3 Easy Ways To Improve Indoor Air Quality So You Can Breathe Easier At Home
Indoor air quality is so easily forgotten, yet it’s a crucial part of being in your home. The EPA states that various health effects may show up after repeated exposure to poor indoor air quality, such as asthma, itchy eyes, stuffy nose, headaches, dizziness, and more. If you already experience any of these issues while living in your home, then there’s a big chance your indoor air quality is poor - especially if the symptoms get better when you go outside.
Bad indoor air quality can stem from all sorts of pollutants and bacteria floating around in your home. It’ll scare you to learn just how polluted the air is inside your property, but you don’t need to get too worried. You can easily improve the situation by making use of these simple ideas.
Identify and control any pollutants
Figure out if anything might be causing your terrible indoor air quality. As an obvious example, if your home has asbestos, this will be a big factor in bad air quality. Other things include:
Smoke from log burners or gas stoves
Excessive dust
Pollen and pet dander
Look for things that might contribute to bad air quality and control them. This could mean removing certain materials or containing them within your home. It could also mean you remove clothes before sitting on furniture after being outside, or ensuring you vacuum surfaces regularly. Controlling these things means there should be fewer pollutants in the air.
Install an air purifier
Air purifiers come in two varieties:
Standalone devices that you plug into a wall socket and place somewhere in your home
Add-on devices that attach to your HVAC system
In either case they use filtration systems to pull in and trap airborne pollutants from around your home. If you have an HVAC system, then an air purified add-on is usually more effective because it targets the entire home. Any decent HVAC company will install this device for you. Those of you without one can get a small air purifier to place in different rooms throughout your home. You’ll notice a distinct difference just a day after using an air purifier - the air feels almost cleaner to breathe.
Improve ventilation
You always need good ventilation in your home for good air quality. Open your windows to allow air to circulate throughout your property. Again, an HVAC system is handy here because it can use fans to improve air circulation and ventilation.
It’s extra important to boost ventilation when you turn the hot water on and create steam. Steam increases the indoor air humidity, which can lead to damp and mold, which adds harmful airborne allergens to the air.
You’ve got three incredibly simple tips here that will improve indoor air quality beyond your wildest expectations. Better air quality is linked to all kinds of health improvements, such as clearer skin, a healthier respiratory system, improved sleep quality, and much more. All you need to do is control the causes of bad air quality, use air purifiers, and work on getting more ventilation throughout your home.
Photo by Patrick Perkins on Unsplash