Preparing Your Home’s HVAC System for Spring Allergy Season

As spring approaches, plenty of people in Pierce and King County brace for seasonal allergies. The warmer weather brings more than just pleasant temperatures. Spring delivers waves of pollen, increased dust circulation and environmental changes. Your home’s heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) system can be a valuable ally in the fight against springtime allergens. As pollen counts soar and outdoor allergens invade indoor spaces, your HVAC system can filter air, control humidity and maintain proper air circulation throughout your home. However, your home’s HVAC system needs to be properly optimized and maintained to effectively combat seasonal allergies. Air Filtration and Purification Your HVAC system’s ability to filter allergens depends heavily on the type and quality of its air filtration components. Upgrading to high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filters or high-efficiency pleated filters can dramatically improve your home’s air quality. HEPA filters work by forcing air through a fine mesh that traps harmful particles, including pollen, pet dander, dust mites and even some bacteria. HEPA filters are rated to remove up to 99.97% of airborne particles that are 0.3 microns or larger. This means HEPA filters catch the most common allergens. Installing a whole-house air purifier takes filtration to the next...

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How Cooking Impacts Your Home’s Indoor Air Quality

There are some everyday actions that hurt a home’s indoor air quality but are overlooked by homeowners because of how essential they are. One such action is cooking. Your eating habits inform the types of pollutants that get into your indoor air. Cooking anything from a piece of toast to chocolate chip cookies leads to differing levels of particulate matter and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) entering your air. Knowing what these pollutants are can help you take steps to improve your indoor air. How Different Cooking Sources Contribute to Indoor Air Pollution Cooking any amount or type of food will cause pollutants to enter your indoor air. However, the effects shouldn’t be harmful if your home is properly filtered. If your home is outfitted with gas ovens and cooktops, you will perform combustion of fossil fuels every time you cook. Any type of cooking that involves combustion is more harmful than non-combustion cooking methods like microwaves and electric ovens. When you use an electric oven and cooktop, your home shouldn’t become too polluted. However, a small concentration of harmful particles can still enter your indoor air. When you engage in methods of cooking like frying tortillas and stir-frying, particulate matter...

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The Pro and Cons of Air Purifiers

You might have thought about putting an air purifier in your home to improve your indoor air quality. It’s important to pick the right one based on what you’re trying to accomplish. Here are the differences between the various types of air purifiers and their pros and cons. What Is an Air Purifier? An air purifier is a device that removes pollutants from the air. Different types of air purifiers are designed to remove various types of pollutants. An air purifier can either be portable or one that is installed into your home’s centralized heating and cooling system. To remove pollen, dust mites, mildew, pet dander, bacteria, and viruses from the air, you should get an air purifier with a HEPA filter. This filter removes pollutants from the air as small as 0.3 microns and is over 99% effective. People with asthma and allergies really benefit from HEPA filters. The air purifier may also have a filter made of activated carbon. This filter is effective at removing smoke and lingering odors from the air. They capture smoke and smells from cigarettes, cooking, pets, and other sources. Helps You to Breathe Easier Air purifiers can help everyone, but especially people with...

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