The new coronavirus, COVID-19, has the attention of the entire world. This virus has spread rapidly since the outbreak began in China in December 2019. With headlines warning us of travel bans, canceled conferences, and school closures, we have to ask, is there something we are missing to prevent the spread within our own indoor environment?
There are different kinds of coronaviruses, most of which only cause mild symptoms and illness, such as a cold. According to the World Health Organization, common signs of infection include respiratory symptoms, fever, cough, shortness of breath and breathing difficulties. In more severe cases, the infection can cause pneumonia, severe acute respiratory syndrome, kidney failure, and even death. We do not know what caused this novel coronavirus (COVID-19), but research is being carried out to find its original source. So how can we combat this new deadly flu? The CDC and the WHO have both stated that washing your hands frequently and steering clear from carriers will be enough, however as more cases are popping up, new precautions are surfacing.
It’s no mystery that the air inside our homes, offices, and buildings we enter may be contaminated. What if the building is ‘sick’ and harboring more than just the Coronavirus?
According to the EPA, 50% of residential buildings and 80% of commercial buildings both have water damage, which is the breeding ground for bacteria, viruses, and black mold. The particulates produced by molds (mycotoxins) have been medically labeled as more dangerous to human health than mold spores themselves. Once inhaled, Mycotoxins can have serious health implications. Black mold symptoms can mimic the flu and worsen pre-existing conditions like Asthma, Auto-immune Diseases, and more.
The reality is bacteria, molds, viruses, and toxins are living and thriving in our homes. Unfortunately, no matter how much cleaning products you use to prevent organic materials from growing, it continues to, from the top to the very bottom of your house.
Air purifier technology today operates at a high capacity, high efficiency, and ability to clear the air of potential viruses, mold, and dangerous particulates.
To help reduce the risk of contracting the coronavirus, cleaning the air in the room is a great step towards warding off the virus.. Installing an adequate ventilation system can ensure that the air exchange is adequate, but pollutants that are outside can still enter the room. The best way to stop viruses in the air is to install an air purifier. Choose an air purifier that is able to filter out 99.9 percent of pollutants as small as 0.1 microns, including H1N1, an earlier strain of coronavirus similar to 2019-now.
There are three phases of air treatment filtration, purification, and sanitization.
Filtration’s job is to capture contaminants and ultrafine particles from the air. It is the part of air cleaning known as a REACTIVE procedure. It’s a reactive process because it requires contaminants and ultrafine particles to come to it, rather than proactively going out to discover and destroy them. This means that these particles need to airborne and get caught in the air stream created by the filter unit to be removed.
Purification’s job is to eliminate organic contaminants (like mold, microorganisms, bacteria, and viruses) from both the air and on surfaces. While filtration gets contaminants out of the air and holds them until you replace the filter, purification basically destroys them by binding to the contaminant causing them to explode. Purification is the process called a PROACTIVE procedure. Ions leave the unit destroying mold and other organic contaminants. It doesn’t make a difference where the contaminants are found. Throughout the air, on surfaces, these ions can destroy where filters cannot.
The sanitization procedure utilizes similar ions that are made to remove ultra-fine in-organic particulate from the air. Sanitization is both REACTIVE and PROACTIVE. The ions attach to these contaminants, making them bigger and heavier. This causes the ultrafine particles that are too small to be captured by the filter, become large enough to for the filter to trap.