How to Improve Indoor Air Quality and Conserve Energy

The indoor air quality in your home is very important for your health and for energy conservation, which means that if you follow the tips presented in this article, you will pay smaller energy bills, while living in a healthier environment at home.

In 2017, an estimated 1.6 million people across the globe lost their life due to poor indoor air quality. This is a shocking statistic because when you think of pollution, you probably think of smog, pesticides, exhaust, and other types of outdoor air pollutants.

In reality, the concentrations of air pollutants inside your home can often be two to five times higher compared to the outside air. In some cases, pollutants from dust, dander, chemicals, building materials, and more can even be 100 times higher than outside.

Fortunately, improving indoor air quality doesn’t have to be a complicated or expensive endeavor. By implementing a few tips and making a few lifestyle changes, you can improve your indoor air quality, give your health a boost, and even conserve energy along the way.

If you are concerned about the quality of air inside of your home, this short and simple guide was made for you.

Tips for Improving Indoor Air Quality and Conserving Energy at Home

1. Test Your Indoor Air Quality

The first step in improving air quality is to test the air in your home to see what are you working with. An indoor air quality testing kit will screen for the most common air contaminants and give you a report on the air quality in your home. You can also install an indoor air quality monitor to track your progress. 

Air quality testing kits and monitors can be found in your local home improvement store.

2. Add Plants to Your Space

Did you know some plants act as an air filter and can improve the air quality in your home? Plants not only filter toxins and consume carbon dioxide, but they also convert the carbon dioxide into oxygen. 
Adding indoor plants for air quality is an easy, inexpensive way to breathe easier while also beautifying your home.

The best air-filtering plants are chrysanthemum, English ivy, snake plant, and peace lily. As a bonus, plants can cool the air, reducing your need for an air conditioner, and this way, helping you to conserve energy and pay less on energy bills.

3. Ventilate Your Home

An effective way to improve indoor air quality is to ventilate your home pretty often. Simply opening your windows can immediately improve the air quality in your home. Get into the habit of opening your windows for at least half an hour every day.

If you are introducing new pollutants in the air, such as buying new furniture or if you recently painted the walls, keep your windows open for a longer period of time.

4. Prevent Mold and Mildew

Preventing mold and mildew in your home is essential for several reasons. Mold and mildew not only damage your home, but can also negatively affect your health. Avoid these problems by keeping your space clean and dry, maintaining low humidity levels, and getting rid of musty odors.

You can also use indoor air quality testing to find places where mold and mildew might be present.

5. Vacuum More Often

Many air pollutants and toxins accumulate in the carpets and rugs, which means that is very important to vacuum more often. Use a vacuum cleaner with a HEPA filter to ensure that the dust, dander, and allergens are not circulated back into the air. Clean and change your vacuum filter regularly.

6. Bathe and Groom Pets Regularly

Believe it or not, your pet is a major source of air pollutants in your home. Dust is light and can stay suspended in the air for a long period, even longer than dust mites. Your pet also causes allergic reactions from dried saliva, dried feces, and their shed fur.

Bathe and groom your pet bi-weekly to avoid releasing these contaminants into the air. Be careful with over bathing, to avoid any skin problems. Be sure to use a non-toxic shampoo when bathing your pet.

7. Replace Your Blinds

Did you know that your blinds are likely contributing to poor indoor air quality? Many blinds, and other household items, are made with off-gassing chemicals, such as ammonia, formaldehyde, toluene, and benzene. Tiny particles of these chemicals are released into the air, contaminating the air, and affecting your health.

Replace your blinds with curtains to instantly improve your indoor air quality. You can also look for blind manufactures that use a greener approach to manufacturing blinds.

8. Avoid Synthetic Fragrances

Synthetic fragrances in air fresheners, scented candles, scented cleaning products, linen sprays, etc. contain harsh chemicals that contaminate your indoor air. These harsh chemicals are also known to cause serious health issues, such as birth defects, cancer, and liver and kidney damage. Avoid synthetic fragrances by choosing fragrance-free products or using products with natural fragrances, like essential oils.

Note: while many products will have an unscented label, this does not mean fragrance-free. Unscented means added fragrances to mask the smells of the other ingredients in the products.

9. Avoid Smoking Indoors

One way to improve your indoor air quality is to not allow anyone to smoke inside your home.
 
By now, the dangers of smoking are more than clear; smoking negatively affects your immune system, causing a variety of serious health conditions and diseases. Environmental tobacco smoke (ETS), or second-hand smoke, can release more than 7000 chemicals into the air, negatively affecting everyone in the vicinity of the smoker.  

Protect your health and improve the air quality in your home by stopping anyone who wants to smoke indoors.

10. Buy a Pink Himalayan Salt Lamp

A pink Himalayan salt lamp can help clean the air by killing dust mites and removing dust from the air. This is achieved by releasing negative ions into the air, which act as air purifiers. As a bonus, people who use pink Himalayan salt lamps report having increased energy levels, reduced allergies, better sleep, and a boosted mood.

11. Use the Right Paint

If you need to paint the interior of your home, choose the paint that that reduces the number of contaminants released in the air. A low volatile organic compound (VOC) paint is less toxic than regular paints and will not have the same effect on your indoor air quality. You should also use a paint that is mold and mildew resistant for an extra layer of protection.

12. Use Natural Cleaning Products

Using non-toxic and chemical-free cleaning products is a great way to improve the air quality in your home. The harsh chemicals and toxins in regular cleaning products contaminate the air and, over time, negatively affect your health. Using natural cleaning products will reduce those contaminates while being much safer for your health overall. 

Try to use only natural cleaning products to keep your home clean and healthy for you and your family.

13. Buy a Humidifier

If you live in a dry area, it’s best to add some moisture to the air to avoid all the problems that come with being dehydrated. However, adding too much moisture to the air can result in high levels of humidity, which can cause the growth of mold and mildew and result in poor air quality.

The simple solution is adding a humidifier to your space to put moisture into the air while maintaining a healthy balance. Choose the best clean humidifier for your space and make sure to use distilled water, change the water daily, change the filters regularly, and clean the humidifier every few days.

14. Schedule Yearly HVAC Maintenance

Your HVAC system can be a tool for improving air quality or a driving force behind poor air quality.

When your system is well-maintained and running properly, it keeps the humidity levels down and filters dust, dander, and other allergens from the air. However, when your system is not running properly, it can circulate the same dust, dander, and other allergens into the air. It can also encourage the growth of mold and mildew by not maintaining proper humidity levels.

Schedule regular HVAC maintenance to keep your system running properly. Consider upgrading your filters and keeping an eye out for common signs of HVAC problems. Not only will regularly maintenance the air quality, but it will also help you save money on your energy bill.

15. Air Out Dry-Cleaned Clothes

If you are a fan of getting your clothes dry-cleaned, you are likely introducing air contaminants into your home without realizing it. Most dry-cleaning companies use chemicals that are high in hazardous air pollutants (HAP) and VOCs to clean your clothes. If you need to have your clothes dry-cleaned, consider airing them out for a few hours, and ventilating your home while doing so.

You can also use a green dry-cleaning company or try one of the many DIY alternatives that are healthier for you, and better for the environment.

Conclusion

By implementing at least a few of these tips, you can improve your indoor air quality at home. As a bonus, you will also be conserving energy and paying less on your electricity bills.

Start by testing the quality of your indoor air. From there, keep your home clean and tidy to reduce the number of pollutants in the air.

Use natural products as much as possible and bathe and groom your pets regularly.

Follow these tips and you’ll be breathing cleaner air in no time.

Don’t forget to browse our site for more tips on saving energy.