If you live in a newly constructed home in New Castle, it was probably made with energy efficiency in mind. This means more insulation and windows and doors with improved seals. While these enhancements are excellent for keeping your energy expenses affordable, they’re not so good for your indoor air quality.
Your home comfort system needs to run with a filter. But if you have a flat filter, you won’t be experiencing enough filtration. This type only delivers the smallest amount of protection by blocking dust from infiltrating your HVAC system.
While you can install a pleated filter or one with a increased MERV rating, it still might not be ample filtration, even more so if someone in your house has allergies or other respiratory troubles.
That’s where a whole-house air purifier can be a great solution. These systems are placed within ductwork to provide mighty filtration around your home. Depending on the type you choose, you’ll be able to filter allergens, odors and even some viruses under certain airflow conditions.
Here are our top styles from Lennox, an industry leader in air purification.
Best Air Purifiers from Lennox
1. HEPA Air Purifiers
A HEPA air purifier, like the Healthy Climate® High-Efficiency Particulate Air Filtration System, provides top-of-the-line filtration. These filters were first developed to protect scientists as they developed the atomic bomb. Today, they’re a must-have in hospitals and other medical buildings.
The Healthy Climate HEPA Filtration System has a three-step filtration process. A prefilter draws bigger pollutants before the HEPA filter captures remaining tiny particles. Then, a charcoal filter wipes out odors and chemical vapors.
The PureAir™ S Air Purification System works with all HVAC brands and easily links to your smart home. It fights the three leading kinds of indoor air contaminants:
- Airborne particles
- Chemical odors and vapors
- Germs and bacteria, under certain airflow conditions
This air purifier can get rid of 99.9%* of pollutants, like mold spores, pollen, dust and pet dander. It’s also capable of removing or eliminating 90%1 of flu and cold viruses under certain airflow conditions. And, according to laboratory and field studies, it reduces and destroys approximately 50% of residential odors and chemical vapors within 24 hours.
The PureAir S comes with sensing features that make it easy to keep up. When paired with an iComfort® S30 smart thermostat, you’ll get a notification to install a new filter and UVA light.2 This home air purifier must be used with communicating Lennox systems and the iComfort S30.
2. Media Air Cleaners
Lennox Healthy Climate® Media Air Cleaners are made in a variety of MERV ratings to fit your needs. This rating measures how capable filters are at capturing contaminants. The better the number, the better the filtration.
The Healthy Climate Carbon Clean 16® Media Air Cleaner is ideal for households with allergy suffers and pets. This is a HEPA filter air purifier, as it has a MERV 16 rating for hospital-level filtration. And it eliminates more than 95%3 of aggravating particles from your residence’s air.
The Healthy Climate 13 Media Air Cleaner is suggested for homes who desire stronger protection from viruses and bacteria. This filter captures 99% of larger particles including dust, pollen and lint. And up to 54% of smaller particles down to 0.3 microns.4
The Healthy Climate 11 Media Air Cleaner is a an excellent air purifier for allergies and in residences with pets. It removes more than 87% of bigger particles down to 3 microns and more than 28% of smaller ones down to 0.3 microns.4 It’s able to provide this effective filtration without driving up the bill for using your heating and cooling system.
These three media air cleaners work with any brand of HVAC system. However, it’s important to be aware that some of the denser ones, such as MERV 16 and 13, may restrict your system’s airflow. This can hike up your utility costs.
3. UV Air Purifiers
The sun’s UV rays are the fault of why you get a painful sunburn. But this wavelength of light has a beneficial application when installed within your ductwork. It’s also tough enough to reduce germs, mold and fungi under certain airflow conditions.
In fact, the Healthy Climate UV Germicidal Light can reduce the number of airborne microorganisms by 50% in as little as 45 minutes.5 This light damages cell structure, which stops these microorganisms from growing and spreading around your house.
And this UV air purifier can also help keep your home comfort system clean and operating like it should. It wipes out of germs, mold and fungi lurking in ductwork and your system itself. This UV light air purifier achieves all these things without creating lung-inflaming ozone.6
Breathe Healthier Air with the Support of Our Air Purification Professionals
Your household’s comfort and health is important to us at Central Heating & Plumbing. We are aware there are lots of possibilities out there. That’s why we make it easy to collaborate with our indoor air quality professionals. We specialize in recommending solutions that fit your needs and budget, and we’d love to hear more about your residence and your air quality issues. Reach us at 724-401-1843 today to start the process.
1Based on laboratory and field studies.
2PureAir™ S requires the iComfort® S30 and a communicating indoor unit.
3Leading consumer magazine, January 2012. Based on the published CADR, which is the standardized measurement system to determine the cubic feet of clean air produced per minute. Particles captured range in size down to 0.3 micron. One micron = 1/25,000 of an inch in diameter.
4Based on lab tests conducted on filters with conditions included in ASHRAE standard 52.2 for E1 and E3 size ranges.
5Based on constant circulation of air in the home, 3,000-square-foot home with a 5-ton air handler.
6U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, “Ozone Generators that are Sold as Air Cleaners: An Assessment of Effective and Health Consequences,” August 2006.