4 Causes of Indoor Air Pollution and What To Do About It

When it comes to home maintenance, you have a special cleaning routine to ensure your home is as clean as possible. Outside of the normal sweeping the floors and washing the beds, you might add a few spring cleaning items every few months.

Wash the windows? Yep.

Clean the carpets? Yep, that too.

We go above and beyond because we realize cleaning is ever-important, always changing. It’s a part of living our lives and keeping our homes safe for our families.

Every time your HVAC system operates, pollutants and contaminants can move throughout your home. Pet dander, for example, may settle in a place your pet spends the most time – your family room – yet move into the ductwork as the furnace blows, travel all over your home, and settle into each of your bedrooms. It happens every time your furnace or air conditioner turns on.

Do a quick search online, and you’ll find a list of contaminants impacted by this process. We even write about them here. Dust, pet dander, pollen – these common household occurrences can really pack a punch.

But what about other things? There are more subtle causes of indoor air pollution, things you might not realize. Things that could be lurking inside your home.

Pesticides – Remember that ant problem you had last year? Remember the pesticide you used to control the problem? Often, we trade one problem for another. The active ingredients used to control common pests also contain ingredients that may be toxic. These are active ingredients that once sprayed, are designed to linger and do their jobs. They can trigger a full range of acute problems in humans and animals.

Formaldehyde – formaldehyde is found in a full array of building materials, air cleaners, wood products, and many other gaseous pollutants. It has a strong smell and can produce extreme irritation in your eyes, nose, and throat. It can trigger asthma, especially in kids.

Volatile organic compounds – VOCs originate in a wide variety of household products, including cleaning products, aerosol sprays, air fresheners, detergents, rug cleaners, paints, and varnishes. It can cause irritation in eyes, nose, and throat, as well as headaches and nausea. It can lead to liver, kidney, or neurological disorders, or even cancer.

Combustion gases – this comes from burning materials located throughout your house, such as wood burning stoves, gas fireplaces, water heaters, gas stoves, dryers, and chimneys. Common outputs include carbon monoxide, which is a colorless, odorless gas, and nitrogen dioxide, also undetectable, that can cause significant harm.

What can you do about these and more?

Be proactive in home maintenance. Don’t wait for problems to appear. Instead, request home maintenance checks regularly.

One of our technicians can perform a home audit, look for potential problems before they become bigger ones, and look for ways to improve efficiencies throughout your home.

Sometimes simple tactics – upgrading the air filters used in your HVAC system – can have big impact.

Schedule your maintenance visit today.