All of us need fresh air because without access to fresh air, we can’t lead a happy and happy life. Unfortunately, the level of pollution is increasing on an alarming rate. It is leading to a lot of adverse impacts on our health and beauty. The mass cutting of trees and building of the factories and industries is one of the main reasons behind the rising levels of air pollution.
How to Keep Indoor Air Clean and Fresh at Home
I certainly
agree that the industries and factories are required to make our economy grow
at a healthy rate. But we should also keep in mind that life is going to be
impossible without access to fresh air. Obviously, we need to work as community
to ensure minimum outdoor pollution. But purifying indoor air and getting fresh
air to breath while at home or work place is possible. It’s not that hard to purify
the indoor air and that’s what we are going to discuss in today’s post. I am
sharing a few of the easiest and natural ways to keep indoor air clean and
fresh.
Maintaining
the pollution levels all over the world can never be done on an individual
level. And hence we need to create general awareness in the masses. But
obviously you got to do your bit and hope for the rest also to become a little
responsible and sensible towards the environment.
But
controlling the quality of indoor air of your own home or workplace is
completely in your hand. And you should do the needful to keep your smaller
universe that is you and your family members safe and sound. And, if you are
not sure about how to get it right, then read this post as we are discussing about
various natural ways to keep indoor air clean and fresh.
Increasing
levels of pollution can be really hazardous for our health. It leads to asthma,
dust allergies, skin allergies, poor skin and hair quality etc. and if the inhaling
of the polluted air is not controlled, it can become life threatening as well. Whether
it’s your home or office, you have to ensure fresh air to live and work comfortably.
And to purify the air and get fresh indoor air at home or office, you need to
earn the hacks that can help you get fresh and pure air.
So are you
ready to learn how to purify indoor air at home and office?
Let’s dive
in.
10 Natural
Ways to Keep Indoor Air Clean and Fresh at Home
According to the Harvard School of Public Health, every year there are about 3.3 million deaths worldwide due to pollution. Needless to say it is high time we become serious about pollution, especially the air pollution.
The society needs
to work collectively to protect the environment and there are many who are
already working towards his noble cause. But how about taking small steps to clean
and purify the air at home and our workplace?
Listed below
are a few of the easiest and natural ways to keep indoor air clean and fresh at
home and office.
Open the windows regularly
This is
perhaps the simplest way to get fresh and clean air at home or office and you
must follow this practice to keep the indoor air clean at home. You must be
thinking that opening windows may allow the outside dirt and pollution to come
inside. Well, it’s true, but you need to also consider the fact that unless you
open the windows, your home will feel like suffocating. There should be free
passage for air to flow in order to get rid of the accumulated air pollutants
in the air inside your home. So open the windows regularly to make your home airy
and that’s going to help you keep indoor air clean and purified.
Plant air purifying plants
Plants have
a very important role to play in keeping the air clean. And there are certain
air purifying plants that you should plant in your home and garden. In fact,
besides improving the air quality, the plants also beautify your home. Even if
you have to take care of the potted plants and maintain it, considering the
benefits that they bestow on us, planting the air purifying household plants is
a total win-win situation.
Some of the best air purifying household plants that help a lot in purifying the indoor air quality are Aloe Vera, Bamboo plant, Weeping fig, English Ivy etc. You may like to check this post to learn more about best air purifying plants.
Use essential oils
Did you know
that you can actually improve the indoor air quality using different types of essential
oils? Well, it’s true. Essential oils can help you refresh the indoor air
quality effortlessly.
You must
have already heard about the usage of the essential oils like tea tree oil
which possess anti-bacterial properties to treat any cut or inflammation and it
is also sometimes added to the household cleaners to get rid of the germs.
However, some of the essential oils like eucalyptus essential oil, clove essential oil, rosemary essential oil etc. can also reduce the airborne bacteria and studies have also proven that.
They can
also help you reduce the number of dust mites in your home and so you can
easily use them in diffuser and improve the quality of your indoor air.
Take off shoes before entering home
Your shoes may
carry all the outside dirt and so when you enter your home wearing the shoes,
your home gets exposed to all sorts of pollutants which may be hazardous to your
family members. So, it is always recommended that you take off your shoes and
then enter your home. Also, make it a habit to wash the bottom of your shoes
from outside if possible and then enter.
To avoid
taking the shoe inside your home, try to keep a shoe rack just beside the
entrance of your home. This will limit the germs, dirt and dust near the
entrance and you can easily clean the place right away to avoid spreading all
over your home.
Clean your pets
I know it is
a little difficult to keep your home clean with pets around. But if you love
your pets and you are determined to keep your home clean, then I am sure you
can do this. Firstly, you need to keep your pet clean. Make them take a bath
thoroughly and frequently so that there is no stink. As far as the accumulation
of furs is concerned, you also need to clean them regularly in order to avoid
asthma issues in your family.
Here’s a detailed post on how to keep your home clean with pets. I am sure if you work a little hard, you will be able to keep the surrounding as well as the indoor air clean even with pets in your home.
Maintain the AC
If you have
got a central air conditioning at your home, then you are lucky because you can
use it to purify your indoor air time to time. AC actually works by pulling out
the air from your home, cools it and then again pumps it back in.
However, you
need to change the filter of your AC time to time as it traps the particles in
it. The more regular you are in changing the filter, the better for you. Use
your AC effectively not just to get relief from the heat in the hot summer days,
but also to purify the indoor air.
Get rid of mold
It is very important to keep your home free of mold if you want the indoor air to be clean. This is because fungus releases spores into the air which often trigger the occurrence of allergies. There are several ways to get rid of mold and I have already discussed it earlier. You can try all of them, but the primary thing that you have to do is to keep your home as much dry and airy as you can.
Air out new furniture
One of the best
natural ways to keep the indoor air clean without using chemicals is by airing
out the new furniture as much as possible. Well, volatile organic compounds or
the VOCs are nothing but chemicals which linger in the air and are found
everywhere inside your home. Well, this is because VOCs such as benzene and
tolulene are found in the paints, glues, construction materials, fabrics etc.
So, when you buy any new furniture, it will initially emit more amounts of VOCs
and then slowly taper off. Hence it is recommended that you air out the new
furniture as much as possible and reduce the harm caused to your indoor air.
It is best
if you can keep your new furniture in your garage for about a week or keep it
separate in a room where the windows are open most of the time to allow the
VOCs to escape outside.
Use cooking oils with higher smoke points
In order to
avoid your kitchen to become filled with smoke and a constant lingering smell
of burned out oil, it is best if you use the cooking oils that smokes at higher
temperatures.
Extra olive
oil has a much lower smoke point in comparison to peanut, avocado, sunflower
and canola oil, so if you want to use virgin oil, make sure you use the light
olive oil which is refined and has a higher smoke point of 486-degree F.
Use beeswax candles
Particles
float around us in the air because they are positively charged ions. However,
have you ever thought why the air is cleaner comparatively near a waterfall or
in the woods? Well, it is because nature creates negative ions which bind with
the positive ones, which in turn, makes them heavier and they fall to the
ground. Now, when you burn the beeswax candles, it actually uses the same
phenomenon and keeps the indoor air clean and fresh.
However,
burning candles does send soot up in the air, so to avoid it, it is advisable
that you use the LED candles which will pollute the atmosphere less.
Conclusion
Pollution is
a very serious concern in today’s life because it comes with a lot of health
risks. However, the problem will not get solved unless there is lots of awareness
worldwide. All of us have to act to protect the environment.
But as far
as the indoor air quality is concerned, we all can keep indoor air clean and
fresh using just a few simple hacks and best practices. I have already shared a
list of 10 of the easiest ways to clean indoor air at home or office without
using any chemicals.
These hacks
may sound like too simple, but trust me, it’s very effective and it can easily
help you get access to pure and fresh air at home.
Apart from trying
these air purifying hacks, you should also ensure that you are not smoking
inside your home, as that is another major contributor to air pollution. Smoking
inside home makes the whole space suffocating. Also, try to lessen the usage of
plastic as much as possible and become more responsible to towards the environment.
Please do your bit and set an example for others. And, since everything starts
from home, try to begin with keeping your indoor air clean and then widen your
goals to address the overall air pollution problem.
That’s all I
had to share, but I am curious to know how do you address the issue of air pollution,
especially the indoor air pollution at your home or your workplace? What are
the measures you are taking, what works for you?
Feel free to
share your experiences by commenting below.
Until next post, breathe safe and stay healthy.
