With the splendor of spring now in full force, it’s time to start thinking about the brutally hot summer ahead. On most days during the summer, you won’t want to venture outside very much, meaning your Las Vegas home needs to be as comfortable and as healthy as possible.
One way to achieve this goal is to improve your home’s indoor air quality during the spring so that it’s in good shape when summer rolls around. To help you breathe a little easier, here are eight simple tips from The Cooling Company to help you achieve clean indoor air.
1. Let the Plants Grow
Plants make an excellent purifier for indoor air that you can enjoy throughout the year. Just as trees, grasses, and other plants help to purify outdoor air, indoor plants help remove a variety of indoor pollutants through the process of photosynthesis.
This is because as plants absorb the carbon dioxide that’s necessary for photosynthesis, any other gases that are dissolved in the air will flow into the plant as well. No matter what’s in the air, though, the only gas that plants will release is oxygen, meaning you’re left with pure, fresh air.
2. Use Some Activated Charcoal
Another great all-natural method for improving your indoor air quality is to use some activated charcoal. Typically, this material comes in small canvas bags that you can place around your home. Inside each bag is a small amount of charcoal that’s usually made from the remnants of charred bamboo.
Thanks to the open pores in the charcoal, this substance is especially effective at absorbing odors and other contaminants around the home. The important thing is to ensure that air can flow through the bag. That’s how the system pushes contaminants through the charcoal. Additionally, if your bag isn’t in a sunny location, you’ll need to set it out in the sun for an hour or so once a month to allow the sun’s UV rays to remove any contaminants that are present.
3. Put Some Muscle Into It
If you’re looking to increase your indoor air filtration even more, you can use an electric air filter and purifier. For the ultimate cleaning experience, you can have The Cooling Company install an air purifier in-line with your other HVAC components. This ensures that the clean, healthy air is distributed throughout your home.
If you notice only one or two rooms are having problems with air quality, though, you can choose to use a smaller air filter that you can move around your home. In any event, you’ll want to make sure to use a unit with HEPA filtration. It removes as many contaminants as possible from the air.
4. Open Up Some Windows
Since spring brings with it comfortable temperatures, it makes a great time to open your home’s windows to let in some fresh air. If you have a fan that you can place in an open window, you can face it out so that it pulls contaminants out of your home while drawing fresh air in.
The best times to have your windows open are in the morning and evening when the temperatures aren’t as hot so that you don’t have to crank up your air conditioner at a later time. Also, remember to check the air quality report for your area to ensure that you won’t be letting in more pollutants than you’re removing.
5. Remove Some Dust and Dander
While many of the components of dust are harmless for humans, there are certain components that can cause allergic reactions, making it hard to breathe while indoors. That’s why it’s crucial that you remove large collections of dust in your home. One area that we at The Cooling Company recommend taking a look at is your HVAC system’s ducts.
Over time, for a variety of reasons, dust can collect in ducts. In effect, this becomes a breeding ground for mildew. And this area also become a potential source of allergens. Therefore, to keep your home’s air healthy, get a professional duct cleaning. This ensures air can flow freely and that you are not just pushing dust around into the rest of your home.
6. Clean the Coils Thoroughly
Even in the dry desert air, there is still quite a bit of humidity in the air. And your air conditioner must remove it in order to cool the air in your home. The evaporator coils, which sit above the blower fan, are responsible for this task. If your home is especially dusty, though, significant amounts of dust and debris can collect on these coils. And it’s the same thing if you run your HVAC system without a filter in place.
If the coils become clogged, they won’t remove humidity from the air as effectively. In addition, any moisture they do remove will become trapped in the dust. Then this becomes a major breeding ground for allergy-causing mildew. That’s why one of the parts we at The Cooling Company clean during normal maintenance is your air conditioner’s evaporator coils.
7. Upgrade Your Attic Ventilation
A properly ventilated attic is key to a healthy and energy-efficient home. That’s why it’s good to take the time to ensure that the ventilation in your attic is sufficient. It needs to be adequate for the size of your home. Check regularly to ensure it’s not clogged by animal nests or insulation.
In many cases, an attic fan installed by The Cooling Company can provide good turnover, pulling in fresh air through the attic vents so that it can mix with the air in the rest of the home. Of course, by bringing fresh air into your attic, you also ensure that the attic doesn’t get too hot. And this helps lower the demand on your air conditioner.
8. Accept That You Might Need Help
For many of these indoor air quality solutions, it’s a good idea to have a partner like The Cooling Company to help you with the installation of the mechanical components. This ensures proper installation of the different components so that they do the most good in your home. After all, you deserve to be breathing clean and healthy air. Especially on those days when it’s too hot to be outside.
At The Cooling Company, we have over 50 years of combined HVAC experience, meaning you can trust us to give you great results, time after time. Whether we’re maintaining or repairing your furnace or air conditioner, installing a new system when your old one breaks down, or taking care of replacing your ductwork to help your HVAC system operate more efficiently, you can be sure we’ll treat you and your home with the utmost care and respect.
If it’s commercial service you need, we have the skills and expertise to be able to tackle any job, no matter how large.
Our commitment to service is evident in our new-system 100% satisfaction guarantee. And you can see it in our many five-star reviews from Facebook, Google, and Yelp. You can be confident that when you give us a call. We’ll treat you like family. And that’s just how we want to be treated.
Contact us if you’ve noticed your indoor air quality is suffering. Or let’s say you’re having another issue with your home’s comfort. Feel free to give us a call or reach out to us through our website today.
