Keeping a Clean Home Series: Protecting Against Air Pollutants

One of the most important things you can do to keep your home clean is to protect it against air pollutants. Taking proactive steps to remove air pollutants from your home can reduce the risk for a myriad of chronic diseases. Though most major contributors to air pollution come from outside the home like cars, buses, and airplanes, indoor spaces can be polluted as well. However, there are ways to protect your home against air pollutants.

Purchase an Indoor Air Purifier

Buying a HEPA air purifier is the quickest and easiest way to clean your house’s air and keep it clean. The air filter removes all kinds of dust, pollen, mold, bacteria, and other airborne particles that wander into your home. While it can be costly to run an air purifier and keep it running through regular cleaning and replacing of the filter (about three months or so), the benefits of keeping air pollutants out of your home are worth it. However, this isn’t all you can do. Getting the most out of your air purifier means also incorporating other methods of cleaning your home.

Have Your Air Ducts Cleaned

Your air ducts circulate most of the air in your home and you want to make sure the air you’re breathing is safe. While the EPA states it isn’t proven that cleaning your air duct will prevent health problems in terms of airborne pollutants, the duct system can distribute harmful contaminants throughout your home. Cleaning your air ducts should be done by a professional you trust and should be done every three to five years. Companies that are NADCA members must meet strict requirements for membership and are a good starting point in your search for the right service to handle your cleaning. 

Keep A/C and Heater Filters Clean

You should regularly replace the air filters on your air-conditioning and heating unit in order to get longevity out of your units. This also works in conjunction with your air purifier. If you’ve invested in a purifier, but fail to replace the HVAC air filter on your A/C unit, you’re working against your purifier. Not only does replacing air filters indirectly affect your air purifier, it also directly affects the air quality being pushed into your home. Suggestions of how often you should change your filter range from 30 days to 6 months, but as a general rule you want to replace your filter every 90 days and then adjust based on the circumstances of your own home and the quality of filter you use.

Open the Windows

Another easy way to clean your home’s air and keep it clean is to open the windows and ventilate the house. Given that indoor air can have higher levels of air pollutants than outdoor air, an important step to cleaning your home’s air is to open windows that create a cross draft on a windy day. You’ll want to first turn off the air purifier, if you have one, and make sure the windows you open up are directly across from each other to get the most draft. Not only does this clean your air and cheap, but it also prevents air irritants from getting locked in.

Avoid Air Pollutants

Another method of reducing air pollutants in your home is to avoid them altogether. This may seem obvious, but some of the most harmful pollutants on your health can be aesthetically pleasing to the home like candles and wood fires. What may smell good in your home is actually burning toxins in the air that are then getting trapped in the room. Reducing pollutant sources like candles, fires, and smoking inside the home is a surefire way to improve air quality and protect your home from air pollution.

Schedule a Professional Duct Cleaning

Contact Dream Steam for a professional cleaning. 

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