Because of concerns about air pollution from industrial sources, people often tend to think of poor air quality as something that only exists outdoors. But this isn’t true. A report by the Environmental Protection Agency has discovered that the air inside commercial and residential buildings is often three to four times worse than the air outside. The reason for this is the high number of contaminants and pollutants that become trapped inside a building because there is so little fresh air moving through them.
Indoor air pollutants that can affect your family’s well-being
There are many different types of airborne pollutants that can be found indoors that will have a negative impact on household health:
- Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs): Numerous products found in homes—cleaning products, carpet, paint, varnishes, cosmetics, hobby supplies—give off these compounds as gases. These include formaldehyde (the most common), acetone, xylene, and benzene. These chemicals in high concentrations have both short-term and long-term effects on health: increasing asthma symptoms, headaches, nausea, liver and kidney damage, and even cancer.
- Carbon monoxide: A CO detector will alert a home to dangerous levels of carbon monoxide. But low levels of CO will create health problems such as eye and nose irritation.
- Bacteria and mold spores: Bacteria causes a wide variety of illnesses, and mold spores powerfully affect asthma and allergy sufferers.
- Dust mites: The dander from these tiny insects is a major source of triggering allergy reactions in people.
How to improve air quality in your house
There are solutions to all of the above problems, and many more, when you call on our indoor air quality professionals. The correct set of air filters and air purifiers will remove more than 99% of the harmful particles and chemicals moving through your home’s air. A special UV air purifier can target bacteria, viruses, and mold spores. But you must rely on professionals to find the ideal types of air cleaners that will both purifiers the air and allow the HVAC system to run at maximum efficiency.
Purl’s Sheet Metal & Air Conditioning offers indoor air quality services for Fresno, CA and throughout the Central Valley that can dramatically improve health conditions in your home.