Battling the Smoke

[kevin_standlee]

There was no improvement in smoke conditions today, and indeed it's getting worse, with the National Weather Service predicting unhealthy to hazardous air conditions today. We needed to get groceries, so we both masked up with our N95 filters, which are probably all that can do something against the smoke. (The wetted-down cloth masks provider initial comfort, but do less to filter the fine smoke particles.) Maybe I was imagining it, but the air did seem cleaner to taste under my N95 mask.

Taking some advise I saw online from a California state air-quality management agency, yesterday, we bought a couple of 20x20-inch air filters and taped them over the box fans we have. We do not have a forced-air cooling system (except inside the travel trailer), and we have to open the windows at night to try and force out the hot air in the house and bring in cooler air, smoke or not. After only one night, we had photographic evidence of how dirty the air is right now.



Using blue tape, I attached the filter to the box fans. In this particular case, I realize to my annoyance that I'd accidentally attached it to the front of the fan instead of the back, but it was easy enough to pull the tape off and put it on the correct way. Note that the filter is relatively clean and white right out of the package.

Following my normal practice, I put one fan in the bathroom window to draw air in overnight and another in the bedroom window set to exhaust air. This allows me to point the evaporative "swamp" cooler into the bedroom, sending cool, damp air into the room but also allowing it to exhaust and actually evaporate. If you don't do this, you end up with muggy, uncomfortable air after a while.



This is what the filter on the fan in the bathroom looked like after one night of drawing air from outside. It's not surprising that there's already a lot of smoke and dust trapped in the filter. It does reduce how much air comes through, but at least the air coming through is somewhat cleaner.



This is what I didn't expect. The fan set in the bedroom exhausting air was similarly covered in gunk, which shows just how much bad air is already inside the house. I'm glad that my CPAP machine has multiple filters. I probably should change them more often in the short term. I can afford more filters.

Maybe I should leave the filter off the fan set to exhaust air, as I really don't care if I'm blowing dust and smoke out of the house.

The AQI reported in Fernley shortly after we got back from grocery shopping in Reno was a whopping 462, which is listed as Hazardous, with a recommendation that we stay indoors. I'm wondering if I should wear my N95 mask even inside today. Should I have to go outside again today, I'll definitely wear that mask. Breathing smoke is No Fun.

Comments

[wild_patience]

Wow. That's really bad. It's good to know about the filters for box fans, though. I use those upstairs.

[kevin_standlee]

These aren't actually made for box fans. They're one of the standard type of filters for HVAC systems. (I got them at Lowe's.) But as they are the same size, they can be attached to a box fan with tape.

I see that the air conditions in the Bay Area are not too bad by comparison to here. I also hope that the chance of rain in the forecast for the next few days does materialize and wash some of this smoke out of the air, and also maybe help with putting out the fires in the mountains.

[ravan]

I use duct tape "wings" and magnets to attach my MERV-13 filters to my box fans.

It works well.

[delosharriman]

I think the filter on the outgoing plan might be useful to prevent gunk from filtering back in through the outbound fan. But I'm glad to see you post this, because this is the advice my sibling gave me to convey to you!

That's Scary.

[auntie_m]

Glad the filters are helping. I would say, going out, you probably don't want a filter, as you don't want that clogging up blowing air OUT. Making sure the air coming IN is clean is what matters.
But it is a Smokane level of ugly.
Take care over there.

[jreynoldsward]

Yeah. We've not had that level of smoke in Northeastern Oregon--yet. We'll see what becomes of forecasts of rain/thunderstorms this week. I do not expect any relief until mid-September at the earliest, and that's if the fall rains come in time.

Last year I was wearing a shop valve N95 mask inside the house, until we got air purifiers. Even slept in mine.

This brings back memories of growing up in the southern Willamette Valley, with grass seed field burning happening for two months out of the year pre-regulation. Regulation didn't help because the preferred path that kept smoke out of the Eugene-Springfield area went over the small mountain valley where I lived. My house at the time wasn't as airtight, and we didn't have air purifiers.

No wonder I have reactive airways.