Studies show that indoor air can be much more polluted than the air outside. Contemporary homes are constructed with tighter seals and more insulation to increase energy efficiency. Unfortunately, these measures can limit the flow of fresh air into these homes and trap toxins inside. Many household furnishings and everyday items off-gas toxic chemicals and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that can make the air unhealthy to breathe and cause headaches, fatigue, itchy skin, stuffy nose, and other unpleasant symptoms. To enhance air quality, it helps to increase its oxygen levels and reduce the presence of pollutants. Below, we’ll discuss how houseplants can help purify the air, which plants are most effective, how to properly care for them, and how to incorporate them into your space to improve your home environment.
How Houseplants Improve Air Quality
Houseplants bring nature indoors. Some houseplants act as natural humidifiers, making the air in dry homes more comfortable to breathe. They can also purify indoor air by absorbing carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, and other harmful chemicals through tiny pores in their leaves and roots.
In the late 1980s, scientists at NASA discovered that houseplants can purify air by removing harmful toxins like benzene, formaldehyde, and trichloroethylene. These irritating and possibly cancer-causing chemicals are prevalent in inks, dyes, paints, plastics, coatings, adhesives, detergents, and pharmaceuticals that people encounter every day. You can find these toxins in things like particle board shelves, carpets, water-repellant jackets, foam insulation, grocery bags, natural gas, medicine, and more.
Other harmful gases, like the carbon monoxide a furnace produces, can make breathing difficult and even be deadly. Putting houseplants in your home is an easy way to reduce the level of harmful gases in the air and make breathing much healthier and more pleasant.
Which Houseplants Are Best for Purifying Indoor Air?
While all plants have the potential to improve air quality, the varieties below are standouts when it comes to air purification at home. Some houseplants can be dangerous to pets, so be sure to look for pet-safe varieties if you have furry friends.
Spider Plant
Spider plants, named for their striped, spidery leaves, are known for their ability to remove formaldehyde from the air. They are pet-safe, easy to grow, hardy, and low maintenance, needing only indirect sunlight and moderate watering to thrive.
Boston Fern
The Boston fern has feathery sword-shaped fronds that will remove formaldehyde, carbon dioxide, and other harmful gases from the air. This bright-green plant also serves as a humidifier and makes the air easier to breathe. Boston ferns are pet-safe. They do well in bright, indirect light from a north- or east-facing window and need twice-weekly watering.
Bamboo Palm
The bamboo palm has slender, deep-green leaves that can help remove benzene, formaldehyde, and trichloroethylene from the air. It’s well-suited to moderately humid, partially shady areas of your home, like bathrooms, and it’s pet-safe.
Snake Plant
Snake plants have flat, rigid, sword-shaped leaves with a mottled dark and light green color. These plants are especially good at oxygenating the air while they filter out xylene, benzene, formaldehyde, and trichloroethylene. Snake plants make great low-maintenance additions to bedrooms and living areas with indirect or low light, and they don’t need much water. Unfortunately, these plants can be toxic to pets.
Aloe Vera
Aloe vera is a succulent that has fleshy, medium-green, lance-shaped leaves. It’s famous for its ability to soothe and heal burns, abrasions, and other skin wounds, and it also purifies air by absorbing carbon dioxide, benzene, and formaldehyde. Aloe vera does best in bright sunlight, but you only need to water it if the top inch of its soil is dry. This plant is not pet-safe.
Golden Pothos
The golden pothos is an easy-to-care-for plant that is suited to most environments. Its heart-shaped, variegated green and cream leaves filter out formaldehyde and benzene to improve air quality. This vine grows well in low light, and you can water it infrequently; however, it is toxic to pets.
How to Care for Your Houseplants
When you’re selecting new houseplants for your space, it’s important to consider your environment and your lifestyle. Realize that each variety of plant has specific needs. Some houseplants need more water, light, and space than others, so be sure you understand how to provide your plants with the care they require to thrive. Sun-loving plants tend to do well when you place them near windows, but you can also try using LED grow lights if your home lacks natural light.
Keeping your plants healthy will help them be more effective at purifying the air. Give your plants the water and fertilizer they need without over- or underdoing it. You may also need to repot your plant as it grows, prune it or cut off dead leaves, and treat diseases. It’s also important to help your plant breathe by cleaning its leaves with a spray of water or by wiping off dust with a damp cloth.
How to Incorporate Houseplants Into Your Space
Balancing the ecosystem in your home is key to keeping your air healthy, so when you’re adding houseplants to your space, don’t go overboard. If you have too many houseplants, your home could become humid enough to encourage mold growth, worsen allergies and respiratory ailments, and feel uncomfortable.
To regulate your humidity levels and to enhance your air quality, experts recommend having one medium-to-large houseplant for every 100 square feet of living space. If you live in an 1,800-square-foot house, try distributing 18 houseplants in 6- to 8-inch-wide pots around your home, and remember that adding just a few plants can make a positive difference in your air quality.
While houseplants can help freshen the air in your home, they can’t do it all. To optimize your indoor air quality, you’ll need to ensure that your home is clean, dry, and well-ventilated. If you live in a minimally polluted area, use a fan or open your windows when the weather permits it. Try to use toxic cleaning products like bleach and other harmful chemicals as infrequently as possible, and minimize your use of air fresheners and synthetic fragrances. Consider using an air purifier; these devices are engineered to remove airborne particles that are too large for houseplants to manage. You’ll also want to make sure to have a technician service your HVAC system and clean your air filters regularly.
Add Natural Freshness to Your Home With Air-Purifying Houseplants
Decorating your home with air-purifying houseplants is a wonderful way to make your space more vibrant and inviting. Houseplants can significantly enhance the quality of your indoor environment, especially when you pair them with a modern HVAC system that’s designed to keep your air fresh. When you’re looking to make the atmosphere in your home comfortable and delightful, call F.F. Hitchcock Plumbing, Heating & Cooling in Cheshire, CT.
Our expert technicians provide the state-of-the-art indoor air quality services and thorough home energy audits you need to stay comfortable and help you breathe more easily at home.
