It’s no secret that indoor air quality is a major concern for many families. The air inside your home may be more polluted than outside, with allergens and toxins in the air from cleaning products or paint. But if you’ve ever felt like you don’t know where to start when it comes to improving your home's air quality, we're here to help! This article will explore some simple ways that you can improve your indoor air without too much effort or cost.
Ways to Improve your home's air quality
Air filters can be a simple way to improve your home's air quality. There are several different kinds of air filters available, like HEPA and MERV. HEPA or High-Efficiency Particulate Air filters do a great job at capturing 99.97% of all particles as small as .3 micrometers, meaning they can trap pollen and most allergens inside your home. MERV, or Minimum Efficiency Reporting Value, is an American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) rating scale that indicates how well air filters capture particles of different sizes. Their MERV 13 filters trap 99% of particles from .3 to 1.0 micrometers, which also traps allergens and most household dust particles. This helps with controlling dust particles and mold and improving the quality of your home's air.
Micro Air Filters
Microfilters can be a good option if you live in a smaller space, like an apartment or condo with limited wall space for bigger air filters. They don’t work as well as the larger ones though, only capturing particles up to .3 micrometers and only 12% of pollen and dust particles. They also require regular replacement, like every three months instead of annually like larger filters.
Air Filters in your HVAC system
If you’ve got a forced-air heating or cooling system, adding an air filter to it can be well worth it. The more expensive the system, the more susceptible it is to clog. It can also be harder on your system’s energy usage and lifespan if it isn’t regularly serviced or maintained, which includes replacing your air filters every 3 months or so. This is a simple task that you can do yourself, by simply sliding out your old filter and inserting a new one.
The circulating fan in your heating or cooling system can also help minimize airborne particle concentration, but it doesn’t capture particles itself.
Causes of poor indoor air quality in the home
There are many causes of poor indoor air quality, like household cleaning products and paints. The chemicals in these products can contribute to contaminants in the air that cause asthma or respiratory irritation. You should also consider improving your home’s air quality if you’re highly sensitive to specific allergens, like pollen or mold spores, since these can be a major problem all year round. Talk to your doctor if you have any questions or concerns about how well your air is working for you and whether it could be contributing to symptoms like coughing, sneezing, sore throat, or congestion.
Improve your house's air quality without too much effort or cost
You can improve your house's air quality without too much effort or cost by purchasing a newer model air filter and changing it every 3 months, to keep indoor pollution at a minimum. For those that decide to buy a new air conditioner, it is important to know how to maintain it. By turning off multiple electrical appliances at once, you can also prevent them from spreading pollutants through the home from being plugged into different circuits. When doing chores you can wear a filter mask to prevent any air from coming in through your mouth, nose, or eyes.
Pet owners
When it comes to other tactics you can do to improve the quality of the air in your house, especially if you have pets, frequent brushing of the animal's fur can help you minimize the shedding and the amount of hair that will fall around the house. Also, investing in a good vacuum can help you reach all the nooks and crannies and suck up something that might otherwise end up in your breathing system. Even though most of us treat our pets like family, it is important to limit their space of movement. You can avoid pets in the kitchen, and if you are prone to allergic reactions to pollen or similar allergens that they can carry on their fur, set your bedroom and other resting areas outside of their zone.
Your home can be hard to keep clean, but trying out these simple ways to improve your indoor air quality will make it easier for you to breathe better with less coughing, sneezing, or congestion. Improving the quality of your indoor air is an important part of keeping your home safe and healthy for you and your family, so keeping these tips in mind when it comes to purchasing filters for your HVAC system or making other household changes can help improve its quality.
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