What Dust Is Made Of, & How It Affects Your Health

If you could see what you are breathing in your air, you would probably not want to take another breath......without a respirator.

What Is Dust Made Of?

Rather than being a single substance, house dust is a mixture of fibers from different types of fabrics, cotton linters, feathers and other stuffing material. It also contains bacteria, pet dander, bits of plants and insects, hairs and perhaps the worst of all, Dust Mites.

The Dust Mite is a microscopic crab/spider critter. Approximately 42,000 live in an ounce of dust and two million in an average household bed.

Health Concerns?

Many of these particles are carried in the air we breath. The larger particles settle out on wall and furniture in our living environment. The nose and mouth remove some large particles but the smaller particles are breathed deep into the lungs. These smaller particles can be dangerous to your health. People with allergies or asthma can be especially sensitive to these pollutants.

Over 50 million people suffer from allergy or respiratory problems. And, it's a proven fact that indoor air can be far more polluted than outdoor air, and most of us tend to spend over 90% of our time indoors. This can be a real problem for the folks who have allergies or asthma, and for the millions of others that don't realize they have a problem.

Solution: Electrostatic Air Filter?

Installing an electrostatic air filter in your heating and air conditioning system is a cost effective strategy that will help alleviate this problem. Electrostatic air filters use the natural phenomena of static electricity to trap and remove airborne particles in the airstreams. As air flows through the layers of static prone polypropylene grids, a harm-less static charge attracts and holds airborne allergenic house dust.

To learn more about this and electrostatic air filters, click here.

Additional DIY Resources

Books

• Home Maintenance for Dummies
• HandyMa'am (TM): Home Improvement, Decorating, & Maintenance Tips & Projects for You and Your Family
• The Virgin Homeowner : The Essential Guide to Owning, Maintaining, and Surviving Your Home
• New Fix-It-Yourself Manual

• Common Home Repairs

Tools

• Power Tools

   This article does not necessarily reflect the views of 411 Home Repair, and is only a suggestions and/or comments submitted to our site to share with our site viewers through the world wide web.

Submitted by: Manny Cristia

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