How Indoor Air Quality Affects Your Allergies

August 03, 2017

While many people connect allergy symptoms with pollen, pollution and other irritants in the air outside your home, your interior air quality can have a huge impact on your symptoms. According to the EPA, “In the last several years, a growing body of scientific evidence has indicated that the air inside homes and other buildings can be more dangerously polluted than the external air in even the biggest and most industrialized cities. Other research says that people devote approximately 90 percent of their time within a home or building. Thus, for most people, the risks to health may be larger due to more interaction with air pollution indoors than outdoors.”

Our Chelan and Wenatchee homes are contaminated with outdoor allergens like pollen that find their way inside, and by irritants like pet dander, dust mites, mold spores, chemicals from average household cleansers and more. So, what can you do about it? The answer is already in your home! It’s your HVAC system.

You should realize that your HVAC can be your supporter or your worst enemy when it comes to controlling your allergies. A dirty system can foster and spread allergens around your home, so the key is to keep your system operating well. Above all, you have to keep your air filters clean. Establish a reminder or indicate it on your calendar to check them monthly and change them out when you see that they’re becoming dirty. They’ll normally need to be replaced every two or three months, but this can vary greatly from home to house. You can buy filters that vary from the most basic level of filtering to hospital-grade HEPA filters. The specialists at Lakeside Heating & Air can help you decide which form of filter will keep your home clean and keep your HVAC running efficiently.

It’s also crucial to have your system routinely checked by a professional to keep your inside air quality where it should be. In addition to examining that essential filter, your service technician will clean the inner workings of your system and guarantee that everything is working as it should. You can also ask your technician if a duct cleaning would be needed.

When it comes to your interior air quality, you can trust the professionals at Lakeside Heating & Air to take good care of you. In addition to helping you keep your HVAC system up-to-date, we can help you ensure you have the tools you need to fight poor indoor air quality and allergens—like humidifiers and whole home air purifiers. Just give us a call at 509-284-4265 to confirm that your home’s air is healthy and clean.