From the white dusty film covering cars, streets, windows, and outdoor furniture to the red, watery eyes and sneezing, there’s no doubt that spring, aka pollen season, has arrived in Delaware. While there’s not much you can do to avoid pollen’s effects on your first outdoor barbeques and parties of 2017, there is a lot you can do to minimize its impact on your home life indoors. Here are a number of tips you can use to avoid the stinging eyes and sinus problems that pollen can bring every year.
TAKE OFF OUTWEAR AS SOON AS YOU WALK INSIDE
The pollen that is floating in the air can easily attach itself to your jackets, sweatshirts, and other types of outwear. To prevent the pollen from spreading throughout your house, remove your outwear as soon as you enter your home and leave it in a place by the door.
DON’T FORGET SHOES, ACCESSORIES, AND BAGS
That pesky pollen that zaps onto your jackets can also find a place to land on your shoes, purses, backpacks, scarves, and carrying bags. Because of this, it’s also advisable to remove any wearable items when you first enter home and keep them quarantined to a space as close as possible to your entrance. And although it’s often eco-friendly to reuse disposable carry bags, these should be thrown away at this time of the year to minimize spreading pollen or washed, if possible, if you want to repurpose them.
WASH YOUR HAIR OFTEN
After being bundled up in hoods, hats, and scarves all winter, it’s nice to feel the breeze in your hair again in spring. Unfortunately, your exposed tresses are a fantastic magnet for airborne pollen. To rid your hair of the pollen, wash it as soon as possible once you arrive home and don’t plan on leaving your house again until morning.
BRUSH YOUR PETS
The pollen that attaches to your human hair does not discriminate by species – it also loves to land on your pet’s fur. To remove as much pollen as possible from your pet’s coat, give the coat a good brushing right before your pet comes inside. If you need to brush inside, keep your pet by the door for the brushing session and vacuum to area as soon as you are finished.
KEEP THE WINDOWS CLOSED
It’s great to finally be able to have some fresh air in your house after it’s been sealed shut all winter, but open windows are a main contributor to pollen getting inside. Because of this, it’s best to keep the windows closed, especially on high pollen count days.
CHECK FOR LEAKS IN YOUR HOME’S ENVELOPE AND DUCT SYSTEM
Another main contributor to indoor pollen are leaks in your home’s envelope and duct system. To find out if you have any leaks, contact an HVAC specialist to conduct a thorough inspection and fix any leaks if they are found. Residents in Newark, DE can contact First Class HVAC for help. We’ve been providing HVAC services for over 40 years in Delaware and Eastern Maryland and can assist you in reducing pollen inside your house so you can enjoy the fine spring weather without pollen problems.