Questions To Ask About Your Home’s Indoor Air Quality

It is that time of year again, when families and friends gather to celebrate year-end traditions and enjoy time at home together. Often, this also means cleaning: washing the curtains, wiping down the walls, cleaning out the garage and so much more, in anticipation of welcoming guests. Have you ever thought of cleaning the air in your home though?

Indoor air quality is essential if you want the healthiest environment for your loved ones.

Here are some must-ask questions about indoor air quality:

What is indoor air quality?

Indoor air quality is the description of how the indoor air affects how people live and work. According to OSHA “it can include temperature, humidity, lack of outside air (poor ventilation), mold from water damage, or exposure to other chemicals.”

What are some signs of an indoor air quality problem?

If your nose detects a musty or stale smell, that smell could be a symptom of a greater problem. If the air feels constantly stuffy that could indicate a lack of proper ventilation.

How does the indoor air quality affect the people and items in your home?

If a family member suffers from allergies or respiratory issues, poor indoor air quality will aggravate their symptoms. Indoor air quality also includes humidity levels which affect the comfort of those in your home. Too low or too high humidity levels can adversely affect wooden furniture or flooring. Overly humid air can also lead to mold issues, which affect both the items in your home and the air quality.

How can I clean up the air inside my home?

There are three major ways to improve the indoor air quality of your home or business. Get your ducts cleaned, install an air filtration system, and control your humidity level.

How does duct cleaning help?

Years’ worth of dust and allergens can be trapped within the duct work and then mixed in with the air blowing out into your living space. Cleaning out the ducts can keep the air clean while traveling through the duct work.

What is an air filtration system?

Air filtration systems get rid of polluted air and replace it with fresh, clean air. A whole house air filtration system is the most effective and efficient.

Trane is rolling out a new product for indoor air quality called Awair Omni that monitors indoor air quality and can be tied into your existing Trane HVAC system.

Awair Omni checks your home air’s temperature, humidity, carbon dioxide, chemicals (TVOCs) which can be found everyday materials and cause skin and respiratory irritation, and fine dust (down to PM 2.5) which can trigger health problems like asthma and allergies. It even monitors ambient light levels to reduce eye strain, improving productivity and focus, and potentially reducing the incidence of migraines, and ambient noise to enhance your ability to concentrate.

Omni features real-time sensor readings, a touch-sensitive LED display, and customizable display settings. It is available, along with other great air filtration products, from your local HVAC professionals at Gentry.

Give us a call at Gentry today, and we can help you take control of your indoor air quality for a happier, healthier holiday season!

Issue #1 – Dirty air filter
Your air conditioning unit needs proper airflow in order to be able to cool the house. A dirty filter will block the air from traveling as designed, and can cause the unit to run and run, as it attempts to provide cool air. This is obviously bad news for your system, but luckily it can be a quick and easy fix if it is caught early enough.

Issue #2 – Low refrigerant
Air Conditioning units that are low on refrigerant are not running at full capacity. Although air flow may be adequate, the system needs chemical refrigerant to cool the air as it flows through. Without proper levels, the AC unit will have to run longer to bring the air temperature down and achieve the thermostat set point.

Issue #3 – Weak or failed electrical components
There are several electrical parts inside of an air conditioner such as capacitors and contactors. When these parts fail or begin to fail, it can cause the unit to run longer than needed or cause some motors to run non-stop or even not at all. In some cases, the compressor can stop running, but the fan motor will continue. This will make it appear that your unit is running non-stop, even though it is not cooling at all.

Issue #4 – The set temperature on the thermostat is too low
If you like your house to sit at 65 degrees, that is a lot to ask of your AC unit in the middle of July in Texas. Other times, we have encountered situations where someone in the house will dial the thermostat down as low as possible and simply forget to switch it back.

The good news is that over our many years of experience, we have seen all this and more. The friendly, professional HVAC experts as Gentry are here for you no matter what the issue is!