Clean indoor air is important for the health of you and your family. Breathing in dirty or toxic air could lead to headaches, nausea, itchiness, wheezing and other more serious health problems. It’s something that is often referred to as ‘sick building syndrome’.
There are many ways in which you can keep the air in your home clean. This post details a few of the best ways to improve air quality in your home.
Attend to bad odours straight away
Bad smells could be a sign that there are unhealthy contaminants in the air. Generally speaking, rotten food odours aren’t dangerous, but could still make you feel sick. The most worrying smell is a faint rotten eggs smell, which could be a sign of a gas leak. Musty smells meanwhile are often caused by mould and mildew, which is not good for our lungs if we continuously breathe it in. Check that there is no mould growing on any of your walls.
Patch up water leaks immediately
If plumbing leaks or rainwater leaks are not patched up immediately, water damage may start to occur in your home. Mould spores thrive in damp conditions, which could lead to dangerous amounts of mould in the air. Avoid getting sick by fixing up any leaks and attending to any spillages.
Regularly vacuum your floor
Excess dust in the air can cause all kinds of issues – especially if you have a dust mite allergy. Dust usually settles on surfaces and is not a problem unless it is disturbed. The floor is the worst place for dust to settle, but it is constantly being kicked up every time you walk over it. Vacuum your floor regularly to get rid of any dust. This applies to carpets, wooden floors and tiles.
Use VOC-free paint
Certain paints can contain high levels of VOCs. These are chemicals which have been shown to have all kinds of negative health effects when exposed to them over a long period. Paint typically produces most VOCs when it is fresh – hence that distinctive new paint smell. However, once it has dried it can still continue to give off VOCs for years to come. Fortunately, there are now many VOC-free and low-VOC house paints that you can buy. Consider these types of paints for your home.
Keep your home ventilated
Ventilation is the best thing you can do to maintain good air quality. This allows dirty air to flow out and fresh air to flow in. Opening windows is the easiest way to ventilate your home. Of course, open windows can let in other unwanted things like bugs, so you may want to consider investing in features such as these Oborne flyscreens and security doors. Opening windows is also not practical during colder months. Having extractor fans in your home is a good solution to this, allowing dirty air to be pumped out without having to open windows.
Use air purifiers
There are many different air purifier tools that you can use to remove toxins from the air. Electronic air purifiers use all kinds of technology such as HEPA filters and ultraviolet light to remove contaminants from the air. Meanwhile, organic air purifiers such as salt rock candles and beeswax candles can also help to clean the air. However, by far one of the oldest and most reliable methods is to grow houseplants – houseplants will remove toxins from the air while serving as a fresh source of oxygen, so consider adding a few to different rooms.
Hi Soph. Thanks for the really great article. I agree that ventilation is the easiest and probably most effective way to improve your air quality. Security doors vary in how much ventilation they allow, so it’s important to consider this when you’re adding security screens and doors to your home.