When it comes to air cleaners and purifiers most of the talk is about allergies. But particulates can just be downright irratation to your lungs and certain particulates can be downright dangerous (Smoke. Hello!)
This is pretty techy...
pleasure reading.....
Studies show that a typical 2,000 square foot house will have an average of 50,000 gallons of water run over it in a year. This is why it is so important to prevent water from entering the home and removing the excess moisture that does.
Tips for Reducing Excess Moisture in the Home:
- Clean and repair roof gutters regularly – use covers to keep leaves and sticks from building up in the gutters. (show gutter guards on gutter)
- Vent appliances that produce moisture, such as clothes dryers and stoves to the outside where possible.
- Make sure the ground slopes away from the building foundation, so that water does not enter or collect around the foundation.
- Use down spout extenders that carry water at least six feet away from the foundation. (show gutter extender)
- Seal unwanted air leaks, such as around holes for plumbing and wiring, this is where humid outside air sneaks into the home. (leak sealer spray)
- Use a dehumidifier in the home to remove moisture that infiltrates into home. (Aprilaire whole-home dehumidifier)
To control the conditions that lead to moisture damage and mold growth, keep indoor relative humidity below 50 percent by installing a whole-home dehumidifier. The Aprilaire Model 1700 whole-home dehumidifier works in tandem with the heating and cooling system remove up to 90 pints of moisture from the home’s environment each day.
Experts warn against setting the thermostat temperature lower and using the air conditioner to remove excess humidity, as it does two things that are counter to the goal of reducing the moisture content in the home. It actually increases the indoor relative humidity and more importantly it decreases the temperature of the materials in the walls, floors, and ceilings of your home, thereby significantly increasing the potential for moisture condensation on these elements of the home.
Time magazine recently reported on a
study done by the Columbia Center for Children's Environmental Health linking pollution to lower IQ scores in children. The comprehensive study that started in 1998 linked high air pollution levels to a four-point drop in IQ scores, which the director of the study said "A difference in four points could be educationally meaningful in terms of school success."
The importance of clean air is becoming more and more evident every day. Since Americans spend up to 90% of there time indoors it is imperative that measures are taken to make sure your home's air is clean.
Aprilaire has the products you need to ensure your home's air is healthy and clean. Go to
Aprilaire.com to see our lineup of whole home air cleaners or contact your
local Aprilaire dealer.
Did you know... The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has an entire section on their website dedicated to mold. They highlight the fact that people with asthma, allergies, or other breathing conditions may be more sensitive to mold. If you suffer from any of these ailments, you know that your health is at serious risk if you are exposed to mold.
The solution to preventing mold
The CDC also highlights the following statement; "Controlling moisture in your home is the most critical factor for preventing mold growth." Sounds easy enough, and it is. Simply call your local Aprilaire dealer and request installation of a whole-house dehumidifier. Aprilaire dehumidifiers work in unison with your homes HVAC system to quietly remove excess moisture from your entire home.
Aprilaire units are also easy to maintain, unlike portable dehumidifiers that take up space in your living room, make all kinds of noise, and have tanks to clean and empty.
Protect your family's health from the effects of mold. Call your Aprilaire dealer today!
Did you know....static electricity can be a pain - literally. It gives us painful "zaps" and makes our hair stand on end. Websites like sciencemadesimple.com are excellent resources for learning and understanding why static electricity occurs. What's more important is learning how to prevent it from happening.
Proper humidification is the key
Sciencemadesimple.com offers a number "Static Elimination Tips" that are simple and easy to do. Number one on this list is: "Increase the humidity in your house and workplace. Air is much drier in the winter, which increases the frequency and severity of shocks. Use a humidifier."
Aprilaire suggests you take this one step further; install a whole-house humidifier. Unlike noisy and unsightly portable humidifiers that only add moisture to the room they're in, Aprilaire quietly works in harmony with your HVAC system to add soothing, humidified air to every room in your house. Aprilaire is also easy to operate and maintain, with no messy tanks to clean and fill.
Call your Aprilaire dealer today and find out how easy it is to avoid all the discomfort of dry air and static electricity.
Did you know....According to the University of Nebraska - Lincoln, dust mites are found in most homes. While dust mites are not parasitic and do not bite, people can be allergic to them. Symptoms include sneezing, itchy, water eyes, nasal stuffiness, runny nose, stuffy ears, respiratory problems, eczema and (in severe cases) asthma.
Dust mites need high temperatures (75 to 80 degrees F) and high humidity (70 to 80% relative humidity) to survive. One study showed when humidity is 60% or lower, the dust mite population stops growing and dies out.
Control humidity for dust mite management
At the top of the university’s list for eliminating problems due to dust mites is controlling the relative humidity (RH) in the home. Keeping the RH below 50% is the key. The best way to reduce the RH in your home is to install an Aprilaire whole-house dehumidifier. Unlike a portable unit that only removes moisture from the room it is in, Aprilaire works with your HVAC system to deliver dehumidified air to your entire home. And, unlike portable dehumidifiers that require constant cleaning and emptying of the tank, an Apriaire whole-house dehumidifier only needs the filter cleaned once a year.
Aprilaire - protecting your health for over 50 years!
Wisconsin weather sure is whacky. Today is June 30, 2009. At the time I am blogging this, it is 61 degrees outside with a relative humidity (RH) of 72%. Last week at this time, we had temps in the high eighties and low nineties with high humidity to boot. Air conditioners and dehumidifiers were working as hard as they could to remove heat and moisture, giving homeowners ultimate comfort and protection.
No air conditioning required
72% RH is a perfect breeding ground for things like mold and dust mites. Some people would say their air conditioning will take care of excess humidity. However, at 61 degrees, your air conditioning is not going to come on. At this point, you have a decision to make; you can either suffer the consequences of high humidity, or you can install an Aprilaire whole-house dehumidifier to protect your health and home.
Aprilaire is the perfect solution. It installs with your home’s HVAC system, out of sight and out of mind, quietly removing moisture from your entire home. And, unlike portable dehumidifiers that only remove moisture from the room they are in, there are no tanks to empty and clean on a daily basis.
Call your Aprilaire dealer today and request an Aprilaire whole-house dehumidifier. You'll be glad you did.
Did you know...Medical professionals recommend the use of a dehumidifier to prevent mold growth in 
homes. One such professional is Dr. Alan Green, M.D. Dr. Greene has dedicated a section of his website to address mold and how to prevent its growth. The importance of this lies in health-related issues such as allergies. Prevent mold, reduce allergy symptoms.
Relative Humidity is the Key
Dr. Greene recommends the use of a dehumidifier to maintain relative humidity (RH) levels between 35% and 50%. Aprilaire recommends you take this one step further; install a whole-house dehumidifier. A whole-house dehumidifier provides many advantages over a portable.
- Whole-house versus one room - you live in more than one room of your house, it doesn't make sense to dehumidify only one room.
- Out of sight - Aprilaire installs in conjunction with your HVAC equipment, out of sight and out of mind. A portable dehumidifier sits in your living area where you can see and hear it.
- Maintenance – an Aprilaire unit only requires cleaning of the air filter once per year. A portable unit requires daily emptying of the tank and periodic cleaning. What a hassle!
Listen to your doctor. Call your
Aprilaire dealer today and take advantage of proper dehumidification.
Aprilaire - protecting your health for over 50 years!
Are you like me and want to have the air in your home as clean as possible? Wanting clean air and having clean air isn’t always the same. You may have an air cleaner installed but how do you know it’s actually cleaning the air. Aprilaire makes air cleaners that not only clean the air in your home they also tell you when the air cleaner is operating. The models 4200 and 4400 have a MERV rating of 13 and the model 5000 is equivalent to a MERV 16. All three include an active control which has 4 active cleaning options; Constant cleaning 24/7 365, Automatic which is one 30 minute cycle per hour, Event clean which is one 3 hour cycle and Allergies which is one 24 hour cycle. Pressing any of these selections allows you to clean the air in your home above and beyond the normal air cleaner operating time during the heating and cooling operation of your HVAC equipment. To learn more visit www.aprilaire.com.
Sound gross? OK, I meant the Mayo Clinic. They're serving up some great information for
allergy sufferers. Controlling excess humidity and dust are keys to controlling dust mites. An air purifier can help with airborne allergens and dust in general. They may not trap alot of actual dust mites.
Still, they recommend keeping the place clean, and that's where an air cleaner with a clean air cleaner filter can help.
And,
humidifiers can help with skin irritations and respiratory problems.
Don't want to listen to Aprilaire bloggers? Who wouldn't want to listen to the experts from the Mayo Clinic?
Maybe. Sure, there are room air purifiers with HEPA filters and fans that can do a decent job of cleaning the air in one room.
Then there are
GadgetS!!!!
As much as I hate to give these guys a link, there it is.
Do you really want to protect your family with a gadget?
If you want a cute toy, go to Toys R Us (or online) and buy a cute toy. If you want effective air cleaning, do your homework. If you insist on a portable, buy the most you can afford in HEPA filtration with a FAN! If you want air cleaning in every room, buy an
air cleaner installed with your HVAC system.
Of all the information out there about HEPA filters and air purifiers that help rid the air of unwanted allergens, it seems clear that you can benefit from a healthier home environment by using a high-efficiency air cleaning system that will reduce airborne contaminants.
There are plenty of manufacturers' claims about how best to clean the air in your home. Portable air purifiers , or even larger HEPA filters can be pretty effective at cleaning air in one room.
Of course, we believe that for homes with forced air HVAC systems and duct work, using an air cleaner installed within this system, is a more comprehensive and efficient way to clean the air, because it works throughout your house. As your system blower operates, air movement takes place throughout your house and airborne contaminants flow through your return air ducts where an air cleaner captures them before the air is recirculated through your system and back throughout your home.
But let's get beyond the obvious health benefits for a minute. If you're in the market for cleaner air at home and doing your homework to make the best decision, but still struggling with which way to go, consider this.
A high efficiency air cleaner installed with your system also keeps your system cleaner, which keeps it running more efficiently, which in turn saves energy! It also prolongs the life of your HVAC system, which saves you even more money!
Here's proof. This photo compares two air conditioner A-coils; both 10 years old. One from a system that used an Aprilaire air cleaner (left); the other used a standard 1" furnace filter.
A-coils are messy, expensive things to have cleaned; even more expensive to replace.
So consider whole-house air cleaning and also consider preserving your expensive HVAC system and saving energy!
Did you know....Mold can have devastating affects on your home and your health. In some extreme cases, entire houses have been condemned due to the grave health concerns that mold infestation can cause.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) lists moisture and mold prevention and control tips on their website. One of the tips is "Keep indoor humidity low. If possible, keep indoor humidity below 60 percent (ideally between 30 and 50 percent) relative humidity."
Actions that will help to reduce humidity
One of the actions the EPA suggests to reduce humidity in the home is the use of a dehumidifier. Aprilaire would like to take this one step further - use a whole-house dehumidifier. While a portable dehumidifier only removes moisture from the room it is in, an Aprilaire whole-house dehumidifier works in conjunction with your HVAC system to remove moisture from every room in your home.
An Aprilaire dehumidifier is also easy to maintain with no tanks to lift and empty. Simply clean the air filter every year and you're good to go. Call your Aprilaire dealer today and ask how you can benefit from having an Aprilaire dehumidifier installed in your home.
Aprilaire - preventing mold growth to protect the health of you and your family.
I get Google alerts everyday of Aprilaire products being talked about online. Today I received one that turned out to be a Craigslist posting; someone selling a five-year old Aprilaire humidifier for fifty bucks. Great deal, eh?
I don't think so.
Yes, fifty bucks is alot cheaper than having a new humidifier installed.
And yes, it's true that there really is very little that can go wrong with an Aprilaire humidifier, so a five-year old unit is likely to perform just like new if it's been properly serviced throughout that five years.
Big "IF"! But why risk that? YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR!
My advice is spend the money to do it right. It's not that expensive to get the peace of mind and up-to-date technology of a brand new unit. Do it right and call a qualified Aprilaire Indoor Air Quality Specialist in your town. Yes, you'll spend a few hundred bucks. But you'll have better comfort for a lifetime.
Plus, while they're at it, you can have your entire system cleaned and checked for the season; something you need to do anyway in order to keep a very expensive system running efficiently and safely.
I love Craigslist; use it alot to buy and sell. Heck, if I was that guy with an Aprilaire humidifier that I wanted to sell, I'd probably do the same thing. But as buyer, no thanks.
I just had a homeowner ask me if he should turn off his humidifier in the Summer. Good question!
Your Aprilaire Humidifier likely will not run in the summer unless the weather is cold enough and your thermostat setting calls for your furnace to heat your home. It is not required that you turn the unit off. It simply will not operate if there is no call for heat.
If you prefer, you can unplug the power to the unit and you can shut off the water supply to the unit during the summer, but it is not required.
This would be a good time to clean the unit and change out the water panel. Be sure you do that before the heating season starts again. Your local HVAC contractor or Aprilaire dealer can help with this at the same time you have them clean and check your entire system in the Fall.
Thanks for inquiring!!!
Right now everyone is watching there p’s and q’s when it comes to spending money. It’s a tough economic time, and determining what’s important to spend money on and what’s not is something every family and company is doing right now.
One thing most aren’t cutting back on are things like healthy food and regularly scheduled doctor’s visits. Why? Well, those things are too important to you and your family's health. Instead of buying those fan tail shrimp to put in your stir fry you might be eating chicken instead, but you’re still going to make sure your family is getting plenty of nutritious meals. The great Ralph Waldo Emerson once wrote “The first wealth is health.” And like the nutritious food you put into your stomach every day the air you put into your lungs each day is just as important.
So don’t skimp on indoor air quality. If you’re having a
contractor come out to clean and check your equipment have him quote an Aprilaire air cleaner, programmable thermostat and depending on where you live a humidifier or dehumidifier (or in many places both).
Tell your contractor you’re interested in improving the quality of your homes air. Any
good contractor will be able to educate you on what you can do to improve your IAQ. You can always give our dedicated customer service team a call at 1-800-334-6011 they too can help you decide on what the best IAQ products are for you.
Aprilaire IAQ products provide clean healthy air to millions of homes across the country. Is yours one of them? If you don’t think indoor air quality is an important part of a healthy lifestyle just Google Indoor Air Quality or Indoor Air Pollution there are vast amounts of good credible information out there.
I remember last winter writing about how dry it is in hotel rooms. That led to an interesting conversation about what to do when you travel. That led to some humorous conversation about when you travel and stay with friends. Only stay with friends who have a whole-house humidifier!!!!
Well, it's allergy time and the same problem exists. What do you do when you travel?
Here's a great article with some tips. And yes, it recommends portable air purifiers, which we say are not very effective. Well. they aren't as effective as continual whole-house air cleaning, but they do work and if you're traveling, they might just help.
Otherwise, call your friends and tell them to install Aprilaire whole-house air cleaner or you'll cancel your visit!!!!! ;)
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