Indoor Air Quality

Why Worry about Indoor Air Quality?

Indoor air quality is important for your health. Poor air quality can lead to respiratory illnesses, headaches, allergies, and poisoning, for instance from carbon monoxide and nitrogen dioxide. Unfortunately, air inside our homes can often contain more pollutants than air outside our homes! Common sources of indoor air pollutants include:

  • Fuel-burning appliances, such as wood stoves, gas cooking ranges, etc

  • Tobacco products

  • Newly-installed flooring, furniture or carpets

  • Household cleaning products or even “air fresheners”!

  • Personal care products, such as nail polish

An image of a home, depicting sources of indoor air pollution.

Indoor air pollutants. Source: U.S. EPA

Learn more about common sources of indoor air pollutants on this page from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. You might be surprised to see how much carbon monoxide is present when cooking using gas cooking ranges, especially when first starting them up. You should always turn on an exhaust fan before and while cooking, and make sure the fan vents outdoors. Learn more about the dangers of gas stove cooking in this study from the Rocky Mountain Institute.

One common concern about tight, energy-efficient homes is that they won’t “breathe”. Having fresh air is important, but rather than have that air come through leaks in the walls, or up through a moldy basement, it is preferable to bring in fresh air from the outside. We subscribe to, “Make it Tight, and Ventilate Right!”

Improving your Indoor Air

Here are some things you can do to improve the quality of the air inside your home:

  • Use natural cleaning products, such as vinegar and baking soda. Learn more about green cleaning products on this page from CCE-Tompkins

  • Sign up for a visit with Tompkins County’s Healthy Neighborhood program. This free program involves an in-person or remote visit, provides information on things to do to improve air quality and make your home safer, and provides free products such as smoke detectors, carbon monoxide monitors, and green cleaning items.

  • Learn more about which home furnishings and home products add lots of toxic chemicals and which are better through research from the Environmental Working Group and their Healthy Home Guides.

  • Move towards electric cooking. Induction cooktops and ranges are very efficient, and can quickly raise and lower temperatures. They can come with electric ovens as well. Learn more about these options in this article from Consumer Reports.

  • Asbestos? Lead paint? Mold? Radon? This page from CCE-Tompkins has information on these other concerns for a healthy home.

Home Ventilation Options

There are many types of ventilation for homes. Learn more about these different types in this article from Energy.gov.

The PowerHouse has a special type of fan called an Energy Recovery Ventilator (ERV). This fan has a special tube that can bring in fresh air from outside and send out the stale air in a way that the incoming air picks up heat from the outgoing air (in winter), thus “recovering” some of the heat energy inside the building.

Other Resources

Read this guide from the U.S. EPA on Mold, Moisture, and Your Home