Winter Indoor Air Quality

Winter indoor air quality is important to keep track of during the winter season, it’s especially necessary to take extra precautions to keep the quality of air inside your home clean and healthy. Homeowners typically keep windows, doors, and cracks sealed from allowing fresh cold air inside the home. Although this keeps your home warmer during the cold winter months, it does not allow for old polluted air to escape from inside to be replaced with fresh air. There are a variety of different factors that contribute to indoor pollution.

Common Indoor Air Pollutants

• Mold and mildew. Areas, where moisture builds up throughout the home, are subject to mold or mildew. When the windows and doors are tightly sealed, mold and mildew will reproduce in the moisture.
• Pet danger. A difficult-to-remove allergen can cause issues among residents inside the home.
• Dust. During winter homeowners spend more time indoors dust can have a bigger impact during the winter when dust accumulation is higher.
• Asbestos. This can be found in many house construction materials. Once it becomes airborne and inhaled continuously serious health problems to the lungs can occur.
• Pollen. Although not as much of a problem as the spring season, pollen can still get tracked inside and trapped inside which will cause issues within the home and residents’ health.

How to Improve Winter Indoor Air Quality

Keep Floors and Surfaces Clean

Carpet is known to trap pollutants inside. Vacuum regularly to reduce the number of pollutants that are within the carpet. Use a HEPA filter vacuum at least once a week if pollutants are extreme and affect the health of the residents.

Avoid Using Harsh Chemicals

During the winter season, avoid the use of cleaning products and sprays that contain harsh chemicals. You do not want the harsh chemicals to get trapped inside your home for you and your residents to breathe constantly.

Crack Windows

At least once a week crack the windows to allow polluted air to be replaced with fresh air.

Essential Oil Diffuser

Many essential oils contain anti-fungal and antibacterial properties. Put a diffuser in any room of your house for essential oils to help kick polluted air.