What's in your home to combat asthma? What's a must & what's a dud? airpurifiers, etc

06-23-2006, 09:24 AM

Hi, I'm new to asthma and would like to hear from those of you who have more experience with asthma.

What do you have in your home to help you not get asthma symptoms? What all have you tried? Which products help, made worse or did nothing for you?
I know everyone is different BUT asthma is asthma and there must be some sort of list of things/products to DO or have to combat this and I'm sure there are other things/products NOT to do or have in your home.

The more details the better... Do you use air purifiers, humidifiers (cool or hot), dehumidifiers, special fliters for furnace, air purifiers, etc? If so, what kind/brand/model/etc.?

What's YOUR secret to keeping dust down? I've been in some peoples houses that worked alllll the time and some how they never seemed to have dust. No idea how but I'd like to know....

How can you tell if there is mold in your house? Where do you look? How do you get rid of it?

Anything else? Standing on your head at 2:30pm, doing back bends, what? Any off the wall secrets that help YOU?

I'd also like to know what names of meds you use are for your asthma and to control it?

Thanks everyone! Thanks for all your info and help!
Have a good day!!!

06-23-2006, 04:54 PM

What do you have in your home to help you not get asthma symptoms? What all have you tried? Which products help, made worse or did nothing for you?

I have the following:

1. 2 Ionic Breeze Air purifiers
Horrible smell,ozone, & ions
Irritates asthma when used in a small room not in a large room
Ionizer in large room is kept on.
Ionizer in small room is turned on occasionaly when the room smells musty for a few hours when not at home.
Once home its turned off & windows are opened.
Keeps down some dust.
No significant positive impact on asthma symptoms or control.

2. 3M Air Conditioner Filter on intake
helpful

3. Purifying spray for Vent filters by an allergy product co.
Use on aircondtioner filter
Cant hurt to try it
might be wasting my money

4. Hygienicaire (8 oz jar natural cream air fungicide)
help eliminates mold/mildew.
use in closets/bedroom
open jar for 8 hours 3/4 times a week in bedroom
keep jar open in closet all the time.
It helps with the musty smell.

5. "No More Mildew" mildew resistant sealant. sprayed on airconditioner, bath/show, & window sill.
Works good
3/4 weeks so far & no mildew on shower

6. Clean Airconditioner
Significant postive impact on asthma. Easier to breath
Humidity outside makes it harder to breath

*Found a lot of black mildew on last year's airconditioner when removing it from window last fall.
Didn't clean it at the time but stored it in garage.
mold on airconditioner irritated asthma

This spring I took it out from the garage
thoroughly cleaned it with tilex.
Rinsed it
Air dried for a day(remove tilex odor)
Sprayed "No more mildew" (mildew resistant sealant) on it

6. Wash 2 cats(antiallergen shampoo)/blankets every 1 to 1 1/2 weeks.
wear mask when washing/drying cats
thoroughly blow dry cats so they lick themselves less (which means less cat saliva protein allergens)
significant postive impact on dust allergies/moderate help with asthma.

7. Xolair shots - Advertisement for this medication is geared towards
people who have allergies & have pets.
Nothing extremely noticable yet - just 2 shots so far

8. Hepa Airfilter - Filters expensive, noisy, electric expense, 2nd filter needs wkly cleaning.
Probably would be helpful as long as you stick with it compliance wise.

9. Dust mite pillow encasing
Has a positive helpful impact on my dust allergies.
No noticable significant positive impact on asthma control

10. Mattress dust mite encasing

11. 3M Masks for cleaning cat litter & vacuming.
Very/Very helpful

12. Chlorine in pools, steamy hot showers,humidty, extreme cold,
exercise, stress hormones, laughing, coughing, respiratory colds, cigarettes, certain pets, polution, a full stomach, etc etc, all irritate my asthma.
This makes this health condition hard to manage & live with.
And creates symptoms on a daily basis for me.
Cant live your life in a bubble & cant possibly go long without encountering one of the many triggers.

What's YOUR secret to keeping dust down? I've been in some peoples houses that worked alllll the time and some how they never seemed to have dust. No idea how but I'd like to know....

Perhaps they dont have factors that contribute to major dust.
Dust contributors being:
attic apartments
living in industrial or factory areas
etc.

I have a very dusty apartment
There are no short cuts.
I vacume every week
Wash floors every 1 1/2 to 2 weeks
dust/wipe tv, shelves, nighttable, lamps, etc with damp sponge
every 2 weeks or less.
Ionic breeze does only so much & it must be cleaned every 1 to 1 1/2 weeks

How can you tell if there is mold in your house? Where do you look? How do you get rid of it?

look, smell for mustyness, do a mold test/petri dish (can buy from drug store)
Look in Airconditioner, shower, & bathroom floor under rug.
Crawl spaces in closets, & windows.
Tylex, or Bleach kills the mold good. But didn't fully pentrate on my bathroom wood floor so I than covered with concrete & than vinyl tile (rental apartment)

Nas 12 (no smell/not a heavy chemical/from an allergy product co.
Used on 1 aircondioner.
Was not confident that the product would completely get rid of the mold
that I could not see fully on fan located inside of A/C.
It seems like you have to scrub with this one. Will try again.

Always weared a 3M mask designed for fumes
and provided plenty of ventilation(window fan)

Anything else? Standing on your head at 2:30pm, doing back bends, what? Any off the wall secrets that help YOU?
Gee I wish
Serrapeptase Enzyme is being advertised as helpful for asthma, arthritis
I noticed that it dryed me out (dry eyes,throat) but was helpful for my arm tendinitis

I'd also like to know what names of meds you use are for your asthma and to control it?

Discontinued my Advair (Jitterness side effect)
Flovent (so far so good- No side effect)
Singulair - take but doesn't do anything for me
albuteral - when needed. takes 1/2 to kick in for me.
Side effect shakiness/jitteryness)
Xolair - 2 shots so far. Nothing noticeable yet.

Mornings are bad for me lung function wise. Will sometimes improve within 1 hour after waking & moving about.
Test show that I am not able to exhale my air fully and this is on a permanent basis.
I believe that there has been some damage which is why I feel I can not fully exhale on daily basis since 6/05.
Doctor briefly mentioned there was slight improvement from albuteral
on some aspect of the test.
My peak flow ranges from 200 to 300 (home peak flow meter)

06-24-2006, 06:07 AM

That was VERY insightful, Solaray2! You mentioned some things I have nevvver heard of like that mold thing "Hygienicaire" and also, "Purifying spray for Vent filters".

I never thought of checking into allergy relief products either! I figured there were some on the market but not so much for the home, etc.. I for sure will check for mold (now that I have a clue where to try and look for it). I do have a musky smell in one of my bathrooms but it's the only one that still has carpet in it so, it's bound to be moldy!

I'm sorry you have so much struggles with your asthma.. Maybe there will be plenty more members here come and list what they use and you can check back to see if there's anything you haven't tried yet that might help you a little.

I'm also thinking of having our air ducts professionally cleaned because we put in a wood floor recently and I 1000000% sure a LOT of the dust from that and some dry wall work they did got into the vents because we never covered all the vents in the house! DUH!!! I got as much as I can out of there but it was very thick and I think that's why we've been having so much dust problem every 3 days it's thick enough to peel off the fans! Makes me suffocate just thinking about it... But we'll get it out of there!

I've just spent sooo much money on expensive air purifiers for the house, furnace filters, vent filters, Dr & ER visits over the last week and soooo much meds (i don't have insurance)... yippy.. so I pay out of pocket. As soon as I can afford a duct cleaning ($400) in my area then I'll for sure get it done cause it could end up being the #1 cause/reason for this?

I was supposed to go on a trip yesterday but my flight was canceled- I was feeling so right to fly, breathing well at the time, etc! Sheesh! It would have been the perfect time for me to fly at ease. Anyway, I have noticed a BIG difference in my breathing if I just go somewhere else, like in Dr office, food store, somewhere clean, with not "too" much AC on. So, It's gotta be something in my house.

Thanks for writing!!

06-29-2006, 10:31 PM

I would suggest getting full allergy tests.

I did and found out im not very sensitive to mold and mildew but extremely allergic to grass and pollen and medium allergic to dust, and not allergic to pets.

That way u can be more focused on avoiding your worst triggers.

I am new to asthma too but I think that is a good idea. I actually had my allergy tests before i was diagnosed lol.. its good to know tho!!

I am using Flovent and Ventolin (albuteral) and I have no side effects. I dont get jitterness or any of the listed side effects so far.
The Ventolin helps me and i will be looking forward to seeing how the Flovent helps over time. I also take a Corticosteroid nose spray.

07-05-2006, 11:45 AM

I got one of those 3M masks yesterday and cleaned the house like crazy! Those masks are wayyyyyyy better than those cheap hospital or surgery type of masks you can get at the stores....
I didn't get weezy when I vaccumed or dusted. BIG HELP!
Still gotta figure out where to get that mold spray that's supposed to keep mold from forming......
Thanks!

07-05-2006, 01:18 PM

How can you tell if there is mold in your house? Where do you look? How do you get rid of it?

1. You can tell if you have mold in your house because you will smell it. Not everyone can always smell it, but if you are allergic/asthmatic to it, you will be able to smell it.

2. The best way to find mold is to look. 1st check the entire basement? Is there carpeting on the concrete? Get rid of it. All concrete is porous and water seeps up, even microscopically, creating mold. Get rid of anything with a cellulose content that touches the floor - for instance, don't let any wood touch the basement floor - as in shelves.

3. Check your bathroom. Many mold problems start when the caulking gets cracked and water seeps through into the ceiling cavity (if on the 2nd floor). Make sure you caulk your tub regularly.

4. Clean your ductwork! Use a reputable service.

4. Check behind your fridge! You will often find huge patches of mold in the cabinet area the fridge fits into.

5. Check underneath all your sinks for leaks from the plumbing.

6. If you have a finished basement, unfinish it. It's OK to tile the floor, but never ever but rugs on a basement floor. Never build rooms in the basement. Never ever use drywall in the basement.

7. If you live on a slab foundation, get rid of your rugs because of water seepage. Tile the entire house instead. Even wood flooring isn't a good idea.

8. Keep your house dry dry dry! Have your roof inspected every year. Fix leaks promptly!!!!!

Mold only happens where there is dampness and water intrusion. Mold spores need food and water to grow. Deprive them of water, and they can't grow!
Stay dry!

07-06-2006, 08:07 AM

t_panic411
BIG HELP!Still gotta figure out where to get that mold spray that's supposed to keep mold from forming......

Hi t_panic411,
To find "No More Mildew"mildew resistant sealant.
I Typed in googles no more mildew national
This is from a allergy supply co.

or

I also have 3M Marine Mildew Block from my local boating chain store.

The allergy supply co. said it was safe (breathing wise) to spray "No more mildew" on the air conditioner (fan/fins/coil section)
Unplugged the A/C, sprayed it, let dry, then turned it on.
But of course you must avoid the electric parts section (circuit board/wires
so as not to damage (short circuit) the A/C.

kirsten22 Junior Member(female)
I would suggest getting full allergy tests.

Very helpful.
The blood test will show if you are allergic to
Mold/fungus,maple,cat dander,cockroach,orchard grass,ragweed,birch,dog dander,elm,lambs quarters(weed pollen),house dust,oak,white ash.

It will show if your Absolute eosinphils are out of range(above 550)
Eosinphils in your blood increase in number with allergy(hives) & parasitic conditions.
Sometimes you dont know what your allergic to until you encounter it.
Best to know beforehand so you can avoid it or become to attached to it (cat/dog).

aswander Veteran female
That was Great information for tenants & homeowners.

aswander Veteran female
Never build rooms in the basement. Never ever use drywall in the basement.
Fix leaks promptly!!!!!
If only all landlords could be 100% compliant with that one.

What's in your home to combat asthma? What's a must & what's a dud? airpurifiers, etc

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