What is “IAQ” and How Does It Affect My Louisville Home?
If you’re noticing that you or the people in your Louisville, Kentucky, home are getting sick frequently but can’t find the reason, you could be dealing with an IAQ issue. IAQ is a shorthand term for indoor air quality, and if you’ve ever heard the term "Sick Building Syndrome," you’re familiar with the concept. The air that comes into your home could be bringing in and circulating allergens, biological growth, or irritants that make your home uncomfortable or difficult to breathe in.
Read on to learn about IAQ and how it affects life inside your home.
IAQ Relies on a Clean System
An HVAC system that needs to be cleaned and has collected dust could be helping allergens to circulate throughout your home. If you maintain your system by keeping it clean, you can eliminate a substantial amount of dirt that gets into your space.
Start by checking your air filter on a regular basis. If you live in a particularly dusty place, you might need to look at it every few weeks. Make a note on your calendar to check it every month if you’re having air quality issues now. The average home requires that you change it every month or so.
Your furnace, heat pump, and air conditioning systems all require regular maintenance. Scheduling regular seasonal maintenance with a technician will ensure that you get the longest life out of your HVAC system without ever compromising air quality.
Air Purifiers Improve IAQ
If you or anyone in your home suffers from asthma or any respiratory condition, warmer months might not be as exciting as they are for most people. Struggling to breathe can really put a damper on how much you enjoy your summer afternoons at home.
An air purifier can really improve your indoor air quality, providing relief from your indoor seasonal allergies. Air purifiers can filter out nearly all of the particles that could cause you irritation.
Whether you have allergies or not, you should still consider an air purifier. Poor IAQ could potentially put you at a much higher risk for heart disease, cancer, and of course, serious respiratory issues.
Air purifiers have the added bonus of making your home more comfortable by getting rid of odors. While it’s not as serious or deadly, the scent of your home could be keeping you from inviting guests over or enjoying your house as much as you’d like. If scents are polluting your life at home, take back your space by clearing the air with an air purifier.
Humidity Can Determine IAQ
Indoor humidity should be somewhere between 30 and 50 percent for breathability and comfort. When winter hits in Northern Kentucky, air can get dry and make it harder to breathe. Your skin could get dry, your lungs could get irritable, and you could even experience nosebleeds.
Viruses do well in dry air and can exacerbate symptoms for people dealing with allergies and asthma. Heating systems will tend to dry your air, leaving it somewhere around half of what it should be in terms of moisture. A home humidifier that complements your air purifier can be the answer to your problems.
The inside of your home also requires a controlled humidity. When the air is drier, wood furniture and even structural elements to your home could shrink and crack. A humidifier that controls the moisture of the air in your home can help to manage the quality of everything from photographs and paintings to staircases and coffee tables.
For the sustained maintenance of your family’s health and the quality of the elements inside your home, manage the humidity of your IAQ.
Higher IAQ Improves the Quality of Life in Your Home
Instead of waiting for health and wellness issues to arise, put in the effort now to improve your IAQ to ensure your family is happy and healthy all year round.
If you would like to improve the indoor air quality in your home, contact our HVAC specialists at (502) 242-8204 for a consultation.
Image provided by Bigstock
