If you think that air quality hazards disappear with the summer humidity, think again. While your home may be more vulnerable to certain allergens in the summertime, there are plenty of indoor air quality hazards that can affect your household in the winter, too. Fortunately, Donmar Heating, Cooling & Plumbing is here to help you give the gift of better indoor air quality this Christmas! Our cutting-edge, top-of-the-line indoor air quality systems are designed to ensure everyone in the house can breathe a little easier, making them the perfect present to give yourself and the rest of your family. Keep reading for more on the products you need to know about, and make sure to call our Sterling HVAC pros for all your indoor air quality improvements.
The Top 5 Christmas Gifts to Improve Your Home’s Indoor Air Quality:
- Air Cleaners: Air cleaners, also known as air purifiers, are a great way to trap airborne allergens and contaminants that flow through your HVAC system’s filters. These devices are extremely effective in reducing dust, mold, smoke odor, pet dander, pollen, and various other irritants that may be affecting allergy-sufferers or individuals with respiratory issues in your house. At Donmar Heating, Cooling & Plumbing, we offer multiple air cleaning systems to fit your needs, including units that may capture up to 95% of harmful particles in the air.
- Humidifiers/Dehumidifiers: Whole-home humidifiers give you greater control over the humidity levels in your house. While this may not sound like the perfect gift for winter, it will surely come in handy during the hot and stuffy Virginia summers. Humidifiers also help make the air in your home feel less stale and stagnant year-round. Dehumidifiers, on the other hand, reduce the amount of moisture present on your property. They are particularly helpful for wet winters and rainy springs, where increased moisture levels can lead to mold—which is born in dank environments. Mold spores can cause a number of health issues, including breathing problems, headaches, and even muscle pains, so if your home has been at risk for mold in the past, you should consider purchasing a dehumidifier ASAP.
- COALMs: Carbon Monoxide, or CO is a colorless, tasteless, odorless gas that’s incredibly toxic when ingested. Because it is so hard to detect this poisonous gas, it’s always a good idea to have a COALM, aka CO alarm, in your home—especially if there are older people or young children who live on the property, as these age groups are distinctly vulnerable to carbon monoxide poisoning. While modern gas-fueled products such as cars, water heaters, and ovens have built-in CO ventilation, COALMs can still save lives, especially in the winter, when carbon monoxide can be generated by fireplaces or other wood-burning appliances.
- Ventilators: Our Sterling HVAC pros offer industry-leading energy recovery ventilators and heat recovery ventilators. Energy recovery ventilation systems exchange energy from exhausted air and use it to treat incoming ventilation air in HVAC systems. In warm months, these systems pre-cool and dehumidify air, while in the colder months, they humidify and pre-heat it. Energy recovery ventilators, or ERVs are very effective for increasing ventilation in your home, strengthening the efficiency or your larger HVAC system, and generally improving indoor air quality. Heat recovery ventilation systems are a subset of ERVs that specifically extract warmth from existing air or water on your property, making your home even warmer and preventing stale air from being replaced by invading cold air. These devices can be quite helpful during the winter, when you are more likely to lose warm air through drafts around your home.
- UV Lamps: Ultraviolet or UV germicidal lights help remove microbes and spores from your air and your HVAC system, allowing your equipment to circulate cleaner air around your property. As we have discussed before on our blog, UV lights are a solid choice for fighting mold and mildew infestations, reducing nasty odors, and killing bacteria and viruses that may cause people in your household to fall ill.
Dial (703) 457-8676 now to purchase an indoor air quality device for your home, or contact us online for more information. And from the Donmar family to yours, Merry Christmas!