Make Your Home an Allergen Free Zone This Fall!
There’s plenty to love about the return of fall—football, pumpkin spice lattes (well pumpkin flavored ANYTHING) and that extra hour of sleep that’s coming up when Daylight Savings Time arrives in a few weeks. One of the few downsides to the season is air-borne allergens that have many of us looking like we belong in an antihistamine commercial. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), states that indoor air is five times more polluted than that found outdoors, so any preventative measures taken to keep your home’s air clean is a win.
Dusting- By dusting, you eliminate dust mites which are one of the biggest offenders when it comes to allergen triggers. Skip the feather duster, which can cause more harm than good, by dispersing the dust particles into the air and use a moistened cloth. Declutter your home so that dust has fewer places to settle.
Checking Your Shoes at the Door- Tracking your shoes throughout your house brings a little more of the outdoors inside than you should. Require your family, and guests for that matter, to remove shoes upon entry into your home in order to minimize allergen exposure.
Keep Your Home Mold Free- Having mold in your home can be detrimental to your family’s health. Any water leaking in from the roof should be addressed ASAP by a professional in order to prevent mold growth. Gutters that cannot handle large volumes of rain and cause moisture in your basement, which can stimulate mold growth. Such gutters should be replaced with more substantial ones that can keep your basement dry.
Skip the Synthetic Cleaners- Forego chemical infused cleaners which can irritate allergy sufferers for cleaners such as vinegar, baking soda and lemon juice.
Proper Ventilation- Excess moisture in your home can amplify allergy symptoms. Fans that divert moisture outdoors should be installed and used in your kitchen and bathroom.
Change Your Furnace Filter- Every furnace has a filter and periodically it will become clogged from particles floating your home’s air. Routinely changing the air filter will not only keep your home’s air cleaner, it will also reduce strain on your furnace which can cause it to prematurely end its lifespan.
Vacuum- Stay on top of dust & pet dander by regularly vacuuming your home, particularly high traffic areas. The best vacuum for the job is one with a HEPA filter which is engineered to trap even the smallest particles and keep them from being recirculated back into your home’s air supply.