The very deadly downside of energy efficiency in the home.

Recently two boys (ages 7 & 9) died near where I live in Australia as a result of carbon monoxide poisoning from a faulty gas appliance (heater I think).

Something I have noticed over the years recently is the number of homes with plugged air vents and in more recent construction, no vents at all. Ceiling fans that seal when not in use. Draught stoppers that are very nearly hermettically tight.

But it's not just carbon monoxide. It's mould. It's radon from the cocrete slab, or natural underground sources. It's bugs both 6 legged, and flagelaed. It's formaldehyde from the cheap imported particle board furniture, and fire retardants from the cushions and carpets.

We shut ourselves in with dozens of irritants, and poisons and even diseases for months on end, both at home and at work. All to save a few lousy dollars and perhaps to do our own little bit for the environment?

A number of studies have shown that simply opening windows in hospitals reduces the incidence of socionomal diseases far more effectively than increasing the use of disinfectants. So why do we still seal them up like Biosphere 2? Why are so many comercial building spaces the same? And why for fuck's sake our bloody homes?

Parts of landscape in China where they get some of the materials to make them.

...from the same mines are used to make the magnets for those. Also for the tiny earbud speakers used for phones and MP3 platers. Even the flints in cigarette lighters.

Finite resources, whatever they are, and wherever they come from, are always going to be a problem in many ways.

It's one of the reasons I firmly believe industialising space should be one of our top priorities. It's that or shooting at least every third person on the planet.

Homes are turning into gas chambers - especially new homes.

During hearings on the formaldehyde trailers in New Orleans, an industry friendly congressman objected to the whole thing because formaldehyde readings in new homes was higher than what the people were exposed to in the trailers!!

The CDC just instituted one of the most sane indoor environment policies ever - for all of their offices. Here is a link to it (it is an internal policy only) but it shows a real advance in this area:
http://www.thecanaryreport.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/CDC-2009-Indoor-Environmental-Quality.-internal-policy542.pdf

More houses need to be built to take advantage of natural ventilation.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Natural_ventilation

and not the insulation. There is no rationale at all for our continued energy inefficiency and gross waste of natural resources for heating and cooling leaky homes and businesses.

And I did not in any way blame insulation. The more the better as far as I'm concerned. What I blame is lack of ventilation.

Disease, mould, radon, industrial poisons are all dangers in their own right. A CO detector is not going to help with these. CO is simply the fastest killer on the list.

Proper ventilation is a must. Absent 'you beaut' heat exchange systems for lossless ventilation, not an easy retrofit, the 5% or so a cracked window costs on your energy bill is a price well work paying for safety. Make it a cat flap and save yourself the trouble of opening doors.

It could be a matter that could be solved with consumer education.

to open them a little.

...the window as it is slammed/nailed shut.

While living elsewhere, we rented out our home to a family we knew that were in a bad situation. Mum up and dies of a heart attack at 35 leaving 3 preteen kids. This more or less forced us to allow the children's father (the bad situation) to take over the lease. By the time children's services stepped in, the entire house was black with mould cause by condensation from the gas heater and keeping every window in the house sealed tight.

Two more tenants, and exactly the same mess to clean up after each. BTW we've now been back in the house for five years without a hint of the same problem.

...can be solved by a heat recovery ventilator. They bring fresh air into the house through a heat exchanger that recovers 85% of the heat in the outgoing stale air. They cost about $500 and plug right into your existing HVAC system (assuming you have forced air--if not, the cost would be much higher).