Do you love your pets? We do! A lot of our staff are pet owners, and we even have a service dog in our office frequently. Even though we all feel they are family, sometimes their hair and dander can be less than welcoming. Fur and dander from animals can degrade air quality and have a toll on HVAC systems in your home. Here are some tips to make sure everything stays clean and in shape.
An easy way to reduce the amount of hair and dander in the air is to brush your pet regularly, especially if they are long haired or shed often. Give your pet a bath at least monthly to keep everything under control and deep clean your furry friend. This is very helpful if your pet is an indoor/outdoor animal and carrying in allergens from outside. My dog is an Australian Shepherd, and I am not even sure how he still has fur after how much comes out each brushing! Still, I am glad to put that fur in the trash rather than in the carpet.
Check your filters regularly. You should do this anyway, but if your home has a pet, the filters will get dirty much easier. This will cause unneeded stress on your heating or cooling system and can decrease its lifespan and increase energy bills. To make sure it is working properly, you should check and clean the filters often. You may also consider upgrading to a filter that is a bit more heavy duty and made to collect animal fur and dander to make sure you are getting the most allergens out of the air.
Before you invest in a HVAC system or high end filter, you should consult with a contractor or expert first. This can make sure you get the perfect system from the start, and save you time and money down the line that you would have spent maintaining a less than idea HVAC system and filter.
In addition to the filters, you may want to consider the ducts that route air into your home. Dust, hair, pollutants and chemicals accumulates in your air ducts as air is circulated throughout your home. In addition to normal accumulations of dust and dirt found in all homes with air ducts, there are several other factors that can increase the need for regular HVAC system cleaning including pets, remodeling or home renovations that created dust or dirt and if you have people living in your home with allergies or asthma.
Air duct cleaning can greatly improve your air quality. While dirty ducts don’t necessarily mean unhealthy air in your home, they may be contributing to larger health issues or harboring contaminants that could cause serious problems for people with respiratory health conditions, autoimmune disorders or some environmental allergies. Cleaning your HVAC system can improve your indoor air quality making you less susceptible to harmful health issues that are caused by dirty air ducts. When keeping you and furry friends healthy and allergy free, you might want to check on cleaning your ducts.
If you smell a musty odor in your home, it could mean that you have dust, mildew, or mold spores present in your air ducts. Air fresheners and candles don’t eliminate the problem and only cover it up. A thorough clean will help you solve the problem at its source. A professional air duct cleaning should eliminate that smell almost completely.
The indoor unit isn’t the only thing to check! Dogs and cats can damage your outdoor unit if you are not careful. There are plenty of areas to scratch, bite, and destroy on an HVAC system. If you are worried your pet will have too much fun with your new system, you may want to consider putting a fence or wall around it.
If you are looking to put in a furnace, air conditioning, or a ductless heat pump system or want some advice on how to best deal with animals and how they affect your HVAC, call Advantage and let us help you. 503-393-5315.
