We spend a lot of time indoors. In reality, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has approximated being inside comprises 90% of our time. Having said that, the EPA also has determined your indoor air can be three to five times dirtier than outside your home.
That’s because our residences are securely sealed to boost energy efficiency. While this is fantastic for your heating and cooling bills, it’s not so good if you’re among the 40% of the population with respiratory allergies.
When outdoors ventilation is limited, pollutants including dust and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) could get captured. As a consequence, these pollutants may worsen your allergies.
You can improve your indoor air quality with clean air and routine dusting and vacuuming. But if you’re still struggling with symptoms when you’re at your residence, an air purifier might be able to help.
While it can’t eliminate pollutants that have landed on your furniture or carpeting, it may help clean the air moving throughout your house.
And air purification has also been scientifically proven to help reduce some allergic symptoms, according to the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology. It can also be appropriate if you or a family member has lung issues, like emphysema or COPD.
There are two kinds, a portable air purifier or a whole-home air purifier. We’ll go over the differences so you can determine what’s correct for your home.
Whole-House Air Purifier vs. Portable Air Purifiers
A portable air purifier is for a lone room. A whole-house air purifier works alongside your heating and cooling unit to clean your complete home. Some types can work by themselves when your heating and cooling unit isn’t operating.
What’s the Best Air Purifier for Allergies?
Go after an option with a High Efficiency Particulate Air (HEPA) filter. HEPA filters are placed in hospitals and offer the most comprehensive filtration you can get, as they trap 99.97% of particles in the air.
HEPA filters are even more powerful when combined with an ultraviolet (UV) germicidal light. This powerful mixture can destroy dust, dander, pollen and mold, all of which are general allergens. For the best in air purification, consider a unit that also has a carbon-based filter to reduce household odors.
Avoid buying an air purifier that creates ozone, which is the top component in smog. The EPA warns ozone may aggravate respiratory issues, even when released at minor settings.
The Allergy and Asthma Foundation of America has compiled a checklist of questions to think over when purchasing an air purifier.
- What can this purifier take out from the air? What doesn’t it take out?
- What’s its clean air delivery rate? (A higher figure means air will be freshened faster.)
- How regularly does the filter or UV bulb need to be switched]? Can I do that without help?
- How much do spare filters or bulbs cost?
How to Reduce Seasonal Allergy Symptoms
Want to get the {top|most excellent|best] results from your new air purification equipment? The Mayo Clinic recommends taking other procedures to reduce your exposure to things that can trigger seasonal allergies.
- Stay in your home and keep windows and doors sealed when pollen counts are elevated.
- Have someone else trim the lawn or pull weeds, since these tasks can trigger symptoms. If you have to do this work on your own, consider using a pollen mask. You should also bathe right away and change your clothes once you’re finished.
- Avoid drying laundry outdoors.
- Run air conditioning while at home or while in the car. Consider installing a high efficiency air filter in your residence’s home comfort unit.
- Even out your home’s humidity percentage with a whole-house dehumidifier.
- Hardwood, tile or linoleum are the best flooring types for lowering indoor allergens. If your house has carpet, install a HEPA filter on your vacuum cleaner.
Let Our Specialists Manage Your Indoor Air Quality Necessities
Want to take the next step with getting a whole-house air purifier? Give our experts a call at 519-296-4437 or contact us online to get an appointment. We’ll help you choose the ideal unit for your house and budget.