vendredi 18 juillet 2014

Keeping The Air In Your Home Fresh

By Frank Rayburn


You have likely heard the saying about a man's home being his castle. This metaphor suggests that a house is a type of fortress. In other words, it is a refuge in which the owner can take shelter from the dangers of the world outside. People should rightly expect to feel safe in their home. But some homes contain invisible threats that could be working against the health of you and your family. The quality of air could be one such threat.

We as human beings are naturally needy creatures. If certain needs are not met on a day to day basis, your body will react negatively. The most basic and vital needs are for air, water and food. But certain needs are more important than others. If you were forced to, you could survive for several days without taking a drink, and several weeks without taking a bite of anything. But if you were to go more than a few minutes without air, that would be the end for you. The quality of all of these resources matters as well, if you drank stagnant water, or regularly consumed unhealthy food, your health would reflect that. The same is true of regularly breathing low-quality air.

A home that produces unhealthy air will demonstrate its effects on its occupants. If you live in such a home, you have likely noticed them already. If you have flu-like symptoms that persist over a long period, regular headaches, or a constant feeling of stuffiness that suggests that something is somehow wrong, your home may be the cause. A healthy person can resist the effects of an unhealthy environment for reasonable periods. But regular, prolonged exposure will eventually begin to wear away at your health. You probably spend more time in your home than anywhere else, so if the air there is hazardous, you will inevitably feel the effects. Fortunately, you can control most of the sources of unhealthy air in your home.

One source of unhealthy air, especially in older homes, could be the construction materials themselves. The most dangerous of potential hazards would be things like asbestos or lead, but these are regulated much more strictly now than they were in the past. But making sure your home has been inspected is never a bad idea.

Floating allergens and contaminants would be the most common reason that air is declared low-quality. Fabrics have a tendency to trap these contaminants within their fibers. This is not necessarily a bad thing, as it removes the particles from the air, but if these surfaces, such as carpets, curtains and furniture, are not cleaned regularly, you risk kicking them back into the air.

Nothing lasts forever, they say. Everything goes on a cycle of decay and renewal. This seems to be true of air quality as well. The most effective way to keep your home filled with healthy air is through the mantra "Out with the old, in the with the new". Keeping a steady flow of fresh air in the home is vital to keeping the air quality optimal. Opening windows is a good start, but that often only works for a few rooms and is not possible during certain seasons. What would work better is a system to filter and circulate air throughout the home.




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