Category: Air Quality

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Mask for Travel

On my recent travels, I only saw one person wearing a mask for travel.

Of course, the bulk of my trip was by car and the people with whom I traveled weren’t afraid of any germs that I might be sharing.

However, two legs of my trip were by plane and I did see one person wearing a mask for travel in the Houston airport.  From the sneezing and coughing I heard on the plane from Houston to Ft. Lauderdale, everyone should have had on a mask.  I am still waiting for that first tingle of the nose that tells you a cold is on the way.

Back when there was the H1N1 scare, the SARS scare, and the bird flu scare before that it was not uncommon to see people wearing a mask when they travel.

We are often asked if the U2 Sports mask is a good mask for travel.  The answer is “yes” if you are concerned about pollens and large particles of pollution in your destination city/country.  When my mother visited China, she said the residents referred to the heavy pollution as “the mist”.  As in “The mist is heavy today”.  How quaint and ever so much more polite than “Holy crap the pollution is so bad I can’t see today”.  It isn’t going to protect you from small particles such as bacteria and viruses.

If your concern is either catching or spreading disease, then the best mask for travel is the N95 Alpha Mask.  We still refer to it as the “Bird Flu” mask.  Because it is designed for 0.1-micron particle efficiency it will protect you against those pesky pollens and pollution particles, but it will also protect you on the plane or train from airborne viruses and bacteria.

Because it is lightweight, it doesn’t get hot and because it is disposable, it is inexpensive.

The person I saw at the airport was wearing an N95 mask. I wanted to ask her if she bought it from The Allergy Store, but I also wanted to make it to the Customer Service counter ahead of all the other people who had just had their connecting flights ruined by Continental Airlines.  So I didn’t ask her.

I also didn’t get to the Customer Service counter ahead of all the other people.

I also didn’t make it out of Houston that day.

Til Next Time!
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Why Can’t Everything Last Like My Austin Air?

I am mad at my microwave oven.    It is broken.   Again.    For the second time in two years.  I glared at it this morning and it stared back blankly.  It shows no signs of remorse or repentance.  Why can’t it be like my Austin Air HEPA air cleaner?

I don’t even use my microwave that much.  It is not like I ask it to run all day every day.  I don’t even use it every day, so it doesn’t have a high bar of performance over which to leap.

But like all things in life, you really don’t need it until you don’t have it.  I really needed it last night when I wanted to microwave an ear of fresh corn.

Microwave Corn on Cob – Yumm!

You haven’t had corn on the cob until you have eaten it steamed in its own husk in the microwave.  Just pull off the top layer of the husk (top layer only!) and pop it in the microwave for 2 minutes per ear. When it is done, the husk and silk will easily slide off because the corn will have steamed.  It will be crisp, fresh, and sweet.

Better than corn prepared any other way.  As long as your microwave works.  However, once again my microwave is broken.  My kitchen appliances are always on the fritz.  My Austin Air air cleaner has never broken.  My kitchen appliances should pay attention!

How I Ended Up with Crappy Kitchen Appliances

In 2007, we prepared our home to sell.  The real estate suggested that we get rid of the old reliable appliances we had in the house for years and years and update them with new ones because buyers want stainless steel appliances and granite countertops.

We made the mistake of listening to the real estate agent and buying all new Frigidaire appliances when we updated the kitchen.  Just before the real estate market crashed……and our home value sank…and after a year we took the house off the market.

Frigidaire Needs Multiple Repairs in 4 Years

So, these appliances are 4 years old.  In that time, the dishwasher has had to have its main control panel replaced, the heating element in the oven has required replacing, and this is the second time the microwave has required repairs.

I am almost afraid to leave the fridge in the kitchen with the other rogue appliances because it might get ideas and start requesting replacement parts also.  Did I mention that these appliances were not cheap?

Austin Air Never Needs Repairs

But, in my bedroom is my Austin Air HealthMate.  I bought it in 1998.  I don’t think it has ever been turned off except to change the filter.  That unit has been doing its job without requiring my attention for 13 years.

It never complains (like the dishwasher that sometimes makes strange noises) it just sits there and efficiently and quietly goes about its job of pulling in particles of dust, dust mites, mold, pollens, cat dander and fur, and general household dust.

I can depend on it every night to give me the clean air I need as I sleep.  I leave the house in the morning, it is running..doing its job.  I come home in the evening and there it sits, cleaning the air.

Frigidaire Poor Quality vs Austin Air High Quality

My Frigidaire appliances could learn a lesson or two from my Austin Air HealthMate.  Like how to do your job when it is needed.  How to be reliable and dependable and to act like an appliance…and that is work without complaining or requiring my attention.

I think I am going to have a serious discussion with my microwave.

Til Next Time!

Cheryl

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Eradicate Dust Mites – Warfare Part 3

So we continue our war on the dust mite and their allergens.

In Part 1, we killed dust mites by starving them to death through the use of dust mite-proof zippered mattress covers, pillow covers, and boxspring covers.  In Part 2, we eliminated dust mites by washing them away with De-Mite or Allersearch Allergen Wash.

The War Continues! Today, we will eradicate dust mites and other allergen particles floating in our air with the use of air filters.

People have been trying to eradicate dust mites and allergens from the breathing space for years using all sorts of methods. There have been air cleaners that produce ozone (a not-so-good idea) in an effort to oxidize the dust mites, air cleaners that claimed to eradicate dust mites by the use of ions (an idea that might boost the effectiveness of a HEPA filter but useless on its own), and ultraviolet lamps that claim to eradicate dust mites all through the house by simply installing it in the AC unit.

Maybe you can tell by my skeptical tone that I don’t believe there is scientific proof to back up these claims to eradicate dust mites.   Maybe you can’t tell….so I will make it clear.

Ozone machines, ionizers, and UV lights will not eradicate dust mites from your home.  You aren’t going to completely eradicate dust mites from your environment.

You can however eradicate little bits and pieces of dead dust mites, their feces, and other allergens from your breathing environment while you sleep with a properly sized and situated HEPA air cleaner and purifiers

HEPA is an acronym for High-Efficiency Particulate Air and it is a measurement. Just like an hour is a measurement of time (all hours have 60 minutes, some just seem longer or shorter) HEPA is a measurement of filtering ability. It means that 99.97% of all particles as small as 0.3 microns are arrested by the filter.

Filtration that fine has the ability to eradicate dust mite particles and feces from the air that passes through the filter. Dust mite allergens are in the 8 to 10-micron range.  Far larger than the HEPA definition and easy to eradicate if you can get the allergen to the filter.

HEPA filters work on the air exchange process.  That means taking the air from the room, using a motor to suck the air in and then passing it through the filter, and then sending the newly cleaned air out in the room.  As I type this, I can hear the low, gentle hum of the Austin Air HealthMate Junior working to eradicate the allergens from the room.

We carry many reliable and reputable brands of HEPA air cleaners to eradicate dust mites, allergens, odors, and chemicals.

I am fond of HealthMate machines because they just last and last and last.  Made in the USA, they are dependable and hard workers.  They are not energy hogs and when on the medium and low settings are not loud at all.  I especially like that their 5-year filters last so long that I have to write the filter date on the bottom of the machine or I would forget about filter changes.  I can’t honestly tell you how old the machine sitting in my office is. I can’t say that about many other small appliances..but I digress.

As we have stressed over and over, the most important room in the house is the bedroom. You want to place your HEPA air cleaner as close to the bed as possible.  The air closest to the machine is the cleanest and if you are going to eradicate dust mite particles from your breathing space while you sleep, then you want it close by.

If you don’t have rugs or carpeting or heavy draperies in your living area, then chances are you don’t have as many airborne particles in those rooms. You can put your HEPA air cleaner in just about any place in those rooms.

Let the war continue!