Canadian winters have a solid reputation for being quite daunting, from heavy snowfall to ice, sleet, and rain. It is no surprise that Canadians spend most of their winters indoors.
But too much time inside can be hazardous to your health in many known and unknown ways. Sometimes, the air inside is even more clogged, dirtier, and toxic as compared to outside; this is especially true for inside winter air. All these hazards and toxins are created because you don’t open windows or doors in winter - you don’t want to lose the expensive warmth created by your heating system - making it difficult to ventilate your house.
Also read:
HOW TO KEEP YOUR ROOM VENTILATED IN WINTER
Fortunately, there are some effective ways you can ventilate your home in winters without letting go of the heat produced by your HVAC system.
rnImportance Of Ventilation In Winter
Headache coughs, breathing difficulties, and other related conditions in winter are all caused by dirty and clogged indoor air. Therefore, good ventilation is extremely important for the health and infrastructure of your home. By ventilating your home, you actually replace the clogged, polluted, and humid indoor air with the fresh outside air. This helps you control all the breathing problems and other health and infrastructure problems caused by a humid and moist environment. Ventilation creates a pleasant and fresh environment in your home - a place where you spend most of your time in winter.
rnCommon Adverse Effects Of Poor Ventilation
The most common impacts lack of ventilation can have on you, and your home is
Increased risks of molds on the walls of your home. rnPoor concentration.rnHypertension and respiratory diseases rnAllergies and other allergy-related conditions rnLow immunity rnDiscomfort and worse physical conditions rnDampness or formation of watermarks on walls or ceilings rnVapor condensation at door inlets and the space behind furniture.
rnVentilating Tools For Winters
Natural ventilation by opening windows and doors is not always possible when it is cold outside. This doesn’t mean you need to live in toxic indoor air for the whole winter. However, the lack of two types of air purifying tools, namely ventilation and filtration, is the basic reason for bad indoor air quality.
rnVentilation And Filtration
Ventilation is a term that refers to replacing the clogged inside with the fresh air continuously. While filtration refers to the phenomenon where the indoor air is filtered from air-borne toxins, germs, or bacteria. Ventilation and filtration together can do wonders in cleaning and detoxifying air any time of the year, especially in winters.
rnVentilation Options
Many people don’t know that just turning the fan on or opening the windows is not what proper ventilation is. Both techniques are good but not practical in winters when it is freezing outside. You can solve the ventilation problem by
installing mechanical ventilation systems such as heat recovery ventilators. The best heat recovery ventilators use heat from the stale outgoing air to heat the incoming fresh air.
Some other options to ventilate your indoor air in winter are
Micro-ventilation
In this approach, you don’t open the window completely. Just a little crack open one in each room to allow a bit of fresh air to enter.
Switch Ceiling Fans To Winter Mode
Modern fans have a switch at the side that reverses its functioning mechanism by turning the blades around. This reverse pulls the cold air up and pushes the warm air downwards.
Run Bathroom And Kitchen Fans
During showering, run the bathroom fan to avoid excess humidity accumulating in the environment and inducing the growth of mold and mildew.
Similarly, when cooking or baking, run the kitchen exhaust fan to avoid the exhaust from the potential toxic stove or oven fumes.
rnAir Filtration Options
Air filtration is responsible for removing toxins, allergens, and irritants from the air. This can be done in numerous ways.
rnInstalling Quality HVAC System Filters
Filters in the market have ratings from 1 to 20. Higher-rated filters work more effectively and filter out the smallest particulate matter from the air.
rnCleaning And Replacing Filters Regularly
Filters trap all the toxins and other harmful particles in them and let the clean air out. These particles clog or block the filters, adversely impacting their functionality. Therefore, it is important to clean and replace the air filters regularly to keep them effective and efficient.
rnUse Non-ozone Producing Filters
These are the electric filters that use an electric charge to filter the air from toxins and other harmful materials. Make sure you choose the filter that does not produce ozone.
rnHumidification
Having a room-size humidifier can be helpful in winter. Make sure to get your humidifier cleaned and serviced before fall to utilize it without any inconvenience. Otherwise, a clogged and leaking humidifier will do more bad than good.
A thorough professional check-up and maintenance of humidifiers and HVAC systems before winter is the best way to save yourself from emergency repairs and inconveniences.