The importance of clean indoor air

The quality of indoor air has a great influence on people’s well-being within their own four walls. Poor, in other words polluted air, can cause headaches, itching eyes or other allergic reactions. But how can residents improve the indoor climate?

Tip 1: Proper ventilation

The climate inside your rooms can be improved by various measures, for example by airing your home briefly and intensely at regular intervals. In rooms with a high moisture level such as kitchens and bathrooms, one window should always be open or at least tilted while cooking or taking a shower. This is an effective way of preventing excessive amounts of indoor humidity.

Tip 2: Proper heating

Just as important – especially in the cold winter months – is proper heating. The temperature in less frequently used rooms should be reduced during this season. But the radiators should never be turned off completely. Heating up freezing cold rooms is bad for your indoor climate and eventually costs more energy than keeping the heating temperature at a constant level.

Tip 3: Houseplants

Another effective measure to improve the quality of indoor air is to decorate the rooms with houseplants such as Ficus benjamina (weeping fig) or Fatsia japonica (also known as Japanese aralia). They can filter out the harmful gas formaldehyde contained in many materials used for interior decoration. These include for instance chipboards, carpets and furniture of all kinds. The following rule applies to the cleaning effect of plants: The larger they are and the more leaves they have, the more formaldehyde they can absorb via their stomata.