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About
Why Choose Building BiologyTM?
Why Choose Building BiologyTM? We spend an average of 90% of each day inside buildings. The EPA has determined that indoor air is more polluted than outdoor air. This is due to the build up of outgassed vapors from toxic paint, carpeting, cabinetry, and vinyl flooring; from mold; and from unhealthy positive ions, all in airtight buildings that don't breathe. A building that "breathes" has a regular exchange of stale indoor air with fresh outdoor air. It also allows excess water vapor in indoor air to be transported outside right through hygroscopic wall materials that allow moisture to slowly pass through without any loss of thermal performance. All the thick-wall building materials recommended by Building BiologyTM meet these criteria. When a house does not breathe, then "Sick building syndrome" is the result. Likewise, common electrical wiring practices create unhealthy electric and magnetic field (EMF) exposure for occupants in most modern houses, disallowing the body from settling down to deep, restful Stage Four sleep at night. This prevents the normal healthy nighttime spike in melatonin production by the pineal gland in the brain. EMFs cause other problems, as well. All of these influences contribute to chronic fatigue, fibromyalgia, allergies, chemical sensitivities, and even cancer, and they make it more difficult for people to respond to health care modalities. People who have a Building BiologyTM healthy home evaluation, on the other hand, report improvements in their health when these sources of indoor ill health are identified and removed. Click here to see Comments from Clients.
Introducing Building BiologyTM Helmut Ziehe, a German architect and Bau-biologist, established the International Institute for Bau-biologieTM and Ecology (IBE) in Clearwater, Florida in the 1980s. Oram received his certification from this Institute. Oram Miller, BBEI, is based in Minneapolis, Minnesota where he provides healthy home and office evaluations to clients on-site throughout the upper Mid-West and nationwide by telephone, fax and email. Oram received his certification as a Building BiologyTM Environmental Inspector (BBEI) from the International Institute for Bau-biologieTM and Ecology in December 2003. Oram's training included assessment and mitigation of unhealthy electric and magnetic field exposure, indoor air quality, mold, and chemical outgassing. Oram also consults on the design, building and remodeling of healthy homes and offices in Minnesota and throughout the country. Besides wall and foundation materials as taught by builder and building biologist George Swanson of Austin, Texas, Oram also recommends a healthy electrical wiring protocol to create reduced EMF (electro-magnetic field) exposure. To view building projects that Oram has consulted on, click here. Oram writes and lectures on health and the built environment. He has presented to the University of Minnesota College of Design, the Minnesota Chapter of the American Institute of Architects (AIA), the Minnesota Chapter of the National Association of the Remodeling Industry (NARI), the State of Minnesota's Living Green Expo, and the Eco-Experience at the Minnesota State Fair. Oram will also be a panelist at the annual conference of the International Institute for Bau-biologieTM and Ecology in April 2008. He has also spoken at numerous healthy living expos and green building meetings. Oram is also the co-author of a manual promoting the Building BiologyTM approach to healthy new home construction and remodeling, based upon the work of builder and building biologist George Swanson of Austin, Texas. Oram is active in several organizations in The Twin Cities dedicated to green, healthy construction. These include the Mississippi Headwaters Chapter of the US Green Building Council, the Committee on the Environment (COTE) of the Minnesota Chapter of the American Institute of Architects (AIA), the Minnesota ASHRAE Sustainable Design Committee (MASDeC), and the Minnesota Building Green Alliance. He also moderates a monthly study group of the Mid-West Building Ecology Coalition. Finally, Oram was asked to submit a healthy electrical wiring protocol to the Minnesota GreenStar Program as part of their guidelines to help remodelers and builders provide green new and remodelled homes in the state of Minnesota. The wiring guidelines are based upon protocols developed by Oram's colleague and mentor, Spark Burmaster, EE, BBEI of Environmental Options in Chaseburg, Wisconsin. Oram is a member of Minnesota GreenStar's Technical Committee. You can contact Oram at 952-412-0781 or info@createhealthyhomes.com.
Complimentary to Sustainable Design This committment can be seen in the 25 Principles of Bau-biologieTM, written many decades ago, before the birth of the "Green" building movement. Building BiologyTM only differs from "Green" building in a few important ways, most notably our recommendation of breathable walls rather than the use of vapor barriers, and in some of our recommendations against such energy-saving electrical devices as compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs) and the use of charge invertors to convert DC electricity generated by wind and solar panels to AC electricity. Both devices create significant radio frequencies that bother many electrically-sensitive people. Alternatives to these health hazards are covered in detail in the electrical wiring section of our new building protocol, and discussed in Articles, Part 3, "Electrical and Magnetic Fields in the Home and Office."
Compatible with Ancient Traditions We can help you design buildings that have proper Feng Shui and proper Vastu
while being sustainabile and health-promoting.
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