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With a respiratory illness robbing most of the planet of any sense of normalcy or stability right now, it’s understandable to have a hypersensitivity to air quality. You may believe that all the “bad air” is outside. You may think that once you go into your home, away from the buses, the airplanes, the exhaust coming off of other buildings, and the spray paint on sidewalks, that you’re safe. But a lot of what’s outside gets inside. Your home is not entirely airtight. Not only are there cracks beneath windows and doorframes, but you actually open those windows and doors several times a day. Furthermore, the materials with which your home was built are not entirely impermeable. Pollutants can get in through your walls and flooring.
Luckily, since the inside of your home is your domain, you do have the power to take steps to improve the air quality within it. We may have to wear masks for years to come for a variety of reasons – between air pollution and COVID-19 – but your home should be a place where you can breathe freely. Literally. There are a combination of steps you can take to improve the air quality in your home, that involve both monitoring what you bring in, and reducing what’s already there.
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Vacuum regularly
Take a good look at your vacuum and make sure that it has a HEPA filter. HEPA stands for High-Efficiency Particulate Absorbing and items with a HEPA filter can pick up 99.97 percent of particulate pollution including viruses, bacteria, mold, and pollen. Check the Minimum Efficiency Reporting Values on your vacuum. You can find a rundown of the different levels here, but know that the higher the rating, the better the filter is at trapping particles. Follow guidelines to regularly clean your filters to keep them in optimal condition.
