Do House Plants Improve Air Quality?

Most people don’t spend too much time thinking about the quality of the air they are breathing. The Environmental Protection Agency found that Americans spend almost 90% of their time indoors where the average quantity of pollutants is two to five times higher than fresh, outdoor air. One commonly held belief is that a few live plants can dramatically improve the quality of the air inside your home, but is that a reality or just an old wives’ tale for a modern generation?

In this article, we are going to learn if house plants really can clean the air in your house, what are the best kinds of plants to keep around and what are the best ways to keep your home’s air pure and clean.

How To Test Air Quality

Testing the quality of the air in your home is a crucial step to take before deciding how much action is needed to get it cleaned up. One of the first things most people with poor circulating air quality will notice is a range of physical symptoms.

Although these symptoms could be indicative of many conditions, such as a cold or seasonal allergy, their persistent presence is often seen in individuals who regularly breathe poor quality air indoors.

To determine the exact contaminant quantity in the air, professionals have several devices at their disposal, like the Air Things Wave Plus. This device takes measurements of CO2, formaldehyde, fine dust, temperature, and relative humidity, ton name a few. This tool is used to get an accurate reading of just how unhealthy the air is for a human to breathe, and you can use the data to devise a plan to correct the issues in your own home.

Do Plants Help Air Quality?

With over 77% of Americans taking up gardening as a hobby, it is safe to say that as a country, we love our plants, but do they actually help eliminate indoor home air pollution?

The short answer is: “Unfortunately, not.”

The longer answer is that lots of plants in a small, hermetically sealed space could potentially reduce a certain type of indoor air pollution called “volatile organic compounds” or VOCs. These ultra-fine air contaminants that circulate as a result of things like nail polish, paint, shampoo, and basically anything with a scent are too small to be removed through conventional filtration methods. A scientist working for NASA in the 1980s named Bill Wolverton wanted to find out if VOCs could be removed through a more organic method in the event a sealed laboratory or a spaceship would need ultrafine air filtration. And it worked. This is great news for science, but the downside for the average gardener is that the number of plants you would need to create the effect would be similar to 1,000 plants in a 10-foot by 10-foot room!

Air Purifier VS. Plants

There are many outstanding benefits to keeping houseplants. Plants in your home are aesthetically pleasing from a design perspective, and they give your decor a pop of vibrancy and color that can be challenging to achieve otherwise. Houseplants can give you something to care for that is less messy or time-consuming than a more active pet. You can even eat some of them; however, they will not give you the same benefits as an EnviroKlenz air purifier would provide qhen it comes to cleaning your air.

A good air purifier will not only make the air you breathe cleaner, it will also help remove unpleasant odors, dust, pollen, and viruses and bacteria from the air.

There are a few plants that can give your air purifier a boost with purification. Those plants are:

Bromeliad (Guzmania lingulata)

Easy-to-care, drought-tolerant, and it thrives in indoor light.

     

Dracaena (Dracaena deremensis)

This plant stays alive even in low-lighting environments.

Spider Plant (Chlorophytum comosum)

Effective at removing toxic substances from the air.

Jade Plant (Crassula argentea)

Known to be particularly effective in absorbing toluene emitted from gasoline, paints, kerosene, and lacquers.

They won’t do much on their own beside adding a splash of color, but they can boost the efforts of your HEPA air purifier while decorating your house! So, how does the EnviroKlenz system clean the air in your home?

How Can I Purify the Air in My Home?

There are many natural ways to improve the air quality in your home, and the technicians at Enviroklenz can help you find the perfect air purifying system to fit your needs. The EnviroKlenz Standard Air Purifier contains a 2-stage filtration system to give you the cleanest air possible. The first stage is an air cartridge that contains a patented earth mineral technology that captures and neutralizes odors and VOCs from the air without releasing any byproducts into your environment. The second stage is a medical-grade HEPA filter that captures 99.9% of particles from the air. Get yours today to breathe clean, healthy air in your house!

The Cleanest Air
Your Home Has Ever Had.

EnviroKlenz Mobile Air System
(Standard Model)

$699

Shop Now

EnviroKlenz Mobile Air System
(UV-C Model)

$799

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