6 Ways to Detox Your Home This Spring

You may hear the word “detox” and associate it with nutrition. Detoxing isn’t limited to people, though; our homes can also use a detox. According to the Environmental Working Group, everyday items such as beauty products, cleaners, and home goods often contain harmful chemicals. Additionally, dust, pet dander, and pollen can contribute to indoor air pollution. While you may be unable to completely remove all biological and chemical pollutants from your Peachtree City, Georgia, home, choosing eco-friendly cleaning products, testing and filtering your water, and improving indoor air quality are some ways you can detox your home this spring.

Choose Eco-Friendly Cleaning Products

According to the National Resources Defense Council (NRDC), the average American uses about 25 gallons of toxic chemical products in the home each year. Household cleaners such as detergents, sprays, and wipes can all bring hidden toxins into your home.

When you need to clean your house, choose eco-friendly products. Baking soda, distilled white vinegar, soap, and water are often all you need to clean without introducing harmful toxins into the air.

Avoid Plastics Containing BPA

Certain types of plastic containers can give off bisphenol-A (BPA), an industrial chemical known to be harmful to humans. According to the Mayo Clinic, research has shown that BPA can enter food and beverages from containers made with this chemical. In 2012, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) mandated a ban to keep BPA from being used in all infant bottles and baby cups. To avoid introducing BPA into your home, choose cardboard or glass packaging for products as much as possible.

Test and Filter Your Water

Contaminants from pollution and lead from older forms of plumbing can enter a home’s water supply. To get cleaner water, you first need to test your water. While costs for water testing vary, several cost-efficient tests are available to help you check for heavy metals, lead, and other harmful contaminants. Based on your water testing results, you may need to install a water purifier or other water treatment system in your home.

Increase Ventilation in Your Home

Dust, new furniture, household cleaning products, and scented air fresheners can release toxins into the air inside our homes. Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are some of the most prevalent elements present in many commercial products such as disinfectants, but they can also appear in new carpeting and paint.

Besides eliminating the sources of VOCs, you want to also increase ventilation in your home. Using the exhaust fan when cleaning your bathroom is one way to promote ventilation in tight spaces.

Improve Your Home’s Indoor Air Quality

You can boost your home’s indoor air quality in the following ways:

• Use portable air cleaners in bedrooms and family rooms.
• Change your HVAC system’s air filters regularly throughout the year.
• Schedule seasonal HVAC system maintenance.
• Buy houseplants that can filter harmful pollutants from the air.
• Enforce a no-shoes rule for family members and guests. Removing your shoes before entering your house controls dust and dirt and reduces the amount of allergens that can enter the air inside your home.

Clean Your Home’s Ductwork

While you may take it for granted, your home’s ductwork plays an essential part in your home’s indoor air quality. Air that is warmed or cooled by your HVAC system passes through the ductwork on its way to the registers that deliver the air to the rooms in your home. As air passes through the ductwork in your home, it can pick up various airborne particles such as bacteria, dust, pet dander, and pollen. All of these irritants can collect near registers and clog up the workings of your home’s air conditioning and heating systems.

Schedule regular ductwork cleaning to keep your HVAC system operating as efficiently as possible. Our team can help you address and correct problems associated with dirty ductwork.

Let Trinity Air Inc. Heating & Air Conditioning’s professionals help you detox your home this spring. We can create a custom HVAC system maintenance and care plan that can help you increase your home’s comfort, improve indoor air quality, and eliminate common pollutants in the home. Call us today at (770) 691-5394.

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