Bad Habits That Affect Indoor Air Quality
If you spend at least half of your day inside of your home, shouldn’t you deserve to breathe in air of a higher quality? Unfortunately, many of us develop bad habits that can significantly lower the air quality in our homes. For those who want to avoid bringing down the quality of air, ditch these dirty habits.
Smoking Indoors
The most obvious dirty habit is one that is overlooked more often than it should be. Many people will continue to smoke inside because it’s either too hot, too cold, or because it’s raining outside. This smoke doesn’t just hurt your family and friends around you via second-hand smoke – it can also hurt you via third-hand smoke. When smoke is in the air it will become buried in carpeting, furniture, and even wallpaper where it will stick around to continue to lower air quality for years to come.
Painting with Chemical Paints
Giving your home a fresh coat of paint can bring new life to an old room. However, many paints contain Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) that are harmful to breathe in. They can cause headaches, nausea, irritated eyes and throat, and damage to the liver, kidneys, and central nervous system. Instead, look for paint that does not contain these harmful VOCs. In addition to paints, try to avoid aerosol sprays, paint strippers, chemical cleaning supplies, pesticides, and waxes that also contain VOCs.
Failing to Maintain the HVAC System
The HVAC system in your home is something that should be maintained on a monthly and annual basis. If you haven’t had an annual service this spring, go ahead and schedule that. This service will find any repairs that need to be made and help improve efficiency throughout the rest of spring and summer. On a monthly basis, air filters should be swapped out to catch dust particles and debris moving through the ductwork. To take it a step further, opt for higher quality filters that will catch finer particles of dust and allergens.
There are a ton of everyday things that can lower the indoor air quality of your home, so it’s up to you to know them and put a stop to these dirty habits. When you need your HVAC system serviced, repaired, or have the ductwork cleaned, contact Lancaster Plumbing, Heating, Cooling & Electrical. To learn more or to schedule an appointment, give us a call at (717) 207-8198.