Using beeswax candles, activated charcoal, houseplants, and essential oils can help make your home feel airy and the air cleaner.
Guide to Cleaning Indoor Air
Increase Ventilation
Good ventilation reduces humidity, but that doesn’t mean you should open all your windows to let outdoor pollution into your living space. Instead, install small vents to allow fresh air to enter while keeping indoor air clean. Exhaust fans can also help expel stale air.
Beeswax Candles
Beeswax candles purify indoor air. (Image: Food TV).
Beeswax candles act as natural air purifiers, ionizing the air and neutralizing harmful compounds. In addition to improving indoor air quality, they burn slowly, meaning you don’t have to replace them frequently.
In fact, pure beeswax candles burn with almost no smoke or scent, making them particularly beneficial for asthma sufferers and effective at eliminating common allergens like dust from the air. Avoid paraffin candles derived from petroleum.
Activated Charcoal
Activated charcoal is an excellent way to clean indoor air. It is odorless, highly absorbent, and effectively removes toxins from the air.
Houseplants
Planting indoor plants can purify the air and protect you from toxins like ammonia, formaldehyde, and benzene.
Essential Oils
Essential oils like cinnamon, oregano, rosemary, thyme, grapefruit, and clove can sanitize the environment, eliminating viruses, fungi, bacteria, and even mold in the home.
A study from Weber State University found that essential oils can kill 99.96% of airborne bacteria. Researchers recommend not smoking indoors, regularly cleaning foot mats, leaving shoes outside, and keeping air conditioning units clean to maintain healthier indoor air.
Air Circulation in the Home
You need to open windows to circulate air in your home. Do not keep all doors closed; allow stale air to escape and fresh outdoor air to enter, which is beneficial for your family’s health. Thinking that closing doors keeps dust and toxic gases out is a misconception.
You need to open windows to circulate air in your home.
Even inside your home, the products and appliances you use can emit gases and toxins you may not be aware of, such as radon, a toxic gas linked to lung cancer risk. Radon is a byproduct of natural uranium decay and can seep from the ground through cracks in floors. Certain building materials can also release this gas as they degrade; areas where radon can accumulate include bedrooms and home offices.
Additionally, carbon monoxide and chlorine gases from household cleaning chemicals can accumulate in the air. Therefore, it’s essential to keep windows open to allow air circulation and make indoor air cleaner and fresher.
Regular Vacuuming
Regular vacuuming is a simple way to eliminate dust from your home. If left unaddressed, dust can affect your respiratory health and lead to long-term health issues.
Mold Prevention
Mold often appears in areas like bathrooms, attics, basements, or on wood and carpets. Mold can trigger allergy symptoms and irritation.
To avoid mold, keep indoor humidity below 60%. Areas that frequently use water, such as bathrooms and sinks, should not allow water to pool. Bathrooms should be opened regularly to ensure they remain dry and ventilated.
For sinks, wash dirty dishes immediately to avoid unpleasant odors from dishes left overnight.
Use Air Purifiers
Simply circulating air naturally may not be enough, especially when the outdoor environment is filled with pollutants, such as fine dust from vehicle emissions. In such cases, using an air purification device is the best option.
Air purifiers can eliminate all major air pollutants, including dust, pollen, volatile organic compounds (VOCs), and microorganisms like bacteria, viruses, and mold.
Some air purifiers even come with high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filters, which can capture 99.97% of allergens down to 0.3 microns. Additionally, purifiers with activated carbon filters are excellent for retaining small VOCs and odor-causing particles.
Be sure to choose a purifier with an appropriate power rating. Using a low-powered purifier in a large space will be nearly ineffective.
