Improve Your Indoor Air Quality with These Tips

We Care About Your Indoor Air Quality

Your indoor air quality has a significant impact on your health. If you live in a home or work at an office that has poor indoor air quality, you’re more likely to get sick – and get sick often. We all know that outdoor air pollution is a prominent issue we face and that something needs to be done about it. However, indoor air pollution is often overlooked. Did you know that indoor air can be two to five – and in some cases even 100 times – more polluted than outdoor air? And because so many of us spend nearly 90 percent of our times indoors, this is especially disconcerting.

You often think of your home as one of the safest places to be and a source of unending comfort, but depending on the quality of your air, it might not be as safe as you think. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, the average person receives 72 percent of their chemical exposure at home. If you or a family member frequently feel under the weather, the culprit could very well be contaminants in your indoor air. Rest assured, though, that there are ways to improve the quality of your air!

1. Change Your Air Filters Regularly

How often do you change your air filters? Dirty furnace and air conditioner filters build up dust, dirt, and other potentially harmful contaminants and can spread them throughout your home. This is an issue we press upon frequently, and it’s because this task is so incredibly important for numerous reasons. Changing your air filter regularly increases the lifespan of your system, cuts energy costs, and improves indoor air quality.

It’s recommend that you change your air filter every three months; however, if you have pets, it’s best to change it every month, or at the very least, every other month.

2. Don’t Put Off Chores

It’s tempting to wait until spring to do your cleaning, but if you want safe air to breathe, it’s best not to put those chores on hold. Cleaning regularly will help reduce harmful allergens and irritants. But before you start, make sure you’re using cleaning products that don’t contain harmful chemicals. According to a study done by the Environmental Working Group, 53 percent of the reviewed cleaning products contained lung-harming pollutants. For more information on harmful cleaning products, see their “Hall of Shame.”

To avoid harmful vapors, it’s recommended that you purchase nontoxic, non-aerosol, unscented cleaning products. Several of the products on the Hall of Shame list include Simple Green All Purpose Cleaner, which, you may know from experience, has an extremely potent scent; Scrubbing Bubbles Bathroom Cleaner; and Easy-Off, another potent product. Check out this list for a complete guide to safe household cleaners!

You can also help improve indoor air quality by using a vacuum cleaner with a HEPA filter.

3. Groom Your Pets

Pet dander is one the most prevalent causes of poor indoor air quality. If you have indoor pets and are even slightly allergic to them, their dander could be making you sick. There are several solutions to help minimize your allergies, such as:

• Bathe them frequently, not just when they’ve had a good roll in the mud.
• Wash their bedding regularly.
• If possible, keep them out of bedrooms. If you can’t, then wash your bedding regularly as well.

4. Fill Your House with Plants

Forget about expensive electric air fresheners; you can improve the quality of your air with house plants! NASA researchers have found the best plants to boost your IAQ, ridding your home of harmful toxins such as benzene, formaldehyde, ammonia, and more. You can choose any plant from this list. You should have one houseplant for 100 square feet.

5. Call An IAQ Specialist

We specialize in improving the indoor air quality of homeowners. Our licensed, trained technician will begin with a thorough and comprehensive evaluation of your home’s IAQ so that we can determine the approach. Whether you suffer from asthma, respiratory infections, headaches, or allergy attacks, rest assured we’ll do everything we can to ensure clean air and your peace of mind.

For information or assistance with HVAC efficiency, give Interstate Heating & Air Conditioning a call at 405-794-8900.

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