We spend a lot of time indoors. In reality, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has estimated being inside accounts for 90% of our days. Although, the EPA also has found your indoor air can be three to five times more polluted than outside your home.

That’s because our houses are firmly sealed to increase energy efficiency. While this is great for your utility expenses, it’s not so fantastic if you’re a part of the 40% of the population with respiratory allergies.

When outside ventilation is restricted, pollutants including dust and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) may get stuck. As a consequence, these pollutants may aggravate your allergies.

You can improve your indoor air quality with clean air and routine dusting and vacuuming. But if you’re still having problems with symptoms while you’re at home, an air purifier might be able to provide assistance.

While it can’t remove pollutants that have gotten trapped in your furniture or carpet, it may help purify the air traveling around your residence.

And air purification has also been scientifically confirmed to help lessen some allergic symptoms, according to the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology. It may also be appropriate if you or a family member has lung trouble, including emphysema or COPD.

There are two kinds, a portable air purifier or a whole-home air purifier. We’ll go over the advantages so you can determine what’s appropriate for your residence.

Whole-House Air Purifier vs. Portable Air Purifiers

A portable air purifier is for a lone room. A whole-house air purifier accompanies your heating and cooling unit to purify your full home. Some kinds can clean independent when your home comfort unit isn’t running.

What’s the Best Air Purifier for Allergies?

Look for a purifier with a High Efficiency Particulate Air (HEPA) filter. HEPA filters are placed in hospitals and provide the best filtration you can get, as they catch 99.97% of particles in the air.

HEPA filters are even more useful when installed with an ultraviolet (UV) germicidal light. This powerful mixture can destroy dust, dander, pollen and mold, all of which are common allergens. For the ultimate in air purification, evaluate a unit that also has a carbon-based filter to decrease household vapors.

Avoid buying an air purifier that makes ozone, which is the primary element in smog. The EPA warns ozone could worsen respiratory troubles, even when emitted at small concentrations.

The Allergy and Asthma Foundation of America has created a checklist of questions to think over when purchasing an air purifier.

  • What can this purifier remove from the air? What doesn’t it remove?
  • What’s its clean air delivery rate? (A bigger figure means air will be cleaned more rapidly.)
  • How regularly does the filter or UV bulb need to be replaced]? Can I do that by myself?
  • How much do replacement filters or bulbs cost?

How to Decrease Seasonal Allergy Symptoms

Want to get the {top|most excellent|best] results from your new air purification system? The Mayo Clinic advises completing other steps to reduce your exposure to problems that can cause seasonal allergies.

  1. Stay inside and keep windows and doors closed when pollen counts are elevated.
  2. Have other family members mow the lawn or pull weeds, since this work can aggravate symptoms. If you have to do these jobs alone, you might want to consider wearing a pollen mask. You should also bathe right away and change your clothes once you’re finished.
  3. Avoid drying laundry outdoors.
  4. Run air conditioning while at home or while in the car. Consider installing a high efficiency air filter in your residence’s HVAC equipment.
  5. Balance your residence’s humidity saturation with a whole-house dehumidifier.
  6. Hardwood, tile or linoleum are the suggested flooring materials for decreasing indoor allergens. If your house has carpet, use a HEPA filter on your vacuum cleaner.

Let Our Specialists Handle Your Indoor Air Quality Requirements

Want to progress with installing a whole-house air purifier? Give our experts a call at 763-535-2000 or contact us online to get an appointment. We’ll help you find the ideal system for your residence and budget.