Around the end of February, tree pollen counts in Colorado start to rise, beginning the season-long assault on our sinuses.
Luckily, there are some ways to find some relief from allergies at home.
To prevent allergies inside your home, we recommend the following:
- Wash your clothes and bedding regularly
- Vacuum and dust once or twice a week
- Keep your AC well-maintained
- Install a whole-home dehumidifier
- Install a whole-home filtration system
Let’s look at each of these recommendations in more detail below.
Want to fortify your home against allergies? We offer whole-home air quality solutions that make your home’s air healthier and more comfortable.
Recommendation #1: Wash your clothes and bedding regularly
Pollen can easily stick to clothes and bedding, which means it’s important to wash your clothes and bedding at least once a week.
For the best results in eliminating allergens, wash your clothes and bedding in hot water (the hottest setting on the washer) and dry them in a hot dryer. If your clothes are delicate, you can wash them in a warm or cool cycle then rinse the clothes twice with cold water for at least 3 minutes.
Recommendation #2: Vacuum and dust once or twice a week
Vacuuming and dusting help capture indoor allergens so they don’t circulate in the indoor air space.
To prevent exposure to allergens, wear a mask and use a damp cloth to dust. Use a vacuum with a HEPA (high-efficiency particulate air) filter, which is an advanced filter used to catch tiny airborne particles. A vacuum with a HEPA filter will effectively catch allergens and not blow them back into the air, as some cheaper vacuums do.
Bonus pro tip: As you dust and vacuum, set your thermostat to ON (instead of AUTO). The ON setting runs your AC fan non-stop, which means the fan will constantly pull air through the AC air filter.
The ON vs AUTO setting on your thermostat
As air passes through the AC air filter, the filter catches air pollutants and allergens so that they don’t get pushed back into your home’s air, which ultimately prevents allergens from spreading throughout the house.
Recommendation #3: Keep your furnace well-maintained
Your furnace helps to catch allergens via a filter.
However, if your furnace filter isn’t maintained properly, then it can’t capture allergens effectively.
To maintain your furnace during allergy season, we recommend:
- Checking the filter once a month and replacing if necessary
- Scheduling a professional furnace tune-up at least once a year
Doing both will help your furnace maintain efficiency and remove allergens from your home’s air.
Recommendation #4: Install a whole-home humidifier
Colorado has extremely dry air, which can aggravate allergy symptoms. Installing a whole-home humidifier adds moisture to your home’s indoor air. Balancing out the moisture in your home can help soothe your throat and nasal passages by helping your body clear out mucus.
Learn more about whole-home humidifiers by visiting our humidifier installation page.
Recommendation #5: Install a whole-home filtration system
Another line of defense against seasonal allergies is a whole-home filtration system.
The most common types of whole-home filtration systems include:
- Advanced air filters: You can upgrade your home’s existing air filter to a thicker filter with tightly-woven fibers, which will do a better job of capturing smaller allergens.
- Ionization purifier: An ionization purifier is a device that electrically charges air molecules (such as airborne allergens), causing them to become too heavy to float in the air. The contaminants then are caught by the filter discussed above.
- UV purifier: UV purifiers are essentially large light bulbs that emit UV-C light, which kills harmful allergens such as mold spores. UV light purifiers are often installed inside your ductwork.
An air quality specialist can recommend a whole-home filtration system (or a combination of systems) based on your family’s allergy needs.
Learn more about each of these types of filtration systems by visiting our whole-home air purification page.
Ready to protect your home from seasonal allergies?
Our air quality specialists can recommend whole-home air quality solutions that will make your home’s air healthier and more comfortable.
When you choose Cooper, you can count on efficient service and 100% satisfaction for every job.
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Luke Cooper is the General Manager of the Cooper Green team and son of Gary Cooper, owner and CEO of Cooper HVAC. After years in the field, Luke took his talents to management and has helped thousands of Colorado homeowners during hot summers and frigid winters. His decade of experience in the field and guiding the company makes him one of the most knowledgeable individuals in Colorado on HVAC, plumbing, electrical and other home services.
