Air Quality at Home

We are spending so much time at home these days, and mostly indoors if you live in cold climate areas. 

I recently moved from San Diego back to my home in New York. The change from outdoor living to indoor living is dramatic. In San Diego, I would work on my laptop half-day outside and half-day inside, in all seasons. Fresh air, sunlight and nature were everywhere. In New York, it’s an average of 30 degrees F outside in December and January, so I’m working indoors, without sunlight 10 hours a day. My next blog will be about light therapy lamps!

During this COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve learned about the importance of strong air ventilation in reducing the risk of virus transmission in closed spaces. Most social and entertainment venues were shut-down at the height of the pandemic, including bars, clubs, and indoor churches. Restaurants initially could provide only pick up food order and then transitioned to outdoor eating facilities. 

Outdoor air ventilation dilutes the concentration of particles we breathe substantially because of the physics law of entropy- all molecules like to spread out and away from each other by nature. Indoor air is trapped, so particles hang in the air with nowhere to go, until we open a window or turn on air conditioners. 

Note that the best way to remove pollutants and viruses in the home is through opening windows and doors to allow entropy to work! Air conditioners and central air units work similarly, in that they pull air from a room or house through an air handler, then it passes through a filter to trap big particles- which carry odors, water molecules, dust and smoke. Then the air passes over tubing filled with cold gas to cool it before the air handler sends the clean air back into the house with the fan function. This new air has fewer particles, less humidity and is cooler.

Many of us can use the central air and air conditioner fan separately when cold air isn’t needed, but the filtered air is desired. This is useful for removing cooking, smoking or pet odors from the house. The degree of air filtration can be adjusted by upgrading the filter on some air conditioners and all central air units to hospital-grade sanitation levels by installing a MERV 14 or 16 filter in the HVAC (heating, ventilation, and air conditioning) system. This filter removes smaller particles from the air, like viruses, bacteria, allergens, mold and noxious gases, which all have molecules that are larger than the oxygen that we breathe-in. It must be checked and replaced regularly- read the label and mark your calendar.

Air purifiers are a special class of machines used for this exact purpose. For those with allergies and sensitive sense of smell, an air purifier at home is a must. These air-filtration machines use HEPA filters (High Efficiency Particulate Air/Absorbing/Arresting) technology. HEPA is an efficiency standard of air filter which certifies that 99.97% of particulates larger than 0.3 microns in size are removed from the air.

The COVID-19 virus size varies from 5 microns down to .2 microns if it gets broken down. Also, we know that this virus survives in air and on surfaces for 3 hours and up to 5 days. Copper (https://www.epa.gov/coronavirus) has recently been approved as an anti-viral surface. I’m sure there will be new products using copper for sanitization coming soon. Of course, anything in the air that dies or is ionized, will fall due to gravity and attach to surfaces where people can touch it and possibly breathe it in. 

Washing hands and sanitizing surfaces is another important step in the fight against airborne viral contamination; if you touch something within the above time window of unknown origin, sanitize your hands. This includes when removing your facial mask which has collected foreign particles on the outside, sanitize your hands. The amount of virus may be small, but every touch and exposure adds up to a viral load that could make you sick. In people, the median time it takes the coronavirus to die is between 10 to 21 days, and can shed much longer in some people. 

Five to fifteen days is required for the coronavirus to incubate or show symptoms in humans resulting in contagion, which is the self-isolation time period recommended by the CDC we all should follow after any meeting, gathering, travel and other exposure events like doctor visits, shopping or dining indoors.

There are practical steps we can take to upgrade our home air quality to protect us from viruses, pollen, smoke from tobacco or fire, and mold with technology like air conditioners, central air fans, air purifiers and humidifiers.

While watching QVC, I purchased a combination Dyson HP04 air purifier, heater and fan at an excellent discount before Thanksgiving in anticipation of both smoking up the house with my cooking and having visitors in the house with contaminants attached to their clothing, hair and breath. The rules for our small (6 people) holiday dinners last year was to wear masks when not eating, maintain social distancing (we didn’t all eat at the same dining table), remove shoes and coats in the mudroom and change clothes upon entering the house. 

The central air fan with a MERV 14 filter was always running and I wore my AirTamer 310 air purifier necklace. Belt and suspenders!

Between the cold house, smoky kitchen, wood-burning fireplace and food odors, the Dyson HP04 was worth every penny. I love the smartphone app, the remote control and the unit display which all work to provide useful information and easy access. Best of all, our dinner guests stayed healthy and comfortable.

Outdoor ventilation is best and cheap- you can open your doors and windows on a nice day. But when it’s cold outside, you might need some help. Shop around!