Keep your Home Healthy with Good Indoor Air Quality
Did you know that over 24 million people suffer from asthma and 8 million of those people are children? In just the past 12 months over 13 million people have reported having an asthma attack. Each year asthma accounts for over 15 million doctor visits as well as over 3 million hospital emergency room visits.
Many things can trigger an asthma attack such as physical activity, pet dander, mold and poor indoor air quality. Have you ever visited someone’s home and after awhile your eyes itch, your nose is running and your throat is scratchy? All of those symptoms are due to poor indoor air quality.
Here are a few things you can do to help improve your indoor air quality:
Living Room Area
In most homes, the living room is the center point of activity where we all spend most of our time. In order to improve the air quality in the living area, be sure to keep this area well ventilated and keep second-hand smoke outside and vacuum and dust on a regular basis.
Smoking
If someone in your home is a smoker, have them smoke outside. The second-hand smoke from cigars and cigarettes can trigger a severe asthma attack, especially in young adults and children.
Carbon Monoxide
Carbon Monoxide is an odorless, colorless gas and can cause severe health problems; even death. Be sure to have a CO detector on each floor of your home and have your furnace tuned-up and cleaned each year. If you have a fireplace be sure to have the flue damper all the way open and that your chimney is clear and clean.
Pet Hair and Dander
Try to avoid certain breeds of animals that shed their hair. Keep all pets out of the main living areas and off the furniture. Most pet stores sell a special shampoo that will help eliminate pet dander as well as a supplement you can put in their food to stop them from shedding.
Looking for more ideas? Give us a call, check out our section on Air Quality, or other helpful tips and resources.
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Tags: Air Quality, asthma, tips
Thanks for the help, our heating bill has been very high and we were thinking of getting a new furnace. We are going to lower our thermostats and see if it helps. Our furnace is 20 years old, should we get a new furnace and does Chicago help save you money on the new furnace? My friend told me that the gas company in Chicago will save me money on a new furnace.
I live in tinley park and we have a meat plant by my home and the smell gets into my house. The villiage of tinley park said it’s my fault and that the furnace needs cleaning and heating repair I told them my furnace is fine and needs no repair. Tinley park won’t do anything to help me. If I call the tinley park police could they help me? What could help me get rid of the smell can a furnace get this smell out. Should I call the mayor of tinley park and tell him it’s meat, not my furnace. Thanks tinley park furnace heating repair.
I also live in tinley park and have complained about the same thing, my furnace has a great air cleaner and the house still smells. IT’S NOT YOUR FURNACE, IT’S THE STINKY MEAT PLACE, SAVE YOUR CASH AND GAS BILL, THE NEW FURNACE WON’T GET THE SMELL OUT OF TINLEY PARK.
If you have an 80% efficient or less furnace and water heater, they need air from inside your home for combustion in order to work. When your furnace and water heater turn on and use the air in your home, the air has to come from somewhere. It usually leaks in around doors and windows, which would normally be a good thing but not in your case. If you install 90% efficient furnace and water heater this should take care of your smelly air getting into your homes. They use a sealed combustion system and do not use air from inside your home. Hope this helps, Max.
Franz, a furnace has a life span of about 15 years. I know Peoples Gas has a credit when you install a new high efficient furnace, but not sure if the other gas companies are offering anything? You can also get a tax credit on 95% efficient or higher furnaces. Go to ENERGYSTAR.GOV and click on the tax credits icon. I am getting a $1500 tax credit and received $350 instant rebate on my new Lennox furnaces. I would get one now before the tax credits go away. Max
I work in a large office in Chicago I have asthma what can I do for better IAQ in the office. The heating and cooling we use are roof tops can we put in a air filter and if we did how much.
Terry M: You can add better filters and UV lights to eliminate dirt, dust, allergens, bacteria and viruses. Cost depends on whats involved and what IAQ equipment you have installed. You can usually get free estimates for this type of work. Hope this helps?
What is the best setting to keep our furnace humidifier set on and do I still need to use a room humidifier. How often should I change the filter in my furnace and humidifier and does it matter what brand of furnace filter I use.
Whenever it gets cold outside we get shocked from static in our house and it feels real dry, we have a humidifier, how do I find out if it works or if its broke? We purchased it with a new furnace 10 years ago it heats our house good. The city of Chicago told us that before we could close on are condo we had to have a humidifier.
@Terry M
In that big of an office I would ask the building maintenance if you have UV lights in the duct work, if not that will make a huge difference. You could also get a few room air cleaners if UV lights are not an option. I would also tell you to get your ducts cleaned.
What is the best furnace filter for the Chicago area and what does the furnace filter cost. I want to install the furnace filter myself, is that a job I can do or will you come to the Chicago area and do it for me? The furnace is very old but I have lost my job in downtown Chicago and need to find a new job before I change my furnace. Who makes the best heating and cooling furnace and how many heating and cooling furnace brands are sold in Chicago?
It was crazy to see how many diffrent types of mold, bugs etc that are in your home. I went to the EPA site and they said that the air inside is worse than the outside. I can tell you our indoor air quality is so much better now that we have an air cleaner on our furnace and a UV LIGHT. People who come over to our house have said that the air and house smell different, we have 4 dogs 2 cats and we smoke. The smell of smoke is almost gone and the dog smell is also gone.