Allergy Proof Your Home | 7 Tips For Creating a Personal Safe Haven From Allergies

Raise your hand if you’ve ever felt personally victimized by allergies! Everything outside my home in San Antonio is currently yellow from pollen…my car, my patio chairs, even my dog after three seconds. And honestly, there’s not much you can do about that. But you can allergy proof your home to make sure everything yellow stays outside.

Goodness knows allergies can wreak havoc on your health and even your ability to survive your day-to-day. So why not create a safe haven to return home to every night, where your eyes can stop watering and your nose can stop boogering for a few hours? Here’s how to make it happen!

Allergy Proof Your Home: Mindfulness

• Get in and out quickly. Let’s start with the obvious! If outdoor allergies are beating you down, don’t invite them into your home. You probably don’t go around opening all the windows, but are you also being careful not to leave the backdoor open any longer than necessary? It’s easy to leave it open a little longer while we’re unloading groceries, yelling at the kids to come inside, or waiting out our dog to see if he wants to go outside…or inside…or outside. Make sure that you walk directly into or out of your house and close the door behind you right away. This severely limits the time allergens have to blow inside.

Allergy Proof Your Home: Pets

• Wipe down the dog. Know another handy way for allergens to infiltrate your home? Riding in on your furry BFF. Use grooming wipes to remove pollen, grass, and other allergens from your pup’s fur and paws whenever they come in from outside.

• Be mindful of where your pets hang out. Maybe you have zero plans to wipe down your dog every time he comes in from the outdoors. Hey, I get it! That’s a lot of work. Another alternative is to keep your pet out of your bed and off of the furniture as much as possible. After all, that’s where you lay and breathe in whatever’s lurking on the surface. We bought our Jack Russell the comfiest of dog beds and laid it at the end of our chaise lounge. That way he’s still a part of the family, but all of his fur (and hitchhiking allergens) is contained to one place in the living room. My highly allergic husband is sure to always sit at the other end of the couch.

Allergy Proof Your Home: Clothing and Skin

• Change clothes after any outdoor excursions. Just take a jog around the neighborhood? Change your clothes to avoid sitting in all of the allergens you collected along your route. Did the kids spend extensive time rolling around the back yard? A quick clothing change can make a world of difference…if you don’t mind using your crystal clear, allergy-free eyes to wash all of that laundry.

• Shower before bed. I love a morning shower as much as the next guy. But allergists are advising patients to shower before bed so they’re not sleeping for eight hours in all of the allergens they’ve collected on their body throughout the day.

Allergy Proof Your Home: Cleaning

• Clean regularly. Never fun, but so essential. By regularly dusting surfaces, vacuuming floors, and washing bedding, you’ll be regularly eliminating allergens. When washing bedding, throw blankets, etc., be sure to use the hottest water setting possible. (Play it safe, read the tags!) This should help to rid your laundry of dust mites, the most common indoor allergen. Need a little help keeping things tidy? Then check out our post, How to Keep a House Clean With Kids, and/or download our free weekly cleaning plan here!

• Change air filters regularly. This one goes hand-in-hand with cleaning, but deserves its own mention. Once your air filter fills up with allergens, dust, and other gunk, it can no longer do its job in your home! Need an easy (and cheap!) way to remember to change your filters regularly? I’m a huge fan of FilterEasy! Their prices are comparable to Walmart’s and they simply ship a filter to you when you’re due for a new one. (Interested in learning more? Click here for a free trial!)

• Utilize air purifiers. Now, it’s important to note that both the EPA and American Lung Association agree that air purifiers should not act as your first line of defense against allergies, but your second. The first line of defense comes from keeping your home clean and well-ventilated. My husband swears our GermGuardian has drastically improved his allergies around the house. You could also spring for a bigger, more powerful purifier or one with a lower profile. Place it where you spend the most time in your house. And for the love, don’t buy one for every room in your house until you’ve tested one to confirm its effectiveness.

Wrap It Up

So…are you ready to allergy proof your home? By keeping things tidy and well-ventilated inside, and getting in and out of there quickly, you can create a space where you’ll breathe much easier.

What are you doing to allergy proof your home? Be sure to share in the comments!

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