Category — clean air

I thought I was dreaming when I woke up to the faint smell of burning leaves very early yesterday morning.  Apparently, though, there was smoke in Santa Monica, brought in by the same crazy high winds that were stoking the wildfire which erupted earlier Sunday morning just northeast of Los Angeles. In a sad coincidence, I had been planning to wake up early to do some hiking and possibly bouldering in the Angeles National Forest yesterday.  Now I am just hoping that firefighters are able to get the fires out before anymore forest, property or lives are lost.

In the meantime, I’d like to know that I am not breathing in any of that smoke that seems to be lingering in town.  Los Angeles air quality is questionable enough without adding smoke to the equation, so I thought this might be time to revisit some earlier posts on choosing air purifiers and maintaining good indoor air quality.  Enjoy!

Air Purifiers-Part 1- WHY People Need Home Air Purifiers

Air Purifiers-Part 2-WHAT To Look For in an Air Purifier

Smog and the City

I just found out that we are smack dab in the middle of Pollution Prevention Week 2008.  It’s a great time to remind yourself that pollution prevention needs to happen every day.  Check out Green Vaccine for more great information and tips about Pollution Prevention Week 2008!

Here’s a great way to integrate the outdoors into your in home decor: Aeroponic Architecture.

I think this is an awesome idea and I can’t wait to see what aeroponic architects dream up next…maybe homes inspired by Winnie the Pooh and Swiss Family Robinson?

I have been seeing a lot of buzz about hypermiling recently, but in all honesty, I had been avoiding reading any of the articles until today. I think that maybe I am just really bitter about gas prices right now and felt like the articles were an orchestrated attempt by the media to assuage the vitriol of gas-price hating people like me. I have calmed down now, though, and so I have decided to take a look at all the hype about hyper-milers.

Basically, hypermilers are people who maximize the MPGs their cars get by using a bunch of various strategies, sometimes getting as much as 60 MPG or more on a car that normally get 34 MPG. Some recommended hypermiling techniques are simple to implement and will definitely decrease driving stress and gas use. Driving the speed limit, keeping the car tuned and keeping the air conditioning off are all ways to get better gas mileage. We just recently took the Thule rack off the roof to help reduce wind resistance and improve our gas mileage; if you have a truck, using a bed cover will also help improve your MPG.

Some of the other recommended hypermiling techniques are much more controversial. I personally get nervous when I see people drafting big rigs in an effort to try to save gas, and I don’t think I’d feel comfortable shifting into neutral and turning off the engine while coasting. But those techniques also supposedly help people get better gas mileage. Great gas mileage is definitely something to aim for, but it shouldn’t come at the cost of safety.

More info on hypermiling:

• CleanMPG.com
• Edmunds.com

Now for Part 2 in my continuing series on air purifiers.  I did not know that there were 3 main types of air purifier–HEPA Filters, Ionic Air Purifiers and Ozone Generators. I also did not know that “all ionic air cleaner devices produce some ozone“, and that “ground level ozone is the primary constituent of smog.” What I can’t understand is why 2 of the 3 main types of air purifiers–Ionic Air Purifiers and Ozone Generators–both produce ozone in their effort to clean air, the ozone generators producing it at levels toxic to nearby humans and animals. The main advantage to both ionic air purifiers and ozone generators seems to be their ability to remove smoke and odors from the air, but I personally don’t think that is worth the ozone health risks.

Apparently activated carbon helps to remove odors from the air, and UV (ultraviolet) light can kill airborne bacteria and micro-organisms, so I think a HEPA filter air purifier with those features would be the best for improving indoor air quality.

A few air purifier recommendations:

• IQAir HealthPro Plus Air Purifier
• Alen A375 UV Ultra HEPA Air Purifier
• Blueair 402

OK, I think I am going to either postpone or cancel part 3 of this air purifier series, since I have covered a lot of information already and want to move on to different topics. 

I have found some really interesting information about air purifiers. I’ll break it up into 3 posts because it is important but a little overwhelming all at once. The main topics: WHY people need home air purifiers, WHAT to look for in an air purifier, and WHICH air purifiers to buy.

1. WHY People Need Home Air Purifiers

You may have seen the commercials for some lawyers that begins, “If you are a loved one suffer from COPD, call us…” The commercial isn’t simply using scare tactics to generate business, it is pointing out a very serious problem affecting a lot of people in this country. Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is the 4th leading cause of death in the U.S. and it is sometimes caused or exacerbated by indoor air pollution.

Other health conditions like asthma, headaches, fatigue and chronic sinusitis are other common problems caused or worsened by indoor air pollution. The very structures of U.S. homes often contains toxins like formaldehyde–found in everything from plywood to carpet glue–and asbestos, both of which are linked to severe respiratory problems and even cancer.

A list of other things you might be breathing in:

• Biological pollutants - viruses, bacteria, animal dander, dust mites, toxic mold, pollen, mildew.
• Chemical Products - cleaning supplies, paint and even printers can emit VOCs (Volatile Organic Compounds)
• Carbon Monoxide, Nitrogen Dioxide, Radon - Gases that not good for living things in the home.

Air purifiers remove toxic airborne particles and improve overall air quality. My next post will discusses the different kinds of air purifiers and what to look for in an air purifier.

Several bits of interesting news on air quality and air pollution:

• According to WebMD, Los Angeles is not even on the list of 10 Worst Cities for Asthma …but Memphis is!

• Green Blog reports on air pollution causing baldness, or at least making it worse.
• From Science Daily: Unmanned Aircraft To Study Southern California Smog and Its Consequences
• 18 States take greater steps to cut carbon emissions

Info on how to protect yourself and loved ones:

• Home Air Quality Tips from American Lung Association
• American Industrial Hygiene Association: Is Air Quality a Problem in My Home?

Luckily, there are a whole bunch of air purifiers and HEPA air filters that improve the air quality in your home, but I’ll post more on those later.