4 easy tips for keeping your air fresh

We use air every minute of every day — and it's free. The problem is, heat and air-conditioning don't come free, so we spend much of the year with our home hermetically sealed to save money. But trapped in there with us are dust mites, airborne chemicals, cooking fumes and, with some of us, cigarette smoke, carbon monoxide from fireplaces and wood stoves, pet allergens (hair and saliva), and other pollutants and irritants.

• Good ventilation will do more than anything else to freshen the air in your home. When you get up in the morning, open a window in each room of the house for at least five minutes no matter what the temperature is outside.
• Smooth surfaces — tile or hardwood floors, for instance — will help to keep the air cleaner, too, because allergens love to collect in upholstery, curtains and carpets.
• Using bicarbonate of soda or vinegar to absorb odours may help to reduce unpleasant smells, but neither substance does much to clean the air. The same is true of aerosol spray air fresheners, which pump more chemicals into your environment.

Forced-air heating and cooling systems are major contributors to indoor air pollution. They blow air all around your house through a system of ducts, spreading dust, mites and mould.

• Change the air filter that stands between the motor unit and your home's ductwork at least a couple of times a year, and more often if the manufacturer recommends it.
• Also, consider getting small vent filters that fit over the vents in each room.
• Avoid sleeping directly in the path of the vents, otherwise those blown particles will end up settling in your lungs rather than on your dresser, which could lead to health problems.
• If dust has built up inside the ducts, contact a professional duct-cleaning service to vacuum them out.

• Heating systems can create extremely dry air, which can be corrected with a humidifier or by placing bowls of water near the heat source.
• Ideal humidity for your home is about 40 to 50 per cent. Let the air get much damper than that and you encourage mould growth.
• However, if you use a humidifier, remember to clean it frequently to prevent mould from growing in it.

• Go to the source of the problem. Try these solutions for common problems:
• To control pet allergens and mites, wash your pets frequently — every two weeks if someone in your home has allergies.
• To keep smoke to a minimum, limit the number of open fires you have in the fireplace and if you or another member of your household smoke cigarettes, go outside to do it.
• To keep dust mites under wraps, put a plastic mattress cover over that mattress where you spend a third of your life, and put a mattress pad over the plastic. (Otherwise, the plastic will collect your perspiration.)
• You can also buy special anti-mite mattress covers that are soft and micro porous — more comfortable than plastic.