Managing springtime allergies and more

August 7th, 2012

Appliance Talk Small Appliances

It doesn’t seem that long ago that we were all worried about how we were going to do the laundry in the winter.

Now spring is nearly here, bringing with it blooming flowers and trees, warm and windy days, pets rampaging about and shedding their winter coats…

Yep; we’re heading into allergy season.

It’s bad enough that all of these allergy-inducing natural events occur around this time of year, but human actions make things worse.  Spring is the traditional time of year to fling open the windows and doors for spring cleaning, which lets the pollen outside get blown inside by spring breezes.  And of course, doing the cleaning inevitably stirs up the dust that’s accumulated through the house while hibernating through the winter…

So what can you do to avoid sneezing all through the start of spring?

Remove dust without stirring it up

When I think ‘spring cleaning’, I think of those old movies and cartoons where maids beat the dust out of rugs with what appear to be primitive tennis racquets.

Despite what television has taught me, this is actually a pretty inefficient method of getting dust out of rugs and carpets.  After all, we have vacuum cleaners now, right?

You’re always going to want a vacuum with a powerful suction to get the dust out of your carpets, but using one with a powered brush head will pull the dug in hair and grots out from between your carpet fibres.

Bagless vacuum cleaners with cyclonic operation are typically able to maintain a powerful suction quite well, and emptying the dust container is as easy as opening it into the trash.  Though if you’re especially sensitive to dust particles, you may want to opt for a bagged vacuum cleaner so that you can toss the dust-filled bag at the end of your cleaning without any loose dust escaping.  Pick a model that best suits your needs.

Clean and freshen your air

Opening your home’s windows and doors in the spring may bring in some welcome fresh air and banish the winter mustiness and dampness, but these spring breezes are also laden with fresh pollen that can put your sneezing reflex into overdrive.

If pollen is a problem for you, once you’ve let the breeze through your home long enough to warm up and dry the place, seal it shut again and crank the air purifier or air conditioner into overdrive.

Most modern air conditioners and almost all air purifiers include filters that are designed to extract pollen and dust from the air, making it more breathable for you and your sensitive loved ones.

Pick your laundry days wisely

With the warm weather coming back into season, now is an ideal time to start hanging your laundry outside again for line-drying.  Just watch out for those spring showers.

The best time for allergy sufferers to line-dry their clothes is be on still, windless days, when pollen isn’t being blown on the breeze.  Let the warm temperatures get your clothes dry, rather than the wind.

Otherwise, you can keep using that dryer you got to handle your laundry during the winter…

Use a steam cleaner to kill bacteria

It really sucks when you make it all the way through the winter flu season, only to catch a cold right when the weather is starting to warm up.

We catch colds in the winter from hudding indoors and being in regular close contact with our fellow humans, thus increasing our likelihood of sharing germs.

However, many germs also spend their winters in hibernation, and become active again in the spring, when they start to breed.

Using a steam mop or a similar steam-cleaning system will help to kill the illness-causing germs and microbes clinging to your household surfaces and hopefully limit the spread of springtime sniffles in your home.  What’s more, it should be able to get your surfaces sparkling clean, making them ideal for spring cleaning.

Got an allergy-prevention tip for the springtime?  Found a great way to beat the sniffles?  Why not share it with us?