Your home should be a haven where you can take refuge from the harmful elements in the outside world. It should be the perfect place to spend time with family and friends as you relax and unwind without any significant concerns of everyday stressors. However, there are instances when your indoor space doesn’t offer as healthy of an environment as you would expect.
Poor indoor air quality is one of the most significant risks in your home or business premises. Even if every surface seems clean, there may be a high concentration of dust, pollen, and other unwanted particles. Since these contaminants are invisible to the naked eye, they can significantly affect you, your loved ones, and your employees’ health. Therefore, watch out for any signs that indicate bad indoor air quality and seek assistance from one of our professionals immediately. Here are the common symptoms of poor indoor air quality.
1. Increased Asthma Triggers
Poor indoor air is a significant risk to asthmatic people. If there is anyone in your home who has asthma, they can sense an adverse change in air quality almost immediately. Some common asthma triggers that may be lurking in your indoor space include dust mites, pet dander, pollen, and hair. When asthmatic individuals breathe in these particles, they may start experiencing issues like coughing, wheezing, chest tightening, and breathing problems. You can observe these symptoms as soon as someone gets exposed to bad indoor air. In some worse cases, they may experience episodes of asthma attacks when the harmful particles irritate the lungs. Improving the air quality in every space in your building can be lifesaving for people with asthma, even if it’s a mild case.
2. Persistent Cold and Flu Symptoms
Has there been an increase in cold and flu symptoms that seem persistent even after treatment among your family members or employees? Poor indoor air may be the source of the problem. If air pollutants are present in your building, you’ll start coughing and experiencing fatigue, congestion, or nausea. Typically, these cold and flu symptoms should last a few days. But if they last for more than a week or two, it’s more than the typical flu, and you should call our team to clean the air in your rooms.
3. Difficulty Sleeping
Getting a good night’s sleep is essential, especially after a busy day. However, you may have difficulty falling asleep when you have poor air circulating indoors. In fact, high levels of air pollution may affect your sleep efficiency by up to 60%. Low sleep efficiency means that you most likely keep turning or tossing in bed. If you have difficulty sleeping, pay attention to the air in your surrounding environment. You can rely on our experienced team to assess the air quality level in your home and devise a strategy to eliminate the pollutants that make it difficult to achieve quality sleep.
4. Dust Buildup
Typically, it’s normal to have some dust in your surroundings. But if you notice increased dust buildup around your building, especially around air vents, it may indicate increased indoor air pollutants. Note that contaminants such as dust mites feed off the dust around the air in your house. Also, if there is excess dust indoors, it’s a major cause of asthma and allergy. If your home or business requires frequent dusting or there is visible dust within a month after changing air filters, then it’s likely there are excess amounts of dust and other harmful particles in your indoor space. To manage this problem, we recommend upgrading from standard to advanced air filters. This way, you’ll have better air filtration to keep your house free of dust and other debris.
5. Unpleasant Smells
Your indoor space shouldn’t feel musty or stuffy. These unpleasant smells can come from various sources, including food, body odors, office furnishings, and chemical contaminants. Bad odors can also result from pollen, mold, and mildew buildup in the ductwork. Still, if ordinary smells linger indoors for too long, the air in your house may not be healthy.
6. Unexplained Skin Irritation or Dryness
Have you noticed dryness, red skin, or rashes on your skin, and you can’t pinpoint the possible cause? Skin rashes or redness are often associated with bad indoor air. The skin is constantly in contact with the surrounding air because the skin is the largest organ in your body. When you stay in an environment with high air pollutants, these contaminants accumulate on your skin, and the hair follicles absorb them. The pollutants cause skin dryness and inhibit the flow of nutrients.
7. Humidity Issues
The humidity levels in your building should be about 35% to 50%. When the humidity level is too low, your may experience dry sinuses, itchy eyes, or dry skin. On the other hand, too much humidity makes your indoors the perfect location for microbial, mold, and mildew growth. We can help you remedy this problem by running several tests in your home or business and offering solutions that will improve your indoor air quality (IAQ). Controlling the humidity levels in your house will ensure you have cleaner air.
8. Hot and Cold Spots
When there are inconsistencies in air distribution in your house, you’ll notice hot and cold spots within your space. This means air doesn’t flow properly, probably due to clogged ducts or your HVAC unit can’t handle the amount of air in your space. When there are uneven temperatures, it’s likely that the filtration system isn’t working effectively. As a result, the areas with hot and cold spots may hold pockets of pollutants and irritants that harm your health. Our knowledgeable professionals can help you figure out the cause of the air distribution inconsistencies and the most effective solution to ensure proper air filtration.
Seek Assistance From Your Indoor Air Quality Experts
You probably assume that staying indoors protects you and your loved ones from air pollution. However, there may be more pollutants in your indoor space than in the outdoors. Therefore, since you spend most of your time in your house, these contaminants can lead to significant health problems. Even if some of these air pollution symptoms are not severe, they can quickly escalate to complex issues when not taken care of early enough. Therefore, as soon as you suspect there are pollutants in your home or business, seek assistance from our team immediately.
For over 60 years, Bel-Aire Heating & Cooling has remained committed to ensuring our clients enjoy quality indoor comfort at all times. We have highly experienced and well-trained professionals whom you can trust to deliver 100% satisfaction in every task. Also, Bel-Aire Heating & Cooling has an A+ rating from BBB for consistently providing exceptional services. We’ll take time to conduct air quality tests and check all the critical spots, like the basement and closets, to find the source of the pollutants. Our team will then recommend an effective solution to improve your IAQ to make your space safer for your loved ones or employees. We also provide furnace and AC repairs, installations, and maintenance, as well as energy audits in West Michigan.
Talk to Bel-Aire Heating & Cooling professionals today to book a service.
