The Importance Of Good Air Quality In Your Home, And How To Improve It

We live in northern Texas, as you may know.  It's part of Tornado Alley.  That's the popular expression for the area of the US that's most prone to tornadoes.  It stretches from Texas to Iowa.  It's frequently windy, it's sometimes scary, and it's always dusty. 

image courtesy of http://www.climateandweather.net

When we first moved into our house, there was a fine sheen of dust on every surface.  We'd clean and it'd be there again the next day.  So we changed the filthy air filters.  Within a week, dust was accumulating again.  After a while, I learned that there are certain times of year when the dust is worst, but that we'd typically have to change our air filters every two months.  Certain filters we'd have to change every month.

This is a drastic difference from my life back east, where air filters were such an afterthought that they'd often only be changed once a year.

Here's a photo of one month of summer dust (left) beside a fresh, clean filter:

What's my eco-point in all of this?  Shockingly, it's actually not the matter of how many filters get tossed into a landfill.  I'll address that in a future post.  It's the issue of respiratory health. 

Part of living green is doing whatever you can to keep your environment favorable for good health.  Keep your environment clean of allergens so you don't have to pop allergy pills, so that allergies don't turn into sinus infections requiring antibiotics.

Here are a few of the ways we optimize the air in our home:

• change air filters as often as necessary (ideally, have washable filters so you don't contribute so much to your landfill)
• vacuum and dust weekly  (don't forget those high-up places where dust piles up; don't forget to get under the furniture)
• if given a choice, hard wood or tile floors are easier to keep clean than carpets and don't trap dirt and allergens
• clean surfaces and hard floors with all natural products - check out my "homemade cleaners" tab for recipes
• wash bed linens weekly in hot water to kill dust mites; clean mattress pads often
• don't wear shoes in the home - park them just inside the the door to avoid tracking in allergens and toxins
• keep pets clean - each time they venture outdoors, they track allergens and toxins back into the home
• don't leave windows open on windy days

Do you have other tips for improving the air quality in your home?