How
I Made My New Home Allergy Sufferer Friendly
By Mercia Tapping - President,
AllergyBuyersClub.com
The first thing you should know is that my own allergies are much better
in the past few years because of “walking the walk” and
using everything that we sell in my own home. The recommendations I
make to you always come from real life experience.
My summer house has a rather minimalist
look to it, which as any allergy sufferer
knows is the style you adopt out of necessity.
| Pre-finished
hardwood floors are everywhere, so no
out gassing, and the only carpet is in
a rarely used lower level guest suite.
There are no dust-collecting drapes,
just blinds. An anti-microbial mat from Dr
Doormat (priced at $59) greets us
at our garage entrance, which is how
we usually enter the house. A couple
of wipes on that mat and we are not bringing
in pollutants into the house from the
outside. |
Dr. Doormat |
The builder told us to expect some dust in the ductwork for the next three
months before it settles down, which is typical with new construction.
Envirosept
Furnace Filters
|
An effective furnace
filter then becomes critical to catch
a good part of that circulating dust. I
chose the BoAir because at $79.95 it
is great value for the money, and has the
least drop in air-flow of any furnace filter
we sell. This means I will still get good
air circulation through the air conditioning
system and do not risk burning out the
fan.
If I could have used the Envirosept
furnace filter at $364.95, I would have done so, but it would
not fit in the tight area in my furnace room and needs a nearby electric
socket. The Envirosept is by far the most effective of all our furnace
filters, although it still uses replacement pads and is not washable. |
For
my vacuum cleaner, I
chose a Sebo C2.1 at $589.00. It has
a wonderful soft floor brush and dusting
brush for all that dust which is going
to be everywhere on all surfaces. I think
that the Sebo provides good value for money
in a high-end vacuum cleaner.
(Note: Most
Sebos are having a manufacturer’s
price increase on 4/3/05 so ordering
now can save you up to $70 on certain
models. See previous section.)
|
Sebo Vacuum
Cleaners
|
Given
I have almost no carpet, I certainly did
not need the Miele Red Velvet at $1249, which
I would have bought if I had big thick rugs
or wall-to-wall carpet (see why this Miele
is our category
winner).
|
Ladybug Steam
Cleaner
|
Since
this is a brand new house, it will not have
severe cleaning problems in the near term,
but I will certainly use a steam
cleaner such as the Ladybug (starting
at $1049.95) to do my routine cleaning, so
my house will always smell great. This vapor
steam cleaner disinfects and sanitizes everything
in its path and has plenty of attachments
for those small nooks and crannies. I love
the Ladybug for its continuous fill features
and quality through and through. |
Central air conditioning takes the edge off most of my dehumidification
issues but the Ebac
880 at $529.95 is a quiet, low temperature dehumidifier for basements
which I will put in my furnace room, and it will drain continuously into
my furnace. It can take the humidity down to the low 40% range.
I will
put the low
temp Comfort-Aire dehumidifier starting
at $319.95 in the unfinished part of the
basement, and it will drain into a pipe in
the floor, while sitting on a stool thoughtfully
provided by the builder.
My home is wired so an alarm goes off it the humidity rises above
50% - the temperature at which mold and dust mite flourish. To be
truthful, I am disappointed that my tiny furnace room would not accommodate
a Sante
Fe dehumidifier at $1375.95 which is a superb large space dehumidifier
for residential basements. It is the perfect dehumidifier. |
Comfort-Aire
Dehumidifiers
|
Air-O-Swiss
Humidifiers |
I had no choice but to
purchase the builders central humidifier
in order to protect my wood floors from
warping. I will also use a room humidifier
such as the Air-O-Swiss
humidifier at $150 which I use at
home, because it helps me not wake with
sinus pain, and it really helps keep
my husband’s snoring down to manageable
levels. I like this room humidifier because
it requires very low maintenance, can
be warm or cool mist, is very quiet,
and humidifies a room in no time flat. |
As an allergy sufferer, this house will be filled
with air
purifiers. A Hamilton
Beach 04163 Hepa air purifier at $144.95
(currently on sale), will help my guests who
are allergic to trees and pollens, of which there
are plenty right outside their bedroom window.
This is the best value air purifier on our website
right now, and perfectly good enough for our
occasional guests. A Blueair
402 at $399.95 graces another guest room
which is my back up refuge if my husband's snoring
gets out of control. I have used a Blueair
501 air purifier at $499.95 for years in
my bedroom at home, and with great success because
my husband does not grumble about any noise.
|
Since
the house is full of dust, and will continue
to be dust prone for a few months, I am putting coarse
dust filters onto an IQAir HealthPro Hepa air
purifier (starts at $649 for the Compact
size) which extends the life of this superb
pre-filter and is recommended for those who
have pets, have undergone renovations or
are breaking in a new home.
I will run these IQAir
air purifiers for 24 hours a day for the next few months, which
will keep the dust level down and make it easier for me to breath
in the house. By the time I am finished, I will achieve a squeaky
clean home. I will of course keep vacuuming up the dust diligently. |
A whole house Rhino
Water filter by Aquasana at $843.15 makes
life easy as I only have to remember to change
one filter a year. We use a Double
Crown under-mount water filter at $299.95
at my primary home and a massage shower filter
from Aquasana at
$67.99. My big problem is remembering to stock
enough replacement shower filters, so I do
not ever run out. I would have put in a whole
house filter at home, but for the fact you
have to be a contortionist to get at the central
water supply.
All
my lighting is by Verilux and
I have put their full
spectrum spotlights and light bulbs all
over the new house. The Verilux
Heritage at $229.95, a newly designed
pharmacy-styled full spectrum light, graces
our den, and provides a wonderful reading
floor lamp for my husband while he enjoys
his new swivel rocker. |
Verilux Heritage
Lamp |
 I
was so thrilled with the Arts
and Crafts Maple bed starting at $575 which
I use in master bedroom at my home, that I decided
that my guests should be treated to a version with
no footboard. I find it annoying to try and tuck
in a coverlet inside a footboard and prefer to
let the coverlet hang naturally. These beds are
beautifully handcrafted of maple hardwood, and
now I am going the whole nine yards with a maple
wood full dresser at $970 and two
bedside tables at $290 each. In the master
bedroom, which will have a cherry pencil post bed,
which is not available yet on our site, I added
two cherry stained side tables, which were as good
looking and better quality than I could find anywhere.
Hellenic
jute carpets from $199.95 greet you at the
entry hall and in our den, while a slightly more
expensive Athena
rug from $699.95 graces our dining room. It
looks like jute but is in fact wool.
Royal Pedic
Latex Beds |
No home is complete
without a Royal
Pedic latex bed with a separate Royal
Pedic 3” mattress pad in order to rest
my weary bones.
I have used Royal Pedic in my home for three years and have nothing
but rave reviews. It is a wonderful bed mattress with superlative
comfort and support from $1042. |
I have put Elite
wool mattress pads everywhere. I have used
them on my bed at home, and it wicks away moisture,
as I can get hot and sweaty at night.
I
bought Euphoria
summer weight wool comforters for me
(starting at $324.00) and all my guests,
for a blissfully light and comfortable
night’s sleep. No more sweaty nights
under down comforters. Wool
comforters are such a delightful surprise
as a textile. For a touch of luxury, these
wool comforters get encased in a silk
duvet cover (starting at $229.95),
and a soft
latex pillow (from $96.95) which I
can scrunch up beneath my head, completes
the picture.
So there you have it. I thought my product
choices through very carefully. The above
were my final choices out of over 2,000
products on our website. |
Euphoria
Comforters |
Top
|
What
with attending tradeshows and going on
a little vacation, I lost track of time
this month, and was reminded it was time
to write a newsletter. I write what is
on my mind, and for this month’s
issue, it is about furnishing my new
summer home with allergy-friendly products
from our website and why I recommend
them. 
