Once you measure the EMFs, the solution may be as simple as moving beds, couches and chairs far enough away from the strongest EMF sources. For example, move your bed farther away from the electrical panel on the other side of the wall to reduce the EMFs down to a safe level. Eliminate many EMF sources entirely by unplugging lamps and turning off wireless devices at night. The solution is often relatively obvious. If needed, you could also consult with an EMF professional for more help — someone in your area who has technical experience in the reduction of EMFs, or contact our office to schedule an appointment for an EMF consultation over the telephone.

Each kind of EMF requires special shield materials and installation procedures. Magnetic fields are shielded with special alloys such as MuMetal®. Please note that magnetic shielding will usually require some professional guidance, because improper placement can actually increase the fields. Electric fields are easier to shield, but again the shields must be properly installed and grounded, or they can also raise the exposures rather than lower them. Similarly, RF fields can be shielded with special materials including shielded paint like Y-Shield Paint for the walls and shielded mesh fabric curtains for the windows.

We can help provide the technical guidance and materials needed to shield all three types of EMFs. Although the materials tend to be relatively costly, in some cases the electric fields and RF fields can be shielded with more inexpensive materials like aluminum foil or window screening. Actually in many cases, shielding is not really the best solution. Better reductions are often gained by simply getting more distance from the EMF source, turning off or eliminating the source, or fixing the wiring errors causing the high emissions.

(for my new or remodel construction project) Yes, you can have shielded wiring installed to greatly reduce both the magnetic fields and electric fields emitted from your home’s wiring system. If the necessary decisions are made soon enough in the construction process, your “EMF-Free” or “Low-EMF” wiring can be installed for the least added cost. We provide professional wiring design consultations to help guide you, your architect, your contractor and/or your electrician through the necessary steps for installing reduced-EMF wiring for your new construction or remodel project.

“Low-EMF” wiring uses (1) special materials to shield the electric fields and self-cancel the magnetic fields, (2) proper placement of equipment and wires to minimize the EMFs by distance, and (3) careful methods to eliminate stray currents that can cause high magnetic fields. The cost of shielded wiring is higher than regular wiring because the shielded materials cost more. (An option to save some money is to use standard unshielded materials and skip step 1 above, but get some EMF reductions by using the procedures and placements of steps 2 and 3.) For assistance, you can order our Low-EMF Wiring Instruction Guide for a small fee. All recommendations for methods and materials meet or exceed the current requirements of the National Electric Code. Michael can also provide the necessary consultations and specifications over the telephone to assist you with your own particular new home or remodel construction project.

High voltage transmission lines — the power lines on the big tall metal towers — can emit strong EMFs for several hundred feet. Neighborhood distribution power lines — on wooden poles or underground near the home — can also emit surprisingly high levels. For both types of power lines, the EMF emissions can vary greatly and are difficult to predict. Therefore, it is always recommended to measure the actual magnetic field levels onsite with a gaussmeter. While there may be modifications that the electric utility company can do to reduce the magnetic fields, in most cases the cost will be prohibitive for the average homeowner. In certain cases, the installation of an electronic “magnetic field cancellation system” may be a possible alternative.

In some cases, the magnetic fields from nearby power lines can be reduced with special electronic equipment that detects the existing magnetic field and produces an opposing magnetic field electronically to help “cancel out” the fields in a certain limited area. These systems are called “Active Magnetic Field Cancellation Systems,” and they are usually used to reduce electromagnetic interference for electron microscopes and other sensitive scientific instruments. The total cost for the design and installation of such a system for a home usually starts at around $20,000. So for most home owners, this price is simply prohibitive.

Computers emit a complex mixture of EMFs including of all three types of EMFs, and at a variety of different frequencies. Thus to adequately test your computer, all three types of EMFs need to be measured. For further assistance, we provide telephone consultations, test meters and/or shielding materials as needed.

One of the concerns is the increasing exposure to digital radio frequency (RF) fields from the use of Wi-Fi and wireless computer components. Today, many computer products come with wireless already installed, and in many cases the equipment will emit RF signals all the time — even when not being use, or when supposedly turned off. If possible, buy computer hardware without any wireless capability, and use hard-wired connections for everything — no wireless routers, printers, keyboards, mice, etc.

We recommend that you test with an RF meter to confirm that all components are truly not emitting any RF wireless signals. The jumble of cords near your feet can also be a strong EMF source, so move these as far away as possible. People at computers are often exposed to high electric fields, so testing with a body voltage meter can be helpful. If the electric fields are high, shielding can be added as needed and the computer properly grounded. In addition, move all computer hardware, such as the monitor, CPU and printer, as far away from your body as possible.

For all computers, it is very important to make sure that the electrical wall outlet is properly grounded, or the electric fields emitted from the computer and monitor may be unnecessarily strong. Monitors can cause high exposures, especially if they are not grounded. For laptops, a handy trick is to use a USB wired remote keyboard so that your hands are not positioned directly over the relatively high EMFs at the laptop’s own keyboard.

In existing homes, high magnetic fields from the electrical wiring are often caused by improper electrical wiring connections, wiring errors, and plumbing currents. Most wiring issues can be repaired without opening up the walls. The corrections are usually made by repairing the electrical connections located in accessible electrical boxes. Certain strong sources of magnetic fields — electrical panels, transformers, refrigerators, pump motors and other common sources — can be shielded with MuMetal® type alloys.

To reduce the electric fields from wiring, especially during sleep, some people can simply turn off certain electrical circuits at the breaker panel at night. A body voltage meter can be used to determine exactly which circuits would need to be turned off.

Similar to computers, televisions also emit a complex mixture of EMFs. Staying a minimum distance of six feet away from the television will usually be enough to avoid the magnetic and electric fields. Flat screen LED and LCD televisions emit less than the old picture tube TVs, but are still a concern. To measure the safe distance, use a gaussmeter that can detect both ELF and VLF magnetic fields. Remember, most common gaussmeters will only detect ELF frequencies, but televisions, computers and fluorescent lights require a wider spectrum meter than can also detect VLF frequencies, such as the Alpha UHS Gaussmeter.

Perhaps the biggest concern is when children play video games at the television or computer. If the game uses any wireless components, the strongest EMF exposure will probably be the radio frequency (RF) fields from the wireless devices. The best option is to use only non-wireless game equipment. Warning: If the game equipment has any wireless capability at all, simply using a wired controller does not mean that the wireless is automatically turned off. In fact it will sometimes stay on, emitting RF needlessly. If you are unsure about this, test with an RF meter to see if the game equipment is emitting wireless RF, and how much.

For many people, cell phones are their strongest exposure to radio frequency (RF) fields. A group of studies has reported increased risks for a variety of tumors in the side of the head where the cell phone is used. It is impossible to shield the cell phone, because to work properly, the phone’s EMF signal must be strong enough to reach the nearest cell tower. The best choice is to reduce the time spent on the cell phone, and as some studies suggest, this may be especially important for children. If possible, use a corded landline phone instead. Here are your best alternatives for reducing the RF exposure from cell phones, with the best options first:

Option #1. Don’t use the cell phone at all, or as little as possible. Keep it turned off. Use it only for emergencies or very short calls. Use a corded landline phone instead. If needed, install additional phone wires and jacks in your home to avoid using any wireless devices.

Option #2: Use the cell phone in “speaker phone” mode only. If possible, don’t even hold it in your hand. Put it down and back away so that your arm cannot conduct the EMF signal back up to your body. This small added distance greatly reduces your overall RF exposure.

Option #3: Use a hands-free kit. Unfortunately, some of the EMF will conduct up the wire of the hands-free kit to your ear. So the best choice is get a special type of hands-free kit that uses an “air tube” or “stethoscope” for the last few inches near your head instead of a metal wire.

The RF signals emitted from cordless phones are similar to those from cell phones. Research studies have reported important health risks — including brain cancer — from the use of cordless phones as well as cell phones. To reduce the RF exposure from cordless phones, consider using the same three safety options listed above for cell phones: #1 reduce your usage; #2 use as a speaker phone; or #3 use with a wired headset.

Cordless phones have an added safety issue. The base station for most cordless phone systems will also emit a strong EMF signal — usually all the time, even when the phone is not in use. The best alternative is to remove the cordless phone system completely, and only use corded phones plugged directly into wall jacks. Some people make this switch by getting a good quality corded speaker phone for each room (with a long cord to add mobility). Another option is to move the base station farther away from people, especially from beds and sitting areas. You could also test with an RF meter to determine if your particular cordless system is emitting all the time or only when in use.

The number of cell tower antennas are steadily increasing. And many antennas are now being cleverly hidden in places like church steeples and water towers, or are no longer listed on sites like www.antennasearch.com. Radio and TV broadcast towers emit even stronger RF signals. And recently, television has converted from analog signals to digital, and this is a concern because many sensitive people report being much more affected by digital signals than analog.

The best way to avoid the RF from cell towers and radio/TV towers is to live and work as far away from these sources as possible. Thus before buying or renting a new home or apartment, it may be wise to ask neighbors about nearby cell towers, and measure the EMFs onsite with an RF test meter. Several studies have reported increased cancer risks within approximately one quarter mile of cell towers, so a minimum safety distance of one fourth of a mile or more may be prudent.

These kinds of EMFs can be shielded, but it is a little tricky. A building’s structure will usually provide some passive shielding, so that the levels inside a building are often 5 to 10 times lower than they are outside (from this kind of outside source). A good time to install RF shielding is during construction, before the walls are closed up. Thick vegetation and trees can also provide some shielding effectiveness. Remember, since many RF sources are unseen or unknown, it may be wise to pre-test a new home or apartment with an RF meter before you buy or rent.