We spend a good majority of our time inside. In fact, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has determined being within a building accounts for 90% of our time. Although, the EPA also has determined your indoor air can be three to five times dirtier than outside your home.
That’s due to the fact our houses are tightly sealed to boost energy efficiency. While this is great for your energy bills, it’s not so fantastic if you’re among the 40% of the population with respiratory allergies.
When outside ventilation is insufficient, pollutants like dust and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) might get stuck. As a consequence, these pollutants could irritate your allergies.
You can enhance your indoor air quality with fresh air and routine housework and vacuuming. But if you’re still having issues with symptoms when you’re at your residence, an air purifier could be able to provide assistance.
While it can’t get rid of pollutants that have gotten trapped in your furniture or carpeting, it could help clean the air traveling across your home.
And air purification has also been scientifically proven to help lower some allergic symptoms, according to the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology. It might also be appropriate if you or a family member has a lung condition, such as emphysema or COPD.
There are two kinds, a portable air purifier or a whole-home air purifier. We’ll discuss the differences so you can figure out what’s correct for your house.
Whole-House Air Purifier vs. Portable Air Purifiers
A portable air purifier is for a single room. A whole-house air purifier accompanies your home comfort equipment to purify your complete house. Some kinds can purify on their own when your home comfort equipment isn’t running.
What’s the Best Air Purifier for Allergies?
Look for 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 catch 99.97% of particles in the air.
HEPA filters are even more beneficial when installed with an ultraviolet (UV) germicidal light. This powerful mixture can wipe out dust, dander, pollen and mold, all of which are standard allergens. For the ultimate in air purification, think over equipment that also has a carbon-based filter to reduce household odors.
Avoid buying an air purifier that makes ozone, which is the top component in smog. The EPA warns ozone could aggravate respiratory problems, even when discharged at low amounts.
The Allergy and Asthma Foundation of America has made a list of questions to ask when buying an air purifier.
- What can this purifier remove from the air? What doesn’t it extract?
- What’s its clean air delivery rate? (A bigger figure means air will be freshened more quickly.)
- How often does the filter or UV bulb need to be changed]? Can I finish that by myself?
- How much do replacement filters or bulbs cost?
How to Reduce Seasonal Allergy Symptoms
Want to receive the {top|most excellent|best] outcome from your new air purification unit? The Mayo Clinic recommends doing other measures to decrease your exposure to problems that can cause seasonal allergies.
- Stay in your home and keep windows and doors closed when pollen counts are heightened.
- Have other household members mow the lawn or pull weeds, since these tasks can irritate symptoms. If you must do these jobs on your own, you might want to consider wearing a pollen mask. You should also shower right away and put on new clothes once you’re completed.
- Avoid drying laundry outside.
- Use your air conditioner while at home or while in the car. Consider adding a high efficiency air filter in your home’s heating and cooling system.
- Even out your home’s humidity saturation with a whole-house dehumidifier.
- Hardwood, tile or linoleum are the ideal flooring materials for lowering indoor allergens. If your residence has carpet, add a HEPA filter on your vacuum cleaner.
Let Our Specialists Manage Your Indoor Air Quality Requirements
Want to progress with installing a whole-house air purifier? Give our experts a call at 636-456-5041 or contact us online to schedule an appointment. We’ll help you locate the ideal equipment for your residence and budget.