Improve Indoor Air Quality at Home
1. Clean the House to Improve Indoor Air Quality
Simply dusting and running the vacuum regularly reduces the amount of dust inside your house. Use a vacuum with a HEPA filter to further cut down on the contaminants in your air. Regularly launder bedding, drapes, and other fabrics that collect allergens. Put dust-mite covers over pillows and mattresses and reduce clutter to minimize dust throughout the home.
2. Don’t Allow Smoking Indoors
Tobacco smoke leaves toxins in the air that settle on every surface of the home. Designate a smoking area outside the house that’s away from open windows and doors.
3. Improve Air Quality by Keeping Moisture Levels Down
The humidity level inside your home should be between 30 and 50 percent. Any lower and the air will be uncomfortably dry. Any higher and the moisture level becomes ideal for mold and mildew growth. If your home has high humidity levels, use a portable dehumidifier in problem areas or a whole house system to reduce humidity.
4. Open the Windows
Fresh air from outdoors helps to dilute and circulate the air inside. Open up the windows for a few hours every week, weather permitting. Use a fan in the window to draw out the stale indoor air. Simply adding fresh air to your home has a big impact on improving indoor air quality.
5. Avoid Chemicals
Chemicals found in common cleaners and pesticides add pollutants and toxins to the air inside your home. Purchase natural alternatives or make your own household cleaning products. Another way to improve indoor air quality is to eliminate volatile organic compounds, also known as VOCs. These compounds can off-gas from new carpeting, many types of paint, some furniture, cleaning products, and even foam insulation. Choose all-natural or VOC-free products instead.
6. Use HEPA Filters to Improve Indoor Air Quality
HEPA filters can capture particles as small as 0.3 micrometers. That means they can get 99.97% of pollutants floating around in the air. You can use HEPA filters in your vacuum and with in-room and whole-house air purifiers.
RMI Inspection Services offers home inspections and other services, including air quality testing, in Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach Counties in Florida. Contact us to request an appointment.