How to Have Clean, Comfortable Air in Your Home
Do you ever wonder about how clean the air in your home is? Most people spend about ninety percent of their time indoors, so it would stand to reason that breathing clean, comfortable air should be a priority in our homes.
Modern science has opened our eyes to how harmful the unfiltered air inside our homes can be to our family's health. Studies have proven that the air inside an average home is more detrimental than the outdoor air of the largest, most polluted cities in the world.
Major contributors to this poor air quality are a lack of circulation to pull in helpful outdoor air and an overabundance of indoor pollutant sources. Also, most U.S. households have some sort of central heating or cooling air system that can rob indoor air of much needed humidity
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Poor air quality can contribute to a number of health risks, including allergies and asthma attacks, headaches, nosebleeds, colds, and other upper respiratory diseases. Adequate air filtration and proper humidity levels are the key factor in how to have clean, comfortable air in your home.
Why air filtration and humidification?
The average household is full of a wide variety of biological air contaminants. Biological contaminants http://www.epa.gov/iaq/biologic.htmlinclude viruses, mildew, molds, bacteria, animal dander and cat saliva, pollen, dust mites, and cockroaches. The sources for these pollutants are many. Viruses and bacteria are carried by people, plants, and animals; household pets shed hair and dander; the urine of some rodents is a potential allergen as it dries out and becomes airborne; contaminated central air systems are breeding grounds for mold, mildew, and other contaminants that are then easily spread throughout the entire home through the air system.
The most effective way to combat indoor air pollutants is by using an highly-efficient indoor air purifier. Air purifiers usually come in the form of a whole-house system or a small table-top version. Table-top versions are generally less expensive to purchase and some are even less expensive to operate. When considering a table-top version be sure to pay special attention to the square foot operating capacity to ensure that you are investing in a model that can purify the air in your entire home; otherwise you will end up having to purchase more than one unit to adequately get the job done.
In addition to purifying your home's air, you also need to ensure that the air has a proper level of humidity. Maintaining proper humidity is most difficult in the winter months when you are more likely to be running a central heating system. Even though outdoor air might contain a high level of moisture, when you pull that air into the home and heat it to a comfortable level, the much needed moisture evaporates away leaving the air inside "bone dry." Using a humidifier can help bring the air inside your home back to a comfortable level. A relative humidity of 30 to 50 percent is what is generally recommended for the average household. This added humidity also works to combat dry sinus membranes and can help prevent nosebleeds, sinus headaches, and frequent coughing.
Indoor air humidifiers, like air purifiers, also come in whole-house systems and table-top versions. Check the model's specifications for square foot capacity to ensure you are getting the best value for your money. Also, always follow the manufacturer's recommendations for cleaning and maintenance of your humidifier. A poorly maintained humidifier can actually present more health complications than health benefits.
To wrap things up, remember that in order to have clean, comfortable air in your home, the best thing you can do is use both an air purifier and humidifier. With both in place you can look forward to greater health for yourself and your family year round.
