Inversions and other slc questions (Salt Lake City, Washington: 2013, home, safe area)

[tfriss92]

For someone that would possibly relocate to the slc area , what exactly is an inversion when do they occur and just how bad are they ?
Is it something that is significant enough to deter someone from moving there ?
What happens you basically can't go outside or else you'll be on the fast track to lung cancer ?
Also heard that because of the salt water lake and the bad air quality in the summer it gets humid and the entire city smells like sewage and salt water , is this true ?
What areas of the city are "unsafe" and should avoid living in

[mezman]

Originally Posted by tfriss92

For someone that would possibly relocate to the slc area , what exactly is an inversion when do they occur and just how bad are they ?

Geo-Aggie will probably respond to this better than I but it's a smog event where the air above the mountains surrounding the valley is warmer than the air in the valley. The cold air gets trapped so there is no cycling of pollution out of the valley and it just builds up until a storm comes along and pushes it out. Usually happens between Dec-Feb. Can last days or a week or so at a time. Happens a few times during that time period.

Is it something that is significant enough to deter someone from moving there ?

It has made us consider moving away so yes I would think it'd be enough to deter someone from coming at all. If you have asthma you're gonna have a real bad time.

What happens you basically can't go outside or else you'll be on the fast track to lung cancer ?

I still walk to work in it (or catch the bus) but I'm sure it's not super healthy to do so. But driving just adds to it.

Also heard that because of the salt water lake and the bad air quality in the summer it gets humid and the entire city smells like sewage and salt water , is this true ?

Never experienced what you're talking about. I haven't noticed it ever really being humid during the summer. I did experience a haboob like phenomenon once that blew the salt lake stench into the city but it only lasted for an hour or two. It was pretty strange but I guess it happens on rare occasions.

What areas of the city are "unsafe" and should avoid living in

Use the search feature there are lots of threads that discuss unsafe areas and the above at length.

[tfriss92]

Thank you for your reply

[Montygirl]

Inversions do suck.I experienced my first taste of a bad one this winter and was awful. I don't have asthma neither do kids and our chests were aching. Could not wait to get away for the weekend to Arizona and escape it as coincided with Presidents day weekend. They last sometimes a couple of days some times longer. This one wasd almost a week and definitely impacts how I feel about SLC in the winter.


Apparently even in Summer have bad air days even though no inversion. It is a real haze but unfortunately becuas eof the way SLC is with the valley and the fact everyone drives here especially huge trucks/large mpv's it adds to the pollution.


There is public transport but not great in the valley as very limited and only goes north to south from limited stations very spread out so adds to people using cars.Plus not cheap if you have a big family like most do in Utah and downtown parking is cheap.


I worry about living here long term and the effects of the bad air on my kids and our health

[dAqS6R0gRQet]

Originally Posted by mezman

For someone that would possibly relocate to the slc area , what exactly is an inversion when do they occur and just how bad are they ?

Geo-Aggie will probably respond to this better than I but it's a smog event where the air above the mountains surrounding the valley is warmer than the air in the valley. The cold air gets trapped so there is no cycling of pollution out of the valley and it just builds up until a storm comes along and pushes it out. Usually happens between Dec-Feb. Can last days or a week or so at a time. Happens a few times during that time period.

Is it something that is significant enough to deter someone from moving there ?

It has made us consider moving away so yes I would think it'd be enough to deter someone from coming at all. If you have asthma you're gonna have a real bad time.

What happens you basically can't go outside or else you'll be on the fast track to lung cancer ?

I still walk to work in it (or catch the bus) but I'm sure it's not super healthy to do so. But driving just adds to it.

Also heard that because of the salt water lake and the bad air quality in the summer it gets humid and the entire city smells like sewage and salt water , is this true ?

Never experienced what you're talking about. I haven't noticed it ever really being humid during the summer. I did experience a haboob like phenomenon once that blew the salt lake stench into the city but it only lasted for an hour or two. It was pretty strange but I guess it happens on rare occasions.

these confirmations are the exact thing that deterred me.

also the whole super religious-impact on the society of Utah aspect was already something i just didnt wanna deal with to begin with but woulda put up with it for gigabit internet everywhere, but part of my decision to move back north from FL is to take advantage of hardly-if-ever running AC in my car or home again, much less during the friggen winter because the air is crap, being able to breathe in crisp cool air is supposed to be one of its appeal tbh


finding that Boise also has similar issues of inversion along with being "mostly financially dependent on the success of the football team" shunned me away from that (plus no fiber laid out anywhere in the area according to the government maps)


Albuquerque has it as well and is also 10deg warmer year round along with monsoon "seasons" on top so that was out.

back to my original idea of Washington, but the east side away from the rain and humidity

[MaxPowerUtah]

I have lived in Salt Lake most of my life and I don't personally think the inversion is that big of a deal. Sure a couple weeks out of the year it gets pretty bad and you might want to avoid going outside but for the most part its not as bad as some people will let on. The smell of the lake is another thing that people talk about but has never been an issue for me. Again its maybe a few days out of the year when the wind blows in from a certain direction it gets a little smelly but certainly not as the OP described. Every great place will have its pros and cons, I for one will take the small negatives with living in Salt Lake any day!

[mezman]

Originally Posted by MaxPowerUtah

I have lived in Salt Lake most of my life and I don't personally think the inversion is that big of a deal. Sure a couple weeks out of the year it gets pretty bad and you might want to avoid going outside but for the most part its not as bad as some people will let on. The smell of the lake is another thing that people talk about but has never been an issue for me. Again its maybe a few days out of the year when the wind blows in from a certain direction it gets a little smelly but certainly not as the OP described. Every great place will have its pros and cons, I for one will take the small negatives with living in Salt Lake any day!

I can only speak for myself but having a wife with fairly severe asthma makes it a big deal. If my chest is heavy and hurting I can only imagine how bad it is for her.

It obviously hasn't made us move yet but it's still a possibility in the future.

[Katzpur]

Originally Posted by mezman

I can only speak for myself but having a wife with fairly severe asthma makes it a big deal. If my chest is heavy and hurting I can only imagine how bad it is for her.

It obviously hasn't made us move yet but it's still a possibility in the future.

My mother had asthma and lived in Salt Lake City. She was never terribly bothered by the bad air and died at the age of 96. My 24-year-old nephew has cystic fibrosis, which is a much more serious disease (generally speaking) than asthma. He's lived here all his life. While he has to be careful not to be outside a lot when the inversions get really bad, they haven't significantly impacted his quality of life.

[mezman]

Originally Posted by Katzpur

My mother had asthma and lived in Salt Lake City. She was never terribly bothered by the bad air and died at the age of 96. My 24-year-old nephew has cystic fibrosis, which is a much more serious disease (generally speaking) than asthma. He's lived here all his life. While he has to be careful not to be outside a lot when the inversions get really bad, they haven't significantly impacted his quality of life.

Well I'm certainly happy it doesn't bother those you know with impaired breathing but it's not as if I'm making some kind of wildly implausible argument here...

Inversion conditions in Utah worse than ever; area hospitals see spike in patients | fox13now.com

How to Protect Your Family During Salt Lake City's Winter Inversion

http://health.utah.gov/asthma/pdfs/t...airquality.pdf

Conclusions: In Salt Lake County, Utah, PM2.5 reaches levels that are considered to be unhealthy for sensitive groups primarily during inversions lasting 3-4 days or longer. We found no evidence of an association between increases in ambient PM2.5 levels and ED visits for asthma. An association was found between the length of an inversion and ED visits for asthma, with a 42% increase in the odds of an ED visit with a primary diagnosis of asthma during the 5th-7th day of an inversion, compared to a day with no inversion.

The list of articles/research goes on and on and on...

[Katzpur]

Originally Posted by mezman

Well I'm certainly happy it doesn't bother those you know with impaired breathing but it's not as if I'm making some kind of wildly implausible argument here...

Calm down. I never implied that you were. I simply mentioned two of my own personal observations. Apparently the bad air bothers some people more than others.