There are a lot of things that people are allergic to from dust mites to pollen, to mold. During every season there is a potential trigger to your allergies that can make you miserable. Unfortunately, many people don’t even know what they are allergic to if they haven’t done an at-home allergy test yet. All they know is that during certain times of the year they suffer from itchy eyes, sneezing, and congestion that makes life unbearable.
The cause of the allergies in most of these cases is the house the people live in. Houses end up trapping many allergens and collecting them in a small space. This creates a density of the allergen in one place where you are highly exposed to it. To be able to get some relief you have to deal with the house as the source of the allergy so you can remove the threat. In this article, we will give you several tips to prepare your house for allergy season and mitigate the problem.
1 – Use robust air filters
Most people with an HVAC system for central heating and air conditioning end up suffering more than those without. That’s because the ducts and filters end up blowing a lot of the particles throughout the house that you’re allergic to. They get trapped in the system where they accumulate and the high concentration of allergens then get blown around.
To combat this effect it pays to have your HVAC system serviced regularly so it is cleaned out, but also to install an HVAC air purifier. These filters will stop the spread of allergens in the home and remove them to a level that you barely notice allergies as a result of the HVAC.
There are allergens that come in from the outside and affect people who don’t have an HVAC system, as well. In this case, it is a good idea to get a number of air purifiers with a HEPA filter that will remove particles several microns in size so you get some relief. When air is slowing into your house, allergens come in and get concentrated in that area. A filter will get rid of this since a breeze isn’t going to be able to blow them away.
You should also put a filter into your vacuum cleaner as it is also going to blow allergens around the room when the air flows out of it. Some particles are small enough to pass through the standard filter your vacuum already has. If you can replace it with a HEPA filter then you can remove many allergens that are really small such as pollen.
2 – Clean the carpets regularly
Carpets are another repository for allergens as they settle into the fibers and get trapped there. Over time, they accumulate and become very concentrated. There are loads of dust mites and layers of dead skin cells that we shed every day. Then when we walk around, these particles are kicked up and float around in the air to be breathed in and trigger an allergic reaction.
Vacuuming with a HEPA filter does help but the vacuum can only clear so much of it away. The key is to have the rug professionally cleaned. It involves steam cleaning either in the house or you can send the carpet away if it is not a wall-to-wall type.
This will clean all the way down to the very bottom of the rug or carpet and lift the particles away to be sucked up by the cleaner. There are chemicals in the process that will kill things like mold spores and bacteria which are likely also lurking in the fibers and causing allergic reactions as well.
3 – Get rid of mold
Many houses have mold problems and this causes a lot of respiratory problems. When mold is allowed to grow, it can be very difficult to get rid of. The trick is to stop it before it starts getting out of control.
The first step is to identify the source of the mold that is usually caused by humidity in the house. Look for leaky pipes that make it allow water to get into the walls. This attracts mold and will be difficult to get rid of if there is a source of water always there.
Look to keep the house aerated so that there is no humidity building up inside. Open up the windows occasionally to let fresh air flow in and out of the house to remove the humid air.