You may constantly be bombarded with new subjects that should bother you and your family. Don’t bring home anything that has BPA. Steer clear of the microwave. Only save your cooking in glass containers, not plastic.
Now your neighbors are talking to you about indoor air quality (or IAQ) in Wheeling. You shouldn’t use harsh chemicals to clean your home. You need to invest in an air purification system. You need to use essential oils and not air fresheners.
And on and on it goes.
So you start to turn a deaf ear to all the noise and just try and live your life. We feel you - why agonize about one issue if you’re just going to have to constantly worry about everything else?
But, of anything, indoor air quality is absolutely an issue you should focus on, and here’s why.
It affects your health
We’ve told you how to fight sickness and stay healthy with indoor air quality; and, we’ve revealed how to Stop the Sneezes and help ease the symptoms of allergies and asthma with recommendations to improve indoor air quality; we’ve even provided information about the APCO Whole-House Air Purifier to help keep your indoor air quality top notch. So now, we’ll put it bluntly: substandard indoor air quality will negatively affect your health . We spend nearly 90% of our life in home and buildings and with indoor air contaminants, including pet dander, dust, fibers, and virus-causing germs, lurking around our homes, it’s imperative to have an air purification system that can purify our air and help remove the germs that cause illness.
It affects your home
Bad air quality can affect your lungs, but it can also affect the workings of your home. Indoor air with increased levels of impurities floating around is more taxing on your home’s HVAC (Heating, Ventilation, Air Conditioning) system. Impurities clog the components of the blower system and the home’s air filters more rapidly, causing your heating and cooling system to work harder to keep your family comfortable. Your duct system can also become dusty more rapidly, giving you inefficient airflow.
It affects your workplace
Multiple studies have proven that poor indoor air quality can have a substantial effect on workplace efficiency. Not only can it aggravate the symptoms of allergies and asthma, but the contaminants emitted by copying machines, cleaning supplies, poorly maintained heating and AC equipment, and electrical equipment can cause headaches (even migraines), tearing eyes, and scratcy throats. While these symptoms may be temporary, long-term exposure to poor indoor air quality (and you’re probably spending at least 40 hours a week in the office) can result in skin irritations, respiratory issues, and other chronic conditions. On the more drastic side, radon or asbestos seeping in through fractured foundations or ceilings can result in cancer and other fatal ailments and a high concentration of carbon monoxide can lead to sudden death.
So the next time you hear the phrase indoor air quality, listen intently because it could be crucial for your health and for your home. If you are unsure if your home’s indoor air quality is great or poor, call Comfort Masters Service Experts for a free in-home analysis and we’ll confirm your indoor air quality levels and review whole-home air cleaning choices with you.