You may be familiar with various outdoor pollutants, like smog, but how much attention have you given to the quality of your indoor air? Considering how much time people spend indoors, it’s crucial to realize that environmental factors affect the air you breathe inside just as they do outside.
The good news is that you have control over many sources of indoor air pollutants. You can improve your indoor air with indoor air quality services in Tampa, FL, by ABS Air Conditioning Company. Keep reading to learn the most common sources of indoor air pollution and how to purify the air in your home.
What Is Indoor Air Pollution?
Indoor air pollution is the contamination of air inside a building. This contamination comes from a variety of sources, like dust, smoke, mold, and even kitchen appliances.
According to the Environmental Protection Agency, indoor air can be up to five times more polluted than outdoor air. Polluted indoor air can lead to several serious health effects like difficulty breathing, hypersensitivity, allergies, fatigue, skin rashes, itchy eyes, sinus congestion, and trouble concentrating.
8 Common Indoor Air Pollutants
The first step to protecting your family from indoor air pollutants is knowing where to look for them. Below, you will find eight sources of air pollution common in homes, as well as some tips for how you can improve your air quality.
1. Tobacco Smoke
Cigarette smoke contains at least 70 carcinogens and is a major source of indoor air pollution. Secondhand smoke causes over 40,000 deaths in the United States annually. Children are especially at risk of complications due to inhaling cigarette smoke. If exposed, kids may experience asthma, acute respiratory infections, SIDS, and other serious ailments.
2. Household Cleaning Products
You may be surprised to learn that the products you are using to keep your home clean are actually indoor pollutants. Many common cleaning products release Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs), which can cause several negative health effects. You can find VOCs in rug and upholstery cleaners, oven cleaners, aerosol sprays, disinfectants, and more. These harmful chemicals can result in some serious issues, like:
- Nose and throat irritation
- Organ damage
- Headaches
- Nausea
- Cancer
3. Mold
Mold grows in damp, unventilated areas of buildings, especially in humid climates like Florida. It can grow on many kinds of surfaces and in different forms. Mold releases dangerous toxins into the air and can exacerbate respiratory issues and weakened immune systems.
4. Carpet
Carpets are a source of indoor pollution for a few reasons. They can easily absorb toxic substances like allergens, mold spores, and smoke particulates. People also track contaminated dirt and heavy metals from outdoors inside, where they become embedded in carpets.
Pollutants that settle into carpets are easily released when people walk throughout the home. This process is called off-gassing, releasing toxic VOCs from the carpet fibers into the air. Exposure to these toxins is dangerous and can result in negative health effects like decreased fertility, birth defects, and memory impairment.
Even older carpets that no longer off-gas harmful toxins are vulnerable to dust mites, which cause severe allergic reactions in many people. An ounce of dust can be home to 40,000 dust mites!
5. Candles
Candles can introduce harmful gasses and sediments into your house. Studies have revealed that burning paraffin candles releases known carcinogens benzene and toluene into the air. Minimize your candle-burning, and make sure to open a window after lighting the candle to allow fresh air to circulate.
6. Appliances
Appliances such as space heaters, ovens, water heaters, and fireplaces are often significant sources of indoor air pollution. Burning fuel with gas stoves can lead to lung irritation and lower resistance to respiratory diseases. Faulty appliances can produce toxic gases like carbon monoxide, so stay on top of preventative and appliance inspections to repair any issues before they become severe.
7. Pet Dander
Your beloved pets can contribute to poor indoor air quality. As your pet moves around the house, it sheds tiny flakes of skin, which are small enough to spread throughout the home and adhere to furniture and carpets. Pet dander is a major irritant for many people and can cause coughing, sneezing, irritated eyes, and chest tightness.
8. Air Fresheners
Air fresheners contain phthalates. Also known as endocrine disruptors, these chemicals have negative health effects on the endocrine system, which regulates hormones. Air fresheners can also release toxic pollutants and contain ethylene-based glycol ethers, which the EPA classifies as hazardous air pollutants.
What Can You Do to Improve Indoor Air Quality?
The good news is that, despite the many sources of indoor air pollutants, there are steps you can take to improve your indoor air quality.
Service Your Air Conditioner
Poorly maintained air conditioners can lead to “sick building syndrome,” which results in a lack of fresh air. It’s important to have professionals ensure the proper placement of AC units to best circulate fresh air throughout your home.
Install HVAC Filters
Heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) filters are a great way to purify the air in your home. When working properly, HVAC filters reduce the number of irritants in the air and cycle air in and out of your house productively.
If your HVAC ducts are dirty, the filters will not work as well as they could to reduce pollution. Click here to learn more about duct cleaning services.
Vacuum
Especially in homes with carpets, vacuuming can be an effective tool to improve indoor air quality. Vacuums with high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filters effectively remove particle-based toxins without spreading them into the air.
Get Professional Indoor Air Quality Services
No matter your concerns about indoor air pollutants, ABS Air Conditioning Company is prepared to help.
Call ABS Air Conditioning at 813-933-1000 to learn more about the sources of indoor air pollution and how indoor air quality services can help.
