Flu season is nearly upon us and health experts warn that this year’s strain could be particularly virulent. Many harmful viruses, including the influenza virus, circulate through the air.
For this reason, understanding and properly utilizing your heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system can serve as an effective tool in combating winter illnesses.
Here are a few ways to use your HVAC system to fight the cold and flu season:
Continuous HVAC Running
A big part of the reason we tend to contract airborne viruses during the colder months is that we are spending more of our time indoors. Air that isn’t being re-circulated can eventually teem with communicable germs. For this reason, airplanes have become infamous as contact points for illnesses.
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Maintaining clean, fresh air is essential for establishing a virus-free zone. Continuously circulating air by leaving your HVAC running helps to flush out contagions, and keeps you breathing healthy air all winter long.
Installing a Whole House Humidifier
During the colder months, as we tend to keep ourselves couped up indoors with the windows sealed, the air we breathe can become very dry. This can cause damage to the mucous membranes and cilia in our nostril passages. When these hairs and tissues dry out, our first line of defense against viruses is compromised, and we become more susceptible to falling ill.
Installing a whole-house humidifier can help solve this problem. The whole house humidifier is connected to a water line and your HVAC system and insures that the air in your house contains enough moisture to keep your mucous membranes and nostrils’ cilia from drying out, thus making you more capable of fighting off invading viruses.
Keeping Your House Warmed Up
It’s a common misconception that cold and flu bugs are stronger during the winter months. The fact is that it is our immune systems grow weaker when we are cold and dried out.
For the same reason it is wise to incorporate a whole-house humidifier into your HVAC system, it is also important to keep your home at a consistent, warm temperature. The warmth and humidity will keep your immune system’s first responder, your nose, moisturized and ready to do its job.
Using an Air Purifier
While circulating air through your HVAC system can help flush viruses and contagions, an air purifier goes a step further and actively destroys those offending particles. In the most up to date systems, UV light is used to cleanse the air of germs as it circulates through your house.
State-of-the-art air purifiers are a powerful tool in fighting viruses and avoiding illnesses. To understand more about air purifiers and how they incorporate into your South Carolina HVAC system, contact a certified HVAC service technician.
Exercise, Vitamin D
While tuning up and maintaining your home’s HVAC system can be a great tool in the fight against airborne illnesses, make sure you are also taking care of yourself during those cold winter months. Exercise and proper nutrition can keep your immune system strong, even when the weather outside is frigid.
Taking steps to protect yourself against the cold and flu season should be an annual practice. Keep yourself healthy and ready for action by implementing these tips into your life in the fall and winter.