Can you get allergies around fall? You most certainly can! Allergens can appear at any moment. While spring allergies may be more prevalent, allergies in the fall are a significant problem for countless people. Here, Service Experts Heating & Air Conditioning can help you recognize and better manage fall allergies. Sadly, the solution isn’t as easy as staying away from the pollen-filled world outside your home. Fall allergy season finds different ways into your home. By identifying what causes fall allergies, you can fully understand the best ways to limit them.
How to Identify Fall Allergy Symptoms
Determining your fall allergy symptoms can be harder than it can seem. The symptoms of seasonal fall allergies are commonly discreet and mistaken for a minor cold. Coughing, sneezing and sinusitis are all symptoms that appear in both fall allergies and the common cold. A medical professional is always the most reliable source for recognizing allergies. However, several common symptoms of fall allergies and sinusitis include:
- Itchy or watery eyes
- Sneezing
- Coughing
- Headache
- Fatigue or tiredness
What Produces Fall Allergies?
When figuring out what causes fall allergies in your particular case, there are many possible culprits. Dust mites and allergens can accumulate in difficult-to-reach places within your home. Many of these sources of seasonal fall allergies can be controlled with professional air quality services including those provided by Service Experts Heating & Air Conditioning. However, the most common sources of indoor fall allergies include:
- Airborne pollen
- Mold
- Dust mites
- Pets
- Wall-to-wall carpet
- Damp areas
- Indoor plants
- Stuffed toys
- Mattresses and other soft furniture
- Debris buildup in your ducts
Solutions for Seasonal Fall Allergies
The Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America reports that homeowners dealing with fall allergies could improve their air quality in three ways. First, you should reduce your contact with airborne allergens inside your home. This entails installing a whole-house dehumidifier, cleaning ducts and stopping your home from getting too hot. Second, you must ventilate your space, making sure that airborne particles don't accumulate in stagnant air. Third, you could think about installing an air cleaner to eliminate allergens from the air. Learn more about these solutions below.
Control Your Home’s Humidity with a Whole-House Dehumidifier
When the air in your home deviates from the EPA’s suggested humidity levels (30%-40% humidity), it creates ideal conditions for mold, dust mites and various other sources of allergy symptoms. With a whole-house dehumidifier, you have accurate control over the humidity levels in your entire home. These modern dehumidifiers allow you to adjust the humidity inside your home within 1% of the set levels, erasing the conditions for excessive mold, dust mites, fungi, bacteria and other microbes.
Keep Your Air Clear With Ultraviolet Germicidal Lights
Ultraviolet germicidal lights purify the air in your home before it circulates through your home. As the air exits your HVAC unit and enters your ductwork, it goes through a strong ultraviolet light that eliminates contaminants before they can spread. This system addresses the question, “What is the best air purifier for allergies?” This system will quickly make your air noticeably cleaner. UV lights have been known to remove half of the concentrated bioaerosols within their initial 45 minutes of use.
Get Rid of Contaminants with HEPA Air Filters
When you want a top-of-the-line air filter, you should find a HEPA air filter that can capture 99.97% of the pollutants in the air. Due to their distinct design, these filters collect the most prevalent causes of fall allergies from their air, including ragweed, pollen and dust mites. HEPA air filters also remove contaminants including:
- Tobacco smoke
- Dirt particles
- Pollen
- Ragweed
- Dust mites
- Numerous odors and airborne chemicals
Consistently Clean Your HVAC System’s Air Ducts
Traditionally, HVAC systems have not always done a great job of removing pollutants from the air. This means that debris often circulates through ductwork for many years. Over time, a portion of that debris can build up within your ductwork. This is why multiple people suggest Service Experts Heating & Air Conditioning and our duct cleaning services before turning on the heat for the first time in the fall. Taking care of this early in the season can minimize one of the most substantial sources of airborne pollutants inside your home.
The 10 Cities in the United States With the Most Severe Fall Allergy Seasons
Most of the time, your location has a significant impact on the intensity of your fall allergy symptoms. Fall allergies are known to be worse in some areas of the country than others. For example, ragweed (one of the most extensive sources of allergy-inducing pollen) is mostly found in the country’s eastern region along with the Midwest. However, allergies can become a significant problem regardless of where you live. Here are the 10 most difficult cities for those managing seasonal allergies.
Getting Support From Service Experts Heating & Air Conditioning
As you have now seen, the ideal remedy for dust mites and fall allergies involves an all-out assault on the pollutants and allergens in the air within your home. Your home will require a focused approach appropriate for that home’s particular makeup and layout. With air quality experts all across the United States, Service Experts Heating & Air Conditioning can offer support in almost every part of the country. If you want one of our indoor air quality experts to help eliminate as many allergens as possible, call or fill out a contact form today.