While the weather in Oklahoma City, OK is beautiful during the summer, there are some air quality challenges that may come up. High levels of pollen can aggravate allergy symptoms, making you itchy and resulting in a stuffy nose. Pollution from automobiles and nearby commercial buildings can also cause poor air quality.
As you head indoors to find relief, it’s important that you ensure your indoor air quality is safe and healthy. There are some specific indoor air quality concerns that have the potential to make the air inside your home worse than what’s outside.
Common Indoor Air Quality Issues
While the contaminants inside your home can vary from one day to the next, there are common culprits that many homeowners deal with. For example, homes with pets experience high concentrations of dander. Pollen from the outside can come in on your clothing, shoes and body.
Other issues include dust and dust mites, mold spores and volatile organic compounds (VOCs). While exposure to individual contaminants may be low, ongoing exposure to these things over time can lead to dizziness, brain fog, fatigue, inflammation and mood issues.
People often don’t understand the importance of avoiding VOCs. There are many different products and materials in your home that off-gas chemicals into your air. This includes new building materials, furniture with flame retardants, chemical-based cleaning products and air fresheners. If you don’t have a healthy exchange of air between the outside and inside of your home, VOC concentrations can rise and make you feel unwell.
VOC exposure can raise your risk of certain types of cancers and cause headaches, fatigue and nausea. Traditional forms of filtration don’t remove VOCs from your air, so you’ll need to rely on enhanced forms of filtration to remove them.
Wildfires are common in Oklahoma, and the smoke can spread for miles, even impacting nearby states. Even if your windows and doors are closed, the smoke can infiltrate your residence through small gaps and cracks. Within hours you can experience your eyes burning and irritation to your airways.
If your HVAC system brings outside air in to be cooled or heated, you may be doing more harm than good by running your air conditioner or furnace during wildfire season. You can invest in enhanced filtration to combat this problem.
Considering Your Relative Humidity
The relative humidity inside your OKC home should be between 35% and 50%. The average humidity outside in this area is approximately 60%. This can make your home feel stuffy and uncomfortable. These conditions can also promote the growth of mold and mildew over time.
You may open your windows and doors to allow fresh air to come inside. Do so only in the very early morning hours or late in the evening when humidity tends to be at its lowest level.
You can remove moisture from your indoor air using a whole-home dehumidifier. This equipment is installed directly on your HVAC system and functions when your air conditioner or furnace is running. Your AC can remove some degree of moisture, but often it’s not enough. Keep in mind, humid air holds onto particulate matter very well, increasing your risk of exposure.
Improving Your Indoor Air Quality in Summer
If you know that the conditions outside are not ideal, keep your home closed for the time being. It’s still important to practice ventilation. However, turn to equipment like exhaust fans for this purpose. You should run these fans in your bathroom when you shower or bathe. If you have a fan above your stovetop in the kitchen, run it when you’re cooking.
Utilize your air conditioning equipment to keep your home cool and to remove particulate matter from your indoor air. Make sure that you keep up with changing your filter frequently. If this filter becomes clogged, it won’t have sufficient surface area to filter out a high number of contaminants. You can even consider upgrading the type of filter you’re using in the summer months.
Refer to the MERV rating on your filter. Most residential HVAC systems can handle a MERV rating between 8 and 12. Anything above 12 can lead to airflow restrictions that damage the interior components of your HVAC system.
Consider having a whole-home air filtration system installed onto your HVAC system. Using enhanced filtration, you can remove up to 99.97% of the particulate matter in your air. There are different types of filtrations available, including activated carbon filters and high-efficiency particulate air filters (HEPA).
Whole-home air purifiers are a wise investment in areas of the country that experience wildfires and heavy pollution. They work very well to alleviate symptoms associated with seasonal and environmental allergies.
Don’t Neglect Routine Maintenance and Inspections
It’s very important to keep up with annual HVAC inspections and maintenance. If your system isn’t working properly, this can lead to worse indoor air quality. You may be spreading mold or bacteria through your air. We can let you know if there are repairs that need to be made.
We’ll also keep you informed so you know when to expect an AC or furnace replacement. We lubricate moving parts to reduce friction, clean interior components, tighten loose connections and much more. These small tasks go a long way towards maintaining healthy indoor air quality with the help of your HVAC system.
Consider having your ductwork inspected and cleaned every three to five years. If there is damage to your ductwork, this can allow particulate matter to accumulate. As your air conditioning equipment runs during the summer, these particulates will circulate into your living spaces. We can clean your ducts and seal them to prevent future accumulation.
Always have a professional perform your inspections, maintenance and repairs. Doing so yourself can void your warranty coverage and lead to larger problems.
Considering Indoor Air Quality Choices
The choices you make each day can impact the quality of the air inside your home. If you allow people to smoke in your home, this can increase your exposure to harmful carcinogens and chemicals. If you do a lot of cooking, this can increase your exposure to particulate matter and cooking fumes.
If you use chemical-based cleaning products and air fresheners in your home, this decreases the quality of your indoor air. There are healthier options you can choose, including those made from natural ingredients. Make your own cleaning products using ingredients you have in your home, such as vinegar and baking soda.
If you’re going to be replacing things like carpet or flooring, try to choose materials that have low levels of VOCs. Also, purchasing pre-owned furniture and opting for solid hardwood flooring can cut down on your exposures.
Contact Us Today
If you are interested in learning more about ways that you can improve your indoor air quality during the summer months in Oklahoma City, our team here at Home Comfort Solutions can help. We can provide you with routine HVAC inspections and maintenance and the installation of whole-home filtration equipment and humidity-controlling devices. Contact us at Home Comfort Solutions in Oklahoma City today to schedule an appointment.
