If you have a newly built residence in Chadron, it was likely constructed with energy efficiency in mind. This means greater amounts of insulation and windows and doors with improved seals. While these enhancements are fantastic for keeping your heating and cooling bills under control, they’re not so great 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 getting ample filtration. This style only provides the smallest amount of protection by blocking dust from infiltrating your home comfort system.
While you can get a pleated filter or one with a higher MERV rating, it still might not be enough filtration, especially if someone in your home has allergies or other respiratory issues.
That’s where a whole-house air purifier can be a great solution. These systems are installed within ductwork to provide mighty filtration around your house. 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 best solutions 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, gives premium filtration. These filters were first developed to shield scientists as they worked on the atomic bomb. Today, they’re a staple in hospitals and other medical applications.
The Healthy Climate HEPA Filtration System includes a three-step filtration process. A prefilter catches bigger pollutants before the HEPA filter traps the rest of smaller irritants. Then, a charcoal filter takes care of odors and chemical vapors.
The PureAir™ S Air Purification System connects to all HVAC brands and easily links to your smart home. It fights the three key varieties of indoor air pollutants:
- Airborne particles
- Chemical odors and vapors
- Germs and bacteria, under certain airflow conditions
This air purifier can eliminate 99.9%* of pollutants, including mold spores, pollen, dust and pet dander. It’s also effective at decreasing or destroying 90%1 of flu and cold viruses under certain airflow conditions. And, based on laboratory and field studies, it removes and destroys approximately 50% of residential odors and chemical vapors within 24 hours.
The PureAir S includes sensing features that make it easy to service. When used with an iComfort® S30 smart thermostat, you’ll receive an alert to change the 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 available in a variety of MERV ratings to fit your needs. This rating calculates how good filters are at removing contaminants. The higher the number, the greater the filtration.
The Healthy Climate Carbon Clean 16® Media Air Cleaner is great for families with allergy suffers and pets. This is a HEPA filter air purifier, because it has a MERV 16 rating for hospital-level filtration. And it eliminates more than 95%3 of aggravating particles from your house’s air.
The Healthy Climate 13 Media Air Cleaner is suggested for families who desire better protection from viruses and bacteria. This filter removes 99% of larger particles like dust, pollen and lint. And up to 54% of finer particles down to 0.3 microns.4
The Healthy Climate 11 Media Air Cleaner is a an excellent air purifier for allergies and in houses with pets. It eliminates more than 87% of bigger particles down to 3 microns and more than 28% of finer ones down to 0.3 microns.4 It’s able to offer this strong filtration without running up the cost of turning on your heating and cooling system.
These three media air cleaners can be used with any brand of HVAC system. However, it’s essential to realize that some of the thicker ones, like MERV 16 and 13, may limit your system’s airflow. This can inflate your utility bills.
3. UV Air Purifiers
The sun’s UV rays are to blame when you get a blistering sunburn. But this type of light has a beneficial application when placed within your ductwork. It’s also tough enough to eliminate germs, mold and fungi under certain airflow conditions.
In reality, the Healthy Climate UV Germicidal Light can decrease the amount of airborne microorganisms by 50% in as fast as 45 minutes.5 This light wrecks cell structure, which stops these microorganisms from multiplying and spreading throughout your house.
And this UV air purifier can also help keep your home comfort system clean and operating properly. It takes care of germs, mold and fungi that are hidden in ductwork and your system itself. This UV light air purifier does all this work without developing lung-inflaming ozone.6
Breathe Better with the Help of Our Air Purification Pros
Your household’s comfort and health is our top priority at MPC Heating & Cooling. We are aware there are many options out there. That’s why we make it uncomplicated to work with our indoor air quality professionals. We specialize in making solutions tailored to your needs and budget, and we’d love to hear more about your house and your air quality challenges. Give us a call at 308-832-4321 right away 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.