When the weather outside is frightful, subsequent closed windows and doors make indoor air quality maintenance even more important. Help your maintenance efforts this winter by learning about common products that decrease air quality while considering air purification options from your local HVAC contractors.
Commercial Air Fresheners
The air fresheners you place around your home from assorted retail and grocery stores frequently contain a variety of toxic chemicals that pollute indoor air. These chemicals also coat the interior of your nose and can eventually affect your ability to smell. Stick to natural air fresheners from reputable brands or make your own using dried herbs such as lavender. Bowls of potpourri featuring assorted dried herbs function as decor pieces in addition to releasing aromatic scents.
Commercial Candles
Like commercial air fresheners, the candles you find at most stores contain a variety of toxic chemicals that do nothing for indoor air quality. They may smell pleasant, but the addition of chemicals to the air can increase respiratory problems such as asthma and assorted allergies. Stick to natural candle options instead, including those made from soy and beeswax.
Cigarette Smoke
It can be tempting to smoke indoors on frigid days; however, all you’re doing is polluting your indoor air with dangerous chemicals including ammonia, acetone, carbon monoxide, butane, and formaldehyde among many others. Cigarette smoke also stains walls, upholstered furniture, assorted decor, and clothes. Consider quitting as part of a healthy new year and if you must smoke, do it outside or in a well-ventilated, detached garage.
Commercial Cleaning Products
Bleach, ammonia, and other toxic chemicals found in many commercial cleaning products won’t help your indoor air quality. Switch to inexpensive, all-purpose, non-toxic options instead such as white vinegar and baking soda. Use them on a variety of surfaces or combine these products to create a fizzy cleansing mixture that makes scrubbing showers and tubs easier. The mixture also helps unclog drains when it’s allowed to stand for about 30 minutes before flushing with hot water.
Paint & Paint Thinner
Those cans of paint and paint thinner sitting in your attached garage or basement workshop slowly put off-gas, releasing VOCs (volatile organic compounds) that damage indoor air quality. Keep these items in a detached, well-ventilated shed and look for environmentally-friendly versions to breathe easier at home.
Discuss your indoor air quality needs with the air purification experts at Precise Air Systems today.
