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Easy Ways to Improve Air Quality in Your Home
Updated: Jun 27
How to Improve the Air Quality in Your Home
While having a properly installed HVAC can help prevent the buildup of pollutants in your home, we have also accumulated a list of things you can easily do around your home to improve air quality.
Make sure that your clothes dryer vents go directly outside
Do not store chemicals, solvents, cleaners, or pesticides in your living space
Keep your home a smoke free zone. Smoke permeates into soft furnishings, carpets and drapes and continues to off-gas.
Open your windows while using cleaners, solvents, and chemicals.
Run your bathroom exhaust fan for 45 minutes after a shower. This helps to decrease moisture and mold.
Look for no-VOC paint options - not low VOC but no-VOC.
Check labels on any furniture that you are purchasing. You want to avoid any furniture that has flame retardants or stain resistant material.
Use non-toxic and organic household cleaners
Avoid air fresheners, plug-ins and candles and opt for essential oils
Invest in a vacuum cleaner and vacuum and dust often. Vacuum cleaners need to have a HEPA filter that collects particles smaller that 0.3 microns (like mycotoxins) These HEPA filters can also trap gaseous molecules of VOCs as well as some viruses and bacteria. Some great brands are:
While every small change that you make does make a difference, I highly recommend a quality air purifier that will start to remove the toxins while you are continuing to work on your living space - creating a sanctuary of oasis clean and pure air.
Thinking About Investing in Air Cleaners?
Unfortunately, only two kinds of air purifiers are effective in removing VOCs from the air inside your home. These two are carbon air filtration systems and Photo Electrochemical Oxidation (PECO) technology.
Carbon air filters are most effective in “soaking up” VOCs quickly, and would be best in circumstances in which the air in your home is overcome with toxins- like if your home is near wildfire smoke or if fumes from painting or remodeling are still lingering. However, given the adsorption process in which these filters trap the toxins, once the filter is full, it will not only stop trapping pollutants, but will also begin to leak these toxins back into your once clean air. Also, the effectiveness of carbon air filters heavily depends on humidity and room temperature. If too many water molecules fill the filter, it could “kick out” toxins back into the air in your home.
However, for short term air cleaning and with careful filter monitoring, Carbon air filters might be the right fit for you.
For longer term air cleaning, PECO technology air purifiers are your best option. The PECO technology will reduce everyday concentrations of VOCs by destroying these toxins at the molecular level. Thus, unlike Carbon air filters, there is no risk of re-releasing chemicals into the air. Further, PECO technology is not influenced by inside humidity or temperature. PECO air purifiers are also capable of eliminating other particles in your air, like dust, dander, mold, or bacteria. PECO technology is the only air purifier that offers a powerful, long term solution.
Our Recommendation for the best air filter?
The EnviroKlenz Air System Plus is our recommendation for the highest quality air filter for the best price. The EnviroKlenz Air System Plus combines EnviroKlenz advanced technology for toxic and noxious chemicals with HEPA filtration and ultraviolet germicidal radiation to remove airborne particulates and allergens. The Air System Plus also inhibits the growth of captured microorganisms- such as viruses, bacteria, and mold. Contact us for our referral link for special discounts just for Johnson Center patients.
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