Statesville, NC weather can vary wildly throughout the year, and in the winter months, it can get quite chilly. While many people experience a decrease in their seasonal allergies during the winter, there are others who seem just as affected by their environment year-round. Let’s discuss how cold weather affects the quality of the air and why your indoor air quality matters.
The Air Quality Outside
When the weather outside is cold, this affects air quality. Because cold air is denser than warm air, it moves much slower. This allows it to trap particulate matter from pollution and other contaminants much more than would occur in the summer with warm temperatures. These irritants will remain in the air for a longer period, potentially causing symptoms in sensitive individuals. We’re also seeing an increase in outdoor pollution caused by global warming, vehicles emitting pollutants, and so on.
You probably have your home closed up more in the winter months, but there is still outside air that is making its way inside. This occurs through gaps and cracks around windows and doors, in your foundation, and on your roof. Sealing up these areas can help protect you from any pollutants that are outside. Use materials like caulk, weatherstripping, and expanding spray foam to provide a tight seal.
Symptoms associated with poor outdoor air quality are similar to those you may experience in the spring and summer months. These include a stuffy nose, itchy eyes, coughing, and headaches. The air tends to be drier in the winter as well, which can cause sinus and respiratory irritation.
Indoor Air Quality (IAQ)
The quality of indoor air is very important since you spend a lot of time inside your home during the winter months. Unfortunately, many homes experience indoor air quality that is worse than what’s outside. The IAQ worsens as the winter goes on, and you keep your windows and doors closed.
Common IAQ culprits include things like pet dander, dust, dust mites, mold spores, and volatile organic compounds. Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are chemicals that are emitted from things like new building materials, paint, chemical-based cleaning products, air fresheners, and detergents. Exposure to indoor contaminants can lead to allergy symptoms as well as other health issues like nausea, fatigue, and changes in mood.
Improving Your Indoor Air Quality
While you can’t control the quality of the air that is outside of your home, there are ways that you can promote a healthier indoor living environment. There is a filter inside of your HVAC system that removes many of the larger particulates that pass through the system as your furnace runs. Unfortunately, these filters don’t always do a great job of removing the smaller particles. Also, traditional fiberglass and pleated filters don’t have the ability to remove VOCs from the air.
You can upgrade the filter that you’re using in your HVAC system to trap more particulate matter and boost IAQ. The minimum-efficiency reporting value, or MERV, is used to rate a filter based on how effective it is. The higher the MERV rating, the better it will be at improving your indoor air quality. Just be careful about the type of filter you select. Don’t immediately opt for one with the highest MERV rating available. Many residential furnaces don’t have the ability to handle the airflow restriction that comes with filters that are rated above 12. Refer to the owner’s manual that came with your furnace for more information, or give us a call.
Whole-house filtration is another method of removing particulate matter from your indoor air. As air runs through your HVAC system, it will pass through filtration equipment that removes as much as 99.97% of the particulates in the air. Many of these units use high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filters. You can also use activated carbon filters to reduce odors in the home and remove VOCs.
UV-C light technology is another upgrade to consider. This equipment is usually used as part of a whole-house filtration setup. As air passes through a UV-C light, the light will destroy the DNA of any viruses, bacteria, or pathogens that are present. This can help keep everyone in your home healthier throughout the winter months when it’s normally difficult to prevent the spread of germs.
Dealing With Dry Air
Homes in the Statesville area tend to feel very dry in winter. This is because the cold air tends to be dry. However, running your heating equipment can also result in dry air. There’s not much you can do about the dryness of cold air, but you can add moisture back into your indoor air. Many people use portable humidifiers in areas of the home like bedrooms. However, you can have a whole-house unit installed onto your HVAC system to add moisture into the air that circulates through your entire home. A whole-house humidifier can be turned off during the summer months when the air tends to be more humid. It requires minimal maintenance and does a great job at making your indoor air more comfortable and healthier.
Monitoring Your Indoor Air Quality
To understand the quality of your indoor air, you should start by having an indoor air quality assessment performed by our team. We can alert you to the different types of particulate matter that are in your indoor air. After improvements and changes have been made to improve your IAQ, we recommend retesting your air periodically. This lets us know if a positive change has been achieved. We can also spot any new problems that may have come up and address those.
If you’re still using a basic thermostat, you may want to consider an upgrade. Newer smart thermostats can allow you to monitor things like temperature, humidity levels, and indoor air quality while you’re at home and remotely when you are not. You can make changes to your indoor temperature, humidifier, and air purification equipment no matter where you are.
You can make healthier choices that will benefit you and your family from an air quality perspective. For example, choose greener cleaning products to maintain your home. These products usually use natural ingredients to sanitize and clean, rather than chemicals. Stay away from chemical-based air fresheners, detergents with fragrance, and scented candles. In the winter months when your home is closed up, these scents and chemicals will linger in the air and can cause several health issues.
If you would like assistance with addressing the quality of the air inside of your Statesville home, reach out to our team. We can perform an indoor air quality assessment and install whole-house purification systems. We can help improve your IAQ by using ventilation and upgrading your HVAC equipment. We also install whole-house humidifiers and dehumidifiers, perform annual maintenance, and handle duct replacement and dryer vent cleaning.
Contact Evergreen Heating & Air LLC in Statesville today to schedule an appointment.
