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September 10, 2024
How to Improve Winter Indoor Air Quality
During winter, we spend most of our time indoors, cranking the furnace up to full, and shutting all doors and windows to conserve heat and increase home efficiency. While these cold-fighting techniques are necessary to stay warm, winter indoor air quality can suffer from such poor ventilation, resulting in breathing discomfort. Fortunately, you still have time to prepare before the cold weather sets in. We’ve collected the best tips to help improve air quality and help you breathe easy indoors, even when the temperature outside makes your teeth chatter. Keep reading to learn how to stay warm, safe and comfortable all winter long. 
Why Does Air Quality Get Worse in Winter?
Have you ever noticed that as the temperature drops, so does the air quality? We often associate summer with unbearable humidity and air pollution, but the dry air and winter smog of the colder months can be just as hard to deal with. Below are some reasons for poor winter air quality.Cold Air Promotes Indoor Air Pollution
When temperatures drop, the cool ground surface causes warm air to rise and cold air to sink due to their differences in density. The cold air underneath traps dense airborne pollutants such as dust, pollen, and animal dander because of low circulation. These increased pollutant levels reduce air quality in the winter months, which may have negative health effects.Cold Temperatures Cause Dry Air
Why does air quality get worse in winter? The cold temperatures remove moisture from the air, leaving you with dry, stale air. This poor air quality makes indoor life uncomfortable and causes health problems that affect your skin, lungs, and eyes. Increasing indoor humidity is the best solution to this problem. Boiling water, hanging damp towels, and investing in humidifiers add moisture back to dry indoor air, making breathing easier and more comfortable.Poor Indoor Air Ventilation
Sealing doors, windows, and gaps improves home efficiency and prevents heat loss. However, this only increases poor winter air quality, since there’s no way for stale air to leave and fresh air to enter your home. The air you breathe is a repeat of what you inhaled yesterday and the days before. Read more: What is An HRV System? Image Source: Canva
Best Solutions to Improve Winter Air Quality
Poor indoor air quality can make you feel stuffy and uncomfortable. More dangerously, it might increase your risk of chronic respiratory issues. But, don’t worry, there are steps you can take to improve indoor winter air quality.Deep Clean Your Home Once a Month
The easiest way to limit airborne particles is to clean your home thoroughly and use non-toxic cleaning products. Deep cleaning is more than wiping surfaces and vacuuming floors. It’s a multi-step process that involves all parts of your home.Maintain Your Furnace the Right Way
When your furnace runs 24/7, dust accumulates and the filter clogs more quickly. Dirty heating components make the entire system inefficient. With a dirty filter, cool air can’t enter the heating chamber efficiently, straining the furnace and resulting in more wear and tear of the entire furnace. Replacing the furnace filters regularly, at least once every 90 days, is a good way to prevent this. Before winter comes, have a professional HVAC technician inspect, maintain, and clean your unit.Have a Professional Clean Your Duct System
Improve indoor air quality by having a professional clean your duct system. Dust mites, pollen, mould, insects, and animal droppings that stay in these chambers can restrict airflow and worsen air quality. We recommend cleaning your ductwork before the fall season starts, so you have more time to catch and address any issues.Install an Air Purifier
Reduce air pollution during the cold winter months by installing a portable air purifier or whole-home air purification system. These effectively filter airborne pollutants and improve winter air quality for your home. Improve your air purifier’s performance by equipping it with HEPA and activated carbon filters. The former is great for capturing dust, bacteria, and particulate matter, while the latter neutralizes odours by filtering VOCs or volatile organic compounds. Read more: Choosing the Best Furnace Filter for AllergiesOpen Windows at Least Once a Day
Proper ventilation can improve winter indoor air quality, and the good news is that it’s easy. Opening windows for a few minutes at least once a day will allow stale air to leave your home and fresh air to get inside. Important note: Turn off your furnace before you open the windows. Keeping it on decreases its energy efficiency. Image Source: Canva
Install Air Quality Sensors Indoors
Hazardous gas emissions like carbon monoxide and nitrogen oxide are hard to identify since they’re odourless and colourless. A home air quality sensor can detect these and other pollutants, alerting you about current levels, so you can take action quickly if these levels become dangerously high.Clean Air Solutions Available in Ontario
Before winter arrives, do what you can to improve winter indoor air quality. Start by working with a reliable HVAC service. LG Home Comfort is every Ontario homeowner’s partner for clean winter indoor air quality. Whatever solutions your home needs, we’re here to help. With 24/7 support and same-day service, we’re here to help you live and breathe your best. Contact us to get a quote from a licensed and certified technician. Say hello to fresh air by contacting us!
1-866-438-5442Terms and Conditions
- Once an initial service has been completed, the customer will be on a one-year commitment
- After the initial 12 months, the contract will be renewed on a month-to-month cadence
- If a service is completed for the next year, it automatically renews the commitment for an additional year
- Customers can cancel at any time after the 12-month initial commitment as long as the following year’s service has not been completed.
- Customers need to provide 30 days written notice in order to cancel their plan