How to Know If You Have Healthy Air Inside Your Home

According to research, indoor air can be five times more polluted than outside air. Indoor air pollution can have significant health effects, such as worsening allergies, asthma, and other respiratory conditions. You can find out if you have healthy air by testing your indoor air for common household pollutants.

Invest in an Indoor Air-Quality Monitor

Indoor air-quality monitors are electronic devices that detect toxins in your indoor air. They consistently test and report on the pollution levels in your home to help ensure you have healthy air. The pollutants they detect vary from one device to another. Almost all monitors test for humidity, particulate matter, and chemical contaminants. Some may also track the temperature and volatile organic compounds (VOCs).

Test for Mold

An indoor air-quality monitor won’t detect mold. You may want to test for mold in certain situations, such as if you’re having allergic reactions, you have seen something that resembles mold, you’ve noticed a musty smell, or you’ve had water issues or plumbing leaks.

Mold tests are best performed by measuring the concentration of mold spores in your home compared to the concentration outside your home. This task is best left to a professional. You can invest in a professional mold-testing kit.

Install Carbon Monoxide Detectors

Carbon monoxide is a poisonous gas that can cause headaches, dizziness, confusion, and even death if one is exposed to large amounts of the gas for long. Carbon monoxide detectors go off when they detect unhealthy levels of the gas. You should install one on each level of your home and close to sleeping areas. Don’t install them near an open flame or a fireplace.

Carry Out a Radon Test

Radon accounts for about 21,000 lung cancer deaths each year. Radon usually enters a house at the lowest levels and can continue seeping into the home until it reaches unsafe levels. Radon test kits detect levels of radon over time. Electronic radon tests measure the gas concentrations continuously.

While all of the tests above will tell you whether the indoor pollutants have reached dangerous levels, you can do several things to maintain healthy air and prevent the pollutants from reaching such levels. These include ensuring proper ventilation, changing your air filter regularly, and investing in indoor air-quality products. If you need cost-effective indoor air-quality solutions in your quest for healthy air in Martin, Palm Beach, or Indian River County, contact NisAir Air Conditioning and Heating.