or, What's really in the air in your home? Hint.... it's yucky
by Gary Servi
Air pollution is not only a factor outside, but also
inside your home or office. The average home collect 40 pounds of dust a
year which plays host to 15 species of mites that live in pillows, beds,
carpets and stuffed furniture. Did you think house dust consisted mostly
of soil? Sorry! House dust includes tracked-in and blown-in soil, pet components,
carpet fibers and assorted particles. But three ingredients define it and
set it apart from other types of dust. These are: human skin flakes, dust
mites - which eat skin - and dust mite feces. Each human sloughs off many
pounds of skin annually. Eighty percent of the particles which can be seen
in a sunbeam are skin flakes. No wonder we are often allergic to house dust.
Dust mites alone send asthmatics to hospital emergency
rooms more than 200,000 times a year according to researchers at the University
of Virginia. Bacteria or other microorganisms that cause colds or flu, respiratory
infections, eye infections and other problems are found in household heating
and cooling system. Mold spores that cause allergies, sinus headaches, irritability,
and fatigue are found in heating and cooling systems, damp clothing, cleaning
materials, and the moisture in ceilings, walls, carpets and drapes. Formaldehyde
from carpeting, upholstery, wall paneling and wood floors is released into
many households and offices. Toxins such as dioxins from chlorine breakdown
interactions with plastics infuse our indoor environments.
Because many so-called modern homes and offices
are airtight, there is little or no air exchange. Rather, the air is often
recirculated and the air pollution is trapped indoors. This was the part
of the source of the infamous "Legionnaires disease" spread at
a convention facility. That crisis was tracked to an infectious mold in
the hotel air conditioning system.
In the Legionnaire episode, the hazard was immediate.
However, it's the constancy of exposure and long-range effect that makes
indoor pollution so pandemic. In homes, cars, schools, commercial sites
and workplaces, North Americans breathe less-than-ideal air all day long,
year-around.
So what can you do if you live or work in an environment
where you can't regularly ventilate it - either because of temperature,
security or other building constraints? One high-tech solution is an indoor
air purifier.
Nature treats outdoor air to a purification process
that indoor air generally misses. Outdoors, the electrical discharge of
lightning creates an abundance of activated oxygen - O3 (ozone) - in the
air along with an abundance of negative ions. Together, the activated oxygen
and negative ions both clean and purify the air naturally. Air indoors has
less ozone than air outdoors because no lightning bolts, sun rays, waves
or waterfalls are present to create it. So, it makes sense to replace the
missing ozone. Without it, the house dust floats, gathers in balls, hides
in ducts, clings to surfaces and bothers the heck out of and downright sickens
some of us. We breathe it into our bodies many times each minute.
Ozone is a highly reactive molecule. Outside, ozone
is one of the categories of pollutants that is tracked by the Air Pollution
Control District. Interactions with other emissions at ground level form
smog. At high concentrations, ozone causes health problems.
Indoors, ozone can be perform an important cleansing
function at the right levels. Natural ozone levels of .02 to .05 parts per
million keep outdoor air healthy and pure. That outdoor effect can be reproduced
indoors with an ozone generator.
Ozone generators create ions to remove pollutants
from the air flow. The generator's antenna emits radio waves that, on striking
molecules/particles impart an electric charge to create ions. These newly-charged
ions have a magnetic-like attraction to nearby pollutants. The linkup happens
quickly, but more ions are always being made. Molecule/particle clusters
grow heavier and heavier until finally they settle to the floor. Also, ozone
is a natural disinfectant which kills bacteria, mold, yeast, and fungi.
The action of ozone generators is different than air
cleaners that use filters to remove pollutants. Filters get dirty and must
be replaced - and can themselves become sources of pollution.
So, if you care about healthy air, indoors, where you
live and work, consider the need to purify it using the time honored techniques
of mother nature.
Gary Servi works for Remedy Air, makers of the Alpine air purifier.
