Spring in Johnston should mean taking advantage of warmer weather and spending more time outside. Instead, for many of us, it means struggling with pollen allergies.

If you have allergies, you know how draining that pollen in your home can make you feel. Constant sneezing, itchy and watery eyes, sinus problems and coughing can make everyday life miserable. If you have asthma, pollen can also lead to wheezing, chest tightness and breathing challenges.

Your home should be an escape from all that. Unfortunately, pollen does not stay outside. It follows you indoors, creating poor indoor air quality in your Johnston home —triggering the allergy symptoms that make you miserable.

The good news is, there are reliable ways to get rid of indoor pollen problems once and for all. A one-two punch of pollen season prep and professional indoor air quality solutions can reduce your allergy problems so you can breathe clean, pollen-free air.

Why Pollen Is an Issue in Johnston, Iowa

Pollen released from trees, grass and weeds is a major spring problem in Johnston. Why does this pollen impact indoor air quality?

It finds its way into your home and settles into carpets, furniture, bedding and air ducts. Once inside, pollen can move in the air through a poorly filtered HVAC system. As it circulates, it can cause constant allergy flare-ups.

How Pollen Gets Into Your Home

Many homeowners are surprised to learn just how much pollen is in their home. It drifts in through open windows and doors, gets carried inside on your pets and even can be drawn inside by an unfiltered HVAC system. Even if you shut your windows and doors, pollen still can make its way into your home. You can track it inside on your shoes and clothing. Tiny air leaks around doors and windows even allow pollen in.

Once pollen gets in, it moves throughout through your Johnston home. Knowing how to how to reduce pollen in homes means limiting the amount of pollen that gets in your home whenever possible and then removing it from circulation if it does.

DIY Pollen Reduction Tips That Make A Difference

  • Change your HVAC filters on a routine basis. Clean filters remove pollen and allergens from the air circulating through your home.
  • Shut windows on peak pollen count days. Open windows allow significant levels of pollen indoors.
  • Wash off and change clothes after being outside. Pollen clings to your hair, skin and clothing, and you can accidentally spread that pollen onto your pillows, bedding and furniture
  • Vacuum using a HEPA filter. HEPA vacuums help capture tiny pollen particles embedded in carpets and furniture.
  • Use doormats and take off shoes. Shoes track pollen, dirt and other debris throughout your home.
  • Consistently groom pets. Pets bring pollen indoors on their fur, which they can then leave all over your bedding, carpets and furniture.

Upgrade Your HVAC System for Better IAQ

Your HVAC system can plays a major role in improving your home’s air quality.These professional, whole-home indoor air quality solutions reduce allergens, enhance airflow and make your home feel more pleasant throughout allergy season.

High-Efficiency Air Filters

High-efficiency HVAC filters help remove particles like pollen, dust and pet dander from the air in your home. You can compare filters using MERV ratings, which are numbers that indicate how effectively a filter traps airborne particles. The higher the MERV rating, the more advanced filtration and smaller particles a filter is able to capture from the air. Many homeowners searching for the best air filters for allergies choose high-efficiency air filters because they minimize pollen and other airborne contaminants.

Whole-Home Air Purifiers

Whole-home air filtration systems work with your HVAC system to clean the air in every room of your home. Unlike portable air purifiers that only clean one room, whole-home air purification systems continuously capture microscopic particles like pollen, dust and pet dander as air travels through your ductwork. This creates a whole-home solution to your seasonal allergy concerns.

Humidity Control

Higher spring humidity in Johnston can also aggravate your allergies by encouraging mold and mildew growth. Ideally, your home's humidity should be between 30-50 percent. Whole-home humidity control systems connect to your HVAC system to manage moisture levels throughout your house. In humid months, they eliminate excess moisture like a dehumidifier. In winter, they put moisture back into dry air. Unlike portable dehumidifiers that only control humidity in one room, whole-home systems are a way toimprove indoor air quality in the spring in your full home.

UV Air Purification

UV air purification systems are an effective way to eliminate mold spores, bacteria and certain viruses moving through your HVAC system. Unlike filters that only catch and remove particles like pollen or pet dander, UV systems also use ultraviolet light to destroy biological contaminants.

When comparing an air purifier vs air filter for HVAC systems, remember that filters get rid of particles whiles purifiers have additional advanced technology to clean contaminants you can’t see. Combined with filtration and humidity control, UV purification can help create cleaner, healthier air inside your home.

Signs Your Home Needs Indoor Air Quality Improvements

There’s a good chance your home has poor IAQ if you regularly experience allergy symptoms indoors like sneezing, coughing, congestion, headaches or red, itchy eyes. Other indicators of poor indoor air quality in your Johnston home include dust buildup even after you clean, musty smells, poor airflow and rooms that feel stuffy or humid. If your symptoms get better when you leave the house, that’s a major sign your indoor air may be the root cause.

Professional IAQ Services That Reduce Pollen Allergies

DIY solutions can help lower pollen indoors, but alone they don’t truly resolve the problem. If you suffer from spring pollen allergies, even minor amounts of pollen can make you uncomfortable. That is where professional HVAC air quality solutions can help. An indoor air quality assessment identifies and measures the allergens and pollutants in your home so an HVAC professional can suggest filtration or purification solutions to finally solve your pollen problem.

Other tools are available to remove other allergens in your home, including duct cleaning. For allergies like pollen, dust and pet dander, cleaning debris out of your home’s air ducts can be a an effective way to reduce allergy problems. Seasonal HVAC maintenance also is a great way to make sure your system cleans your air effectively and also helps extend the life of your system.

For many Des Moines residents, professional services like filtration, purification, duct cleaning and humidity control finally deliver the spring allergies home solutions they’ve been waiting for.

Get Ahead of Pollen Season in Johnston

Prevention and professional solutions are the best way to tame your spring allergies. You can help by using DIY tips to reduce pollen indoors. To effectively manage your pollen problem, work with an HVAC professional like the team at Kohles & Bach Heating & Cooling. We have specialized knowledge and advanced tools to boost your indoor air quality, so you can breathe refreshing, pollen-free air all spring.

We also can keep levels in from becoming a problem in the first place with professional pollen season prep in Johnston. Schedule an IAQ consultation online or call 515-278-2900 today to get started with Kohles & Bach Heating & Cooling.