According to the EPA, the air inside your Swannanoa, NC, home could be 10 times more polluted than the air outside. This can make you and your family sick. It can also make your HVAC system less efficient. Here are the five of the most common indoor air pollutants and how to get rid of them:
Dust and Other Debris
Dust, pollen, pet dander and insect parts are constantly floating around your home’s air supply. Your HVAC system’s filter often doesn’t catch these allergens. Most people wait too long to change their filters, allowing dust and debris to build up in their ducts.
These can trigger allergies, leaving you with a runny nose, itchy eyes and a scratchy throat. Even worse, prolonged exposure to common airborne debris can cause allergic reactions in people who hadn’t suffered from allergies previously.
Luckily, routine HVAC maintenance can control the amount of debris in your home’s air. Professionally cleaning your ducts with the ROTO Brush system will remove the built-up dirt, pollen and dust mites that have been caked on over the years. Not only will your home’s air be cleaner, but your HVAC system won’t have to work as hard to push air through your newly cleaned ducts.
Excess Moisture
Too much humidity in your air can cause a host of problems. Damp air is a breeding ground for pathogens.
Water condensing on your walls can leave unsightly spots behind. And too much moisture in the air can leave you sticky and uncomfortable, especially in the summer heat.
While running your air conditioner removes some moisture from the air, this may not be enough. If your home still has musty-smelling air or condensation on windows or walls, you may need to invest in a dehumidifier.
Smoke and other Particulate Matter
Smoke and Particulate Matter (PM) are much smaller than dust and pollen. These particles get deep into your lungs, contributing to chronic illnesses like heart disease, asthma and COPD. Only the finest of regular HVAC filters even try to catch them.
To control smoke and PM, consider adding an air purifier to your air handler. Purifiers can remove up to 99.97 percent of all airborne particles, including smoke and PM. You can place an air purifier inside your current duct system, giving you clean air while remaining out of sight.
Bacteria and Viruses
If your HVAC system isn’t properly maintained, it could be blowing disease-causing bacteria and viruses around your house. The last thing you want is for your home to make you feel sick.
To fix this, your HVAC system can be equipped with a pathogen-killing ultraviolet (UV) light air purification system. These systems shine a powerful UV light on the air passing through your air handler, ridding it of bacteria and viruses. Like the other in-duct systems, it also remains out of sight, giving you clean air without the clutter of portable air purifiers.
Environmental Toxins
Your home’s air could be saturated with chemicals like volatile organic compounds (VOCs), nitrous oxides (NOXs) or radon. VOCs are released from common household items like paint, air fresheners and some cleaners. NOXs can be released into the air from burning candles or your gas cooktop.
Prolonged exposure to any of these chemicals can make you sick. The best way to deal with them is to bring fresh air from outside into your home, but opening a window on a hot summer day just makes your air conditioner run longer.
A better solution is to install an energy recovery ventilator onto your existing HVAC system. A ventilator brings fresh air into your home and exhausts dirty air to outside, while using the exhausted air to cool the fresh air. This can keep your home’s air safe and comfortable.
If your air suffers from any of these problems, call Gentry Heating, Inc. (now Gentry Service Group) today. We offer all of these services and systems to minimize the amount of indoor air pollutants in your home.
Image provided by iStock
