The Best Ways to Improve the Air Quality in Your Home This Winter
Modern homes are airtight. They are efficient, with airtight windows, double glazing, and excellent insulation. Building and insulating methods have advanced over the years to help us keep our homes warm, and our energy bills and usage down. This has certainly got plenty of advantages, but it means that during the colder months, when our windows are doors are closed and we’re using draft excluders to prevent even the smallest bit of cold air from getting in, we’re breathing in damp, recycled air, instead of fresh air. This can be even worse if you work from home, or don’t get out too often.
This poor air quality can lead to high levels of humidity and dampness. It can cause mold and bacteria to grow and start to affect our health and wellbeing. You may even start to feel like the air is heavier and harder to breathe. A lack of fresh air means that we’re breathing in dust, pollutants, spores, bacteria, and other bad guys. Over time, bad air quality at home can lead to both short- and long-term health conditions.
The good news is, there’s plenty that you can do to improve the air quality in your home, even when the weather is at its worst.
Change the Air Filters
A good air filtration system is your first line of defense against air pollutants in your home, and if you’ve already got one, that’s great. However, your filtration system can only work at its best if you regularly check, clean, and change the filters. Take a look at discountfilterstore.com for filtration systems, replacement filters, and also humidifiers, which can control the moisture in your home.
Keep Your Home Clean
Damp, warm, recycled air gives dust, spores, and bacteria the perfect conditions in which to grow, but they have to be there in the first place. Keeping your home clean, regularly moving furniture and shelving to clean underneath and behind, washing bedding and other linens, and using antibacterial cleaning products can eliminate the problems.
Open a Window
If your air feels heavy and damp, you have noticed excess condensation, or the growth of black mold around your windows, the best and easiest thing that you can do to balance the air more is to open a window. Even opening a window a crack for 10 minutes a day can help to reduce dampness and welcome in some fresh air.
Be Careful with Drying Washing
If you don’t use a tumble dryer, you might find it much harder to dry washing in the winter months. But, having wet clothes hanging all-around your house can increase damp and mold growth. Instead, on dry days, hang it outside. It will take longer than in the summer, but it will dry, at least partially, especially if there are wind and sun. If you do have to dry it inside, do it in a well-ventilated room, such as your bathroom.
Often, the best ways to improve air quality are the easiest, and you’ve probably already got at least some of what you need to do it. Get into good habits with cleaning and letting fresh air in, and you could soon notice an improvement.
