Indoor air may contain contaminants like mold spores, pet dander, or pollen. They may trigger uncomfortable allergic symptoms like runny nose, itchy eyes, wheezing, or itching when you breathe them in. You may have tried different solutions to alleviate your symptoms, including keeping your doors and windows open, to no avail.
Your HVAC can help you alleviate or eliminate allergens in your home or business. Heating and cooling systems filter out the pollutants and lower the density of allergens. But if not well maintained, it can blow back the contaminants into the house lowering the indoor air quality. Here are different ways how your HVAC unit can help reduce allergy symptoms.
1. Replace Air Filters
Your HVAC unit uses air filters to clean the air getting into your premises. These air filters don’t allow any pollen to enter your house. They also help to clean the indoor air by filtering out contaminants such as mold, dust mites, and pet dander. However, if you neglect air filters for several months, they could become clogged, making them inefficient. Make sure you replace air filters after one to three months. If you have pets at home, do a monthly replacement and use the filters designed for pet dander. Also, make sure you select high-efficiency filters with a range of 14 to 16 on the MERV scale. The right filters will catch all unwanted airborne particles.
2. Maintain Proper Humidity Levels
By maintaining the ideal humidity levels in your home or business, you can alleviate allergies. High humidity levels encourage mold growth and dust mites, the common triggers of allergy symptoms and people with asthma. Still, when your indoor air is too dry, it can inflame your throat tissues, nasal passage, and skin. The ideal humidity levels should be about 40% to 45%. A dehumidifier balances humidity levels to ward off mold growth and dust mites. HVAC systems also work as a natural humidifier by separating water from the air while cooling the indoors, so dryer air gets into your house through the ducts.
3. Maintain Your HVAC System
Every unit requires routine maintenance, whether you have an old or new HVAC system. A well-maintained system can boost indoor air comfort and help remove allergen in your home. In case someone in your house has allergies or asthma, always schedule a routine inspection to keep your system running efficiently and eliminate contaminants. By involving an HVAC technician, they will clean the ductwork and change air filters to improve airflow.
4. Clean Indoor and Outdoor Units
Your HVAC system pulls air from the environment around it. Since the unit is exposed to different elements throughout the year, it can become blocked by twigs, grass, and leaves or covered by dust and other allergens. If you don’t clean the outdoor and indoor units, these allergens can get into the unit and start circulating into your property. You can dust it regularly or use a vacuum to reduce allergens and increase air quality circulating in your home.
5. Clean Air Ducts
If you’ve noticed an increased influx in allergy symptoms that make you constantly cough or sneeze, it’s probably due to poor air quality in your indoors. When you have dirty air ducts, the air picks up impurities while passing through them, such as pet dander, dust, smoke, and more. When allergens build up inside dirty ducts, they make them a haven for contaminants such as pollen, mold, and mildew. These contaminants can get out through the vents and into your indoors. Breathing in these impurities can cause discomfort, especially to those with respiratory issues, asthma, and sensitive allergies. Regularly scheduling professional duct cleaning and inspection can greatly improve indoor air quality. Cleaning air ducts keeps them free of hair, dander, dust, and other contaminants that worsen allergy symptoms.
Use Your HVAC Unit to Alleviate Allergy Symptoms
Are you striving to maintain a healthier and cleaner home free of pollutants and allergens? Your HVAC unit can effectively reduce allergens within your indoor space to ensure a safe environment for you and your family. Our technicians have years of experience examining and servicing HVAC components to ensure you have an allergen-free atmosphere. Contact the HVAC experts at Rosenberg Plumbing & Air to effectively manage your indoor air quality in your home or business. Our team provides AC installation, heating maintenance, ductwork services, heat pump installation, and dehumidifier services in San Antonio, TX, and the neighboring areas. Schedule an appointment with our HVAC experts.
Tags: Air Quality, Clean air