The Smoky Side of Summer
Grills firing up. Fireworks cracking overhead. Citronella candles glowing on the patio. Personally, I'm excited for the festivities. But some of su...
Read Article →
Types of Smoke
Wildfire Smoke
Wildfire smoke is a mixture of gases and fine particles created when vegetation, buildings, and other materials burn. Depending on weather conditions, it can travel hundreds or even thousands of miles, affecting air quality in communities far from active fires. Smoke can enter homes through open windows and doors, ventilation systems, and small gaps in the building envelope, making it important to reduce indoor particle levels during periods of heavy smoke to help maintain a cleaner indoor environment.
Learn More About Wildfire Smoke
Tobacco & Cannabis Smoke
Tobacco and cannabis smoke contain fine particles and hundreds of chemicals that can affect indoor air quality long after visible smoke has disappeared. These airborne pollutants may linger in enclosed spaces and contribute to continued exposure for others in the home. Creating smoke-free indoor environments, improving ventilation, and reducing airborne particles are important steps toward maintaining healthier indoor air quality for everyone.
Learn More About Tobacco & Cannabis Smoke
Cooking Smoke
Cooking is one of the most common sources of indoor air pollution. High-temperature cooking methods such as frying, grilling, broiling, and searing can release fine particles, grease, odors, and other airborne pollutants into your home. Using a range hood or exhaust fan, improving ventilation, and increasing air circulation can help reduce cooking-related pollutants and support cleaner indoor air during everyday meal preparation.
Learn More About Cooking Smoke
Wood Smoke
Wood-burning fireplaces, stoves, and outdoor fire pits release smoke containing fine particles and gases that can affect both indoor and outdoor air quality. Poorly maintained equipment, burning unseasoned wood, or inadequate ventilation can increase smoke emissions and indoor pollution. Proper maintenance, using dry seasoned wood, and ensuring good ventilation can help reduce exposure while supporting cleaner air throughout your home during wood-burning seasons.
Learn More About Wood Smoke
Industrial & Chemical Smoke
Vehicle exhaust, industrial emissions, and other combustion sources contribute to outdoor air pollution in many communities. These pollutants can be more concentrated near busy roadways, industrial areas, and other high-traffic locations before making their way indoors through ventilation systems, open windows and doors, and small gaps around a building. Monitoring local air quality can help you take steps to reduce indoor exposure when pollution levels are elevated.
Learn More About Industrial & Chemical Smoke
Smoke, Indoor Air Quality & Your Health
Smoke can travel far beyond the source and affect the air inside your home. From understanding the health effects of smoke exposure to learning how smoke enters your living space and what you can do to improve indoor air quality, taking proactive steps can help you breathe easier when air quality conditions change.
How Smoke Affects Air Quality & Your Health
Smoke can affect air quality by increasing concentrations of airborne particles and gases. Fine particles like PM2.5 are especially concerning because they can remain airborne for extended periods and penetrate deep into the lungs.
Exposure to smoke may contribute to:
- Eye, nose, and throat irritation
- Coughing and respiratory discomfort
- Shortness of breath
- Worsening asthma and allergy symptoms
- Increased stress on the heart and lungs
Some groups may be more sensitive to smoke exposure, including children, older adults, pregnant individuals, outdoor workers, and people with respiratory or cardiovascular conditions.
Monitoring air quality and taking steps to reduce indoor smoke exposure can help create a healthier indoor environment.
How Smoke Gets Inside Your Home
Even when smoke originates outdoors, it can impact the air inside your home. Fine particles can enter through:
- Open doors and windows
- HVAC systems and ventilation
- Small gaps around windows and doors
- Daily activities that bring outdoor air inside
During smoke events, indoor air quality can change quickly. Taking steps such as closing windows, monitoring air quality, and using air filtration can help reduce indoor exposure.
Protect Your Home During a Smoke Event
When smoke levels are elevated, there are several steps you can take to help improve your indoor environment:
Monitor Air Quality - Check local air quality conditions before spending extended time outdoors.
Keep Smoke Outdoors - Close windows and doors when outdoor smoke levels are high.
Reduce Indoor Pollution Sources - Avoid activities that create additional airborne particles, such as burning candles, using fireplaces, or cooking without ventilation.
Improve Air Filtration - Use an air purifier with effective particle filtration to help reduce airborne particles indoors.
Helpful Smoke & Air Quality Resources
Stay informed with tools and guides that help you monitor air quality, track smoke conditions, and make decisions to protect your indoor environment.
Monitor Your Air Quality
Understanding your indoor air quality can help you identify changes caused by smoke, pollutants, and everyday activities. An air quality monitor provides insight into your home's environment so you can make informed decisions about improving your air.
Track Smoke & Wildfire Activity
Smoke conditions can change quickly depending on wind, weather, and fire activity. Use live smoke and wildfire maps to stay informed about current conditions in your area.
Widlfire Safety Guide
Wildfire season can bring changing air quality conditions that impact communities near and far from active fires. Our Wildfire Safety Guide provides practical tips to help you prepare your home, reduce smoke exposure, and protect your indoor air quality before, during, and after a wildfire.
Breathe Better with Intellipure
When smoke affects outdoor air quality, your indoor environment becomes an important place to protect. A high-performance air purifier can help reduce airborne particles inside your home, creating cleaner air during smoke events and supporting better everyday indoor air quality.
The Intellipure H1000 is designed for whole-home air purification with dual H13 HEPA filters and Honeycomb VOC backing to help capture airborne particles and reduce odors and VOCs.
Whether you are preparing for wildfire season, managing seasonal air quality changes, or looking for cleaner air every day, the right filtration system can be an important part of your indoor air quality strategy.
Explore the Intellipure H1000 and discover cleaner air for your home.
H1000 Air Purifier
Sale price$479.00Regular price
$699.00
- Captures and cleans greater than 99.9% of airborne particles with powerful dual intake and 2 HEPA filters
- Capable of capturing airborne viruses
- Reduces seasonal allergy triggers like pollen and outdoor pollutants
- Helps remove pet dander and odor
- Targets dust, dust mites, and indoor irritants
- Effortlessly purifies areas up to 2,200 square feet in just 30 minutes - perfect for open living spaces, basements, corporate offices and meeting rooms, gyms, schools, and more
- Control settings remotely with SmartLife app
- Wi-Fi enabled and Amazon Alexa and Google Home compatible
- Recommended filter replacement frequency: Every 12 months
- All air purifiers come installed with H13 HEPA filters with a Honeycomb VOC backing
From the Breathe Easy Blog
Explore expert articles from the Breathe Easy Blog covering wildfire smoke, improving indoor air quality during smoke events, understanding airborne particles, and practical tips for protecting your home year-round.
Aftereffects of Wildfire Smoke Indoors
Wildfire smoke doesn’t stop at the front door. It lingers in the air, on surfaces, and in the systems that circulate it through your home. This gui...
Read Article →
Are Cooking Odors and Smoke Affecting Your Indoor Air?
Everyday cooking releases pollutants including particulate matter, nitrogen dioxide, and volatile organic compounds into your home. Understanding w...
Read Article →
Lessons About Wildfire Smoke, One Year After the Los Angeles Fires
The 2025 L.A. wildfires revealed that urban wildfire smoke is a "toxic soup." Researchers found benzene, hexavalent chromium (the "Erin Brockovich"...
Read Article →References
-
[1]
US EPA [Internet]. 2025. Wildfire Smoke - A Complex Mixture | US EPA. Available from: https://www.epa.gov/wildfire-smoke-course/wildfire-smoke-complex-mixture
-
[2]
About Smoke And Health [Internet]. Available from: https://www.ourair.org/about-smoke-and-health/
-
[3]
Understand Smoke 101 – Wildfire Risk Carbon [Internet]. Available from: https://www.wildfireriskcarbon.org/smoke-101/
-
[4]
Cooking Air Pollution [Internet]. Available from: https://www.lung.org/blog/cooking-air-pollution
-
[5]
US EPA [Internet]. 2018. Wildfires and Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) | US EPA. Available from: https://www.epa.gov/emergencies-iaq/wildfires-and-indoor-air-quality-iaq
-
[6]
Health Effects of Smoking and Tobacco Products [Internet]. Available from: https://www.lung.org/quit-smoking/smoking-facts/health-effects
-
[7]
Health Effects Tobacco Use [Internet]. Available from: https://www.fda.gov/tobacco-products/public-health-education/health-effects-tobacco-use
-
[8]
US EPA [Internet]. 2013. Wood Smoke and Your Health | US EPA. Available from: https://www.epa.gov/burnwise/wood-smoke-and-your-health
-
[9]
How Industrial Air Pollution Affects Our Health Hd Vehicle Emissions [Internet]. Available from: https://www.globalmrv.com/how-industrial-air-pollution-affects-our-health-hd-vehicle-emissions/
-
[10]
348849152 The Effect Of Smoke From Factories Electricity Generator And Vehicles On Human Health And Environment A Review [Internet]. Available from: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/348849152_The_Effect_of_Smoke_from_Factories_Electricity_Generator_and_Vehicles_on_Human_Health_and_Environment_A_Review
-
[11]
US EPA [Internet]. 2015. Smog, Soot, and Other Air Pollution from Transportation | US EPA. Available from: https://www.epa.gov/transportation-air-pollution-and-climate-change/smog-soot-and-other-air-pollution-transportation
-
[12]
CDC- How Wildfire Smoke Affects Your Body [Internet]. Available from: https://www.cdc.gov/wildfires/risk-factors/index.html
-
[13]
Intellipure [Internet]. Know Your Air. Available from: https://www.intellipure.com/pages/air-quality
-
[14]
Intellipure [Internet]. Intellipures Wildfire Safety Guide. Available from: https://www.intellipure.com/pages/intellipures-wildfire-safety-guide
-
[15]
Illson S. AirNow Fire and Smoke Map [Internet]. Available from: https://fire.airnow.gov/#3.95/39.75/-109.45