3 min readYou probably open your curtains every day—but do you ever open your windows as well? Even if it’s only for 10 or 15 minutes? In Germany, this simple, refreshing practice is known as lüften.
The concept is straightforward: Just open your windows briefly each day to “burp” your home, letting stale air escape while bringing in fresh air from outside. Recently, lüften has been trending on TikTok and showing up in Reddit discussions as a way to improve indoor air quality and revive your living space. Plus, as the weather finally starts to get warmer, it can just feel nice to let a little fresh air in.
But does it really make a difference? Experts say it does.
“Adding volumes of outdoor air by opening windows will lower concentrations of indoor air contaminants that can make you and your family sick,” says Tony Abate, a certified indoor environmentalist and vice president and chief technology officer at AtmosAir Solutions, an indoor air purification and monitoring technology company.
Below, health professionals and air quality specialists explain why lüften could be a surprisingly beneficial habit to incorporate into your daily routine.
What Are the Benefits of "Burping" Your Home?
According to the Environmental Protection Agency, we spend around 90 percent of our time indoors. With that in mind, it’s essential to recognize that our homes, offices, and other indoor spaces play a crucial role in our well-being, points out Lauren Riddei, a health and wellness interior designer, healthy home expert, and triple-certified Building Biologist with Haus Holistics.
The concept of lüften is not only a quick and easy habit to adopt, she says, but also a wonderful way to release volatile organic compounds found in everything from paint to air fresheners and cleaning products. It can also help clear condensation, which reduces the risk of mold, along with allergens and bacteria that can build up in our spaces. In her own home, Riddei says she likes to open her windows first thing in the morning and, especially on cold evenings, briefly open them again to let the temperature drop for deeper sleep and improved air quality.
Not only can indoor air quickly accumulate moisture in a well-insulated house, but gases from cleaning products, air fresheners, and the carbon dioxide we exhale can also add up, explains HVAC and indoor air quality expert Megan Doser, the owner of Doctor Fix-It Plumbing, Heating, Cooling & Electric, a family-founded company in Denver.
“Replacing moist indoor air with drier outdoor air and reducing the concentration of carbon dioxide makes a big difference in how we feel,” she says. However, lüften will not help reduce the amount of mold spores sitting in walls, or the pollen, dust, or pet dander trapped in fabrics and upholstery, Doser explains.
The takeaway? While some indoor pollutants and allergens can be reduced by this practice, it’s still not the main purpose of lüften, which is simply to exchange stale indoor air for fresh outdoor air in order to regulate humidity and carbon dioxide levels.
Health Benefits of "Burping" Your Home
When carbon dioxide builds up in a room, even slightly above normal outdoor levels, it can make us feel tired and sluggish and may even trigger headaches, experts explain. That’s why in crowded rooms without good ventilation, people often complain of headaches, drowsiness, or difficulty concentrating, Doser points out.
Higher levels of CO2 and VOCs have been associated with decreased concentration, slower reaction times, and headaches, explains Dr. Asim Cheema, a board-certified internist and cardiologist at Your Doctors Online.
Poor air quality can irritate the respiratory tract and significantly impair restorative sleep, he says. Airway irritation from pollutants can worsen symptoms of asthma and other obstructive lung diseases, such as COPD.
How to Practice Lüften at Home
Though you can practice it any time of year, lüften is especially well-suited to cold weather, because it quickly refreshes the air without significant heat loss, Doser says. She recommends trying lüften out throughout the day—after cooking, showering, sleeping, or after hosting several people indoors.
Her best practice is to open windows wide and close them after five to 10 minutes. Apartments may need shorter, more frequent lüften sessions, up to five minutes and two to four times per day, Doser says.
One last thing to keep in mind: If it's extremely hot outside, the pollen count is high, or you live near a highway, lüften may not be a good idea. In these instances, Doser recommends relying on your AC, air purifiers, and mechanical ventilation to refresh your home’s air instead.
