I’m sure you’re like most families that enjoy keeping their homes clean for their loved ones, protecting them from airborne contaminants and outside viruses. No matter how much you scrub, disinfect, or vacuum the obvious places, like your kitchen or bedroom, you are ignoring one huge space that needs to be addressed.

What’s in your attic?

You may think it doesn’t matter. After all, we never go up there. You may think that what’s up there stays there, but here’s the reality. Because of something called the Venturi Effect, leaks in your duct work are drawing air from the attic and depositing everything that is in your attic directly into your home. Everything. That includes fiberglass batting or blown-in insulation that can include processed materials, including paper and other cellulose-containing matter that has been treated with a fire retardant material, which can irritate eyes, skin, and the respiratory system. That includes rodent droppings that are commonly found in home attics.

The number of diseases that can be caused by exposure to rodent urine or feces, as well as other remains, like saliva, hair, and skin are things that concern virtually all homeowners. The most infamous of these diseases is the Hantavirus. As air moves from the attic into the duct work and into your home, it can bring unwanted elements with it. Other ailments can be contracted from bird droppings that sometimes nest in attics. Diseases can be contracted by inhaling dried feces in the form of fungal spores, which can become airborne and infect the person inhaling them. So the question really is, what’s in your attic?