It’s Valentine’s Day. Time for you and that special someone to exchange gifts that declare your love for one another. But here’s a question you may not have considered: what will those gifts do to your home’s indoor air quality?
Let’s look at some of the IAQ concerns prevalent around Valentine’s Day, and what you can do about them.
Perfumes and colognes
One of the most common Valentine’s gifts, scents and fragrances fall into the category of Volatile Organic Compounds: substances that are easily converted to vapor in the air. VOCs are harmful to breathe in and can cause serious respiratory problems. In fact, 72% of people with asthma are triggered by cologne or perfume in the air.
Flowers
Nearly every Valentine’s Day gift is accompanied by a bouquet of flowers. But if you’re an allergy sufferer, the pollen that comes with them can be almost unbearable.
Scented candles
Much like perfumes, candles emit VOCs as they burn. Studies have shown that even candles reported to be green or environmentally friendly often still contain hazardous chemicals that are harmful to breathe in.
Pets
Many couples get a new puppy or kitten for Valentine’s Day. Pets are great, but if you keep them indoors, they bring about all sorts of irritating contaminants. Even if you keep them well-groomed to reduce shedding concerns, there’s still pet dander, microscopic skin flakes, that get into the air and exacerbate allergies and asthma.
So what can you do about these IAQ concerns?
If allergies or asthma are bothering you, consider investing in a dedicated air purifier. Your HVAC system eliminates basic contaminants from the air, but an air purifier uses high efficiency air filters that would damage your regular system. These filters can eliminate contaminants that your HVAC system misses, such as perfume particles, dust and pollen, pet dander, and even smoke from burning candles, so that you can breathe easy this Valentine’s Day, and all year round.
For more IAQ concerns and what you can do about them, contact us at Hansberger Refrigeration and Electric Company. We’re Yuma’s trusted source for quality HVAC solutions.
Our goal is to help educate our customers in Yuma, Arizona about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). For more information about other HVAC topics, download our free Home Comfort Guide or call us at 928-723-3183.
