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Guide to Indoor Air Quality

Air Quality Service in St. Louis Park

Providing St. Louis Park and Minnetonka with Everything They Need to Breathe Easier

When we say, ‘air pollution’ you probably imagine a smokestack belching out chemicals or a car exhaust spitting out dark smoke. But, according to the EPA, this picture isn’t wholly accurate. You’d have been closer to the truth if you’d imagined a suburban home surrounded by a white picket fence. You see, the air inside the average American home is actually 5-10 times more polluted than what’s outside. Guessing you’re safe in St. Louis Park? Think again.

If you’re ready to clean up your air, call Air Quality Services, Inc. and ask about our indoor air quality (IAQ) services in the St. Louis Park area. For more information on solutions to the problem, read through this page in its entirety.

Reap the benefits of contaminant-free air. Reach out to our HVAC experts to schedule an IAQ consultation in Minnetonka or Edina

The Causes of Indoor Air Pollution

You’re probably asking how these contaminants get into the air in the first place. Radioactive radon seeping in from the soil, smoke from old cigarettes, off-gassing from fire retardant materials, and cleaning product vapors are just a few causes of indoor air pollution in St. Louis Park. Dust mites, mold, viruses, pet dander, and mildew also play a part. As homes become more energy-efficient and changing lifestyles lead many of us to spend more time indoors, poor air quality has become a public health crisis.

The Numbers for IAQ Services Make Sense

Indoor air quality is a big problem in the 21st century both here and abroad. As homes become better sealed against the elements, the importance of having clean air increases. Without you even knowing, your air duct system could be contaminated with particulates that are harmful to you and your family. Each time the HVAC system turns on, it can circulate dust, dust mites, animal dander, pollen, and bacteria throughout the air inside your home. Below are a few statistics that help drive home the seriousness of the IAQ crisis:

  • The EPA estimates we spend 90% of our time indoors.
  • Over 7000 non-smokers die of lung cancer each year after being exposed to residual smoke particles.
  • A study the University of Colorado Boulder in 2019 found that routine household activities put many homes air quality on par with that of a polluted major city.
  • Household air pollution is responsible for an estimated 3.2 million deaths per year.
  • The air inside the average home can be up to 100% more polluted than the air outside.

The Benefits of Improving Your Indoor Air Quality

By selecting Air Quality Services, Inc. to combat your air pollution problems, you and your family will reap a variety of benefits:

  • Better Sleep: By eliminating root causes of respiratory irritation—which can lead to snoring—our IAQ experts will help you sleep easier and wake better rested.
  • Cleaner Indoor Air: If you’re tired of smelling the cigarette your aunt smoked in the kitchen 20 years ago installing one of our products can help. Call us and kiss those musty odors, chemical smells, and lingering stenches goodbye.
  • Fewer Allergy Symptoms: Conditions like asthma and emphysema can be compounded by the presence of mold in your home’s HVAC systems. Installing a humidifier or air purifier can help remove pet dander and artificial fragrances from the air, giving you and your family relief from cold and allergy symptoms.
For many families in St. Louis Park, these benefits are more than worth the cost of installing air quality equipment. Not sure if it's in your budget? Don't worry! Quotes on humidifier and air purifier installation are complimentary.

How You May Discover You Have an Air Quality Problem

A lot of people in St. Louis Park have an air quality issue but don't realize it. They might just chalk it up to things like high pollen counts and general fatigue. But, if you regularly notice the following, it's worth getting an air quality analysis done:

  • Frequent runny noses or allergy symptoms
  • Inefficient heating and AC systems
  • You or others smoking in your home
  • The presence of shedding pets
  • Visible signs of mold or mildew
  • Anyone in your home developing a weakened immune system
  • Dust clinging to your vents and registers
  • Stale or stuffy air
  • When you’re buying a home or building one
  • Nose or skin irritation
  • Headaches, nausea, or chronic fatigue
  • Stubborn odors that don’t go away

Being mindful of the warning signs of poor indoor air quality in St. Louis Park is essential for your family's health and comfort. If any of the above sound familiar, it's time to give us a call. Our experts will work with you to address your problem and provide a solution that fits your needs. We believe every home in St. Louis Park should be a sanctuary, and addressing these concerns can help make it just that.

Our St. Louis Park-Area IAQ Solutions

Air Quality Testing

How do you know what services you’ll need if you don’t set a baseline? Our comprehensive air quality tests check your air for pollutants, VOCs (volatile organic compounds), and humidity issues. Taking only 30 minutes or so, they’re a great option for people already getting work done by our HVAC experts.

Scheduling an air quality test will:

  • Pinpoint what’s causing your home's IAQ issues
  • Illustrate the need for air quality services
Test Your Air

Dehumidifiers

Air that’s too wet is not good for you. Bacteria, mold, and viruses thrive in environments above 60 percent humidity. The high humidity also enables these contaminants to stick around longer and cling to your household’s porous surfaces. In the summer, excess humidity leaves you feeling sticky and hot.

Dehumidifiers installed in your system:

  • Expel excess moisture from your home and help you feel cooler at higher temperatures.
  • Reduce energy costs
  • Decrease the dampness in your home
  • Make summer less sticky
  • Improve overall comfort
  • Help fight bacteria, dust, and mold
Remove Excess Moisture

Dryer Vent Cleaning

Though not exactly an air quality service, dryer vent cleaning is an important part of homeownership in St. Louis Park. Every year, thousands of house fires are traced to a build-up of lint in either the dryer's trap or the pipe leading out of it. Luckily, our expert staff are equipped to truly remove all of this debris, making your home safer for you and your family. To schedule a dryer vent cleaning in Minnetonka or Edina, call (952) 928-3838.

Below are a few benefits of getting your dryer's vent regularly cleaned:

  • Faster drying clothes.
  • Less damage to sensitive garments
  • A lowered risk of house fires
  • Improved energy usage
  • Improved indoor air quality
Reduce Fire Risk

High Efficiency Filters

Looking for a way to keep your family healthy? The only filter that can capture something as small as a virus is a HEPA filter. While typically found in hospitals, residential home HEPA filters are available. However, HEPA filters restrict air flow, and cannot go directly in the return air stream back to your furnace. Instead, HEPA filters are installed in a ‘bypass’ loop in the return air ductwork. With each pass, some of the air is shunted into the bypass and is pulled through the HEPA filter by a separate fan in the HEPA unit before returning to the main air stream. This way the furnace fan motor always has adequate airflow and eventually all the air is purified by the HEPA filter. For more information on how these filters are a smart buy, reach out to us at Air Quality Services, Inc..

High-efficiency filters can help with:

  • Pet dander
  • Dust
  • Smoke
  • Germs
  • Pollen
Get Better Filters

Humidifiers

Healthy air has humidity levels between 30 and 60 percent. A home that’s too dry deprives your nose and body of moisture needed by protective mucus layers and enables germs to travel farther. It also aggravates your throat and nose leading to allergy problems. Humidifiers, of which there are three main kinds, bring water into your home’s air to solve these problems. Letting AQS install a whole-home humidifier will mean more comfortable living for you and your family.

Installing a humidifier in the St. Louis Park area will:

  • Increase the moisture in your air
  • Reduce static electricity
  • Help you feel warmer in the winter
  • Protect your wooden furniture from drying out
  • Lower heating costs
  • Calm overly active allergies
Breathe Easier

Germicidal UV Lights

With a UVC Air Purifier (also called an Ultraviolet Germicidal Irradiation, or UVGI, air purifier) we harness the sun’s power to cleanse and put it in your ductwork. Per the EPA, ‘UVGI air cleaners are designed to use UV lamps to kill or deactivate microorganisms such as viruses, bacteria, and fungal spores and fragments that are airborne or growing on surfaces.’ Typically, the application for killing microorganisms growing on surfaces is to keep the air conditioning coil above the furnace clean. However, if the purpose is to kill microorganisms in the air, the UVC Air Purifier is placed in the return air duct so that the air first passes through the UV kill zone before going through the filter or air cleaner.

Installing Germicidal lights in your ductwork will:

  • Reduce the number of germs in your home
  • Decrease your electricity costs
  • Make it easier to disinfect the air and surfaces in your home
Scrub Your Air

Air Purifiers

Air purifiers work by removing allergens, toxins, and pollutants from your air. Unlike humidifiers, they don’t emit anything and, to the uninformed, look like a heavier filtration system. While a portable air purifier may be sufficient for one or two rooms in your house, to purify your whole house, you’ll need a whole-house air purification system. Please note that these products require a forced-air system to operate effectively.

Having Air Quality Services, Inc. install an air purifier for you in the St. Louis Park area will lead to:

  • Fewer lingering odors
  • Cleaner and healthier air
  • Longer periods between filter changes

To schedule your Air Quality Services in Minnetonka MN, just email us!

Scrub Your Air

Air Exchangers

The desire to leak-proof our homes and seal up old ducts has compounded our air quality issues. Many modern IAQ issues could actually be fixed by bringing fresh air in. That’s where air exchangers (aka ventilators) come in. They use one fan system to blow indoor air out and another to pull outside air in. This stops pollutants from overstaying their welcome and alleviates many of the symptoms of "Sick Building Syndrome.”

Air exchangers offer the following benefits to people in the Edina area:

  • Reduced heating and AC costs
  • Allergy expulsion
  • Improvements to overall air quality
Cleaner Air Today

Duct Cleaning

Over time, dust and germs build up in your home’s ductwork. Vacuuming your registers can help but won’t reach things deep inside your ductwork. Getting duct cleaning done every few years can help remove long-standing odors and remove the irritants caught by other items on this list.

Calling St. Louis Park’s duct cleaning experts will:

  • Make it easier to retrieve items you dropped down the vents
  • Allergy expulsion
  • Improve overall air quality
Clean Your Ducts

General Duct Services

Sometimes a simple duct cleaning isn't enough to fix an air quality problem in St. Louis Park. Old ductwork develops leaks over time. Though usually thought of as a ventilation issue, this can have an impact on the quality of your air. Fortunately, AQS is a full-service HVAC provider with the ability to repair, seal, and replace leaky ductwork.

Duct repair and sealing has a number of benefits in St. Louis Park, including:

  • More efficient heating and cooling of your home
  • Less dust build-up in your home
  • Fewer access points for pests
Replace Old Ductwork

Call AQS for Indoor Air Quality Services in St. Louis Park

For households with existing IAQ equipment, we also offer comprehensive maintenance and repair services. If you have a filter or humidity control system that’s not working right, give us a call at (952) 928-3838, so we can try and uncover the problem.

At Air Quality Services, Inc., we’ve been helping homeowners with their IAQ problems for years, since 1996, in fact. We always take the time to explain possible solutions and outline the costs ahead of time. Our HVAC company stands firmly behind the products we sell and are always willing to come back and investigate if air pollution issues recur. We service St. Louis Park, Minnetonka, Edina, and the surrounding communities. Therefore, if you're looking for an 'IAQ company near me,' you know you've come to the right place. Please reach out to us at (952) 928-3838 today to schedule an air quality evaluation or get a quote on dehumidifier installation in St. Louis Park.

Indoor Air Quality FAQs

Do Humidity Levels REALLY Affect My Indoor Air Quality?

Yes, they do. Homes with exceedingly high humidity levels end up with mold, dust mites, and mildew. Houses with humidity that’s too low, meanwhile, experience dust and recurring sinus issues. Maintaining your home’s humidity levels between 30 and 50 percent keeps you in the “Comfort Zone”.

Studies show that air in your home is likely more polluted than the air outside. No matter how tidy your house is, your air will still be filled with pollen, viruses, dust, and pet dander. Only installing an air sanitizer or UV germicidal lights in your HVAC system can truly expel these contaminants.

The most frequently found contaminants in your home are relatively harmless except for causing discomfort to those who may be allergic. They include pollen, fabric fibers, dust, pet dander, and other common household particles.

Start by determining how thick of a filter your system can accommodate. Most HVAC systems can’t accommodate filters that are more than an inch thick. We recommend using only filters with a particle removal rating of MERV 11 or higher. This is especially important if anyone in your home suffers from respiratory or cardiac disease. You might also want to consider installing a much thicker, more efficient filter.

If you’ve done any research on IAQ, you’ve probably seen references to Sick Building Syndrome (SBS). This term comes from a study where public workers in one building reported headaches, fatigue, nausea, nose irritation, and watery eyes. Researchers examined this building and found it to have a lot of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in the air. This case gave birth to the term and is now used as a diagnosis for someone who experiences air pollution symptoms at work and notices an immediate improvement upon returning home.

We recommend that homeowners who are concerned with the quality of the air they breathe take the following steps:

  • Purchase a HEPA filter
  • Vacuum, mop, and dust regularly to avoid airborne pollutants
  • Choose natural woods and furnishings that don't come with VOCs or emit chemical vapors
  • Open your windows and air your home out from time to time
  • Install a thermostat that includes humidity readings

The Inside Story: A Guide to Indoor Air Quality

Introduction

Indoor Air Quality Concerns

All of us face a variety of risks to our health as we go about our day-to-day lives. Driving in cars, flying in planes, engaging in recreational activities, and being exposed to environmental pollutants all pose varying degrees of risk. Some risks are simply unavoidable. Some we choose to accept because to do otherwise would restrict our ability to lead our lives the way we want. And some are risks we might decide to avoid if we had the opportunity to make informed choices. Indoor air pollution is one risk that you can do something about. 

In the last several years, a growing body of scientific evidence has indicated that the air within homes and other buildings can be more seriously polluted than the outdoor air in even the largest and most industrialized cities. Other research indicates that people spend approximately 90 percent of their time indoors. Thus, for many people, the risks to health may be greater due to exposure to air pollution indoors than outdoors.

In addition, people who may be exposed to indoor air pollutants for the longest periods of time are often those most susceptible to the effects of indoor air pollution. Such groups include the young, the elderly, and the chronically ill, especially those suffering from respiratory or cardiovascular disease.

Why a Safety Guide on Indoor Air?

While pollutant levels from individual sources may not pose a significant health risk by themselves, most homes have more than one source that contributes to indoor air pollution. There can be a serious risk from the cumulative effects of these sources. Fortunately, there are steps that most people can take both to reduce the risk from existing sources and to prevent new problems from occurring. This safety guide was prepared by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) to help you decide whether to take actions that can reduce the level of indoor air pollution in your own home. 

Because so many Americans spend a lot of time in offices with mechanical heating, cooling, and ventilation systems, there is also a short section on the causes of poor air quality in offices and what you can do if you suspect that your office may have a problem. A glossary and a list of organizations where you can get additional information are available in this document.

Indoor Air Quality in Your Home

What Causes Indoor Air Problems?

Indoor pollution sources that release gases or particles into the air are the primary cause of indoor air quality problems in homes. Inadequate ventilation can increase indoor pollutant levels by not bringing in enough outdoor air to dilute emissions from indoor sources and by not carrying indoor air pollutants out of the home. High temperature and humidity levels can also increase concentrations of some pollutants.

Pollutant Sources

There are many sources of indoor air pollution in any home. These include combustion sources such as oil, gas, kerosene, coal, wood, and tobacco products; building materials and furnishings as diverse as deteriorated, asbestos-containing insulation, wet or damp carpet, and cabinetry or furniture made of certain pressed wood products; products for household cleaning and maintenance, personal care, or hobbies; central heating and cooling systems and humidification devices; and outdoor sources such as radon, pesticides, and outdoor air pollution.

The relative importance of any single source depends on how much of a given pollutant it emits and how hazardous those emissions are. In some cases, factors such as how old the source is and whether it is properly maintained are significant. For example, an improperly adjusted gas stove can emit significantly more carbon monoxide than one that is properly adjusted. 

Some sources, such as building materials, furnishings, and household products like air fresheners, release pollutants more or less continuously. Other sources, related to activities carried out in the home, release pollutants intermittently. These include smoking, the use of unvented or malfunction-ing stoves, furnaces, or space heaters, the use of solvents in cleaning and hobby activities, the use of paint strippers in redecorating activities, and the use of cleaning products and pesticides in housekeeping. High pollutant concentrations can remain in the air for long periods after some of these activities. 

Amount of Ventilation

If too little outdoor air enters a home, pollutants can accumulate to levels that can pose health and comfort problems. Unless they are built with special mechanical means of ventilation, homes that are designed and constructed to minimize the amount of outdoor air that can "leak" into and out of the home may have higher pollutant levels than other homes. However, because some weather conditions can drastically reduce the amount of outdoor air that enters a home, pollutants can build up even in homes that are normally considered "leaky."

How Does Outdoor Air Enter a House?

Outdoor air enters and leaves a house by: infiltration, natural ventilation, and mechanical ventilation. In a process known as infiltration, outdoor air flows into the house through openings, joints, and cracks in walls, floors, and ceilings, and around windows and doors. In natural ventilation, air moves through opened windows and doors. Air movement associated with infiltration and natural ventilation is caused by air temperature differences between indoors and outdoors and by wind. Finally, there are a number of mechanical ventilation devices, from outdoor-vented fans that intermittently remove air from a single room, such as bathrooms and kitchen, to air handling systems that use fans and duct work to continuously remove indoor air and distribute filtered and conditioned outdoor air to strategic points throughout the house. The rate at which outdoor air replaces indoor air is described as the air exchange rate. When there is little infiltration, natural ventilation, or mechanical ventilation, the air exchange rate is low and pollutant levels can increase.

What If You Live in an Apartment?

Apartments can have the same indoor air problems as single-family homes because many of the pollution sources, such as the interior building materials, furnishings, and household products, are similar. Indoor air problems similar to those in offices are caused by such sources as contaminated ventilation systems, improperly placed outdoor air intakes, or maintenance activities.

Solutions to air quality problems in apartments, as in homes and offices, involve such actions as: eliminating or controlling the sources of pollution, increasing ventilation, and installing air cleaning devices. Often a resident can take the appropriate action to improve the indoor air quality by removing a source, altering an activity, unblocking an air supply vent, or opening a window to temporarily increase the ventilation; in other cases, however, only the building owner or manager is in a position to remedy the problem. (See the section "What to Do If You Suspect a Problem") You can encourage building management to follow guidance in EPA and NIOSH's Building Air Quality: A Guide for Building Owners and Facility Managers. To obtain the looseleaf-fomat version of the Building Air Quality, complete with appendices, an index, and a full set of useful forms, and the newly released, Building Air Quality Action Plan, order GPO Stock # 055-000-00602-4, for $28, contact the: Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office (GPO), P.O. Box 371954, Pittsburgh, PA 15250-7954, or call (202) 512-1800, fax (202) 512-2250.

Improving the Air Quality in Your Home 

Indoor Air and Your Health

Health effects from indoor air pollutants may be experienced soon after exposure or, possibly, years later.

Immediate effects may show up after a single exposure or repeated exposures. These include irritation of the eyes, nose, and throat, headaches, dizziness, and fatigue. Such immediate effects are usually short-term and treatable. Sometimes the treatment is simply eliminating the person's exposure to the source of the pollution, if it can be identified. Symptoms of some diseases, including asthma, hypersensitivity pneumonitis, and humidifier fever, may also show up soon after exposure to some indoor air pollutants.

The likelihood of immediate reactions to indoor air pollutants depends on several factors. Age and preexisting medical conditions are two important influences. In other cases, whether a person reacts to a pollutant depends on individual sensitivity, which varies tremendously from person to person. Some people can become sensitized to biological pollutants after repeated exposures, and it appears that some people can become sensitized to chemical pollutants as well. 

Certain immediate effects are similar to those from colds or other viral diseases, so it is often difficult to determine if the symptoms are a result of exposure to indoor air pollution. For this reason, it is important to pay attention to the time and place the symptoms occur. If the symptoms fade or go away when a person is away from the home and return when the person returns, an effort should be made to identify indoor air sources that may be possible causes. Some effects may be made worse by an inadequate supply of outdoor air or from the heating, cooling, or humidity conditions prevalent in the home.

Other health effects may show up either years after exposure has occurred or only after long or repeated periods of exposure. These effects, which include some respiratory diseases, heart disease, and cancer, can be severely debilitating or fatal. It is prudent to try to improve the indoor air quality in your home even if symptoms are not noticeable. More information on potential health effects from particular indoor air pollutants is provided in the section, "A Look at Source-Specific Controls."

While pollutants commonly found in indoor air are responsible for many harmful effects, there is considerable uncertainty about what concentrations or periods of exposure are necessary to produce specific health problems. People also react very differently to exposure to indoor air pollutants. Further research is needed to better understand which health effects occur after exposure to the average pollutant concentrations found in homes and which occur from the higher concentrations that occur for short periods of time.

The health effects associated with some indoor air pollutants are summarized in the section "Reference Guide to Major Indoor Air Pollutants in the Home."

Identifying Air Quality Problems

Some health effects can be useful indicators of an indoor air quality problem, especially if they appear after a person moves to a new residence, remodels or refurnishes a home, or treats a home with pesticides. If you think that you have symptoms that may be related to your home environment, discuss them with your doctor or your local health department to see if they could be caused by indoor air pollution. You may also want to consult a board-certified allergist or an occupational medicine specialist for answers to your questions. 

Another way to judge whether your home has or could develop indoor air problems is to identify potential sources of indoor air pollution. Although the presence of such sources does not necessarily mean that you have an indoor air quality problem, being aware of the type and number of potential sources is an important step toward assessing the air quality in your home. 

A third way to decide whether your home may have poor indoor air quality is to look at your lifestyle and activities. Human activities can be significant sources of indoor air pollution. Finally, look for signs of problems with the ventilation in your home. Signs that can indicate your home may not have enough ventilation include moisture condensation on windows or walls, smelly or stuffy air, dirty central heating and air cooling equipment, and areas where books, shoes, or other items become moldy. To detect odors in your home, step outside for a few minutes, and then upon reentering your home, note whether odors are noticeable.

Measuring Pollutant Levels

The federal government recommends that you measure the level of radon in your home. Without measurements there is no way to tell whether radon is present because it is a colorless, odorless, radioactive gas. Inexpensive devices are available for measuring radon. EPA provides guidance as to risks associated with different levels of exposure and when the public should consider corrective action. There are specific mitigation techniques that have proven effective in reducing levels of radon in the home. (See "Radon" for additional information about testing and controlling radon in homes.)

For pollutants other than radon, measurements are most appropriate when there are either health symptoms or signs of poor ventilation and specific sources or pollutants have been identified as possible causes of indoor air quality problems. Testing for many pollutants can be expensive. Before monitoring your home for pollutants besides radon, consult your state or local health department or professionals who have experience in solving indoor air quality problems in nonindustrial buildings.

Weatherizing Your Home

The federal government recommends that homes be weatherized in order to reduce the amount of energy needed for heating and cooling. While weatherization is underway, however, steps should also be taken to minimize pollution from sources inside the home. (See "Improving the Air Quality in Your Home" for recommended actions.) In addition, residents should be alert to the emergence of signs of inadequate ventilation, such as stuffy air, moisture condensation on cold surfaces, or mold and mildew growth. Additional weatherization measures should not be undertaken until these problems have been corrected.

Weatherization generally does not cause indoor air problems by adding new pollutants to the air. (There are a few exceptions, such as caulking, that can sometimes emit pollutants.) However, measures such as installing storm windows, weather stripping, caulking, and blown-in wall insulation can reduce the amount of outdoor air infiltrating into a home. Consequently, after weatherization, concentrations of indoor air pollutants from sources inside the home can increase.

Three Basic Strategies

Source Control

Usually the most effective way to improve indoor air quality is to eliminate individual sources of pollution or to reduce their emissions. Some sources, like those that contain asbestos, can be sealed or enclosed; others, like gas stoves, can be adjusted to decrease the amount of emissions. In many cases, source control is also a more cost-efficient approach to protecting indoor air quality than increasing ventilation because increasing ventilation can increase energy costs. Specific sources of indoor air pollution in your home are listed later in this section. 

Ventilation Improvements

Another approach to lowering the concentrations of indoor air pollutants in your home is to increase the amount of outdoor air coming indoors. Most home heating and cooling systems, including forced air heating systems, do not mechanically bring fresh air into the house. Opening windows and doors, operating window or attic fans, when the weather permits, or running a window air conditioner with the vent control open increases the outdoor ventilation rate. Local bathroom or kitchen fans that exhaust outdoors remove contaminants directly from the room where the fan is located and also increase the outdoor air ventilation rate.

It is particularly important to take as many of these steps as possible while you are involved in short-term activities that can generate high levels of pollutants--for example, painting, paint stripping, heating with kerosene heaters, cooking, or engaging in maintenance and hobby activities such as welding, soldering, or sanding. You might also choose to do some of these activities outdoors, if you can and if weather permits.

Advanced designs of new homes are starting to feature mechanical systems that bring outdoor air into the home. Some of these designs include energy-efficient heat recovery ventilators (also known as air-to-air heat exchangers). For more information about air-to-air heat exchangers, contact the Conservation and Renewable Energy Inquiry and Referral Service (CAREIRS), PO Box 3048, Merrifield, VA 22116; (800) 523-2929. 

Air Cleaners

There are many types and sizes of air cleaners on the market, ranging from relatively inexpensive table-top models to sophisticated and expensive whole-house systems. Some air cleaners are highly effective at particle removal, while others, including most table-top models, are much less so. Air cleaners are generally not designed to remove gaseous pollutants.

The effectiveness of an air cleaner depends on how well it collects pollutants from indoor air (expressed as a percentage efficiency rate) and how much air it draws through the cleaning or filtering element (expressed in cubic feet per minute). A very efficient collector with a low air-circulation rate will not be effective, nor will a cleaner with a high air-circulation rate but a less efficient collector. The long-term performance of any air cleaner depends on maintaining it according to the manufacturer's directions.

Another important factor in determining the effectiveness of an air cleaner is the strength of the pollutant source. Table-top air cleaners, in particular, may not remove satisfactory amounts of pollutants from strong nearby sources. People with a sensitivity to particular sources may find that air cleaners are helpful only in conjunction with concerted efforts to remove the source.

Over the past few years, there has been some publicity suggesting that houseplants have been shown to reduce levels of some chemicals in laboratory experiments. There is currently no evidence, however, that a reasonable number of houseplants remove significant quantities of pollutants in homes and offices. Indoor houseplants should not be over-watered because overly damp soil may promote the growth of microorganisms which can affect allergic individuals. 

At present, EPA does not recommend using air cleaners to reduce levels of radon and its decay products. The effectiveness of these devices is uncertain because they only partially remove the radon decay products and do not diminish the amount of radon entering the home. EPA plans to do additional research on whether air cleaners are, or could become, a reliable means of reducing the health risk from radon. EPA's booklet, Residential Air-Cleaning Devices, provides further information on air-cleaning devices to reduce indoor air pollutants.

For most indoor air quality problems in the home, source control is the most effective solution. This section takes a source-by-source look at the most common indoor air pollutants, their potential health effects, and ways to reduce levels in the home. (For a summary of the points made in this section, see the section entitled "Reference Guide to Major Indoor Air Pollutants in the Home.") EPA has recently released, Ozone Generators That Are Sold As Air Cleaners. The purpose of this document (which is only available via this web site) is to provide accurate information regarding the use of ozone-generating devices in indoor occupied spaces. This information is based on the most credible scientific evidence currently available.

EPA has recently published, "Should You Have the Air Ducts in Your Home Cleaned?" EPA-402-K-97-002, October 1997. This document is intended to help consumers answer this often confusing question. The document explains what air duct cleaning is, provides guidance to help consumers decide whether to have the service performed in their home, and provides helpful information for choosing a duct cleaner, determining if duct cleaning was done properly, and how to prevent contamination of air ducts.

To order a printed copy of this booklet, send your publication request to: publications@cpsc.gov


Source: Consumer Product Safety Commission
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24 Hour Emergency Service!
Call (952) 928-3838 or,
Fill Out Our Online Form
ADDRESS:   7900 Excelsior Blvd. #750 Hopkins, MN 55343
HOURS:   Mon - Fri: 7AM - 5PM
PHONE:   (952) 928-3838
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