How To Keep The Air In Your Home Allergen-Free
Allergens refer to substances that trigger asthma symptoms and cause allergic reactions in some individuals. The air spreads the allergens around, and later they settle onto floors, furniture, and other surfaces in your home. Air-cleaning gadgets can help eliminate these allergens from your indoor air. However, one of the best ways to address the problem is by getting rid of the sources of irritants and allergens in your home. Here are some of the measures you can take to reduce the presence of allergens in your home.
1. Vacuuming Your House Frequently
Cleaning your house at least once every week using a HEPA filter can help reduce indoor allergens like pet dander and dust mites. When dusting around your knick-knacks and books, you can use an electrostatic or microfiber cloth. This will hold the dust with ease instead of moving it around the surfaces. If possible, avoid wall-to-wall carpets, especially in the bedrooms. Hardwood flooring is pretty easy to clean since you can see the dust particles when cleaning. Nevertheless, you can also utilize some washable area rugs or mats to help minimize allergens.
2. Cleaning Your Window Frames Thoroughly
Like any other surface in your home, window frames need regular cleaning because they tend to attract unwanted mildew and mold. Since mildew and mold spores can affect your breathing, it’s crucial to prevent them from occurring in the first place (rather than finding and attempting to remove them). One of the common areas in the home that’s particularly prone to mildew and mold growth is the bathroom.
Baths and showers, in particular, can be major breeding grounds because of the natural humidity that finds its way around them. Although there are many products used to eliminate mildew and mold in the market today, bleach is also an effective solution. If you leave a small amount of bleaching detergent on mildew and mold, it’ll eliminate most of it even without scrubbing. However, you need to check the surface’s suitability before using a strong product like bleach on it.
3. Washing Your Curtains Regularly
Just like carpets, your house curtains can be a huge attraction for dander and dust mites. If possible, switch to blinds because they are easier to clean and dust. However, if you normally use blackout curtains and are not planning to change them, be sure to periodically put the curtains in your washing machine. This will stave off an accumulation of dust mites.
4. Changing Your Bedding
One of the common indoor allergens found in mattresses, pillows, upholstered furniture, and carpets are dust mites. To prevent these allergens, encase your mattresses and pillows in some allergen-proof covers. Encasing them can assist in minimizing allergens you might encounter as you sleep. Cleaning your pillowcases and bedsheets at least once a week in hot water can also help you avoid dust mites.
If you have a collection of bed linen in the house, it’s also essential to store them properly to prevent a build-up of dust particles and other allergens. You can store all your bed linen in a suitable dust-proof bag. If you don’t have access to one, you can vacuum seal them in another bag.
5. Avoiding Pet Dander
Just like humans, pets spend most of their time indoors, especially in the winter season. You can find pet allergens in the saliva and dander of dogs and cats, and no pet breed is allergy-free. Making sure your pet gets a bath at least once every month can help minimize the amount of fur or dander it sheds. If you have animal allergies, avoidance is key. However, you can wash your hands using soap and running water after petting a dog or cat to help keep the symptoms from getting worse. Remember to keep your pets out of your bedrooms and also vacuum the carpets more often to minimize allergens too.
6. Investing in an Air Conditioning System
Modern air conditioning units are quite effective in filtering most of the allergens and impurities that might enter your house and those you have little or no control over—as such, investing in an air conditioner system is certainly not an excessive luxury. It can drastically reduce allergen-related symptoms and improve the quality of air in your home.
7. Replacing Furnace Filters
When using a furnace to heat your house, allergens such as pet dander and dust can easily lurk in your air ducts. It would be best if you considered utilizing high-efficiency furnace filters to minimize the number of indoor air pollutants circulating across your home. Experts recommend that you change all your air filters at least every three months to keep your indoor air clean.
8. Keeping Your Windows Closed
People who suffer from specific allergies to the tree and plant pollen understand the agony that the summer season brings about. You only need to briefly step outside for your eyes to begin swelling and watering. The constant swelling doesn’t help a lot either. To avoid pollen from getting inside your home and minimize allergic reactions, you can keep all your windows closed. Dust and pollen might also settle in your house carpets and any other fabric around your space, so be sure to vacuum more regularly to avoid a build-up.
9. Monitoring Your Humidity Levels
Humidity can significantly influence your home, particularly where mildew and mold is concerned. Although the showers and baths are the most common problem areas, all spots of your residence can become a big problem of you have high-humidity weather in your region. Some of the air conditioning units on the market come with dehumidifier and humidifier functions that can keep your living space comfortable regardless of the weather outside. If your air conditioning system does not include these functions, you can also buy a dehumidifier to prevent mold and mildew growth in your home’s problem spots.
10. Decluttering Your Home
The other way of having an allergen-free and less-toxic living space is to chuck out clutter, décor, and furniture that attract dust. That does not mean you should have an empty house, but consider getting rid of any excess items, especially during high-allergy seasons. If you do not want to give away stuff or throw some things out, you can switch up your accessories periodically and refresh seasonally.
Conclusion
As you can see, there are many ways you can use to keep your indoor air allergen-free. However, if you live in Seattle or the surrounding areas and are struggling to maintain the air quality in your home, consider contacting a professional from Black Lion Heating & Air Conditioning in Kirkland. We offer our clients air quality consultations, during which we provide sound advice and recommendations. Our team of experts is devoted to performing excellent work, and our results are typically backed with a customer satisfaction guarantee.
We also offer other services, such as heating and cooling installations, furnace replacement, AC repairs, and heating tune-ups. Contact us today or schedule your appointment online if the allergens in your home make your allergies worse.