Keep windows open, keep particulates out?

August 13, 2023 1:24 PM

I love having my windows open, but live near a busy road and after a few days of leaving the windows open everything near the windows is covered in a thin layer of road particles - the sticky grime of tire thread and so on - not just your usual dust. I have basic screens installed and an air purifier in the room, but I'm wondering if there's anything more specialized I could do? Do you have experience or suggestions for this?

In my head, perhaps there's a finer screen I could buy? I'm a renter and don't want to throw too much money around trying untested ideas, but am willing to spend money on something folks here can vouch for. Thanks!

posted by matrixclown to Home & Garden (5 answers total)

Particulates are classified under three size categories:
- coarse is smaller than 10 microns
- fine is smaller than 2.5 microns
- ultrafine is smaller than 0.1 microns

There is no window screen you can get that will screen out any of these. I don’t know what sort of air filter you could get that would have an effect while your windows are open.
posted by slkinsey at 1:44 PM on August 13, 2023 [3 favorites]

Sheer curtains do a surprisingly good job as a filter; you do need to launder them regularly, but whenever I’ve lived somewhere where my windows face the road I put up sheers to trap that first level of general dust, while still allowing air and light to circulate.

Historically I’ve found ikea to have the best price/quality point on sheers.
posted by larthegreat at 1:58 PM on August 13, 2023 [11 favorites]

On one of your windows, install a big box fan and seal it well to the window frame, and put a high quality furnace filter on it. This fan will be pushing clean air into the apartment. The other windows can remain as-is, because at these windows air will only be flowing out, which should greatly reduce the amount of road grime entering. You would probably need to run the fan at a medium or high speed to make this work, so it may or may not be practical depending on your tolerance for noise, etc.
posted by soylent00FF00 at 2:24 PM on August 13, 2023 [6 favorites]

Your air purifier may not be moving enough air to get the particles before they settle. Some options:

– filter particles on entry. fit a furnace filter or filter plus
fan over window.

– increase filtering of indoor air. run your air filter on high,
use a higher capacity air filter, or add more air filters.

– remove settled particles: vacuum and dust more often.
posted by zippy at 3:28 PM on August 13, 2023 [1 favorite]

They do make extra fine window screens designed to keep out pollen. I don't know if they would be helpful for your needs, but you could experiment with them in one room. Mine do make the view blurry, but let in light and air.
posted by metasarah at 7:59 PM on August 13, 2023 [1 favorite]