We spend a good majority of our time indoors. In fact, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has estimated being within a building makes up 90% of our time. However, the EPA also has found your indoor air can be three to five times more polluted than outside your home.

That’s because our residences are firmly sealed to increase energy efficiency. While this is good for your energy expenses, it’s not so good if you’re a part of the 40% of the population with respiratory allergies.

When outdoors ventilation is restricted, pollutants including dust and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) could get captured. Consequently, these pollutants might aggravate your allergies.

You can improve your indoor air quality with clean air and usual dusting and vacuuming. But if you’re still having problems with symptoms during the time you’re at your house, an air purifier might be able to provide relief.

While it can’t remove pollutants that have landed on your furniture or flooring, it may help purify the air circulating across your home.

And air purification has also been scientifically verified to help lower some allergic symptoms, according to the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology. It could also be appropriate if you or someone in your household has lung trouble, like emphysema or COPD.

There are two kinds, a portable air purifier or a whole-home air purifier. We’ll go over the differences so you can figure out what’s correct for your home.

Whole-House Air Purifier vs. Portable Air Purifiers

A portable air purifier is for a lone room. A whole-house air purifier accompanies your HVAC equipment to clean your full house. Some kinds can work on their own when your home comfort system isn’t operating.

What’s the Best Air Purifier for Allergies?

Go after an option with a High Efficiency Particulate Air (HEPA) filter. HEPA filters are installed in hospitals and provide the best filtration you can get, as they catch 99.97% of particles in the air.

HEPA filters are even more powerful when installed with an ultraviolet (UV) germicidal light. This mighty combination can eliminate dust, dander, pollen and mold, all of which are general allergens. For the best in air purification, evaluate a system that also has a carbon-based filter to reduce household odors.

Avoid buying an air purifier that creates ozone, which is the main ingredient in smog. The EPA warns ozone might aggravate respiratory issues, even when emitted at small amounts.

The Allergy and Asthma Foundation of America has created a list of questions to ask when buying an air purifier.

  • What can this purifier extract from the air? What doesn’t it take out?
  • What’s its clean air delivery rate? (A higher figure means air will be freshened more rapidly.)
  • How regularly does the filter or UV bulb need to be replaced]? Can I finish that on my own?
  • How much do spare filters or bulbs cost?

How to Reduce Seasonal Allergy Symptoms

Want to receive the {top|most excellent|best] results from your new air purification system? The Mayo Clinic suggests completing other measures to reduce your exposure to seasonal allergy triggers.

  1. Stay indoors and keep windows and doors sealed when pollen counts are heightened.
  2. Have other family members cut the lawn or pull weeds, since these jobs can irritate symptoms. If you are required to do this work on your own, you may want to consider wearing a pollen mask. You should also shower right away and put on new clothes once you’re done.
  3. Avoid stringing up laundry outdoors.
  4. Run your air conditioner while indoors or while in the car. Consider installing a high efficiency air filter in your home’s HVAC system.
  5. Equalize your house’s humidity levels with a whole-house dehumidifier.
  6. Hardwood, tile or linoleum are the ideal flooring kinds for reducing indoor allergens. If your home has carpet, install a HEPA filter on your vacuum cleaner.

Let Our Professionals Take Care of Your Indoor Air Quality Needs

Ready to progress with getting a whole-house air purifier? Give our specialists a call at 308-762-1613 or contact us online to get an appointment. We’ll help you choose the best unit for your home and budget.