Pollen season can be an absolute nightmare for anyone with allergies. In many cases, you can’t even find much relief indoors due to all the pollen that makes its way inside of your home. While there’s obviously not much you can do to combat pollen outside, there are some effective ways that you can reduce pollen inside of your house and improve your overall indoor air quality.
Keep the Pollen Out
If you deal with summer allergies, the first step in reducing your allergy symptoms while at home is just trying to keep the pollen out of your house. That means keeping windows and doors shut and relying on your AC unit to keep you cool. It also means making sure everyone takes their shoes off at the door to prevent them from tracking pollen through your residence. If your allergies are severe or the pollen count is especially high, you may even want to consider taking off your clothes and bagging them up when coming in from outside and then showering to wash any remaining pollen off.
Vacuum, Mop, and Dust Regularly
No matter how hard you try, pollen will always find a way into your house and end up settling on your floors, counters, and other surfaces. It then continually gets stirred up and circulates in the air as people move around the house, contributing to an increase in allergy symptoms. The best way to avoid this is by mopping and vacuuming your floors and cleaning all the surfaces in your home regularly. Using a HEPA-filter vacuum is also extremely helpful. HEPA filters can trap nearly 100% of pollen and allergens, whereas vacuums with a regular filter often just stir the allergens up.
Use a More Efficient HVAC Air Filter
HVAC air filters have a rating that tells you how effective they are at trapping both larger and smaller particles. Some types of pollen are large enough that even a basic air filter will remove a fairly significant percentage of them from the air. However, many types are small enough that they can flow straight through many filters. As such, using a filter with a higher rating is an important step in reducing indoor pollen.
For standard 1-inch HVAC filters, you want to look for something with a rating of MERV 10 to 12. An even better option is to upgrade your HVAC system with a media filter or an electronic air cleaner, as both of these provide a much higher level of filtration and will remove much more pollen from the air. Whole-home air purifiers are also a great option, as they remove pollen and allergens as well as a wide range of other pollutants and contaminants.
It’s also important that you check the air filter regularly and don’t let it get too dirty. A dirty air filter always contributes to poor AC performance and a reduction in energy efficiency. If the filter is too dirty, it can also result in air getting sucked in through other places. That means the air won’t get filtered, and your air conditioner will just continually blow pollen and other allergens around your house.
Run the HVAC Fan for More Effective Air Filtration
There will often be some days during allergy season when it’s not necessary to have your air conditioning running or your AC unit won’t run very often. On these occasions, you may want to periodically turn on the HVAC fan and let it run for 15-20 minutes. That way, the fan will circulate air throughout your house and repeatedly get drawn through the air filter.
Have Your Air Ducts Professionally Cleaned
You’d be surprised to see the amount of dust, pollen, and other allergens that collect in air ducts over time. The HVAC system then blows lots of this stuff into every room as it runs, resulting in a significant drop in air quality throughout the house. This is where scheduling a professional duct cleaning service every few years is beneficial, as it greatly reduces the amount of allergens that the HVAC system circulates. Most experts say you should have your ducts cleaned every three to five years. However, if you or anyone in your household suffers from severe allergies, it’s something you may want to have done every year or two.
Effective Indoor Air Quality and Home Allergy Solutions
With over 50 years of experience, A+ Derr is the company to trust for indoor air quality services. We offer a range of effective solutions to meet your IAQ needs, including air purifiers, humidifiers, dehumidifiers, duct cleaning, and more. To get help with tackling your air quality issues or to schedule any other HVAC service in Louisville, Newburgh or Evansville, contact us today.
