You may constantly be bombarded with new issues that should concern you and your loved ones. Don’t bring home anything that isn’t BPA-free. Stay away from the microwave. Only save your cooking in glass containers, not plastic.
Now your neighbors are talking to you about indoor air quality (or IAQ) in Tempe. You shouldn’t use harsh chemicals to wipe down your counters. You have to buy an air purification system. You should use essential oils and not air fresheners.
The worries never stop.
So you start to turn a deaf ear to all the noise and just try and live your life. We understand - why agonize about one issue if you’re just going to have to constantly worry about everything else?
But, of all things, indoor air quality is absolutely an issue you should pay attention to, and here’s why.
It affects your health
We’ve told you how to fight sickness and stay healthy with indoor air quality; and, we’ve shared how to Stop the Sneezes and help relieve the symptoms of allergies and asthma with recommendations to improve indoor air quality; we’ve even given you a full review of the APCO Whole-House Air Purifier to help keep your indoor air quality top notch. So now, we’ll put it bluntly: bad indoor air quality is bad for your health . We spend approximately 90% of our life in home and buildings and with indoor air contaminants, including pet dander, dust, fibers, and virus-causing germs, lurking around our homes, it’s crucial to have an air purification system that can purify our air and help remove the germs that cause illness.
It affects your home
Bad air quality can affect your lungs, but it can also affect the function of your home. Indoor air with increased levels of contaminants hanging around is more taxing on your home’s heating and AC system. Contaminants clog the elements of the blower system and the home’s air filters more rapidly, causing your heating and cooling system to work harder to keep your home comfortable. Your ducts can also become dirty more quickly, resulting in inefficient airflow.
It affects your workplace
Several studies have shown that poor indoor air quality can actually have a huge effect on workplace production. Not only can it increase the symptoms of allergies and asthma, but the pollution emitted by copying machines, cleaning supplies, poorly maintained heating and AC equipment, and electrical equipment can cause headaches (even migraines), dripping eyes, and irritated throats. While these symptoms may be temporary, continued exposure to poor indoor air quality (and you’re probably spending at least 40 hours a week in the office) can result in skin irritations, respiratory problems, and other chronic conditions. On the more drastic side, radon or asbestos sneaking in through damaged foundations or ceilings can actually cause cancer and other deadly diseases and an excessive concentration of carbon monoxide can cause sudden death.
So the next time you hear the phrase indoor air quality, listen up because it could be crucial for your health and for your home. If you are unsure if your home’s indoor air quality is healthy or struggling, call Orangutan Home Services for a complimentary in-home analysis and we’ll confirm your indoor air quality levels and review whole-home air cleaning choices with you.