After the first class and learning how dangerous environmental exposures were everywhere, I was intrigued to know more about the home I grew up in. I find it amazing how just a simple informative fact (like what year the home was built) can have such a big impact. Knowing the age of your home is extremely important because older houses were typically built with more harmful products, like lead pipes or asbestos. Also knowing if someone lives in the basement is important because there could be lurking gases coming from the ground; like radon, which is naturally broken-down uranium in soil or rocks.
I was pretty shocked to see that my house was in good shape. It was built in 1979 and we actually had a renovation completed on it about 5 years ago. During the renovation a lot of the items on the assessment were checked (like the piping, ventilation, and appliances). An issue that did come up was our constant problem with roof rats, although they are not necessarily in the home they are definitely around. Due to living in a more wooded area, our neighborhood is known for having common rodents around, for example a couple of months ago my sister found a baby skunk that was left by its mother down the block from our house and she had to take it to wild animal rescue. Our community is informed on how to protect ourselves and our homes from such rodents, but there are still around and still can cause damage if you aren’t aware or careful.
I really appreciated this assignment because it helped put things into perspective of the different environmental exposures that we come in contact with, especially in our home where we spend majority of time. Attached is my home assessment.
