The quality of your air has huge impacts on your general health and it is highly prudent to ensure that the air you’re breathing in your home is good quality and clean. If you do not, then you will risk exposing yourself to a range of different problems.
Our air should be what we use to provide our body with energy. Oxygen is carried around the blood in red blood cells and used to cause reactions with glucose releasing the energy that we need to survive. However if the air is unclean and poor quality it can also cause us various problems. If it is too moist for instance then it will be filled with water and this can make it difficult to breathe freely. It might also result in mold and mildew forming around the house and this in turn can cause the release of mold spores that can trigger a range of allergies such as asthma – and which can even cause asthma. It can also cause eczema and damage the quality of your home.
Alternatively your air may be too dry, and in this case again it can make it difficult to breath and result in skin and breathing conditions. Air that is too dry is often associated with dust and sawdust and this then causes further problems and can be very bad for those with asthma. It might be filled with allergens if you have an allergy – for example pollen from outside which can cause you breathing difficulties and risk dangerous attacks. Then there’s the risk of bacteria in the air, which can cause a range of diseases and conditions – and even if it does not it can provide a constant barrage on the immune system that will cause tiredness and lethargy. If your air should be contaminated with another noxious gas or chemical, such as carbon monoxide, then this can result in poisoning, hallucinations and death.
In other words the quality of your air is very important and it’s important for you to monitor it. Particularly if you or a family member has an allergy or condition, or if you suspect there is some kind of problem – but in any case it’s important.
So how do you go about doing this? How do you go about measuring what is in your air, and how do you go about changing it for the better? Here we will have a look at some methods you can use.
Use Your Senses
You should be able to tell if anything is drastically wrong with your air. If you can smell moisture or if you can taste it on your tongue for instance, then this is a sign that the air is of course a sign that the air is too moist. Likewise if it feels very dry and you feel parched then it is probably too dry. You may be able to smell gas. Look also for tell tale signs of mold or of dryness such as cracked paint.
Carbon Monoxide Detector
This is a very important way to monitor your air and can save lives. These are small detection devices and can be plugged into an outlet and left to detect carbon monoxide. An alarm will sound if the carbon monoxide levels should change. This is very important because carbon monoxide is an odorless and tasteless gas that is very dangerous.
Dehumidifier
If you are concerned about the moisture levels in your air then you can monitor and fix this with a dehumidifier. These too plug into the mains and then work to extract the water particles from the air by sucking them in and collecting them in a large plastic container. The way this works is similar to how internal heating works – you set it at a certain level and the humidifier will then run whenever this level is not met. In other words then you can tell how moist the air is by monitoring how it operates. At the same time you can also see the moisture collecting in the container. For those with asthma it is very important to keep humidity below 50%.
Smoke Alarms
We all test our air quality to some extent, and smoke detectors are an example of this. Smoke detectors are important because they help to prevent and avoid fire, but they also warn you of smoke present in the air. This is important because breathing in smoke can be highly dangerous in itself, and if you are asleep then you won’t always wake up when you start inhaling it. Every home should have a smoke alarm present and correct, and it is equally important to keep it filled with batteries and operating at full capacity throughout the year.
Humidifier
If you have the opposite problem then a humidifier will provide the opposite service by keeping your air moist. This is very useful for wooden homes that are in arid climates.
Mold Test Kits
You should be able to see if you have any mold by looking around in the most common areas. Mold tends to collect in air pockets – for instance behind wardrobes and behind curtains, and it tends to collect in areas where there is more water and steam. For instance in bathrooms, or around leaks. Finally it collects where it is very cold as cold surfaces attract condensation. However if you are unsure of the problem, or of the extent of the problem, then you can use test kits to test your air quality. You will need to send the kit to a lab for analysis but this can help you to understand the extent of the problem, and can be useful as evidence to show to a landlord etc.
Test for Dust Mites
Dust mites are common in the air around the home, but they are more serious in some homes than in others. Again you can order a test kit and then send this off for a report. If it transpires that you do have a problem, then you can use special filters attached to the ends of your vacuum cleaners in order to eradicate the mites.
Radon Detection Kit
A radon detection kit is useful for those who live in areas with high concentrations of uranium in the soil. There are many kits you can use in order to test for radon gases and it’s important to use these as they can otherwise be poisonous. They are used by being left open and undisturbed for around three days in a prominent area before being sent to a lab for the results.
Use an Air Cleaner
An air cleaner does what it says on the tin – cleaning the air as it passes through a filter. These are normally included as part of air conditioning units. This can be used to improve the quality of your air but also to test it – look at the filters after running the air cleaner for a while to see how much dust and dirt has collected there.
Allergen Testing
If you or a family member have a particular allergen such as an allergy to pollen or dander, then it is possible to test for the presence of those allergens in the air using home allergen test kits. These will help you to avoid build ups of allergens in the air that can cause unpleasant reactions and you can use this as well to find effective ways to rid your air of those pollutants.
Call in Inspectors
If you are unhappy testing the air quality yourself, then you can call in an expert to handle the problem for you. These inspectors can also be particularly useful for testing specific pollutants. For instance if you have concerns regarding asbestos then you should call an asbestos inspector to check whether this is a problem.
If it very important to check your air quality regularly to prevent a range of health problems. To make sure that your air stays clean and healthy, call in inspectors and then be sure to use the above methods where necessary throughout the year.