As the cold weather makes its presence known, it seems only fitting to curl up with a good book and hush down the noise of the bustling outside world. But, sadly, while the holiday season may offer a romantic kind of solitude for some, it offers something much more impractical and mundane for others – allergens and pollutants.
As people spend less time in their homes during the summer, the issue of allergies and pollutants found in the house manages to go largely undetected. However, as we migrate towards the fireplace during the colder months, allergens and pollutants again become a problem.
While there is no single-handed cure for a runny nose, this article offers much-needed insight into how to keep our homes allergen – and pollutant-free!
Table of Contents
Five Best Housecleaning Tips To Keep Your Home Free of Allergens and Pollutants
1. Be Thorough But Frequent
Spring cleaning is the big cleaning event of the year for a reason – it’s when our homes receive a much-needed breath of fresh air (probably because we get around to dealing with the dampness from the basement). However, one excellent cleaning is by no means sufficient.
Regular cleaning is a prerequisite for keeping allergens and pollutants at bay. Research has shown that dusting or wiping surfaces as often as once a week helps rid the house of pollutants and relieves allergy symptoms.
Thus, while it may not be the most exciting aspect of the holiday season, it is pivotal for keeping our health in stellar condition.
2. The Dust Dilemma
The war on dust is not one that we will ever likely win. However, it is a war we must wage every so often, accompanied by the right companion. For centuries, people have dusted their floors with brooms, effectively only moving the allergens from one place to another.
However, with the invention of the vacuum cleaner, the odds began to turn in our favor. Unlike brooms, vacuums collect all the dust particles without spreading them around the home.
Thus, when tackling floors and carpets, a vacuum, specifically a cordless vacuum cleaner, is the way to go. These vacuums allow optimal movement and help avoid the unavoidable tangling around the cleaner cord.
In addition to the cordless-ness component, a vacuum should also have a high-efficiency particulate absorbing (HEPA) filter that traps the allergens and pollutants inside the appliance.
3. Working Your Way Down
Before curling up next to the fire, the house will need one last great cleaning adventure before spring arrives anew. If you’ve ever had the chance to observe your parents or grandparents clean, you know – there’s a right and wrong way to go about cleaning the house.
One of the first and probably most important cleaning lessons to master is the cleaning order. (Yes, there is one.) A room should be cleaned from top to bottom and never the other way around.
While the order may sound silly or irrelevant, starting from the uppermost parts will help catch the dust particles that tend to linger in the air when dusting.
Any cleaning activity will stir allergens and pollutants into the air, and starting from above gives you the best chance of catching them!
4. Indoor Air Quality – The Problem Of The Future (And The Present)
Over the past decade, the issue of indoor air quality has become a focal point in the fight for a healthier and greener living space. However, most people still fail to realize that their homes may have poor indoor air quality leading to numerous incorrectly diagnosed health problems.
Fortunately, as the problem of air quality increases, so does the array of solutions. Today, one of the quickest and most efficient ways of retaining high air quality is through air purifiers.
These appliances are sleek and smart, as they don’t take up considerable space and can be operated through an app on your phone or computer. Most will even come with a self-regulating mode, meaning they’ll adjust themselves to their surrounding environment.
Please read our guide on the best air purifiers to destroy dust and allergies here.
5. Mold And Mildew – Something To Avoid
Like dangerously low air quality, black mold and mildew can cause serious health problems for the entire household; preventing them is key. The most common place to find both mold and mildew is in damp and moist places, or – in house terms – the bathroom.
To prevent mold from appearing in the bathroom, it’s necessary to carefully wipe down the walls and floors using a microfiber cloth after every shower.
Another simple and less time-consuming method would be leaving the bathroom door open after showering. This will help air out the room and prevent spores from developing and traveling around the home.
While the above cleaning list is far from complete, it still contains a bit of everything – from classic cleaning methods to newer appliances designed to deal with contemporary problems. The above advice will work wonders when applied together and rid your home of allergens and pollutants until spring comes back!
