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We all know that smoking cigarettes can cause some pretty serious health issues. It’s also widely known that second-hand smoke, also referred to as passive smoking, can also cause serious side effects. If you have neighbors that smoke and you have a shared HVAC system, you can be exposed to their cigarette smoke as a second-hand source. How do you deal with these problems? Here is more information on how your air conditioning system is involved.

Passive Smoking and Your HVAC System

Did you know that the dust in your home can be remnants of the smoke that was in your air? That dust has the carcinogens found in the smoke initially. The ash from the cigarette is in the air. In addition to the dust you find on your furniture, it’s also there in your vents for a much longer period of time. The vents can push that toxic dust back out into your home time and again.

To eliminate these problems, there are a few things you can do. If you do smoke, only smoke outside, as this keeps the second-hand smoke out of your HVAC system to begin with. To remove the smell, use air sanitizers. These can either be chemical ones or as simple as sprinkling some baking soda around when you vacuum. Keep your furniture and other surfaces dusted, including window treatments that may be harboring more dust than you may expect. If you have carpets, try deep cleaning, steam cleaning or shampooing your carpets to remove as much dust as possible.

One of the most important things you can do is change the air filters on your HVAC unit regularly. In addition to holding the odors and contaminants, a dirty filter can continue releasing those problems back into your home’s interior air. Though we expect an air filter to continue filtering air, it must be replaced regularly or it can’t do its job effectively. Cleaning your ducts is another vital step in removing these contaminants from your home, by removing the contaminants in the system.

By keeping these tasks in mind, you can ensure that your air conditioner isn’t making the situation worse. If you need help or don’t have time to take care of your HVAC unit’s maintenance and don’t have a reliable service company, please feel free to contact Cox today. We’re happy to help you keep your interior air quality exceptional.