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No doubt you think you know all the inhabitants of your house well – family, friends, housemates, maybe a pet. But most UK homes have unseen unwelcome house guests. They are ugly creepy crawlies, they look like something out of a science fiction film, and they could be making their home in your bed right now. I’m talking about millions of dust mites, the secret invaders in the home, invisible to the eye but causing problems wherever they go.

Aside from being thoroughly unpleasant to think they could be living in your carpets and bedding, dust mites are also one of the most common causes of asthma, eczema and a whole host of other recurrent allergies. Technically it’s dust mites’ droppings rather than the actual mites that cause problems, as they contain a highly allergenic enzyme which causes a reaction in over 20% of the population. They feast on the 50 million dead skin cells every human sheds each day, and it can be a nightmare getting rid of them completely. Tough, but not impossible. If you think there might be dust mites in your home, here are three tips that could help:

Keep it Clean – If you want to get rid of dust mites, the most obvious solution is to remove the dust. They like to live in ‘dust bunnies’ and deep in the carpet pile so regular hoovering, daily if you have to, will not only suck many of them out of the carpet but cut off the food supply to those that are left behind. Leave windows open whenever the weather is good enough as they don’t like sunlight, and are so small that many of them will get blown away completely in a breeze!

Keep it Fresh –You might not think air quality would have much effect on dust mites considering they live in the carpet and furnishings, but in fact the right air conditioner could make all the difference. Even when you’re hoovering daily there is still time for skin cells and dust particles to settle and create new homes for mites. Installing an air purifier with a HEPA filter literally removes all particles larger than 0.0003mm from the air before the dust can settle, meaning less food for mites.

Keep it Dry – Dust mites thrive in conditions where the air is moist with a relative humidity (RH) of 50% or higher. The ideal RH in the home varies depending on where you live and who you ask, but it is usually around 45%. If humidity levels in your home are above 50% trying to reduce it is a good idea as this will not only stop the mites but can also improve the general health of people living in the house. Basic things like keeping windows open when cooking or showering can make a difference but if the problem persists then using a dehumidifier is a quick and easy way to remove moisture from the air, maintaining the optimum RH and killing dust mites dead!

Uncategorized air conditioner, air purifier, allergies, dehumidifier, dust, dust mites

With the rapid advancement of technology occurring these days, there’s a wealth of appliances and gadgets to simplify and enhance our day to day lives. Among the most useful product innovations is the permanent filter home air purifier. This type of product is of particular value to people who have allergies to pollen, pets or dust.

Thanks to this valuable invention you can now enjoy clean air both at home and in the workplace. This goes a long way to protecting you from allergens and harmful environmental threats.

There are many air cleaner filter systems available on today’s market. Choosing the best air purifier for your particular needs might not be as easy as you might think. For this reason it is important that you carry out some research. Don’t make a purchase without getting as much information as possible so you can compare various products. Here are a few things you should keep in mind.

The CADR Rating

It’s important that you understand the rating given to the air cleaner system you’re considering buying. These ratings are your guide to figuring out just how reliable and effective a particular air cleaning product is.

The Clean Air Delivery Rate (CADR) is a realistic rating system used to evaluate filters. It does the job of testing how well the system will work at filtering the most harmful pollutants present in the air we breathe in.

The rating is shown as a percentage of the filtering capacity of the system. A higher number indicates that the filter will perform as claimed to eliminate smoke, dust and pollen from your interior air. So when checking these out you should be looking for one with a higher percentage number denoting its superior filtering ability.

MERV Rating

MERV, an acronym for Minimum Efficiency Reporting Value, isn’t much different from CADR. But the testing is conducted by the product manufacturer instead. The MERV, also shown as a percentage figure, indicates a rough guide of how effective the system will work on a scale of 1 to 16. You can be sure that the item you have purchased is good value for money if you select one which falls between 6 and 12.

If you suffer from allergies, it’s important to exercise as much control as possible over the environmental triggers that will set off an attack. A good quality air purifier will help you do the job properly.

House appliances air cleaners, air purifiers, allergies, clean air