Is Your Indoor Air REALLY Clean? Here Are 9 Ways To Be Sure
The holiday season is here and that probably means your home will soon be flooded with friends and family. And you will probably be cooking a lot more during this time of the year, especially for those dear friends and family. The indoor air quality in your home may not be something that’s at the top of your mind, but maybe it should be.
Air quality not only affects your health, but the health of your children and pets, and the numerous guests that grace your home during the holiday season. Improving and maintaining good indoor air quality can be more work than you might think, but we have some helpful tips to get you through the season.
1. Clean regularly– Vacuuming frequently and dusting properly reduce airborne pollutants like mold dust mites, and pet dander.
2. Remove your shoes– Your shoes are covered in a thin layer of dirt, bacteria, mold and other chemicals that will settle into your carpet, flooring, and rugs.
3. Change your filters frequently– Your furnace filter will be working really hard in the winter in order to keep your air clean. With it running so much, it’s imperative that the airflow isn’t impeded or that the air isn’t reissuing contaminants back into your air. So, make sure you’re checking and changing those filters frequently.
4. Keep bedding clean– Dust mites live and thrive in bedding. Wash your bedding frequently, once every week, in hot water. It’s a great idea to use a de-mite laundry additive in your wash as well.
5. Air Out– Bathrooms, kitchens and basements may not have proper ventilation and tend to collect extra moisture. These mold-prone areas need to be aired out and cleaned of any mold.
6. Use non-toxic cleaners– Winter is the season when the home is less ventilated. Using cleaners that have strong toxins in them will only worsen the indoor air quality because the toxins will remain in the air and on the surfaces you clean.
7. Replace your candles with beeswax candles– This may sound like a strange tip, but regular paraffin candles can release chemicals like benzene, soot, toluene, among others, into your air. Pure beeswax candles, however, burn with almost no smoke or scent, and clean the air by releasing negative ions into the air. These negative ions can adhere to toxins and can help remove them from the air. These candles are especially helpful for those with asthma and allergies.
8. Get a carbon monoxide screening– Carbon monoxide is the the worst air pollution component because it’s odorless and colorless and interferes with the distribution of oxygen in the body. So, a carbon monoxide screening should be a necessity this winter season.
9. Invest in an air purifier– We strongly encourage everyone to invest in an indoor air purifier. One of our favorites is the APCO In-Duct Air Purifier. The APCO uses UV light to remove airborne contaminants for the freshest air. In 10 minutes, UV light can kill 90% of microbes and after 24 hours, 99.9% are killed.
One suggestion we do have is to sign up for The Middleton Maintenance Agreement, which encompasses the most important parts of this list; filter changes and carbon monoxide screenings. We also have air purifier add-ons. Contact us to learn more about what is best for your home. We’d love to help.
Let Middleton Heat and Air in Hot Springs, Conway, and Little Rock help!