5 Tips for Improving the Air Quality of Your Home

There is no shortage of fresh air in Canada with all our wide-open spaces, but what about the quality of the air in your home? Maybe the air is damp, maybe you’ve spotted some mould in areas, or maybe it’s too dry. This could impact a buyer’s perception of your home if you’re trying to sell.

Whatever the issue may be, there is always room for improvement when it comes the air you’re breathing inside your humble abode. Doing these five things might help you breathe a sigh of relief when it comes to your home’s air quality:

Cracking down on condensation. Condensation is an issue caused by a lack of proper ventilation and can create problems with internal air quality. If this is an issue in just a few areas, you might want to look into getting an extractor fan which controls humidity in bathrooms and kitchens and uses very little energy.

Replace wall-to-wall carpets. There is nothing that causes the air to get nasty quicker than carpeting. There’s no easy way around it—carpets are home to dirt, dust mites, hair and bacteria. Anyone with breathing issues who lives in a fully carpeted home will find breathing more difficult. Carpets also exacerbate eczema and hay fever. If replacing carpets with hardwood, laminate or other flooring material isn’t in your budget, make sure the carpets are thoroughly cleaned on a regular basis.

Nix the hairsprays and spray-on deodorants. Hairsprays and spray deodorants release toxins into the air, so they shouldn’t be used, and if they are, use sparingly.

Hang wash outside in nice weather. To save energy, some people dry some of their clothes either on radiators or on drying racks indoors. This creates undue condensation, which could lead to mould. If you don’t have another option for drying your wash, make sure to slightly open the windows to allow moisture to escape before creating condensation. In nicer weather, you can dry your laundry by hanging it outside.

Beat the pollen. Anyone who suffers with allergies like hay fever in the spring and summer knows it can be brutal. The first line of defense is usually closing the windows tightly, which can lead to the problem of stuffiness. In these cases, a mechanical ventilation with heat recovery system can be installed. This system will recover about 90 per cent of the heat from stale air before recirculating it back as fresh, warm, filtered air.