Your HVAC System Could Be Causing Allergies – What Can You Do About It?
There’s no question as to whether or not your home’s indoor air quality can have a direct impact on your family’s allergies and overall health. Immediate effects and discomfort are easily noticeable, but the long term effects that are much more concerning often go unnoticed for quite some time. Consistent ingestion of contaminated air is known to cause chronic illnesses, respiratory complications, and severe allergy concerns. Over time, the contaminants causing indoor air pollution will continue to accumulate, resulting in severe health effects and allergies. The primary way to ensure that your indoor air quality is up to par is to ensure regular maintenance of your HVAC system. Doing so reduces/eliminates the possibility of contaminants circulating throughout your home. During our maintenance visits, we inspect and clean your unit as an attempt to alleviate any noticeable contaminants. Additionally, we have tools that check indoor air quality and can also detect more serious concerns, such as leaking carbon monoxide.
What causes poor indoor air quality?
1. Excess dust and debris filled air filters are the most recognized cause of poor air quality within your home. This concern can be eliminated through routine maintenance of your HVAC system, including replacing your filter every 4-6 weeks, depending on your home’s specific needs.
2. Mold can often be found in your HVAC unit, as it’s prone to harboring humidity and moisture. When mold begins spreading within the system, it also circulates through the home and can potentially be very dangerous for those living within. If mold is a concern within your home, we will present you with various remedies ranging from a simple cleaning to installing air scrubbers in your unit for more severe mold cases.
3. Pet dander and pollen circulation are known to cause allergies, and these outside factors infiltrate your HVAC system and circulate throughout your home, resulting in escalated symptoms. To avoid these problems, it’s important to maintain not only the cleanliness of your HVAC system, but the entirety of your home as well.
4. Low exposure to carbon monoxide can cause physical symptoms that resemble allergies and can also lead to nausea, headache, dizziness, or general weakness. Carbon monoxide is virtually odorless and often goes undetected, but can be highly dangerous if it is unnoticed in your home for an extended amount of time. During all Crow’s Heat and Air maintenance visits, our technicians will check for signs of cracked parts that may release carbon monoxide to ensure your family’s safety.
5. A lack of HVAC maintenance is the underlying factor for most home’s poor indoor air quality. It’s essential to uphold frequent household cleaning, utilize high quality air filters, and continue routine maintenance visits to search for signs of contaminants that may have infiltrated your HVAC system. By staying on top of your home and HVAC system’s maintenance and cleaning, you can significantly reduce your family’s allergy symptoms.
If you have any questions or concerns about your home’s indoor air quality, contact us at 972-548-1323.