One of the sources of human joy, our beloved four-legged friends, can sometimes be the cause of ill-health through pet allergies. Although allergens affect many people, they can be controlled and virtually eliminated from your home.
What Is Pet Dander?
These are tiny scales of dead skin that animals shed. Dander contains a protein that may cause an allergic reaction in humans. These allergens can be found in the air and, because they’re sticky, they also adhere to walls, furniture and floor rugs.
Combating Dander
There are a variety of ways to keep your home as clear as possible from pet dander:
- Bathe and brush your pets as often as is practical. Check with your vet as to how frequently you can wash your domestic animals.
- Keep pets off furniture. Supply them with their own bedding and train them from a young age where they should sleep.
- Wipe down walls and furniture to remove the sticky pet allergens.
- Install an air purifier in your home. These devices help to remove dander from the air, reducing the triggers for pet allergies.
Choosing an Air Purifier
Two types of air purifiers are suitable for removing pet dander from the air: mechanical or electronic air cleaners.
- Mechanical air purifiers are often fan-driven and work by capturing particles on a mesh filter. These devices come with a minimum efficiency reporting value (MERV), 1 being the least efficient and 20 being the most effective. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regards air filters with a rating of between 7 and 13 to be efficient enough to remove many allergens from the air.
- Electronic or ion-type air purifiers use electrical charges to attract particles from the air. These particles are then deposited onto a collecting plate.
Your HVAC provider will be able to assist you in choosing the most appropriate air purifier for your home and provide you with other suggestions to combat pet allergens. Contact Cox Air Conditioning & Heating for more information. We’ve proudly served homeowners throughout Clearwater, Tampa, St. Petersburg, Palm Harbor, Trinity and Westchase for more than 55 years.
