• Tips to Rid Your Home of Allergens This Spring
• Electrostatic vs HEPA Air Purifiers
• What is an Air Purifier
• How Air Purifiers Work
• Humid Areas at High Risk for Mold
• Air Fresheners Don't Freshen
• Atopy and Asthma
• Austin Air Systems - History and Products
• Determine the Level of Pollutants in Your Home
• Global Warming and Asthma/Allergies
• Honeywell - History and Products
• Household Sprays and Asthma
• Preventing Allergens in the Home
• Respiratory Infections and Nocturnal Asthma
• Basics of Green Building and Design
• Using Candles Safely
• Make Your Home Safe with Better Ventilation
• Tips for Spring Cleaning and Relieving Allergies
• Ban on Ozone Producing Air Purifiers

Keeping Your Indoor Air Clean

Once people start shutting windows to keep out cold air, they begin feeling the effects of poor indoor air quality. Many people start to feel sick or begin developing sensitivities during winter months, usually due to the air inside their homes. Everything from chemical off-gassing of furniture to increased dust can exacerbate existing sensitivities and cause new allergies to emerge. Although routine cleaning and regular duct repairs can help, there are a few simple solutions to keep the air in your home clean and safe.

Change Your Vacuum Bag More Often. Most people take a few passes with their vacuum and feel they’ve completed the task. Dust and dirt can accumulate deep in carpets, especially in high traffic areas, and it can take up to 45 minutes to really get it clean. If the vacuum bag is full, you are actually spreading more dust and dirt throughout the air and back into your home. Consider changing the vacuum bag when it’s only half full. With bagless vacuums, empty them into containers outside. If you empty them into indoor trash receptacles, you’re simply allowing the dirt and dust back into the air.

Clean the Exhaust Pipe of the Dryer. Most homeowners clean the lint trap after every use of the dryer but fail to inspect or clean the exhaust pipe. Lint gets trapped in the pipe and can spill out into the air of the home. By using a long round brush, you can easily remove trapped lint every three to six months or as needed depending on use. If the brush is stuck, consider hiring a professional to clean the pipe.

Make sure the dryer exhaust pipe vents to the outdoors. Any exhaust into closed spaces such as attics or crawlspaces creates prime conditions for mold growth.

Dryer sheets are also hazardous. Although these dryer additions prevent static, they leave a film of phthalates, camphor, and other chemicals on clothing. When you wear it, you automatically breathe in and expose your skin to these compounds.

Continue to Vent the Bathroom, Even After Your Shower. Mold and mildew thrive in warm moist conditions. Bathrooms and kitchens are especially susceptible to these conditions so it’s important to vent these areas properly. Keep in mind, though, that you’ll need to ventilate these areas during your cooking or bathing but continue venting them for at least twenty to thirty minutes afterwards. Fans are essential to this task and should be installed into every bathroom and kitchen.

Use HEPA filters. There are thousands of different air purifiers on the market, but only those with High Efficiency Particle Air (HEPA) filters will rid your home of airborne particles. Some air cleaners, like those that use ionizing or electrostatic features, produce ozone while others actually market themselves as ozone generators that will “sterilize” the air. Ozone is considered a harmful gas that causes respiratory problems in otherwise healthy individuals and can exacerbate symptoms in people who already suffer from conditions such as asthma and emphysema.

HEPA filters are designed to remove even tiny airborne particles from the air without any by products. These are actually tightly woven filters that trap particles as air passes through them. You can purchase room air purifiers with HEPA filters as well as purchasing separate HEPA filters that can fit into your existing ventilation system. Some room models come with Ultraviolet (UV) light systems that will kill airborne bacteria and viruses that pass through the unit. HEPA filters are great for individuals suffering from pet, dust, or mold allergies.

Be sure to purchase a room model that fits the size and needs of the room.

Warm Up Your Car Outside. Pull the car out of the garage before turning it on to warm it up. Despite having an open garage door, you can still poison your home with deadly fumes if you turn your car on in the garage. To ensure safety, make sure that all entrances to the garage are airtight.

You’ll also want to check your furnace since heating systems are actually more likely to cause carbon monoxide poisoning than your car. Call a professional to inspect it every year prior to turning it on.

Check for Radon. Radon is a naturally occurring radioactive gas that can leak into homes through walls, usually in basements and crawl spaces. Since radon is the second leading cause of lung cancer, it’s important to check your home for this poisonous gas. Radon is neither visible nor odorous so you’ll have to purchase a detection kit to determine if your home is at risk.

If your home tests positive, retest and call a professional with the state radon office. Sometimes all it takes is sealing cracks or improving ventilation to fix the problem.

Resource Article: www.dailyherald.com/story/?id=106963&src=120