Breathe Cleaner Air at Home

Posted on by WestAIR Heating & Cooling

Breathe-Cleaner-Air-at-Home

In a previous blog, we discussed the importance of indoor air quality (IAQ), especially as it relates to your family’s comfort and health. With the cold winter temperatures keeping people inside, we wanted to revisit the topic and offer tips to breathe cleaner air at home.

Air Quality & Your Family’s Health

A lot of factors play a role in your overall health. One of the biggest is the air inside your home. This is particularly true right now, with more people spending time indoors to stay warm.

If your home has low-grade IAQ, you and your family may feel the effects. Poor air quality contributes to conditions including headaches, fatigue, skin irritation, coughs, and sore throats. Air pollutants can also trigger or worsen allergies and asthma.

Focus on Filters

Checking and changing air filters is a simple task you can perform to help ensure you and your family breathe cleaner air at home. Filters catch and remove contaminants as air passes through your HVAC system each time the unit runs.

Each month, check the filter to see whether it needs to be replaced. If you have animals, for instance, you may need to change the filter more often than in a pet-free home. Dirty filters can contribute to reduced air quality while putting undue stress on your heating and cooling unit.

Double-Check Ductwork

Your home’s ductwork is the system through which air passes from the HVAC unit to heat or cool each room, depending on the season. Dirty ducts can also distribute contaminants from one room to another as particles collect within the ductwork over time.

To ensure your ducts are free of debris and harmful pollutants, schedule regular duct cleaning maintenance from a professional and trusted team. Clean ducts will help keep the air within the home cleaner and safer for your family.

Manage Moisture

Moisture also contributes to the quality of your home’s indoor air. Help control that moisture with a whole-house humidifier.

Winter air is extremely dry and can cause sore throats or scratchy skin. A humidifier adds enough moisture to make your indoor air more comfortable to breathe. Adding a bit of moisture also helps the air stay warmer, allowing you to turn down your thermostat a few degrees in the winter.

Clear Out Contaminants

Another way to rid your home’s indoor air of harmful pollutants is with an air purifier. Working with your existing HVAC system and ductwork, an air purifier uses ultraviolet (UV) light technology to remove bacteria, viruses, mold, volatile organic compounds, and even odors.

The BreatheCLEAN UV purifiers from WestAIR Heating & Cooling offer an easy installation process and a number of health benefits, including:

  • UV bulbs eliminate almost all harmful organisms
  • Asthma and allergy relief
  • Nonstop protection from viruses, mold, and bacteria

The knowledgeable and experienced professionals at WestAIR Heating & Cooling want to ensure your home safety and comfort. Contact us today to learn more about our indoor air quality products and services and how they can help you and your family breathe cleaner air at home.

This entry was posted in Duct Cleaning,Health Tips,Humidifier,Indoor Air Quality,Tips and tagged , , , , ,

Keeping Air Ducts Clean

Posted on by WestAIR Heating & Cooling

In a previous blog, we discussed air duct cleaning and maintenance. Because these duties help provide better indoor air quality, we wanted to mention them again and reiterate their importance to your home and health. Learn more about some reasons for keeping air ducts clean and ways to do so.

Indoor Air

Wherever you go, it only makes sense that you want to breathe the cleanest, healthiest air possible.

The Environmental Protection Agency estimates that the average American spends 90 percent of their life indoors. As such, it’s important for your home’s air to be free of as many contaminants as possible. This is especially important since the accumulation of indoor air pollutants is exponentially higher than regular outdoor concentrations.

Some effects of poor indoor air include respiratory issues and disease, headaches, dizziness, and fatigue. Oftentimes indoor air pollutants can increase the intensity of issues like asthma and even cause eye, nose, or throat dryness and irritation. Protect yourself and your family by keeping air ducts and your home’s air clean.

Duct, Duct, Dirty Duct?

Your HVAC system often pulls in outside air to condition and distribute through the home, so dirt, dust, and other allergens find their way in. Since the ductwork throughout your home is hidden, you probably don’t give it much thought. And because it’s hidden, it’s more difficult to access and clean.

So how do you know if your ductwork is hiding something unhealthy? Look for telltale signs, such as:

  • Dust. If you continually notice dust even after you’ve cleaned, check your vents. Remove the register cover to see if the ductwork is lined with dirt or dust, too.
  • Cost increase. Are your utility bills noticeably higher compared to the same time last year? Your HVAC system may be working harder (and less efficiently) because of restricted airflow. This could be from dirty ducts or dirty air filters. A trusted technician can perform an inspection and determine the cause. 

Keeping Air Ducts Cleaner

Routine home maintenance can help keep your air ducts cleaner and your indoor air fresher.

Check and change HVAC filters. This could be every 30 days or every few months, depending on how often your system runs, if you have pets, or if you have younger children or allergy sufferers in the home. Check the filter on a regular basis and change it as needed.

Have your HVAC system inspected at least once a year to ensure it is operating at peak performance. This will also allow you to catch and fix any smaller issues before they become potentially bigger problems. Routine maintenance can extend the life of your heating and cooling systems, saving you money in the long run.

Complete household chores each week. This includes dusting hard surfaces and flooring, vacuuming carpeted areas (and vent covers), and running bedding through the wash. Also, vacuum and wash pet bedding as needed, and consider a high-quality HEPA filter vacuum to further reduce indoor air contaminants.

A few upgrades will also go a long way toward improving air quality at home.

  • Rid your home of dry air with a whole house humidifier. Dry air can make skin to feel tight and itchy or cause nose or throat discomfort. The wood inside your home can also be negatively affected by dryness. Adding moisture to the air can increase your overall home comfort.
  • Remove odors and pollutants with a UV light air purification system. A BreatheCLEAN UV air purifier works with your current HVAC system and removes contaminants to provide continuous protection.

Small changes to daily, weekly, and yearly routines can help with keeping air ducts clean while increasing overall indoor air quality. If you think your ductwork should be checked, rely on the experienced professionals at WestAIR Heating & Cooling.

Contact us today to learn more about our duct cleaning or other services.

This entry was posted in Duct Cleaning,Health Tips,Humidifier,Humidity,HVAC Maintenance,Indoor Air Quality,Spring,Tips and tagged , , , , , , , , , , ,

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