Check Your Mid Century Home Safety

Living room with larage windows and mid century furniture — Photo by Bret Gum.

Now that we’re all spending so much time at home, it’s important to make sure that your mid century home is a safe place to be. Mid century home safety includes aspects like making sure the air quality, materials and lighting is contributing to your health and well being rather than detracting from it. Here are three key areas to focus on when looking at your mid century home safety, and how you can improve you and your family’s quality of life.

Kitchen area with red bar stools and island — Use your kitchen vent when cooking to provide good ventilation. Photo by Bret Gum.

Air Quality

Air quality is an important part of your mid century home safety. First, make sure you clean, dust and vacuum your home on a regular basis to get rid of dust, pet dander and other irritants. Change the air filters on home products such as your AC, vacuum and clothes dryer on a regular basis. Also, make sure your MCM home has proper ventilation—open a window when the weather is good, or install a whole house ventilation system that brings outdoor air into the home. If you do have AC and heating in your home, make sure to have your air ducts (not just the ceiling filters) cleaned regularly.

To reduce the risk of mold, install a few dehumidifiers around the house. This will help reduce the amount humidity (especially in the summer) and the risk of mold. Dehumidifiers can also help with summer allergens. If you’re constantly sniffly during allergy season, also try installing a few air purifiers to help reduce the amount of pet dander, dust and other allergen irritants in the air.

We know you’ll like this one: Indoor plants can help improve the air quality in your home! So go crazy with those MCM friendly house plants. Though do be aware of allergies—if you have plant allergies, you might want to stay away from bringing indoor plants into your home.

Mid century home safety living room with furniture and wood cabinets — Home testing kits are available for a number of toxic materials, from rayon to asbestos, mold and more. Photo by Bret Gum.

Toxic Materials

As many of us know, one of the problems that can come from a Mid Century home is the presence of toxic materials used in old homes, such as lead paint on the walls or asbestos in the insulation, piping and roofing. If your home was built before the 1980s and you think there might be asbestos, mold or another toxic material in your home, pick up a home testing kit so you can be aware of any problems you need to fix to keep your home safe for you and your family.

Another home test you should do for your mid century home safety is for radon. This is a colorless and odorless gas that’s been linked to lung cancer. Any home can have a radon problem, not just authentic MCM homes, so if you’re in a newer home with mid century style, you’ll still want to test for radon to make sure this toxic gas isn’t leaking in through any cracks in the foundation.

Dining area with mid century home safety style and starburst chandelier — Natural lighting during the day will brighten your home, but make sure you have adequate lighting at night too. Photo by Jim Brown.

Lighting

Did you know that the type of light bulbs you use can actually affect the room’s atmosphere and mood? Natural lighting is best during the day, so go ahead and install all the windows you can for your mid century home.

When it comes to artificial lighting, look at the light temperature of the bulbs you choose, which will be labeled as Kelvin. The higher the Kelvin temperature, the cooler the light. Save lower-temperature lights (around 2700 Kelvin) for areas where you want warm, inviting tones such as the living room and bedrooms. Use higher-temperature lights (4000 Kelvin or above) for areas that can use cooler lighting, such as the kitchen.

Have you ever been told to stay away from screens before bedtime if you’re having trouble sleeping? This is because the blue light from screens actually messes with your body’s natural sleep schedule. Blue light increases awareness and reduces melatonin, the hormone that helps you sleep. If you can, reduce the amount of screen time you have before you go to bed. Pick up a book (or your latest copy of Atomic Ranch) instead, or if you must be on a screen, try wearing blue light reduction glasses at night.

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