. Fresh air can enter via an open window if you are happy to let the heat out at the same time. A costly remedy which has the airtight specification home on life support. The home is unhealthy, the airtight specification is not sustainable
Foreverbreathe™ Specification is airtight and vapour permeable. Every layer comes with proven ability to migrate moisture vapour away from the homes interior to be captured by wool insulation and converted via a process of evaporation. A continuous process embedded in the specification 24 hours a day without mechanical ventilation. The home is breathing, no moisture vapour congestion within building materials, no mould, no condensation and reduced energy consumption.
The home is healthy, indoor air quality is excellent, the inhabitants are healthy. The Foreverbreathe™ Specification is sustainable.
We hope this comparison helps to establish a better understanding of why Foreverbreathe™ Specification is so important to human health and the ongoing development of the building industry. Human health, material health and environmental health working in harmony to make your space a healthy place.
