Ways to Improve Indoor Air Quality for a Healthy Home

Disclosure: This post is brought to you by Wood Air Conditioning.

 

We spend a lot of time indoors, whether at work or at home or visiting other places, so understanding the value of good indoor air quality is important. We might not be able to have any input on the indoor air quality at work (though we might expect businesses to maintain high standards), but we do have control over our homes and should take steps to ensure the air we breathe is safe for our health.

 

Image via Flickr by Artotem

 

Why is indoor air quality important?

It is crucial to have good indoor air quality, especially in our homes where we want to rest and enjoy our time. Poor indoor air quality can cause chronic allergies, headaches, dizziness, fatigue, and other health problems. Indoor air pollution can lead to issues from sensitive eyes to respiratory problems to heart disease. A warning sign of poor indoor air quality is a stale or stuffy room that is very dry or very humid.

 

There are many options for improving indoor air quality, some simple and some more complicated. I am a proponent of simple fixes that we can do ourselves to improve indoor air quality and keep our home healthy.

 

Help your air conditioning unit run efficiently

Helping your HVAC unit run efficiently is the first step towards ensuring healthy indoor air quality in your home. One simple step you can take is to regularly change out your air filters. Air filters collect dust and allergens, which significantly impact indoor air quality. Replacing air filters keeps the air flow free of these particles.

 

Keep the pet fur and dander in check

We have several pets, so the fur situation in our house can become a problem if we don’t keep up with it. Only one of our pets is long-haired and needs to be groomed regularly, but the short-haired critters shed quite a bit on their own. This requires constant sweeping to keep the fur out of the air we breathe.

 

Pet dander can cause allergies and asthma. In order to keep the pet dander under control, it’s important to bathe pets regularly. This is easier said than done with cats, but at least the dogs can have regular baths.

 

Maintain a regular cleaning schedule

To maintain good air quality in a house, it needs to be clean. Regular dusting, vacuuming, and sweeping will help remove the allergens and aforementioned pet fur and keep the air you breathe fresh. The cleaning routine does not have to be very complicated, but cleaning floors and counters on a regular basis contributes to good indoor air quality.

 

Add some plants  

 

Image via Flickr by D.Eickhoff

 

Certain plants can contribute to good indoor air quality, and they can even help clean the air we breathe. Many people like to have houseplants like aloe vera and Boston fern and not just because of their aesthetic properties. The Boston fern is said to be a natural humidifier and air purifier, so add that to the list of home decorating must-haves.

 

Get an air purifier

Another option to help improve your home’s indoor air quality is to purchase an air purifier. Purifiers with HEPA filters pull and trap dust and allergens from the air and surrounding floors or surfaces. These are especially helpful in common areas like the living room or family room, as well as in the nursery to help the baby sleep better with good indoor air quality.

 

These ideas for actions we can take to improve the indoor air quality in our homes are not very complicated, but they can help improve and maintain the air we breathe.