Can You Allergy-Proof Your Home?
Expert Tips to Detect and Remove Allergens
When you are home, do you often experience an itchy or stuffy nose, scratchy or swollen throat, watery eyes, sneezing, wheezing, or rashes? These could be reactions to allergens, such as dust mites, fabric fibers, mold spores, pollen, pet dander, or fragments of dead insects or their waste, all of which are part of the dust in your home. While most symptoms are easily manageable through medication, knowing the exact cause of your allergies will help you eliminate or reduce the allergens in your home.
One of the best ways to identify what is making you sick is requesting your primary healthcare provider to do an IgE (also called ImmunoCAP) test. Based on the results, consider seeing an allergist or pulmonologist (respiratory system expert) for appropriate treatment. Even if you do not get a test done, a few simple measures could help you allergy-proof your home. Learn more from the licensed and qualified technicians at Comfort Solutions HVAC.
Suggestions for Addressing Allergens in Your Home
Addressing the allergens in your home involves three key activities: cleaning, de-cluttering, and de-humidifying.
Control Temperature and Humidity: Your HVAC system could be harboring a great deal of allergens. The presence of mold, mildew, pollen, or cockroach droppings in the ventilation system could cause significant deterioration in your home’s indoor air quality (IAQ). Scheduling an HVAC maintenance service twice a year will ensure that your furnace and air conditioning systems remain clean, and run smoothly and efficiently. Additionally,
- Clean or replace the air filters at regular intervals or switch to a variant that can trap the tiniest airborne irritants.
- Monitor the relative humidity in your home to make sure it remains at or below 50%.
- Since hot or humid settings are breeding grounds for dust mites and mold, set the internal temperature between 68 and 72 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Consider adding a high-performance air purifier to the HVAC system.
Get Rid of Mold: Whether it is the bathrooms, kitchen sink, appliances, window sills, or even indoor plants, mold can grow in various places within the home. In order to keep these areas mold-free:
- Regularly clean and scrub all washable areas.
- Repaint your walls with mold-resistant enamel paint.
- Replace moldy or damaged carpeting with wood, vinyl or linoleum flooring.
- Wipe up excess moisture from your refrigerator, microwave, and dishwasher. Regularly use appliance-specific cleaning products that remove grime, dirt or mold build-up, especially in the difficult-to-reach areas such as the rubber seals around the doors.
Follow a Cleaning Routine: Mop the floors, vacuum the carpeted areas, and clean all dusty surfaces with a damp cloth at least once a week. Keep your kitchen countertops tidy and clean after every cooking session. Use washable curtains, blinds, and rugs. As far as possible, choose easy-to-clean furniture pieces instead of fabric-upholstered ones. Ideally, purchase a vacuum cleaner that features a small-particle or high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filter.
Prevent Pest Infestations: The droppings or dried dead bodies of cockroaches, rats, or other insects become a part of your house dust, which in turn deteriorates the IAQ of your home and may cause allergic reactions. Keeping such pests at bay would mean using poison baits, traps, boric acid, or other repellant sprays or products that can address the infestation. For preventive measures, keep food covered at all times, ensure your garbage cans have lids, and seal any cracks or potential entryways.
At Comfort Solutions HVAC, we provide installation, repairs and maintenance for a wide range of energy-efficient heating and cooling solutions. Our annual preventative maintenance service includes a thorough cleanup of the various components of your furnace and air-conditioner by a team of bonded and fully-insured technicians. As part of the tune-up service, we clean the drain pipes and duct lines, fix leaks or cracks, check the flues and thermostat, change the air filters, and conduct numerous other checks to enhance the lifespan and performance of your HVAC system.
For prompt, reliable, and affordable HVAC maintenance and repairs, count on the skilled and experienced crew at Comfort Solutions HVAC. Call 610-438-9300 to schedule a tune-up appointment or contact us online.
