Staying on top of indoor air quality in the wintertime is especially important. In the colder months, we tend to spend more time indoors, leading to issues with contaminant saturation and poor air circulation. As we breathe in recycled air, it can cause a variety of health problems, including:
- Respiratory issues
- Skin rashes and allergies
- Headaches
- Anxiety and depressive symptoms
- Poor sleep quality
- Nausea
- Fatigue
These problems are exacerbated as we close our doors and windows, trapping pollutants inside the house. Taking steps to maintain your HVAC system and adding other means of air purification and filtration will increase your HVAC’s efficiency and improve indoor air quality.
How Winter Affects Your Indoor Air Quality
Indoor air can become saturated with pollutants in the winter due to a number of different factors. Throughout the year, large concentrations of indoor pollutants, such as pet dander, dust, mold, and mildew, build up inside our homes. As we fire up our heating systems, these particles circulate through the HVAC. Exhaust from cooking fumes and cleaning products can also clog indoor air with carcinogens and harmful chemicals.
Adding an Air Purifier to Your Home
Adding an air purifier to your home has significant health and energy benefits, especially in the winter. The difference can be felt almost immediately, with reduced concentrations of pollutants allowing you to regain vitality as you enjoy clean, pure air. Here are some solid reasons why air purification in the winter is the way to go.
1. Reduces Allergy Symptoms
People who suffer from allergies quickly begin singing the praises of air purification after installation. Models designed to filter out the most common allergens like dust mites, pet dander, and pollens can significantly reduce uncomfortable symptoms and provide welcome relief for allergy sufferers. High-tech HEPA filters may eliminate nearly 99.7%of microorganisms that could negatively impact your health.
2. Eliminates Pet Dander
Regardless of how neat and tidy your pets may seem, know that you have invisible pet dander flying through the air in your home. Pet dander is one of the most popular triggers for allergies, and it is why many people cannot handle having a pet in their home. Even if you don’t manifest symptoms of allergies, you could still be at risk of developing health issues from high levels of pet dander in your home. Installing an air purifier will clean up stagnant air and have you and your family breathing easier with pets around.
3. Reduces Cold and Flu Symptoms
Winter is statistically a time when many people suffer from cold and flu symptoms. We carry germs into our homes that become airborne and circulate throughout living spaces, increasing our chances of developing an illness. By running an air purifier in your home, these potentially harmful microorganisms are dealt with via filtration and other means of purification, keeping you and your family healthier all winter long.
4. Improves Respiratory Health
Those with asthma and other respiratory issues must be very careful about exposing themselves to allergens. You may keep a clean house, but an air purification system will keep it as allergen-free as possible.
5. Keeps Children Healthier
Children can be sensitive to changes in indoor air quality. Kids with respiratory issues are the first ones to suffer from the effects of indoor air pollution, developing adverse reactions to viruses and bacteria that may be present in your home. Using an air purifier is one way to ensure that you keep your children as healthy as possible while they grow.
6. Reduces Pollution From Smoking
Regardless of how tolerant you are about the issue of smoking, the smell that lingers in the air after someone smokes can be rather unpleasant. Studies point to the alarming fact that breathing in secondhand smoke is just as dangerous as the act of smoking itself. Choosing an air purifier intended to eliminate smoke particles and stale air from your home will keep harmful tar residue and nicotine from getting into your respiratory system and causing poor health.
7. Reduces and Eliminates Odors
Chemical smells from carpet and paint, fumes from cooking, and other unpleasant odors can quickly overtake your living spaces in the wintertime. Having the proper air filtration system working with your HVAC reduces these unsavory odors, keeping your environment smelling better each time you use it.
8. Reduces Kicked-Up Pollution From Carpets
Your carpet is a final resting place for toxic chemicals, pet dander, and even your own dead skin cells. Even if you vacuum daily, you are at risk of breathing in these particles as they are kicked up and circulated throughout your living spaces. A high-quality air purifier will trap these particles and keep them from resettling on other surfaces in your home.
9. Reduces Dust and Dirt
Do you constantly see dust and dirt on surfaces in your home, regardless of how often you dust them? This could be due to indoor air pollution and a clogged, dirty HVAC system working against you. Clean up your home with the help of a good HEPA filter or ionizer to reduce the number of particulates in the air, and you’ll likely see progress with your dusting efforts as well.
10. Reduces Debris From Fireplace Use
Fireplaces are cozy additions to any home, but they do a thorough job of emitting plenty of smoke and wood debris into your living space! Enjoy those crackling flames a bit longer this winter, knowing that you can fire up your air purifier to take care of odors, smoke residue, and ash that may linger in the air long after the flames have gone out.
Air Filter Options For Your Home
Several types of residential air purification technologies exist for you to select. Mechanical filters use a physical barrier, like a HEPA filter, to trap particles and pull them from circulation. Activated carbon filters are able to absorb odors and chemicals from the air.
More advanced technologies include UV-C ultraviolet light filters, which are able to kill bacteria, viruses, and other microorganisms in the air. Ionizers release negatively charged ions into the air that attach to positively charged particles, making them fall to the ground and allowing them to be swept or vacuumed up and out of circulation.
Ozone generators release a highly reactive gas into the air to neutralize odors and kill microorganisms. These are generally not recommended for indoor use because the gas can have harmful health consequences. Even with the most advanced filtration technologies, you may not remove all pollutants from your home. Taking several steps to improve indoor air quality in the wintertime is the best defense against allergies and other health issues that may arise from constant contact with pollutants.
Breathe Free and Clear This Winter and Beyond!
Blue Ribbon Cooling and Heating has HVAC and air quality solutions that work for your home, your family, and your budget. We offer heating and cooling installation, repair, and maintenance; heat pump maintenance and service; and indoor air quality assessment and device installation. Contact Blue Ribbon today for a thorough check of your indoor air quality today!