Spring in Moscow should mean enjoying warmer weather and enjoying more time outdoors. Instead, for many homeowners, it means dealing with pollen allergies.

If you suffer from allergies, you know how miserable that pollen in your home can make you feel. The sneezing, itchy and watery eyes, sinus problems and coughing can wear you down. If you have asthma, pollen can also lead to wheezing, chest tightness and trouble breathing.

Your home is supposed to be a refuge. Unfortunately, pollen doesn’t stay outside. It follows you indoors, creating poor indoor air quality in your Moscow home —and triggers the allergies that make you miserable.

The good news is, there are effective ways to get rid of indoor pollen problems in the spring. A one-two punch of pollen season prep and professional indoor air quality solutions can eliminate your allergy problems so you can finally breathe easier.

Why Pollen Is an Issue in Moscow, Idaho

Pollen produced from trees, grass and weeds is a serious spring problem in Moscow. What is the connection between this pollen and poor indoor air quality?

It finds its way into your home and builds up in carpets, furniture, bedding and air ducts. Once inside, pollen can move in the air through an unfiltered HVAC system. As it circulates, it can cause constant allergy flare-ups.

How Pollen Gets Into Your Home

Homeowners are often shocked to learn just how much pollen builds up inside their home. It drifts in through open windows and doors, hitches a ride on your pets and even can be pulled in by a poorly filtered HVAC system. Even if you keep your doors and windows closed, pollen still can get into your home. You can carry it indoors on your shoes and clothing. Poorly sealed doors and windows even let pollen in.

Once inside, pollen spreads quickly through your Moscow home. Knowing how to how to reduce pollen in homes means stopping it from getting in your home whenever possible and then removing it from circulation if it does.

DIY Pollen Reduction Tips That Make A Difference

• Change your HVAC filters frequently. Clean filters remove pollen and allergens from the air circulating throughout your home.
• Make sure your windows are closed on high pollen count days. Open windows allow high concentrations of pollen indoors.
• Wash off and change clothes after spending time outdoors. Pollen clings to your hair, skin and clothing, and you can spread that pollen onto your pillows, bedding and furniture
• Vacuum using a HEPA filter. HEPA filtration helps catch tiny pollen particles embedded in carpets and furniture.
• Clean your shoes on doormats and take off shoes. Shoes can carry pollen, dirt and other debris throughout your home.
• Regularly bathe pets. Pets bring pollen indoors on their fur, which they can then transfer to your bedding, carpets and furniture.

Upgrade Your HVAC System for Better Indoor Air Quality

Your HVAC system be an excellent tool to improve your home’s indoor air quality.These professional, whole-home indoor air quality solutions reduce allergens, increase airflow and make your home feel more pleasant throughout allergy season.

High-Efficiency Air Filters

High-efficiency HVAC filters help trap particles like pollen, dust and pet dander from the air in your home. You can compare filters using MERV ratings, which are numbers that show how effectively a filter traps airborne particles. Filters with higher MERV ratings can trap smaller particles. Many homeowners looking for the best air filters for allergies choose high-efficiency air filters because they are very effective at reducing indoor air contaminants.

Whole-Home Air Purifiers

Whole-home air filtration systems work in conjunction with your HVAC system to clean the air in your whole home. Unlike portable air purifiers that only treat indoor air quality issues in one room, whole-home air purification systems continuously capture microscopic particles like pollen, dust and pet dander as air travels through your ductwork. This creates a whole-home solution to your pollen problems.

Humidity Control

Spring humidity in Moscow can also worsen your allergies by creating conditions ripe for mold and mildew growth. In most homes, your home's humidity should be between 30-50 percent. Whole-home humidity control systems connect to your HVAC system to control moisture levels throughout your house. In humid months, they reduce excess moisture like a dehumidifier. In winter, they add moisture back into dry air. Unlike portable dehumidifiers that only control humidity in one room, whole-home systems are a way toimprove indoor air quality in the spring in your entire home.

UV Air Purification

UV air purification systems are an effective way to eliminate mold spores, bacteria and certain viruses traveling through your HVAC system. Unlike filters that only catch and remove particles like pollen and dust, UV systems also use ultraviolet light to target biological material.

When comparing an air purifier vs air filter for HVAC systems, remember that filters remove particles whiles purifiers have even more advanced technology to clean your air of other substances filters alone can’t address. Combined with filtration and humidity control, UV purification can help create cleaner, healthier air inside your home.

Signs Your Home Needs IAQ Improvements

Your home may have indoor air quality problems if you constantly deal with allergy symptoms indoors like sneezing, coughing, congestion, headaches or red, itchy eyes. Other signs of poor indoor air quality in your Moscow home include dust buildup even with frequent cleaning, musty odors, uneven airflow and rooms that feel closed-in or humid. If your symptoms disappear when you leave the house, that’s a major sign your indoor air may be the root cause.

Professional IAQ Services That Make a Difference

DIY solutions can help reduce pollen indoors, but alone they don’t completely solve the problem. If you continuously deal with spring pollen allergies, even small amounts of pollen can make you feel awful. That is where advanced HVAC air quality solutions can help. An indoor air quality assessment detects allergens and pollutants in your home so an HVAC professional can suggest filtration or purification solutions to finally solve your pollen problem.

Other ways are available to remove other allergens in your home, like duct cleaning. For allergies like pollen, dust and pet dander, cleaning debris out of your home’s air ducts can be a major benefit. Seasonal HVAC maintenance also is a great way to make sure your system cleans your air effectively and also helps extend the life of your system.

For many Moscow residents, professional services like filtration, purification, duct cleaning and humidity control finally offer the spring allergies home solutions they’ve been waiting for.

Get Ahead of Spring Pollen in Moscow

Prevention and professional solutions are the smartest way to conquer spring allergies. Start with DIY tips to limit pollen indoors. To completely address your pollen problem, work with an HVAC professional like the team at Redinger Heating & Cooling. We have professional knowledge and effective tools to enhance your indoor air quality, so you can breathe clean, pollen-free air all spring.

We also can keep levels in from becoming a problem in the first place with professional pollen season prep in Moscow. Schedule an IAQ consultation online or call 208-882-8152 today to get started with Redinger Heating & Cooling.