While Spring cleaning is a necessary ritual when the weather clears up, for those who suffer from asthma it can have devastating effects when it manifests your symptoms. Luckily, there’s plenty you can do to mitigate your risk and clean in a way that is not hazardous to your health and overall well being. With that in mind, here are some tips and tricks you can use to make your Spring cleaning as asthma friendly as possible.
Reduce Your Exposure
The first thing you should do is buy an exhaust fan or have one installed so that you can remove unwanted fumes and reduce moisture and mold in all areas of your house so that an asthma attack isn’t triggered. You should also make sure that empty all your trash regularly and store all food in sealed containers, discarding moldy or expired items.
Make sure that you also wipe off all your floors, tables and cabinets while wearing a mask. You should also avoid using an excess of chemicals, so clean your cabinets and counter tops with detergent and water, and check for any sort of plumbing leaks. You should also wipe up moisture in the refrigerator and other places that you store perishable items to avoid mold growth.
Look Out For Mold – Especially In Your Basement
Reducing moisture in your refrigerator is not the only thing you need to do to avoid mold growth in your home, which can easily cause many breathing problems for those who suffer from allergies. Remember that hot and humid houses are practically breeding grounds for mold and dust mites, so you need to make sure that you maintain temperature at 70 degrees Fahrenheit and your relative humidity at 30% to 50%.
This is doubly important in the basement, as that is the most likely room in your house to contract mold and dust. You should wear gloves and a mask when cleaning your basement, especially if its damp and dusty. You should remove mildly or water-damaged carpentering and if possible have cement or linoleum flooring installed, or at least low-pile carpentering. If this is an overwhelming task, hire a professional to assess how to get your basement as clean as possible, as it will affect the foundation of the rest of your house.
If you follow these tips and tricks, you will be able to have a cleaner house that won’t contract mold, dust or any other causes of asthma. This will help you live life comfortably indoors and feel like a welcome guest in your own home.
