What You Need to Know About Indoor Air Quality08/08/2016 Most people are aware of how dangerous outdoor air pollution like car emissions can be, but they don’t realize that the air inside the usual house can be more polluted—depending on actual conditions, it can be up to five times more. Things have become so damaging, the EPA has indoor air pollution tiered as a top five environmental danger. Mold, pollen, pet dander, radon and even formaldehyde are commonly found inside. Since Americans spend an average of 90% of their time indoors, excellent indoor air quality is crucial for decent health, regardless if it’s in our homes or our workplaces. To help manage this pollution and improve our indoor air quality, we can take different measures. But first, we are required to understand some vernacular consistently used to discuss indoor air quality. HEPA HEPA is a term a lot of people have heard or seen, but did you know it stands for “high-efficiency particulate air” or “high-efficiency particulate arrestance”? HEPA filtration systems are created—and certified—to confine at least 99.97% of .3-micron particles (smaller than the diameter of a human hair) from the air that passes through the system. This significantly increases your home’s indoor air quality when dust, pollen, mites and other contaminants are trapped. MERV Minimum efficiency reporting value or MERV refers to the effectiveness of an air filter. With ratings ranging from 1–16, you should pursue a max rating that specifies the filter will remove more contaminants and allergens from your air without confining the airflow of your home comfort system. Ask us which MERV-rated filter will work best for your home. At Cooler Tymes LLC, we can help you understand the importance of indoor air quality and help you work on breathing the best air possible. After all, the typical adult takes in about 11,000 liters of air each day. Give us a call at 623-206-6770 if you have any questions or concerns about your home comfort system or schedule an appointment with us online.