Indoor Air Quality Testing and Improvement Services
Why Indoor Air Quality Matters
Just as temperature is important for home comfort, indoor air quality is important for not only home comfort but also for your family’s health. Poor Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) is among its top five health concerns caused by the environment, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. The air in our homes contains dust and dust mites, pet dander, mold, mildew, pollen, skin flakes, pet dander, bacteria, Radon gas and a whole unpleasant cocktail of unpleasant and unhealthy substances. The fact is that your interior air may be from two to five times dirtier than the air in your yard.
Today’s new energy efficient home construction actually may contribute to the problem. Because homes today are well- insulated and tightly sealed to prevent unnecessary loss of cooling and heating energy, contaminated interior air is trapped inside to be circulated through the home over and over again. Poor IAQ contributes to health problems like asthma and to health symptoms like headaches; irritation of the eyes, throat, nose and skin; difficulty concentrating and fatigue. Some diseases, such as Legionnaire’s Disease, have been linked to specific air contaminants and bacteria. Additionally, some substance exposures (radon, asbestos) do not produce immediate symptoms but cause cancer from the exposure many years later.
How Your Home Can Benefit From Indoor Air Quality Services
The right ventilation, temperatures and humidity levels can correct many air quality problems in your house to improve your Home Air Quality. We usually cannot see the air pollutants that are all around us and already inside our homes. Each season brings different ones inside on our shoes and with our open doors and windows. Pollens abound in the spring and on falling leaves in the autumn while we struggle with high humidity in the summer and mold in the winter. Indoor Air Quality Testing is necessary to detect the presence of Radon gas and some other pollutants. To significantly Improve Indoor Air Quality, we need to take certain actions.
To control mold in your home, you must control moisture in the home. Use exhaust fans when taking showers and cooking if the kitchen gets steamy. Turn your humidifier down or off if cold surfaces and windows are collecting moisture drops. Be sure your house has a source of fresh air from time to time. Fix all leaks and water seepage anywhere it occurs. Waterproof the basement. Put plastic covers over the dirt in your crawlspace and make sure it is cross-ventilated. Make sure your clothes dryer is ventilated to the outside of the home.
Installation of one of Carrier’s wide range of air quality solutions will also help clean up your indoor air. These include humidifiers, air cleaners, ventilators, UV lamps and media filters such as HEPA filters (High Efficiency Particulate Air). Check the MERV (Minimum Efficiency Reporting Value) rating of the filter you use. The higher the MERV, the more efficient it is at trapping specific types of particles. Call Allison Air Conditioning to assist you in installing the right combination of resources to eliminate the pollutants affecting your family’s health to improve the indoor air quality of your home.