One of the people that follow my blog, just happens to be a business associate that deals with building codes on a daily basis. When he read my blog on this subject, he sent me an email with the WELL Building check list. I wasn’t surprised by the far reaching criteria The more complicated you make it, the more serious it sounds, the more likely you are to score a big payday.
I’m only going to give you the headings of each category, because each topic, has a long list of items below it that will bore you out of your mind.
- Asbestos and lead of course, and all of the names of products that contain these two products
- Interior finishes and lists of chemicals involved in their production
- Furniture and upholstery, lots of different chemicals involved here especially formaldehyde.
- Ceiling tiles and panels, another long list of supposedly dangerous chemicals
- Wall coverings. ( I’ve always been frightened of wall coverings )
- Window frames. ( Who knows how many have died from window frames )
- Glazing??? Who knew?
- Handles and door knobs. ( Yep, I’ve always suspected my headaches were caused by door knobs )
- Doors between work spaces now need to be gasketed??
- Moisture barriers. ( Those pesky plastics again )
- Shower curtains?? ( I’ve never trusted shower curtains )
- Countertops and fixtures ( My wife thinks these two need to changed often )
- Media filters??
- Thermometers ( No mercury thermometers allowed, get rid of that antique thing you paid $1,000.00 for. )
- Illuminated signs / lamps ( That mercury thing again in neon lights. No Coors Beer signs )
- Ultra violet lights in your ventilation system to kill bacteria.
- Get rid of combustion based heat. ( Get ready to freeze your ass during brown-outs )
- Lighting has to be placed strategically in relationship to eye level?? ( Sitting, standing, laying down?? How is this determined? )
The items above are part of a check list that the inspectors use when examining your building. As I said above, each one of these categories have numerous sub items that pertain to the main category. The more of these items you can check off as being in compliance with, the higher your building score. Here is the problem, which you probably already figure out. The chances of you getting an acceptable score is pretty slim. That means it’s time to start shelling out your hard earned dollars to be one of the elite building/business owners.
None of this really means much right now, it’s currently a voluntary thing. However, where there is cash flow involved, it becomes attractive to all sorts of people, especially governments. Once the local governments see it as a cash cow, it won’t be long before it becomes a regulation. When this happens, it just adds another layer of bureaucracy, and makes it more expensive for builders. This type of activity is not beneficial for the economy, it’s just the opposite. But, it’s really in keeping with the current mind set, ” I don’t care about you, or the nation, as long as I get stinking rich”.
VERITAS VINCIT ~ LIVE FREE OR DIE
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