Indoor Air Quality Checklist: Four Must-Do Tests for Cleaner Air

Indoor and outdoor air pollution is continuing to be a problem. Preventing outdoor pollution is nearly impossible. However, indoor pollution is easier to prevent by improving indoor environments.

As indoor pollutants increase in homes they can lead to various negative health effects. Knowing how to prevent poor indoor air quality (IAQ) is crucial to improving your indoor air.

Having an internal air quality checklist helps when looking for factors affecting air quality. Keeping a checklist can ensure you maintain good air quality within your home.

This blog discusses the four must-do tests contractors should do when doing an inspection. Follow our guide on how to check air quality in homes to stay safe year round.

Each room in a home serves a different purpose. Therefore, each room is at risk to long-term exposure of specific pollutants. For example, kitchens have high levels of particulate matter and volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Bathrooms tend to have mold and mildew buildups from excess moisture in the air.

Rooms also tend to have differences in ventilation rates. This affects the rate of removing the pollutants in an area. Some rooms can have specific exhaust fans while others will rely on HVAC ventilation systems.

Due to all the factors affecting indoor pollution, it is important to perform a room-by-room audit. A room-by-room audit helps you find the problems that are in each room. Completing the audit provides you with specific solutions you can add to the room.

An efficient way to complete these tests is by having an indoor air quality checklist. The checklist is great for identifying areas with potential issues that need a second glance. Use the checklist to identify mold, moisture, amount of pollutants, and ventilation.

Checklists keep organization during the test and help prevent future issues within the home. These checklists can identify indoor air quality products you might need to use in the space.

Once you have a checklist, you can perform the necessary tests in each room. The most common rooms to perform tests are:

• Bedrooms
• Kitchens
• Basements

Bedrooms

Bedrooms are important to check because it is the place where most people sleep. Indoor air pollution in the bedroom can lead to negative side effects, such as lack of sleep and lack of oxygen. Air pollution can even lead to lung cancer.

To prevent this, first test for CO2 in the bedroom. Human respiration is the cause of much of the CO2 released in the air. With rooms that are smaller in size and with poor ventilation, CO2 levels can rise.

An increase in CO2 levels can cause poor air quality which in turn keeps occupants awake throughout the night. We recommend using a CO2 sensor to detect the amount of carbon dioxide in the air. Carbon dioxide levels that are below 800 ppm are typically rooms that can hold occupants safely.

Checking for moisture in a room is also important. Finding excess moisture can lead to problems in the future like mold and mildew. Mold and mildew growth is very harmful to the body and to occupants that ingest it.

Try to identify the origin of the moisture in the room. Seal any openings or leaks found before moving on to the next room. To test the amount of temperature and humidity in the room, we recommend using a hygrometer.

Hygrometers monitor the humidity levels and display the actual humidity. Humidity levels that are between 30 and 50% are perfect for preventing mold and mildew growth.

Kitchens

Kitchen areas are another common area with poor indoor air quality. The low IAQ comes from the kitchen emitting gases in the air. Gases including carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, and formaldehyde can increase in levels. An increase in levels can cause stuffy air and deadly health risks in the future.

Like bedrooms, we recommend placing a carbon dioxide sensor somewhere in the kitchen to alert occupants of dangerous carbon dioxide. Along with carbon dioxide sensors, you can also purchase carbon monoxide detectors. Carbon monoxide detectors can detect the increase of carbon monoxide levels in the air.

As said above, VOCs are also common within kitchens. They release into the air through cooking as well as chemicals from cleaning supplies. When the chemicals release into the air, they react and create new pollutants that are more harmful.

Most VOCs cause irritation within the eyes, nose and throat areas. To prevent an increase in VOCs in the kitchen, purchase VOC sensors to detect when harmful chemicals are present. Most sensors won't go off until the radon levels are above 500 ppm.

Basement

While the basement is often overlooked, it is still a very important room that requires attention. Basements tend to have the most moisture in the house. This causes mold and mildew growth within the basement. The mold can trigger allergies, respiratory issues and potentially severe health problems.

Choose from various mold sampling kits to see if there is mold in your basement. Some different types of mold sample tests include:

• Air Sampling - Determines the mold spores in the air by testing level of mold or mildew particulates.
• Tape Lift Sampling - Pressing tape on the surface and removing it with light pressure. Inspect the sample for mold growth.
• Bulk - Tests pieces of materials from buildings or carpet segments to determine if they contain or show mold growth.
• Swab - Uses cotton or synthetic swab to test an area of mold growth

By using a sampling kit, you can find hidden mold that the owner of the home could not see. Ensure to wear protective clothing with mold and mildew to protect against any negative side effects.

Keeping the air quality in a home is very important to the occupants safety. By taking the correct approaches, you can prevent the buildup of negative pollutants in homes.

As a homeowner, it is important to know when the right time to have maintenance work done on your monitors. This is typically why a maintenance calendar is helpful to use. Maintenance schedules can help you prepare for check-ups in the future.

Indoor air quality is typically the worst around the winter months. Most people do not open windows and close the doors to keep the warmth in. They also use more heating systems which can trap the pollutants inside.

This can cause an increase in harmful pollutants over time and impact the health of homeowners. Instead of waiting, we recommend having maintenance to the indoor air quality monitors around the end of summer.

Schedule air quality testing annually under normal circumstances. If you're experiencing symptoms of poor air quality, schedule indoor air quality tests more frequently.

Use building and home air quality monitors to check for poor internal air quality. By preforming these tests, you can reduce indoor air pollution and any other damage to the current rooms.