If you live in a newer house in Holbrook, it was in all likelihood built with energy efficiency at the top of the list. This means more insulation and windows and doors with enhanced seals. While these improvements are excellent for keeping your utility expenses economical, they’re not so great for your indoor air quality.
Your heating and cooling system needs to run with a filter. But if you have a flat filter, you won’t be receiving enough filtration. This kind only gives the bare minimum of protection by keeping dust out of your heating and cooling system.
While you can get a pleated filter or one with a higher MERV rating, it still might not be enough filtration, even more so if someone in your residence has allergies or other respiratory troubles.
That’s where a whole-house air purifier can be a good option. These systems are installed within ductwork to provide strong filtration across 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 best systems 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 the best filtration. These filters were first made to defend scientists as they created the atomic bomb. Today, they’re a staple in hospitals and other medical facilities.
The Healthy Climate HEPA Filtration System includes a three-step filtration procedure. A prefilter catches significant irritants before the HEPA filter traps the remainder of tiny irritants. Then, a charcoal filter eradicates odors and chemical vapors.
The PureAir™ S Air Purification System is compatible with all HVAC brands and smoothly integrates with your smart home. It reduces the three leading types of indoor air irritants:
- Airborne particles
- Chemical odors and vapors
- Germs and bacteria, under certain airflow conditions
This air purifier can remove 99.9%* of pollutants, including mold spores, pollen, dust and pet dander. It’s also effective at removing or eliminating 90%1 of flu and cold viruses under certain airflow conditions. And, based on laboratory and field studies, it reduces and destroys approximately 50% of residential odors and chemical vapors within 24 hours.
The PureAir S includes sensing features that make it simple to service. When paired with an iComfort® S30 smart thermostat, you’ll receive an alert to install a new filter and UVA light.2 This home air purifier must be linked 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 calculates how good filters are at trapping contaminants. The greater the number, the better the filtration.
The Healthy Climate Carbon Clean 16® Media Air Cleaner is ideal for homes with allergy suffers and pets. This is a HEPA filter air purifier, since it has a MERV 16 rating for hospital-level filtration. And it removes more than 95%3 of irritating particles from your house’s air.
The Healthy Climate 13 Media Air Cleaner is suggested for families who are looking for better protection from viruses and bacteria. This filter removes 99% of larger particles such as 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 homes with pets. It catches more than 87% of bigger particles down to 3 microns and more than 28% of miniscule ones down to 0.3 microns.4 It’s able to deliver this powerful filtration without driving up the price of using your heating and cooling system.
These three media air cleaners can be used with any brand of HVAC system. But despite that, it’s essential to be aware that some of the denser ones, such as MERV 16 and 13, may restrict your system’s airflow. This can increase your utility expenses.
3. UV Air Purifiers
The sun’s UV rays are the reason why you get a painful sunburn. But this wavelength of light has a useful application when concealed inside your ductwork. It’s also powerful enough to eliminate germs, mold and fungi under certain airflow conditions.
In reality, the Healthy Climate UV Germicidal Light can reduce the amount of airborne microorganisms by 50% in as quickly as 45 minutes.5 This light damages cell structure, which prohibits these microorganisms from multiplying and moving around your house.
And this UV air purifier can also help keep your heating and cooling system clean and operating efficiently. It takes care of germs, mold and fungi that are hidden within ductwork and your system itself. This UV light air purifier does all these tasks without making lung-irritating ozone.6
Breathe Easier with the Assistance of Our Air Purification Specialists
Your household’s comfort and health is important to us at Fal-Ken Heating & Cooling Corporation. We know there are lots of options out there. That’s why we make it easy to collaborate with our indoor air quality specialists. We specialize in recommending solutions that match your needs and budget, and we’d love to learn more about your house and your air quality problems. Call us at 631-460-5159 now 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.