A stuffy room is uncomfortable, unbreathable, and even impossible to fall asleep. So knowing how to make a room less stuffy can help you get a healthier living space.
A room can feel stuffy due to faulty HVAC systems, dust or moisture, poor air circulation, and lack of lighting. So if you want to get a comfortable environment inside your home, you have to clean dust and moisture from every part of the room and improve air circulation and lighting.
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What Can You Do To Make A Room less Stuffy?
If your room feels stuffy, find out the possible reasons and fix them to make the room comfortable for living. If you have carpet, vacuum the room regularly to clean dust and other particles. If your room is damp, dry the air using a dehumidifier. If it’s very hot, install an air conditioner. However, the best solution is to keep the windows open and let the air flow properly. Let gets details:
Check HVAC System
Check the HVAC system of your house and make sure its ducts aren’t clogged or blocked with dust. Then inspect the wall and furniture to look for mold and mildew build-up. This is because mold and mildew can grow anywhere and produce a musty smell.
Improve Air Circulation
Your room can mostly feel stuffy due to poor air circulation. So you must improve air circulation to feel less stuffy. In this case, you can open the window, and use an air purifier or fan to let the sun and fresh air come into the room and make a more comfortable environment.
You should also clean the carpeting of the room using a carpet shampooer or steam cleaner to reduce the chance of mold buildup. Then clean windows and window sills to prevent grime and dirt build up. If you smell musty air, use an air freshener to remove smelly smoke from the room.
Make Comfortable Bedding
Choose high-quality bedding that feels comfortable against your skin. The bedding should be made of breathable fabric like linen or cotton. These materials will regulate your body temperature and help you feel cool. Enlarge your bedding and make sure your room has enough space to sleep, dress, and work. You should also clean the bedding, pillows, and curtains of your bedroom. These tricks will help you make a room less stuffy even at night.
Declutter Your Space
A messy room can feel overwhelming and stuffy. So remove any unnecessary items from your room to declutter the space. This way you will have a more calming environment.
Decorate The Room
Plants are a great way to improve air quality and get a more pleasing atmosphere in the bedroom. So add some plants like spider plants, snake plants, and aloe vera to your room. Then decorate your room with a modern Asian theme, travel pictures, or color chips to improve the appearance. You can also add calming colors like green, soft blues, or grays on the wall or bedding to create a soothing environment.
Enhance The Lighting
If you want to make your room less stuffy in the morning, enhance its lighting. Lighting directly impacts the room’s ambiance. Add a dimmer switch to overhead light, use bedside lamps, and incorporate string lights to make an inviting and warm atmosphere. You should also allow lots of natural light to come into it. If you want to make the floor look better, add yellow light to the ceiling.
Dehumidify
Excessive moisture in the room can increase the growth of mold and make it stuffy. So if you dehumidify the room, it will remove and eliminate the growth of moisture in the room and reduce a large amount of musty smell. In this case, when you take a bath or shower, keep the door closed. It’ll prevent moisture buildup. You can also use a dehumidifier to remove excess moisture.
Seal Air Leaks
When you add insulation, ask your contractor to seal the air leak at a time. It will prevent warm or humid air from entering the room. Remember, the smallest leak can allow pollutant air to enter your room. If you seal the air leaks, it’ll make the heating and cooling system and insulation more effective while removing stuffy air from the room.
Why is My Room So Stuffy And Hot?
If you feel your room stuffy and struggle to take a full breath, it can be the result of a lack of ventilation. Stale air buildup in the room, dust, or pet dander can pollute air and affect breathing. Lack of AC or fan and closed windows can also cause poor ventilation.
If your area has a high humidity level, it can make air feel heavy and make the room stuffy. You may also feel it difficult to breathe for the same reason particularly if you have allergies or asthma.
If your room is in an enclosed space with aging materials, it’ll accumulate moisture and dust quickly and cause mustiness. Hence over time, your room will accumulate a smell that will feel stuffy.
If your room is close to a swimming pool, the carpet will become wet quickly even when you use air conditioning. It can make your room stuffy. You should also check your air conditioning as it can recycle air from outside with medium humidity and cause stuffiness. Other potential reasons like water in the air duct or closed wet dirt in the air duct can make your room stuffy.
How To Make Your Room less Stuffy in Winter?
If you want to maintain a comfortable environment inside your room in winter, even keep the windows closed, and circulate air in the living space. In this case, turn on your fans to maximize air circulation and keep the door open even if it is smallest. Though spring cleaning is popular, you shouldn’t leave all deep cleaning until spring. It means you have to keep your living space clean during winter to avoid a stuffy feel.
In this case, use a dehumidifier to remove moisture from the inside of the house and prevent home from absorbing moisture. If you have carpet, use baking soda to clean it to remove stuffy smell from living space. You can also vacuum the rugs to remove dust from them. Then spray essential oil diffuser or festival candle scents on your house to hide stuffiness in winter.
How To Check if Your Room is Stuffy?
If your room is stale, uncomfortable to breathe, or has a stuffy smell, mold, or mildew, you can consider it as stuffiness. Stuffy air also doesn’t mix properly with fresh air. So it feels too warm, strange and produces musty smells. You can also check the high carbon dioxide level in your room’s air.
In this case, you can use a carbon dioxide meter that costs only around $100. You can also test air quality in your home using indoor air monitors or smart devices like indoor home security cameras or smart thermostats. If you are looking for a cheaper method, install EPA’s AirNow mobile app on your phone to check current and forecast air quality information.
FAQs on How To Make A Room Less Stuffy
How Do You Fix A Dry Stuffy Room?
If your room has too dry and stuffy air, humidify the air using a humidifier. Then seal the gaps and cracks in the home and add moisture in the air using an oscillating fan and a bowl of water.
Can A Stuffy Room Make You Sick?
Stuffy room is uncomfortable and unhealthy, particularly for people who are sensitive to its effects. It can also cause headaches, skin irritation, and fatigue.
Does A Stuffy Room Make You Sleepy?
It’s very difficult to fall and stay asleep in a stuffy room due to its uncomfortable temperature and poor air quality. A cool bedroom with an open window is better for falling asleep quickly.
Final Words
Hope you understand how to make a room less stuffy and feel comfortable and pleasant all the time. So if your stuffy room makes it difficult to fall asleep or live in, clean it of dust and mold.
Then clean all the furniture, carpet, and belongings before you install air conditioning, fan, and dehumidifier. You can also consult with some service providers like PTAC Units or Kearney HVAC to turn your stuffy room into a cozy space quickly.
