As much as we hate to say it, but Singapore’s annual affair with Haze from our neighbouring country seems to be back to haunt us again. This year, the effects of the haze are so bad that it could be seen, felt and smelled even on the first day.
Despite being indoors, we could still personally smell the smoke and reports of people having breathing difficulties are already pouring in. With adequate education over our past few years of experience, most Singaporeans already understand the effects of haze and what to do to protect our health when it happens; Stay indoors, wear a mask, avoid doing physical activity, drink lotsa water etc.
But what’s often NOT talk about is what to do when you are indoors. Because our homes are not 100% air proof, the haze still does seep in from gaps, windows, doors etc. What should we do then?
Here’s 8 simple tips to reduce the effects of haze in your home and prevent it from smelling like smoke.
1. Close your Windows & Doors
For a start, it’s not enough just staying indoors. For obvious reasons, close your windows & doors and prevent opening them for extended periods of time. Shut the door immediately after entering and do not open your windows unless absolutely necessary.
2. Where possible, leave your Air Conditioning on
Air conditioning not only helps to keep you cool, but because of their in built filters, also helps to filter the air pollutants that are floating around in your home.
3. Clean your Air Conditioning Filters often
Because the filters in our air con helps us cleanse out air pollutants, chances are that they would get dirty pretty fast as well during this hazy period. Try to take them out and clean them approximately twice every week. Simply wash the filters with clean water and probably only get the professionals to do a proper clean after the haze is over.
4. Keep your Curtains and Blinds close
Think of curtains like clothes for your home. Remember how after wearing your t-shirt after a long day out in the haze, how your shirt literally smells like smoke at the end of it? It pretty much works the same way for Curtains & Blinds. While it doesn’t completely stop the smell from entering, it does help to reduce the amount of pollutants floating in our homes. Plus, it would also be much more cost efficient to wash your curtains than to change out your entire furniture set after the haze subsides.
Curtains and blinds made of Fabrics are generally more efficient in absorbing the smell. Ask any one of our Curtain Boutique Singapore Curtains and Blinds professionals to know which are the ones made of Fabrics.
5. Use an Air Purifier when indoors
Most of us take for granted the quality of air that Singapore is blessed with for most parts of the year and we rarely have to use an air purifier or ioniser. But during bad air days like hazy periods, an air purifier can be a potential life saver. It helps to drastically reduce air pollutants and provide us with fresh clean air at home.
6. Vacuum your Floor and Soft Furnishing often
Use your vacuum cleaner to vacuum up the dirt and dust that have found it’s way into your home and onto your soft furnishings such as carpets, rugs, sofa, curtains etc. It’s recommended that you do so once a day and use quality Vacuum cleaners with good HEPA filters.
7. Use wet cloth to wipe non-fabric furnitures and mop your floor regularly
The water in the cloth and mop helps to trap dust/dirt and cause them to settle down instead of floating around in the air and into our nose through to our lungs.
8. Keep soft toys in closed compartments and away from small children
Kids love their soft toys, but for the sake of their health, it’s probably best that you keep these soft toys in closed compartments and away from them during this period. Soft Toys would usually absorb the pollutants and dirt from the air and may result in respiratory related issues if kids keep them close to their nose and breathe these pollutants in over extended periods of time.
While none of these tactics are able to absolutely prevent the haze from getting into our home, they do help to deter the effects of the haze and reduce the smell. Apply as many of these as possible in your homes to minimise the effects.
Share this article with your friends & family to protect them and their love ones.