Having a clean and healthy home is surely a goal that everyone has. This is especially important if anyone in your home has any breathing or allergy issues. Knowing what to clean and how often, and about things you can change or add, helps to ensure that you have the knowledge necessary for a home that promotes optimal cleanliness and better health.
Consider a HEPA Air Purification System
Purifying the air in your home helps to reduce airborne and circulating allergens. This type of filter typically contains a fine mesh that can trap a variety of particle allergens, including tobacco smoke, pollen, and dust mites. This powerful and efficient filter can collect approximately 99.7 percent of 0.3 microns or smaller particles so that they are not flowing freely in your home.
Add Tap Water Filtration
Tap water filtration comes with several benefits in addition to making tap water taste better. It can help to remove chlorine, lead, bacteria, and other contaminants from tap water before you drink it. These filters, when they use a solid block carbon filter, typically allow healthy mineral deposits to go through, so they eliminate the bad stuff and ensure that the good stuff does not get trapped in the filter.
Clean HVAC Duct Work and Vents
When duct work is not cleaned regularly, this can result in the accumulation of allergens, impurities, and debris in the duct work. When you turn on your air conditioning or heating, these are pushed out into your home. This means that these impurities and allergens are circulating in the air and can cause problems for people with breathing problems and allergies. Heating and cooling experts generally recommend having your duct work professionally cleaned approximately once a year to make your home healthier and cleaner.
Keeping Curtains Clean
Many people are simply unaware of how packed with allergens and impurities curtains and other window treatments can get. It is a good idea to clean your window treatments about once a month to keep them as clean as possible. Ideally, you want to stick with curtains that are easily washable in a washing machine so that the task is quick and simple. Fabrics like synthetic fabrics and plain cotton are best for quick cleaning. It is also a good idea to stick with roller shades over horizontal blinds because the roller shades tend to be easier to clean.
Annual Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning
Carpeting, rugs, and upholstery may act as traps for many allergens, such as pet dander, pesticides, moisture, dirt, pollen, and pests. Regular vacuuming of your carpets, rugs, and upholstery is beneficial for reducing these allergens as much as possible, but it will not eliminate them completely. Over time, allergens are pushed down into your carpeting, rugs, and upholstery and only professional cleaning methods can remove them. Most homes can have professional steam cleaning just once a year to help keep the allergens in your carpeting, rugs, and upholstery to a minimum.
Think About Annual Pest Control
Pests like cockroaches and rodents are not uncommon and may even make their way into otherwise clean homes. The first step in preventing bugs and rodents from staying in your home is making sure that they do not have access to food or food debris. Keep all food in containers that are resistant to bugs and rodents. Make sure that any dropped or spilled food is immediately cleaned up and disposed of, clean up crumbs daily, and empty your indoor trash daily.
It is also a good idea to have a pest control professional come in about once a year to do an inspection and eradicate any bugs and rodents that might be present.
You can see that with minimal extra effort, you can help to make your home a healthier place. Simply make a schedule for any professional cleaning services and make sure that you are regularly keeping up with your cleaning tasks. A few simple changes or additions, such as a better air filter and a tap water filter will further improve the overall health of your home.
