Your AC System and Indoor Air Quality – Ensuring a Healthy Home Environment

Air quality is a critical factor in a healthy home environment. Contaminants like radon, carbon monoxide, allergens, and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) can impact health negatively.

Most guides on healthy home environments focus on opening windows and doors to get fresh air in, but this isn’t always possible. Instead, smart technologies can improve indoor air quality through ventilation and filtration.

1. Ventilation

Ventilation involves the exchange of indoor and outdoor air, supplying fresh air, removing stale or polluted air, regulating temperature and humidity levels and controlling airborne contaminants. It is an important part of a healthy building environment, providing comfort and safety to occupants and contributing to their health and productivity.

Ventilation ensures a continuous supply of fresh outdoor air by pushing out pollutants in the home and preventing them from accumulating in the house. It also helps keep a house dry and reduces the risk of mold.

Air pollution can be caused by a wide range of sources, including chemicals used in cleaning products and cooking activities, as well as biological pollutants like bacteria, dust mites and pet dander. These can lead to breathing issues, rashes, sinus infections and allergies. Proper ventilation can help reduce the concentration of these pollutants, diluting and removing them from the air and improving IAQ. It also reduces energy costs by promoting airflow, reducing the need for mechanical cooling and heating.

2. Humidity

Often overlooked, humidity is a crucial factor in ensuring your home environment is healthy and comfortable. Low indoor humidity causes a number of issues like dry skin, itchy eyes, nose and throat, static electricity and aggravates respiratory conditions such as asthma or bronchitis. On the other hand high indoor humidity can encourage the growth of mold, mildew and dust mites which can then irritate people with pre-existing health conditions or allergies.

Humidity refers to the amount of water vapor in the air and fluctuates all the time. Moisture from laundry, leaky faucets and even your breath can contribute to humidity levels in the air.

In general, ideal relative humidity is around 50% and should be maintained throughout the year. Humidity that is higher than this or lower can lead to damage to your linens, furniture and woodwork. It can also promote the growth of bacteria, viruses and organic matter such as mould and dust mites.

3. Air Filtration

Using an air filter to clean the air circulating in your home is one of the most important things you can do for your indoor health. Air filters trap unwanted contaminants that cause irritation to lungs, nose, throat and ears. This can help reduce the symptoms of common allergies and asthma. It can also reduce levels of odors, chemicals, smoke, pollen, bacteria and viruses.

There are many different types of air filters and each type has its advantages. Some offer better filtration than others but they also have different costs to consider. Some are more expensive at the initial purchase but may save you money in the long run.

The best thing you can do to improve indoor air quality is to remove as much pollution from your home environment as possible. This can include removing items with strong smells like traditional scented candles and cleaning products, moving chemicals to a safe storage place such as the garage, and opening windows during peak pollen times and when the weather is dry.

4. Dehumidifiers

In order to maintain preferred indoor humidity levels, it is necessary to utilize dehumidifiers. These appliances work to cleanse indoor air of excess moisture by drawing in warm air and converting it into condensation, which is then collected in a reservoir. This ensures that only drier and healthier air is in circulation. Additionally, look for units with energy-efficient designs to cut down on operating costs.

There are two primary reasons why many homeowners pursue dehumidification solutions. The first is comfort-related, as high humidity often leads to sticky skin and an annoying “musty” odor. The second reason has to do with health and wellness, as high humidity provides an ideal breeding ground for harmful indoor biological contaminants like mold, mildew, dust mites and fungi. These pollutants can create serious health issues and even worsen allergy or asthma symptoms. A dehumidifier can help eliminate these living organisms, thus eliminating the problem of unwanted odors and improving indoor air quality.