Indoor Air Quality Tips
Having an indoor air purification or cleaning system installed is certainly helpful when you’re trying to improve the quality of the air inside your home. But that’s not the only thing you can do. No matter how good your air purification system is, you can help reduce its workload by putting some of these indoor air quality tips into practice. After all, the less your indoor air cleaner has to do, the longer it will last and the safer your air will be.
Chemical Cleaners and Personal Products
While you may think that most of the chemical contaminants found in your indoor air come from outside of your house, that’s not always the case. For instance, we all use cleaning agents and health and beauty products, and many of these are loaded down with chemicals – chemicals that then wind up being released into the air in your home.
Of course, your indoor air cleaner can remove most of these, but you’re definitely better off if they were never there to begin with. So look for household cleaners and personal care products made from natural rather than chemical ingredients. These often work just as well and won’t add to the level of pollutants in your home.
The Right Building Materials
The materials used in building, adding onto or touching up your home can also contribute to the contamination of your indoor air. Many paints continue to release gasses for weeks after application, and just because you can’t smell them anymore doesn’t mean they’re not still there.
Also, many building materials like plywood and home insulation are often made using formaldehyde. This is a dangerous carcinogen and something you really never need to have in your home. If you’re remodeling or just patching up some spots here and there, make sure that you or your contractor is only using formaldehyde free materials.
Mold Control
Another huge indoor air contaminant is mold spores. Eliminating mold from your home can go a long way towards improving the overall quality of your indoor air. But of course, mold is not always so easy to find. It tends to grow in dark, damp places – the places that you don’t normally go.
However, you can keep mold at bay without having to go looking for it by taking steps to maintain proper humidity levels in your home. Patch leaks, ensure adequate ventilation and install a dehumidification system if necessary. Keeping the moisture level down all over your home is the best way to attack a mold problem.
Carbon Monoxide Detectors
Carbon monoxide is a dangerous contaminant, and you can actually be living with it for a long time without ever realizing it. This gas is odorless, and can do damage even if it’s not present in levels high enough to make you immediately sick. The best way to find out if you have a carbon monoxide problem is to buy a detector and keep it in good working order at all times. That way you can take proper action the moment carbon monoxide makes its way into your home.
Duct Cleaning and Maintenance
If you have ductwork in your home, you’re probably aware of how much dust and other debris can collect in there in a relatively short period of time. And anything that finds its way into your ductwork is going to be circulated all over your home when your central heating or cooling system is turned on.
To keep dangerous contaminants and irritants from circulating in this way, it’s important to have your ductwork cleaned and maintained on a regular basis. This can also help eliminate the chances that cracked or leaky ducts are letting hazardous exhaust back into your home air supply.
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