Improve the Air Quality in Your Rural Home – One of the reasons you wanted a rural home and move to the country is for the clean air. About 3 billion people use open fires or traditional stoves fired by biomass, coal, and kerosene according to the World Health Organization.
These cooking methods using polluting stoves can cause 4 million people to die prematurely every year. This is due to different illnesses brought by household air pollution. It also brings several non-communicable diseases like stroke, ischaemic heart disease, lung cancer, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
Since these traditional stoves are common in rural areas, most cases happen in these places. But living in the countryside should be safer and more relaxing due to its laid-back lifestyle. To make sure that life in one of the best rural places will make you healthier, here are several ways to improve the air quality indoors.
Determine the Source
One of the best ways to stop indoor air pollution is to get rid of all the indoor sources or lessen their emissions. These sources include chemical insecticides, fumes from wood burners and kerosenes, and dust mites.
To get rid of these pollutants, you can use different methods. For example, you can replace chemical insecticides with non-toxic pesticide and insecticide methods and use flooring solutions so you have less carpet.
You may also consider changing all the air filters of the house’s heating system regularly. To further eradicate the air pollution at home, you may also install a kitchen ventilation system to lessen the levels of emissions.
Cut Down Carbon Monoxide Exposure
Using heating equipment in rural areas like wood stoves, gas-powered water heaters, unventilated kerosene heaters, and central heating systems can increase the carbon monoxide levels at home.
The level of this dangerous gas will also rise if you have faulty chimneys and broken furnaces. You can fix this by making sure that all combustion equipment at home works properly and is adjusted to lessen the toxic fume emissions.
It is also important to make sure that all the doors of the wood stoves can shut tightly. Also, it’s important to have these fixtures inspected by professional experts regularly. This will ensure that the carbon monoxide levels at home remain at the lowest level.
Outdoor Wood Furnace Review and GuideBoost Air Ventilation
When homes have proper ventilation, all the dangerous air pollutants and allergen particles circulate outdoors. Because of this, the exposure of everyone living in a rural household will have limited exposure to harmful air. Experts suggest keeping some windows open even during the cold months of winter. In addition, you can keep the attic fans open occasionally. This will also help the fresh air to circulate inside the house.
Improve the Air Quality in Your Home
Cleaning the air inside your home in the countryside can be an easy task. You just need to determine all the possible sources of pollution at home. Next, find the right methods to get rid of the harmful air particles indoors.
If possible, all homeowners should have their properties inspected by skilled experts. Doing this regularly will help sure the air quality at home remains healthy for everyone living in it.
Ways to Improve Air Quality at Home
There are many things you can do to help improve the air quality in your dwelling. Some are things you can do regularly and others are monthly or quarterly. Be sure to change your air filters regularly. Wipe down your vents. Have the air ducts professionally cleaned. Use an air purifier. Be sure you have air return vents and take care to not block them with furniture or other things. The area around them needs to be clear.
Be sure to turn on the exhaust fan in your bathroom during and after taking a shower or bath. Try to leave the door open as well to reduce condensation and to help prevent mold. Wipe down indoor condensation on windows on cold days. Hire professionals to fix leaks.
Open windows for fresh air. Use a weather app and keep windows closed on days with high ozone levels, smog, or pollution from wildfires. Have a home inspection before you buy a new home.
Some of these ideas may not apply to your situation, but do the ones that you can.
While it was once common to add houseplants to help improve a home’s air quality, it has been proven that houseplants don’t improve the air we breathe. However, plants are a way to bring the outdoors inside and often liven up a space.