Read the Air
The air is clean. Live your day fully — windows open, lungs open.
Acceptable for most. Unusually sensitive people should watch for symptoms during long outdoor exertion.
Children, older adults, pregnant people, and anyone with heart or lung conditions — including asthma, POTS, or MCAS sensitivities — should shorten outdoor exertion and run filtration indoors.
Everyone may begin to feel effects. Move activity indoors, close windows, run a HEPA or CARB-certified air cleaner.
Health alert. Stay indoors in a clean-air room. Wear an N95 if you must go out. Check on neighbors who live alone.
Emergency conditions. Remain indoors with filtration running. Seek a Clean Air Center if your home cannot stay clean.
Who Needs Extra Care
Children
Lungs still developing; they breathe more air per pound of body weight. Move play indoors when AQI passes 100.
Adults 65 and older
Higher risk of heart and lung strain. Keep medications close and air filtered.
Pregnant people
Smoke exposure affects both parent and baby. Treat sensitive-group guidance as your baseline.
Asthma, COPD, heart disease
Keep rescue inhalers filled before the season starts. Smoke days send asthma ER visits up sharply.
Outdoor workers
You have the most exposure. N95 respirators — not cloth or surgical masks — filter smoke particles.
POTS, MCAS & dysautonomia
Particulates and heat can trigger flares. Stay in filtered air, hydrate, and track your baseline.
Clean Air at Home
Close up before smoke arrives
Windows and doors shut, weather stripping on gaps. Set HVAC to recirculate.
Run a HEPA air cleaner
Size it to the room. Choose a CARB-certified device — California requires certification for ozone safety.
Build one if you need one
A box fan with a MERV-13 furnace filter strapped to the intake side is a proven DIY cleaner endorsed by CARB. Roughly $40 in parts.
Make one room the clean room
Pick the room you can seal best, run filtration there, and let the household ride out the worst days inside it.
Never use ozone generators
Devices sold as “ozone air purifiers” add a lung irritant to your air. Avoid them entirely.
When Smoke Hits
- 01Check the AQI before you step outside — let the number, not the smell, make the call.
- 02Move exercise indoors. Exertion multiplies the smoke you inhale.
- 03If you must be outside, wear a fitted N95. Cloth and surgical masks do not stop fine smoke particles.
- 04In the car, close windows and set ventilation to recirculate.
- 05Check on neighbors who live alone — especially elders without filtration.
- 06If your home cannot stay clean, find a Clean Air Center — public filtered-air spaces opened during smoke events.
Official Resources
Guidance summarized from California Air Resources Board and US EPA public recommendations. This is public-health information, not medical advice — consult your clinician about your specific conditions.