If homeowners were familiar with the composition of dust particles, they would spend more time vacuuming and fixing window leaks in their homes. Dust is a mixture of dead skin cells, dust mites, clothing fibers, bugs, hair, and pollen. Do you notice a large amount of dust on your kitchen table or carpet? This is a sign of an indoor air quality problem in your house. To help you diagnose the source of the poor air quality in your home, we have compiled a list of 6 reasons your house is so dusty and ways to eliminate the problem.
Why Is My House Dusty?
Vacuum Cleaning
A majority of homeowners believe that vacuum cleaning is the easiest way to remove dust from the carpet in a room. If your house is dusty when you finish vacuuming, this is a sign your vacuum cleaner is releasing excess dust and contaminants into the air when it’s operating. The most effective method that can be utilized to eliminate dust is investing in a HEPA air filtration system. The term HEPA is utilized to describe high efficiency particulate air filters. A HEPA air filter is engineered to remove contaminants that feature a size of .3 microns or larger at an efficiency rating of 99.97%.
Low Quality Air Filters
Fiberglass air filters are utilized to remove pet dander, dirt, and hair from the indoor air in your home. On the other hand, fiberglass filters are not designed to extract miniature particles such as dust from the air. If you’re wondering why your house is dusty, the solution to the issue is to purchase a new premium air filter with a high MERV rating.
To reduce the amount of dust in the air, you will be required to purchase an air filter with a MERV rating of 5 to 8. Although it can be tempting to purchase a large number of air filters at a low price, cheap fiberglass filters feature a MERV rating that varies from 1 to 4.
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Carpet
Dirt from your shoes or socks may be the source of the dust in your house. In addition, breadcrumbs from meals and particles in the air will have a negative impact on your indoor air quality. To reduce the amount of dust particles in your house, you will need to vacuum 3 to 4 times a week. While vacuuming your living room and bedrooms will improve your air quality, it will not make a difference if you wear shoes in your home. If you’re wondering why your house is so dusty, inspect the bottom of your shoes .
The bottom of your shoes may be contaminating your carpet with dirt, bacteria, dust, and small insects. Once the carpet in your home becomes dirty, it will release airborne dust particles when you walk on it. To keep your carpet clean, ask your family members and visitors to remove their shoes at the front door. To prevent the spread of dirt, move the shoes into a utility closet or a welcome mat.
Although removing your shoes and vacuuming can reduce the amount of contaminants in the air, the best way to eliminate dust in your home is to replace the carpet with tiles or wood flooring. Investing in wood floors is a straightforward way to improve your indoor air quality and increase the value of your home.
Window Leaks
As the windows in your home reach the middle of their life cycle, the caulk near the glass panes can become worn out. If you’re attempting to determine why your house is dusty, contaminants and dust may be entering your living space through cracks and holes in the window frames.
The most effective way to improve the cleanliness of your air is to seal the cracks in your window frames with caulk. Do you notice cold air entering your home by the front door? A convenient and affordable solution to eliminate leaks is to invest in new weather strips. Purchasing and installing new weather strips will help eliminate dust and improve the insulation of your home.
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Air Duct Leaks
Miniature leaks and holes in your air ducts may be the source of the dust on your furniture. As the air ducts behind your walls get older, the connections between the individual air ducts can become loose. Unfortunately, the dust in your air ducts can escape through small cracks before it is eliminated by your air filtration system. If your house is dusty at the beginning of the winter season, you will need to inspect your air ducts to find and fix small leaks.
Rugs
A standard rug in a home can collect multiple pounds of dust in a single year. As the dust in the air settles to the ground, it can become trapped in the fibers in your rug. Once you step on the rug in your kitchen or family room, the dust can be released into the air you breathe. Although a vacuum cleaner will help reduce the amount of dust, it will not suck out all of the dust particles in the fibers.
To remove dust and prolong the life of your carpet, you will need to purchase a carpet cleaner. A carpet cleaner injects and extracts water from the fibers in your carpet to eliminate dirt and dust. To reduce the amount of dust in air, you will need to use a carpet cleaner 2 to 3 times a year in high traffic areas such as the master bedroom or dining room.
Indoor & Quality & HVAC Services
If you notice an abnormal amount of dust in your house, give our team a call by phone at (703) 543-9649 to schedule an appointment. We offer a large selection of ultraviolet air purification systems, air purifiers, humidifiers, dehumidifiers, and air filtration systems that are designed to eliminate dust and bacteria from the air in your house. In addition, we offer types of HVAC services such as furnace repair, air conditioning tune-up, and heating system replacement.
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