Airing out your home is one of the best ways to improve ventilation. The benefits are vast, ranging from removing cooking odors to improved mood.

For many people, airing out the home isn’t at the top of their minds. So we’ll show you exactly why it’s a great thing to do.

Here are 10 benefits of airing out your home.

1. Less dust and allergens in the air

When you open your windows, dust and allergens in the air will move to the outside. This can reduce allergy symptoms like sneezing, coughing, and sore throat. People with asthma will likely notice the biggest improvement to their respiratory system.

If you’re in an area with poor outdoor air quality or a lot of allergens, opening your window may not be the best option. Instead, you can try using an air purifier.

For some best practices on how to get the most out of your air purifier, click on this link.

2. Keeps harmful contaminants produced from cooking outside

Gas stoves and gas grills release harmful contaminants into your home. Specifically, they produce carbon monoxide, formaldehyde, and nitrogen dioxide. In high concentrations, these can cause long-term respiratory problems or even be fatal.

Ventilating your home is important to keep these harmful chemicals and gases at bay.

You can also consider investing in an electric stove, which is the more environmentally friendly option. Learn more about why an electric stove is better for the environment than a gas stove in this article.

3. Eliminates cooking odors and pet odors

Do you love to cook fish, fry, or make Asian food? These are just a few foods that have strong, lingering odors. Without adequate ventilation, you’ll smell last night’s food every day. If you want you and your family to enjoy fresh air, open a few windows while you’re cooking.

Of course, windows aren’t the only way to ventilate your home. We wrote up a huge list right here to help you air out your home effectively.

For some great tips on how to get rid of pesky cooking odors, take a look at our complete guide.

4. Improves your mood

Did you know that airing out your home can actually improve your mood? Cool, right? Fresh air in your home improves the concentration of oxygen. This increases serotonin levels, which improves your overall mood.

Serotonin is a neurotransmitter and hormone that improves your mood. It reduces anxiety and depression, among other beneficial effects. Learn more about serotonin here.

To air out your home, open windows if you can. Let the natural light in! Studies have shown that sunshine increases the serotonin levels in the body, which improves mood and helps people stay focused.

5. Keeps mold and mildew out by reducing condensation

If your home is not properly ventilated, you may start to notice a lot of condensation. This could be from sweat if you are moving around in the house, especially if you live with a lot of people. Other common sources of condensation include cooking, showering, or washing dishes.

Over time, the condensation will build up on walls and windows. It can damage the wood and contribute to mold or mildew growth.

Airing out your home daily will ensure that the moisture leaves your home before mold forms. It’s important to catch the condensation early. If mold forms, it can spread quickly. Not to mention, mold spores can irritate the lungs. They’re not healthy to breathe in!

6. Improves your concentration and productivity

Your brain needs oxygen to function optimally. So, the more fresh air you can funnel into your home, the better you’ll be able to concentrate. Also, be sure to let some natural light in too. It’ll increase your serotonin levels and, in turn, your productivity.

7. Save money on AC and heat.

Your air conditioner and furnace bring filtered air into your home. But that costs money! Why not turn off your HVAC system and open some windows when you can.

Of course, you might only be able to do this for certain months out of the year. But utility bills can add up. So I encourage you to avoid running your AC and furnace whenever possible.

I like to open a few windows during the spring and summer 24/7 if the outdoor air quality is good.

8. Cleaner carpets and floors

Have you ever been hanging out in your room when the sun shines into your window? You might be surprised to see all that dust floating around in the air. Yes, you’re breathing all of that in. Hurry and open a few windows so you can improve your indoor air quality!

If you let all that dust be, it’ll eventually settle on your floors, furniture, and walls. A couple of weeks later when you vacuum, you’ll be shocked to see how much dust you can pick up.

The tiniest particles that you can’t see will slowly build up around your home over time. But, not if you let some fresh air in. It’ll make your weekly cleaning routine a little bit easier.

9. Removes stale air from your home

Did you know that air loses its oxygen over time? Each time you breathe, some of the air comes out as carbon dioxide. 

Eventually, you’ll have no fresh air left to breathe. In other words, the air you’re breathing in will be the air you’ve breathed in already. 

So, the longer the air in your room sits, the less saturated it becomes with oxygen.

Not to mention you’ll also have all kinds of odors lingering in your home, too.

Opening a window, even for a few minutes, can vent all that stale air to the outside and replace it with fresh air. That’s not the only way to improve ventilation, though. Read about several more right here.

10. Improves heart health

The more oxygen you can take in, the easier it is for your heart to pump blood throughout your body.

The heart needs oxygen to function. So if you’re breathing in CO2 saturated air, it’ll have to work harder. You don’t want to strain your heart if you can avoid it! This can lead to increased blood pressure.

Now it’s time to air out your home. Learn how in this quick guide! Hopefully you now see all the great things that can come from improving your indoor ventilation.