When you think about air purifiers, you probably imagine breathing fresh-smelling air free from contaminants. But have you considered the financial benefits? Some of the problems caused by poor indoor air quality can lead to significant expenses, and purifying your air could save you from not just the hassles and inconvenience but also the monetary cost of these problems.
What Is Poor Indoor Air Quality?
Did you know that Americans spend about 90% of our time indoors? That may not surprise you, but how about this fact: indoor air quality is generally worse than outdoor air quality. In a home with low indoor air quality, or IAQ, there are high levels of contaminants like cleaning chemicals, dust, pollen, pet dander, viruses, bacteria, and mold. In order to heat and cool our homes efficiently, we tend to keep them tightly sealed, which means those contaminants are constantly recirculated.
What Problems Are Caused by Poor IAQ?
Respiratory, skin, and eye irritation can all be caused by the contaminants often found in homes. Breathing in poor-quality indoor air can lead to increased allergy symptoms and heighten the risk of asthma attacks. People also often report headaches, fatigue, bad moods, and difficulty sleeping which all improve when their IAQ is improved. Another issue that can arise from poor IAQ is unpleasant odors that linger in the home. Sometimes, those odors are caused by mold growth, and while the smell might be the first thing you notice, mold can be secretly causing all kinds of damage in dark corners of your home.
What Expenses Are Caused by Poor IAQ?
Because of the health complications associated with breathing contaminated air, you and your family might have expenses due to doctor visits and increased use of medications such as allergy pills or asthma inhalers. Folks who are experiencing respiratory symptoms or are fatigued, headachy, or not sleeping well are likely to take more sick days off work, causing reduced income. Trying to tackle unpleasant smells might make you purchase more cleaning products (whose lingering fumes will further affect your air quality) such as disinfectants, air fresheners, and shoe deodorizers. And mold remediation is extremely expensive, sometimes requiring significant work to be done on your home to remove the affected drywall, wood, and more.
How Can an Air Purifier Help?
Using the power of UV light, an air purifier goes a step beyond simply filtering contaminants out of the air. The specific frequency of light which is directed at the air flowing through the purifier is capable of causing the demise of biological contaminants. It actually unravels the chemical bonds holding germs, bacteria, and mold spores together, rendering them unable to reproduce or cause infection or contamination. This tactic is so safe and effective it has even been used to sterilize medical instruments. It can dramatically increase your IAQ and decrease all the problems—and expenses—that poor air quality can cause.
If you’d like to learn about your options for an air purifier in Virginia, MN, we’d love to hear from you.
Reach out to Mesaba Heating & Air Conditioning today. Service to you is success to us!