When we think of air pollution, we think of planes, power plants, and smoggy, traffic-clogged cities, but few people realize that the air quality inside your house can be up to ten times worse than outside. But the reality is that air quality can affect your health more significantly than you can imagine. It is critical to consider the effective ways to improve air quality in your home to live a healthier and safer life.
In addition to headaches, irritated ears, sinuses, and throat, and dizziness, poor indoor air quality can also cause more severe impacts like cancer and respiratory illnesses. You need not worry. In today’s world, preventative maintenance and basic information can help you enhance your indoor air quality.
List of simple ways to improve air quality in your home
1. Change your AC filter
Your home’s air conditioning systems are always running to maintain the ideal climate in your room. However, as they circulate through all that air, they filter out those prevalent air pollutants, deteriorating the air quality in your home. Furthermore, their air purifiers eventually become clogged and cease to function.
That compromises the purity of indoor air and wears down your air conditioning system, which may require expensive future repairs. Therefore, replace your AC filters regularly or sign up for an air conditioning service plan that typically includes filter changes.
2. You shouldn’t ignore other air filters
Apart from the air conditioning filter, other factors contribute to the clean air in your house. Make sure to inspect the filters in your other domestic appliances if you want to improve the air quality in your home. You should routinely examine and maintain your kitchen vents, clothes dryer, and vacuum cleaner. Regular cleaning and replacing of these household filters are essential to keep your air quality in check.
3. Maintain good ventilation in bathrooms
You can start by installing a ventilation fan to avoid an accumulation of moisture. Mildew, mites, and mold are attracted to dampness and steam, which can induce or worsen allergies and asthma. Off-gassing, the airborne release of compounds from cleaning supplies and plastics, is another effect of excessive moisture.
4. When indoors, refrain from smoking
From the standpoint of health and interior air pollution, smoking is unmatched in its harmful health effects. Since two-thirds of tobacco smoke dissipates into the air, passive users are more at risk than active smokers.
5. Avoid strong fragrances
Candles, incense sticks, aroma oils, air fresheners, and bug repellents like mosquito coils emit organic compounds like nitrogen dioxide and aerosols that can irritate the respiratory system and aggravate allergies and breathing conditions. Artificial fragrances, prevalent air pollutants, are found in most cleaning products like washing detergents, fabric softeners, and floor cleaners.
6. Use cooking vents
The kitchen is the source of many interior air pollutants. The harmful contaminants released by gas burners include nitrogen dioxide and carbon monoxide. These same pollutants are produced by electric burners at lower levels, along with other particles that can enter your bloodstream. Therefore, to further help the air become more filtered while you’re cooking, switch on the kitchen vents or open a window.
7. Clean up your carpets and rugs
The use of rugs and carpets provides benefits to your house beyond just comfort. Due to their many fibers, they serve as air filters by trapping dust, pollen, and other particles. Weekly cleaning will ensure that your carpets and rugs continue to do their part in enhancing the indoor air quality in your house. In addition, consider implementing a no-shoes household policy to prevent further build-up.
8. Use indoor plants
In addition to adding life and visual interest to any area, air-filtering indoor plants may also help to increase oxygen levels and purify the air in your house. Filtering the pollutants in your home helps them achieve this.
NASA’s 1989 research on the role of indoor plants in air purification discovered that some houseplants are effective air purifiers, removing benzene, formaldehyde, trichloroethylene, xylene, and ammonia from our surroundings. The study found several species, including bamboo palms, weeping figs, Boston ferns, and snake plants.
9. Invest in high-quality air purifiers
It stands to reason that better air filters will catch more particles. The finest air purifiers draw in stale air, filter it, and then release the much cleaner and fresher air back into the space, trapping and eliminating nearly 100% of pollutants. However, smaller particles cause the filter to clog more quicker, necessitating more frequent replacement. You should replace your air filter approximately every 30 days. Ensure you have new filters to replace the old ones.
It takes diligence and preemptive maintenance to keep the air in your house clean and breathable. Now you know a few easy things to lessen interior air pollution. Keeping the indoor air clean is an important yet overlooked solution to improve our health, especially in the face of viruses that prey on people with weak respiratory systems.
Also Read: Easy Ways To Have A Clean Home
