Background: The ambient and indoor environment are pivotal to our health. We spend most of our time indoors within our home, why our home is where we are most exposed to indoor pollutants and indoor air quality (IAQ). Populations within social housing areas are more vulnerable due to advanced age, co-morbidity and social economic status. Commonly, studies within social housing are cross-sectional, few Nordic longitudinal studies exist, and fewer studies combine quantitative and qualitative measurements in a mixed method approach. Method: This research proposal provides an extensive detailed description of the design and methodology of the HOME-Health study. The study is a longitudinal study and is a natural experiment employing structured surveys, objective measurements of indoor air parameters, lung function test and qualitative semi-structured interviews. Data collection are conducted seasonally (winter and summer), before and after building energy renovation (BER). Generalisability: The study population before BER (n = 432) was explored and found similar to the Danish social housing population in terms of age, gender, persons per apartment and migration status. Future analyses should be stratified by multi-family apartments and terraced houses. Research aim: The aim of the HOME-Health study is to provide knowledge about residents’ seasonal state of health, perception of indoor enviromental quality (IEQ), IEQ-related behaviours and practices, and objective measurements of IAQ before and after BER. By applying a design with repeated measurement before and after BER, and combining both objective and subjective quantitative as well as qualitative data the study is expected to create in-depth knowledge. Future results will provide evidence of both energy-savings and non-energy savings from different BER projects. Knowledge which are expected to benefit future renovation projects within social housing areas.

The Boston Residential Investigation on Green and Healthy Transitions (BRIGHT) Study is focused on quantifying the effects of redeveloping public housing developments into new buildings with improved energy performance and indoor environmental quality. This report presents an analysis of utility consumption and work order requests at Old Colony and Washington-Beech, two redeveloped housing sites in Boston, Massachusetts. We compare the consumption of electricity, natural gas, and water, as well as work order data, from 2012–2014 to development-wide baseline data from 2006–2009. We found that despite the higher number of electric appliances in the new apartments (e.g., air conditioning and ranges), electricity consumption decreased 46% in Old Colony and nearly 30% in Washington-Beech when compared to the baseline data. Natural gas used for space heating decreased by more than 70% at both sites; and water use decreased by nearly 56% at Old Colony and nearly 30% at Washington-Beech. Work order categories that directly influence the residents’ quality of life, such as pests, mold, windows and plumbing decreased by more than 50% in both renovated sites. In combination with previous documentation of health improvements in the redeveloped sites, these results provide further evidence of the magnitude of benefits from updating public housing infrastructure using green design principles.

Background: In social housing buildings, poor indoor air quality (IAQ) has been shown to be more prevalent, and residents living in social housing areas are often more vulnerable and susceptible to adverse health effects from IAQ.Aim: To examine the state and the association of measured and perceived IAQ, how housing characteristics and residents' behavior are associated with IAQ, and the association with residents' health.Method: The HOME-Health study is a cross-sectional study among residents living in social housing in Denmark (n = 432). Seasonal measurements examined the IAQ by a 14-day period measuring carbon dioxide (CO₂), temperature (TP), relative humidity (RH), and air change rate. Residents' self-reported behavior, comfort, and health were obtained from a structured interview.Results: Thermal discomfort and draught were the most common challenges. During summer, the mean TP was higher, the mean RH was lower, and residents more frequently reported dry air in homes where it was not possible to create cross ventilation. There were a higher mean CO₂ and RH when crowdedness increased, particularly during winter. In addition, the proportion of residents reporting dry air was higher when CO₂-level was below 1,000 ppm. When the mean RH-level was above 50%, a higher proportion of residents reported experiencing damp air, and when the mean RH-level was below 40% residents more frequently reported dry air. Perception of bad air quality was higher when the mean CO₂-level exceeded 1,000 ppm. Additionally, residents reported being most thermally comfortable when the TP was within the range of 20–20.99°C and least comfortable within a range of 22–22.99°C. The residents' perceived experience of impaired IAQ was associated with negative general health symptoms.Conclusion: It is key that homes have the capability to create cross ventilation in order to allow for proper ventilation and to avoid overheating. When evaluating IAQ it is important to not only consider the measured parameters but to also include the residents' behavior and perception of IAQ as these both are related to the actual IAQ and associated health effects.

Studies have identified seasonal differences between the indoor environment and residents’ comfort, as well as an association between indoor air quality (IAQ) and residents’ overall health. Furthermore, measured IAQ is not always aligned with perceived IAQ. The HOME-Health study is a cross-sectional study with seasonal measurements of IAQ amongst residents living in social housing. The aim is to describe and analyse measured and perceived IAQ, and residents’ health symptoms. We found a lower relative humidity, temperature (TP) and air change level (h⁻¹) level, and a higher carbon dioxide (CO₂) level during winter compared to summer. In general, higher IAQ levels were measured in apartments with increased crowdedness. The inability to be able to create cross ventilation increased TP, and a larger number of rooms decreased TP. Overall, there was no clear alignment between measured and perceived IAQ, but we found a trend that higher CO₂-levels led to a perception of poor IAQ especially during summer. Overall, draught and thermal discomfort were the most common complaints. Self-reported humidity was increased during winter and was associated with nasal and respiratory symptoms, whereas self-reported humidity during summer was associated with fatigue and dermal symptoms. Findings show challenges with IAQ in Danish social housing that are associated with negative health issues.