Purifying The Air in Your Home - Part 5

     In the last several blogs I have shared a number of tips to help keep the air in your cleaner, healthier and safe for you and your family. Continuing now are two more ideas from the American Lung Association.
     First: Avoid Pesticides, and Pests, Learn 3 letters: IPM

Pesticides used to curb household pests can allow harmful chemicals into your home, and may cause added health dangers to children and pets. Some pests can even trigger allergic reactions and worsen asthma.
     Solution?: Practice Integrated Pest Management, (IPM) to keep your home free of pests and harmful chemicals alike. IPM includes simple things like blocking holes that allow pests into your home, and keeping food in tightly sealed containers. Cover your trash cans and keep your floors and counters free of crumbs and food particles. Use bait traps if necessary to catch pests. Only use chemicals as a last resort and get professional help.

     Second: Avoid Toxic Products
Consumer products can produce harmful air pollution indoors. Hair and nail products, cleaning products, art and hobby supplies and other common products can increase the levels of VOCs, or volatile organic compounds. Some of the VOCs in these products include substances linked to cancer, headaches, eye and throat irritation and worsened asthma.
Look for products which are marked "low VOCs" and be sure to open windows and use exhaust fans when using these products.
      In the next blog I will share more of these awesome tips that I know you will not want to miss. Oh, by the way, following the tips given here today will also help you be 'greener' in your life and kinder to the environment. For more helpful HVAC tips check out my blogs at hvaccomfortguyjerry@blogspot.com. Also go our website at www.greensheating.com.

Purifying The Air In Your Home - Part 4

     I am continuing my efforts to share ideas and tips to purify the air in your home. These tips are based on 25 tips from the American Lung Association. Along with these I add things I have learned over the years that may be of help my readers. Here are the next 3 tips.

     1. Beware of Dry Cleaning  Chemicals

Dry cleaning solvents, and solvents of most any kind are strong chemicals, and can be toxic to breathe. It is good to let dry cleaned items air outdoors before bringing them inside. Hanging them outside for a couple of hours will allow them air out. Who knew?!? I have never done this and never have thought about it. I have friends that leave dry cleaning in the plastic bag until they are worn. This just keeps those toxic chemicals trapped in your clothing.

  2. Be Wary of Old Lead Paint

   Keeping the air clean within the walls of your home starts with the walls themselves. Lead based paint can still be found in homes built before 1978. Any peeling, chipping or chalking of lead-based paint can increase the risk ofunhealthy lead exposure. Young children riskk delays in mental development, lower IQ and beavioral problems from inhaling lead paint dust. Some of those damages can be permanent.

     Remodeling tht requires sanding, scraping or removing walls will release paint dust into your living space. You can reduce the risk by taking proper steps to minimize the danger. The EPA (Environmental Protection Agency)  has suggestions on their website to protect you and your family.

     3. Vent Your Wood Stove (Or Better, Shut It Off)
Fireplaces and wood or gas stoves in your home can produce carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides and fine particle pollution as well as other toxic air pollutants.
     Use a fireplace or wood stove ONLY if you must have it for heat. If you must use a wood or gas stove or fireplace, make certain it is fully vented to the outside. Wood stoves should meet State codes and emission standards, which require cleaner burning stoves.
     I hope this continuing segment of blogs is beneficial for you and that your are enjoying reading them. I have other blogs with awesome information on heating and cooling at hvaccomfortguyjerry@blogspot.com or you can go to our website at www.greensheating.com.

Purifying The Air In Your Home

     You might not think that the air quality in your home has much to do with 'going green'. But really, many of the things we can do in our home to improve the air quality, also, at the same time improve the environment. Here in the Boise, Idaho valley we have many of the same air quality problems of bigger cities. So, it's important to see how cleaner air means "greener" air.
     The Environmental Protection Agency estimates that people spend about 90% of their time indoors, but that the quality of the air inside can be two, to five times more polluted then the air outside. Obviously, indoor air pollution can be a threat to the health, and the lives of our family.
     The most effective way to keep the air in our home healthy, is to keep things OUT of our homes that can pollute.The second most important thing we can do is, to make sure we have proper ventilation in our homes to remove stale or polluted air. Using things like bathroom fans, kitchen exhaust fans, opening windows when allowable, changing filters in our HVAC system regularly, or installing a whole-house air purification system.
     In this blog, I will start sharing with you 25 air quality tips from the American Lung Association to reduce the risk for asthma and other lung illnesses in your home. Here is first three of the 25 tips in this series of reminders.

The Three Deadly Pollutants:

Carbon Monoxide: 400 die and thousands get sick every year from carbon monoxide poisoning. At one time I had personal experience with this deadly gas. A simple fix is to install carbon monoxide detectors. Don't let your car or other engines idle in the garage. Fumes can seep into your home quickly and silently.

Secondhand smoke: 7,500 -15,000 children are hospitalized or sickened and we older adults are plagued by cardiovascular disease, lung cancer, and other illnesses. Solution? Never, ever let anyone smoke in your home

or auto. The Surgeon General states that there is no safe level of secondhand smoke.

Radon gas: It's oderless, it's silent and found in many homes today. It is the second biggest cause of lung cancer, after cigarette smoke. Solution? Test your home for Radon. It's easy, inexpensive and could save your life. Radon detectors can usually be found at your big box home improvement stores.

     I invite you to keep following my blogs at hvaccomfortguyjerry@blogspot.com or check our website at www.greensheating.com.