Though new technological creations, like artificial trees and “Smog Free Towers,” are combating air pollution on a large scale, there are many individual actions you can take to implement innovations and creative solutions at home to fight air pollution on a more local level. Though seemingly small, actions like these can directly impact the air quality at your house or apartment and thus the health of you and your family.
Cleaning
First, you should transform how you clean your home. Whether through changing the cleaning products you buy or how you clean, you can make your practices more eco-friendly and help improve the air quality in your home. An added bonus is that you can save money at the same time.
Cleaning Products
One of the initial steps you should take is to take inventory of all the cleaning products you have at home. Many cleaning products use chemicals that are unhealthy or toxic. For example, popular commercial cleaning products such as chlorine bleach contain volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that are extremely hazardous. Furthermore, many popular air fresheners have been shown to include toxic chemicals.
Instead of buying these toxic and expensive cleaning products at the store, use cheap, cleaner, and eco-friendly products you can already find at home. For instance, you can use white vinegar and lemon juice to disinfect, olive oil to polish wood, and baking soda to scrub off grit on your stove. These products do the job just as well as traditional commercial products, but are much better for the environment, the air pollution in your home, and your health.
How to Clean
There are also some cleaning practices that should be encouraged for decreasing the amount of air pollution in your home. For example, vacuum! Vacuuming regularly, such as once a week, will help reduce allergens in the air in your home. Furthermore, there are many options for eco-friendly vacuums that you should consider. For instance, the SmartHome vacuum is powered by batteries, meaning it saves energy as compared to traditional vacuums.
Secondly, wash your bedding, pillows, rugs, and blankets regularly. Doing this once a week in very hot water can help reduce allergens in the air.
Additionally, dusting regularly is also super important. However, make sure to dust with damp cloth that will attract dust rather than spread it around, perpetuating the problem. Also, wearing a dust mask will help you from ingesting the harmful dust! Finally, make sure to keep the clutter around your home under control, as this is the number one factor that leads to increased dust. These tips are especially important if you have pets, who have hair and dander that can get everywhere!
Air Quality
There are also vital methods that can be done to directly influence the air quality in your home in addition to cleaning. For instance, there are heat recovery systems (HRVs) that ventilate your home, exchanging stale air for fresh air, while they transfer heat from the exhaust to save energy. Additionally, other popular and effective ways to influence the air quality in your home, such as air purifiers and air filters, can be used to decrease the pollution in the air.
Air Purifiers
There are many options for purifying the air throughout your home. Modern technology has allowed for the creation of a variety of products that, though they vary with price, appearance, size, and utility, are all great at purifying the air in your home by decreasing the amount of air pollution present. In particular, air purifiers focus on removing dangerous allergens, chemicals, and odors from the air in your home. For instance, the new Molekule neutralizes pollutants in the air using light-activation capabilities at the molecular level.
Air Filters
Just as important as regularly cleaning your home and using eco-friendly cleaning products is regularly replacing the air filters your internal air conditioning and heating system uses. By switching from traditional air filters to washable, reusable, and eco-friendly air filters, you will save money in the long run while catching all the dangerous air gunk throughout your home. Technology will surely continue to progress to make these innovative air filters more and more eco-friendly and inexpensive over time.
Open a window
Finally, doing something as simple as regularly opening a window during good weather can help air your home. Fresh air from outside can replace the insulated, musky air from inside. Not only that, but it can boost your mood as well! When indoor air pollution has been listed by the EPA as a primary environmental health concern, this is a simple way to abate it.
In conclusion, there are many ways you as an individual can fight air pollution in a way that will directly impact the health of you and your family. By being choicier with the cleaning products you use and how you clean, as well as focusing on purifying the air quality throughout your home, you will benefit from higher quality air for years to come.
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