Keeping your indoor air quality at a high level is a certain way to reduce any kind of outdoor allergens and improve your overall quality of life. Here are some of the simple steps you can take to improve the air quality in your home.
No Smoking
One of the significant ways you can improve the air quality in your house is to quit smoking, at least indoors. Smoking a single cigarette can release thousands of toxic chemicals that will end up everywhere in your home. Make sure to establish a no smoking policy in your house to have a significantly healthier living environment. No dust microparticles from smoking will ensure that your home can be cleaned up more easily too. More often than not, certain pieces of furniture can accumulate all the particles from the cigarette smoke and will have an unpleasant smell. Cigarette ash is also another way in which cigarettes can help pollute the air in your household.
Fresh Air from Outside
The air in your household can very easily become polluted with either dust that naturally occurs or either the dust and bacteria your furry friends bring in with them. This can be especially troublesome if someone from the people living in your house is a smoker. One of the easiest ways to quickly improve the air quality in your house is to bring in the fresh air from outside. This will ensure that you can breathe in clean air even though you are indoors. You can simply open up your windows to do so, or you can install any kind of ventilation system that can also regulate the temperature of your household.
Maintenance
Another way of improving the air quality in your household is to have a regular maintenance schedule of all the appliances you own that pose a potential threat to it and your health as well. Gas appliances are the ones that you should pay special attention to. Some boilers and ovens that run on gas need to be serviced regularly. The reason why this is crucial is that there could be some gas leaking into the air. This will significantly reduce your indoor air quality, and it could seriously damage your health if there are greater leaks of gas. Another aspect of paying attention to is your HVAC system maintenance. As the experts from filterbuy.com suggest, HVAC air filters should be replaced often to ensure the air quality in your household and to prevent additional strain on the whole system.
House Plants
Having plants indoors has many great advantages. They have been shown to boost productivity, have a calming effect on people, and, most importantly, improve air quality. As a part of their natural physiology, plants absorb carbon dioxide and use it in a series of biochemical processes to convert it into oxygen. This process does not just freshen up the air, it also gets rid of potentially harmful toxins. Extensive research shows that having indoor plants can help eliminate almost all of the toxins from the air in 24 hours! Owning house plants could be one of the least expensive and easiest ways to improve the air quality in your home.
Keep It Clean
Almost every household owns some sort of a ventilation system. These systems often serve to cool down or heat your home, and they use circulating streams of air to do so. If there is a fair amount of dust in your home, it will keep floating throughout the whole house, making it an unhealthy environment. Your house can be especially prone to collecting dust if you own pets. Make sure you maintain a regular cleaning schedule to prevent this from happening. Dust all the available surfaces, vacuum the floors and carpets, and mop up afterward to clean any remaining dust particles.
Rethink Your Furniture
Next time you think about refurbishing your home, think about the fact how the furniture you want to buy will impact the air quality in your household. There may not be any logical connection between the two at first glance. However, certain pieces of furniture can hold on to a lot of dust. Carpets, for example, can accumulate a decent amount of dust and need regular cleaning. You might want to think twice about owning them. Another part of your interior decor that builds up a lot of dust over time are the curtains. Be sure to wash them thoroughly and to keep the made to measure blinds clean.
Improving Air Quality in Different Parts of Your Home
Having good air quality inside your home is a must. More often than not, your home’s improperly installed or old insulation can release flame retardants or chemicals with high levels of volatile compounds, significantly decreasing the air quality inside your home. Additionally, particles of grass and dirt are also part of the air, affecting its quality inside the house. There are many ways to improve the air quality of your home in general. Here are a few tips on clearing up the air in specific parts of your home.
Bedroom
Most people spend around ⅓ of their time in their bedroom, so it is the first place where you should look to control and better the air quality. If there are allergens in the air of your bedrooms, it can greatly impact your sleep, making conditions such as eczema and asthma worse. Start by replacing your pillows every two years. When purchasing a pillow, always look for zippered allergen protectors. You should also vacuum your mattress often and replace it every 10 years. You should also avoid letting pets into your bedroom, especially on your bed.
Bathroom
The best way to improve the air quality inside your bathroom is to run a fan for around 15 to 20 minutes after showering. It would be best to allow any towel or washcloth you have used to dry thoroughly afterward. Molds can decrease your bathroom’s air quality, so check for them regularly near your shower, tub, windows, sinks, toilets, and inside cabinets. These are the common places where mold grows. If your shower curtains show signs of mold or mildew, replace them.
Kitchen
One of the common causes of decreased air quality in kitchens is mold and pests. Always fix leaks from your dishwater, sink, or refrigerator to prevent mold. It also grows near or in cabinets, produce bins, and refrigerator seals, so check those areas regularly. Additionally, you should never let dishes pile up in your sink and have food lying around as they will attract mold and cockroaches.
Be sure to follow these simple steps to keep the air quality in your house at a maximum level. This will ensure a healthier environment for you and your household.