Spring is here, but if you are one of the many people who suffer from seasonal allergies, this is not exciting news. Pollens from flowering shrubs and trees float through the gentle spring breezes, dust or molds from soil and plant matter settle under new-mown grass, and you end up coughing and sneezing the warm spring days away. Limiting your time outside when pollen counts are highest and stocking up on allergy meds seem to be your only recourses against spring allergies.
But allergens are airborne and can infiltrate your home through doors and windows, as well as on clothing, shoes or hair. While you can’t combat everything that attacks your sinuses outside your home, there are ways to make your living space as allergen free as possible.
Tips to Alleviate Spring Allergies and Improve IAQ
- To prevent the infiltration of outdoor allergens that bring on spring allergies, keep windows and doors closed. Use your air conditioning system with a good quality air filter to circulate and freshen indoor air. Using the exhaust vents in your kitchen, laundry room and bath can reduce pollutants and lower indoor humidity where molds and mites flourish.
- Aggressive cleaning will not only lessen outdoor pollutants but can limit the dust, mold, mites and pet dander that hide inside all the time. Vacuum and dust often, using a vacuum cleaner with a HEPA or double-filtered bag. Wearing a dust mask while cleaning protects you from surface particles disturbed while cleaning. Carpets are notorious collectors for allergens, and many allergy sufferers have opted for hardwood or tile floors which are easier to thoroughly clean.
- Portable, high-efficiency air cleaners are effective for reducing allergens and pathogens in specific areas of your home such as the bedroom. While they can’t eliminate all pollutants on their own, they do improve air quality in combination with the other measures mentioned.
Spring allergies don’t have to keep you from enjoying the season. For more information on air filtration or other home comfort solutions, contact the pros at Bill Joplin’s Air Conditioning & Heating. Our customers in the McKinney, Frisco and Allen, Texas areas have received prompt and dependable service since 1978.
