We spend lots of time in our homes. In fact, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has estimated being indoors accounts for 90% of our days. However, the EPA also has determined your indoor air can be three to five times dirtier than outside your home.
That’s since our residences are tightly sealed to boost energy efficiency. While this is fantastic for your heating and cooling bills, it’s not so great if you’re a part of the 40% of the population with respiratory allergies.
When outside ventilation is restricted, pollutants including dust and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) could get stuck. Consequently, these pollutants can aggravate your allergies.
You can improve your indoor air quality with fresh air and routine cleaning and vacuuming. But if you’re still having problems with symptoms during the time you’re at home, an air purifier might be able to provide relief.
While it can’t remove pollutants that have landed on your couch or carpet, it could help clean the air moving across your house.
And air purification has also been scientifically confirmed to help lower some allergic symptoms, according to the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology. It may also be helpful if you or a loved one has lung trouble, like emphysema or COPD.
There are two kinds, a portable air purifier or a whole-home air purifier. We’ll examine the distinctions so you can determine what’s right for your residence.
Whole-House Air Purifier vs. Portable Air Purifiers
A portable air purifier is for a single room. A whole-house air purifier works alongside your home comfort system to purify your full residence. Some kinds can work independent when your HVAC system isn’t running.
What’s the Best Air Purifier for Allergies?
Seek an option with a High Efficiency Particulate Air (HEPA) filter. HEPA filters are placed in hospitals and offer the best filtration you can find, as they trap 99.97% of particles in the air.
HEPA filters are even more powerful when used with an ultraviolet (UV) germicidal light. This mighty mixture can wipe out dust, dander, pollen and mold, all of which are common allergens. For the best in air purification, evaluate a system that also has a carbon-based filter to eliminate household odors.
Avoid buying an air purifier that makes ozone, which is the primary element in smog. The EPA warns ozone may irritate respiratory troubles, even when emitted at minor concentrations.
The Allergy and Asthma Foundation of America has created a list of questions to ask when buying 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 better number means air will be purified faster.)
- How frequently does the filter or UV bulb need to be changed]? Can I finish that without help?
- How much do spare filters or bulbs cost?
How to Reduce Seasonal Allergy Symptoms
Want to have the {top|most excellent|best] outcome from your new air purification system? The Mayo Clinic suggests doing other measures to limit your exposure to seasonal allergy triggers.
- Stay in your home and keep windows and doors closed when pollen counts are heightened.
- Have other household members trim the lawn or pull weeds, since these jobs can irritate symptoms. If you are required to do these jobs on your own, you might want to consider trying a pollen mask. You should also rinse off right away and put on clean clothes once you’re finished.
- Avoid hanging laundry outside.
- Use air conditioning while indoors or while you’re on the road. Consider installing a high efficiency air filter in your house’s heating and cooling unit.
- Balance your home’s humidity levels with a whole-house dehumidifier.
- Hardwood, tile or linoleum are the ideal flooring types for reducing indoor allergens. If your house has carpet, add a HEPA filter on your vacuum cleaner.
Let Our Professionals Take Care of Your Indoor Air Quality Requirements
Prepared to progress with getting a whole-house air purifier? Give our professionals a call at 509-284-4265 or contact us online to schedule an appointment. We’ll help you choose the ideal unit for your house and budget.