Homeowners, how’s your IAQ? Your home’s indoor air quality; that is! Many homeowners have poor indoor air quality but aren’t quite aware of the issue. They may notice telltale signs and even physical (health-related) symptoms without putting the clues together.
Keep reading to learn about the signs of poor indoor air quality and how to improve it in your home!
Causes of Poor IAQ
We spend up to 80 percent of our time inside our homes, so the cleanliness of the air inside your home is extremely important. Things that negatively affect your home’s IAQ include:
- Poor ventilation or low airflow: You need fresh air throughout your home to help ensure higher IAQ. When opening windows is impractical, like when running your HVAC system, proper ventilation is crucial.
- Dust, pet dander, lint, etc.: Even if you clean often, excess airborne debris that settles on surfaces (and may make breathing difficult or increase allergy symptoms) can be due to a dirty duct system re-circulating dust.
- Household products: Microscopic lung irritants from glues, solvents, cleaning chemicals, sawdust, paint (which may include harmful volatile organic compounds, or VOCs), etc., may be circulating in your home’s air supply.
- Mold spores and bacteria: Even though humidity in Dublin is fairly low, mold can grow in cracks and crevices you’d never expect.
Signs and Symptoms of Poor IAQ
If you’ve noticed a combination of the following signs or symptoms affecting you or your family, you might need to address the cleanliness of the air inside your home:
- Excess dust in the air and on indoor surfaces
- Stale smells that don’t dissipate quickly
- Headaches
- Fatigue
- Sneezing or red, watery eyes
- Lung irritation or breathing problems, especially in the elderly, small children, or anyone with lung problems
Simple Indoor Air Quality Solutions
If you think you’re having a problem with indoor air quality, there are a variety of solutions, including:
- Air cleaners: The most effective air cleaners are integrated into your home HVAC system. Your HVAC technician can recommend a solution for your specific home.
- High quality air filters: In general, pleated media provide better filtration than basic flat and thin air filters. Not all filters fit all air conditioning systems. Your local AC professional can recommend the best air filter for your system, home, and family needs.
- Humidity solutions: Your AC provides some dehumidification, and a whole-house humidity control system is part of many residential HVAC systems. Your can prevent mold and excess household humidity by making sure you have functional local vents in your bathroom (for shower moisture), above the stove, in the laundry room, and in attached garages (to vent noxious gasses and fumes.) These should vent outdoors. If you are unsure, an HVAC technicians can test your vents, add vents or make repairs for you.
- Annual professional maintenance: Preventative maintenance visits from our technicians (in spring and fall) help prep your AC and heating systems for use—and help ensure top notch IAQ. We inspect, test, clean and lube your home comfort system to ensure it’s functioning properly and efficiently.
- Duct sealing: We can also inspect your duct system, which may need sealing to ensure good indoor air quality. Moore Mechanical can also check the airflow in all the rooms of your East Bay CA home and recommend solutions for poor ventilation.
- Replace air filters: Make sure to replace air filters often: This is a DIY IAQ task that our techs can show you how to do, if you’re unsure. The manufacturer lists recommended air filter replacement intervals, or our techs can let you know the best schedule for AC filter replacement.
Call Moore Mechanical for IAQ Services in Dublin, CA
Whether you need an air cleaner installed or your ducts inspected and sealed, Moore Mechanical can help with all your indoor air quality needs! For expert advice and services, call us today at [hls_phone_number].