To get cleaner indoor air, maintain your appliances

Ignoring regular upkeep could be bad for your health

Consumer Reports magazine: September 2012

Find Ratings

Dehumidifiers

Humidifiers

Air Purifiers

Humidifiers need frequent cleaning.

A free smart-phone app from the American Lung Association, State of the Air, will assess the air quality outside your house (download it at the ALA website or in Android and Apple markets)—but how about the air inside?

Many Americans fail to maintain household appliances that affect indoor air quality, according to a recent survey by the Consumer Reports National Research Center. Almost 40 percent of Americans rarely or never clean their humidifier or kitchen range hood, for example, though they use it daily. One-fourth have never cleaned or replaced their furnace filter, which should be checked monthly and cleaned or replaced if it's dirty.

Ignoring maintenance schedules might not only make those devices less effective but can also harm your health. Neglecting a bathroom fan or dehumidifier can cause mold to form, for example; failing to clean a humidifier rigorously can result in growth of fungi and bacteria that cause lung inflammation; and allowing creosote to build up in a wood-burning stove or fireplace can lead to a fire.

Recommended cleaning schedule	Appliance	% of frequent users cleaning as often as recommended
Once every few months	Bathroom exhaust fan	16
	Kitchen range hood	23
Once a month or more	Humidifier	43
	Dehumidifier	44
	Portable air filter/purifier	49
	Wood-burning stove/fireplace	65

Editor's Note:

A version of this article appeared in the September 2012 issue of Consumer Reports magazine with the headline "For Cleaner Indoor Air, Maintain Appliances."