Homes today are constructed with energy efficiency in mind. This includes added insulation and tightly sealed doors and windows to keep heating and cooling costs affordable. While this is good for your energy costs, it’s not so fantastic for your indoor air quality.
As air has decreased chances to escape, contaminants can build up and impact your house’s indoor air quality. In fact, your house’s air can actually be 2–5 times more polluted than the outdoors, according to the EPA. That’s not good for anyone, but it’s particularly detrimental for loved ones with allergies, asthma, other respiratory disorders or heart disease.
Let’s go over some of these everyday contaminants and how you can boost your house’s indoor air quality.
When you visualize pollutants, you may think about smog or tobacco smoke. But a lot of substances that impact your air quality are normal substances. These things have chemicals called volatile organic compounds, or VOCs.
They include:
Other everyday pollutants include:
Some people are more sensitive to VOCs than others. The EPA says symptoms of VOC exposure entail:
In bad situations, the EPA says VOCs can lead to respiratory and heart diseases.
It isn’t hard to improve your house’s air quality. Here are a few ideas from Harvard Medical School:
Regularly cleaning and washing surfaces that attract allergens, like furniture, carpet and bedding, will help cut down on dust, dust mites and pet dander in your house.
This essential filter keeps your house cozy and air fresh. How often you should change your air filter depends on the kind of filter you install. Flat filters should be replaced each month, while pleated filters should be replaced every three months. If you don’t know if your filter should be replaced, remove it and hold it up to the light. Get a new one if you can’t see light through it.
If someone in your home deals with allergies or asthma, we suggest having a filter with a better MERV rating. The higher the number this is, the better your filter is at eliminating contaminants.
Keep fresh air moving by opening windows whenever the temperature allows. We also suggest running exhaust fans in your bathroom and kitchen frequently to get rid of pollutants and bring in more fresh air.
From whole-home air purifiers, Comfort Masters Service Experts has a resolution to help your household breathe better. We’ll help you choose the best option during your free home comfort assessment. Contact us at 847-250-6729 to book yours now!
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