March is that tricky time of year: you enter the month in winter and (in most places) leave the month with the glory of spring; winter foliage falling and spring flowers blooming. It all paints a beautiful picture in your head, but what’s it doing to your air quality?

As the air appears to be clearing into Spring, March is a great time to think about how you can reduce the air pollution around you. Not only will it help improve your energy costs, but also it can keep your home healthy and comfortable for you and your family. Try these three tips to keep your HVAC running efficiently and clear the air around you.

Arrange a Carpool With Friends 

Carpooling isn’t just for kindergarteners and elementary school students – it’s for grownups too! And it’s a great way to reduce air pollution inside and outside of your home. Talk to your neighbors and coworkers and find a weekly carpool to work, to the gym or even just out to dinner.

Excess pollution coming from the abundance of cars out on the road is seeping into your home and affecting your HVAC system. Reducing the number of cars on the road will help alleviate your HVAC and help it from working overtime to try and fix your indoor and outdoor issues.

Stop Smoking Indoors

Did you know that smoking indoors is not just affecting the way your lungs work? It’s also affecting the way your HVAC works by lowering the quality of the air inside your home.

Those dust and dirt particles from your cigarette hang around long after the last puff. The smoke lingers in the air (and your furniture and clothing) and causes your HVAC system to have to clean out that air to try to improve the quality.

So give your lungs and your HVAC system a break and keep the air in your home smoke-free. And if you want to be even more proactive, be sure to replace your air filter more frequently too!

Make Sure You Have a Clean Humidifier

Your humidifier can be one of the most important appliances in your home. It helps to keep moisture in the air and make your home hospitable to your whole family.

Just like your HVAC system, your humidifier has air filters which clear out the dust particles and improve the air quality in your home. It acts as an extra filter to help your HVAC system run more efficiently.

Over time these filters can build up quite a bit of debris and can affect the quality of the air in your home as a result of this build up. Cleaning your humidifier will help it to perform better and last longer; so it’s important to give it the attention it needs.

If you’re mindful of these ways to improve the air quality around you, the change in seasons won’t trick you this year. By carpooling, ceasing smoking indoors, and cleaning your humidifier you’ll be beautifully prepared for the change to spring and on to summer.