7 Strategies to Improve Indoor Air Quality
Luckily, if you want to improve the indoor air quality of your home or business, you have several options available. By incorporating these tips until your daily life, you can have better air circulating through your home and less family illness year-round. They are easy to implement with a wide range of benefits.
- Whole House Ventilation
Start by offering your home whole house ventilation through a whole house fan. These types of fans are usually placed in an attic, where it can properly circulate and ventilate the entire home, improving the air quality. TheHealthy House Institute recommends proper ventilation systems for reducing pollutants in your home.
- Keep Renovations in Check
According toMy Home Ideas, you should also be careful of the type of home renovations you complete. The air quality of your home is often affected through remodeling projects, and these renovations can even benefit you. So when considering home remodeling projects, don’t forget about ventilation. Some renovations to consider for improving indoor air quality is by choosing houseplants for fighting air pollution, getting hard-surface floors like wood instead of carpet, and installing blinds to detract from dust, in addition to installing a garage exhaust fan when doing a garage makeover.
- Allow Fresh Air to Circulate
Aside from ventilating, circulating the air consistently is also important. The whole house fan is incredibly beneficial, but you also want to let in fresh air as often as possible. Opening windows combined with the fan allows fresh air to keep moving through your home.My Home Ideas recommends fresh air and fans for circulating air, plus they encourage you to turn on the exhaust fan while cooking.
- Clean Your Floors
Cleaning your home is essential for improving air quality, and it begins with cleaning your floors. According toWebMD, you should clean your floors as often as possible, especially if you have carpet. Use a vacuum that has a HEPA filter so you are not simply causing dust to fly around the home. A vacuum with rotating brushes helps the filter even more. For hard-surface floors, mopping is also helpful for improving indoor air quality, but be wary of cleaners that contain chemicals.
- Ventilate Appliances
When you use any type of appliance, air systems, fireplaces or heaters, there needs to be good ventilation.GreenGuard Certification asks that doors and windows be open when operating certain appliances to improve the air quality and level out the humidity, however you should be careful with spring and fall allergy season. Ventilate properly when using things like range tops, heaters, fireplaces, furnaces and other appliances.
- Be Careful with Dry Cleaning
According to theGreen Home Guide, you should also be careful with your dry cleaning. Try to avoid traditional dry cleaning services, or at least air them out well before bringing them indoors. Dry cleaners often use the chemical perchloroethylene (PERC), which can also be a carcinogen.
- Clean Heating and Cooling Systems
As reported onPopular Mechanics, cleaning your heating and cooling systems also improve your indoor air quality. These systems can cause dust particles that filter out into the air. Keep them clean and well maintained on a regular basis, and change the filter to a high-efficiency filter.
By following these easy tips, you can have clear indoor air and the best quality of air for your family.