It’s Spring Break for us, but the weather has yet to act like Spring yet. I was hoping that with the break from school being so late this year, we might have warmer weather to give the kids more time outside. The days have been sunny, but they’re still wearing their winter coats to go out.
Now that the week is nearly over, I hear our weather is supposed to warm up to real Spring temperatures. If it holds through the weekend, I might get the chance to throw open the windows to let the first fresh air of 2013 into our house.
Our house has been stuffy for the past few months. With a dog, cats, four humans and carpeting, it’s easy for the air in our house to seem stale and dusty. I’ve given up on dusting for the moment, honestly. The last time I dusted (using a product that traps dust), everything had a new, light coat of dust on it within two days.
Of course, I can’t ignore the dust. We’re an entire family of allergy sufferers – even the dog and one cat have allergies! It’s just exhausting to try to keep up with making our air better to breathe. Dusting and vacuuming regularly help, but getting all of the dust and allergens out of the air requires a transplant of fresh air.
I love that first day of opening the windows, too. Feeling the cool, fresh air fill the house is exhilarating. Sounds silly, I know, but after having dry, recycled air pushed around the house all Winter, I’m ready for a change of air. I’ll often dust and vacuum that day, too, hoping the fresh air will carry some of the airborne pollutants out a window with it. This is also the time for us to clean out the furnace filter.
Opening the windows and forcing some new air in here will be a good temporary solution for us, but it only lasts so long. As soon as Summer is here, the windows are often shut to keep out the heat, and in the fall (Aaron’s worst allergy season), our goal is to keep the outside air OUT of the house to keep his ragweed allergies to a minimum.
We used to have an air purifier, and with kids and more pets now, I think it’s time to get another one. They’re not nearly as expensive and huge as they used to be, and they’re a lot more efficient than the ones of 5-10 years ago. They also aren’t as loud as my old one, which sounded like a cross between a fan on high and a jet engine. (Thank goodness.)
Best Buy is having a sale on their air purifiers, with something for everyone, from small rooms to whole-house. I’ve got my eye on this one for the downstairs. It’s small enough to not take up a lot of space, it has a washable filter, and it’s energy efficient. All I hope is that it’ll keep the air a little cleaner and let me dust a little less often.
If you’re also trying to keep the dust and allergens under control, you might want to check out this 20% off coupon they passed along for me to share with all of you. (Note: I’m using the coupon as well!)
Disclosure: The reviewer has been compensated in the form of a Best Buy Gift Card and/or received the product/service at a reduced price or for free.
I was just saying to my husband yesterday that we need to put the screens in and open the windows today to LET ALL OF THE GERMS OUT OMG.