Many harmful indoor pollutants are too small to be captured by a standard or higher efficiency furnace filter. If you want to maximize the healthfulness of the indoor air quality (IAQ) in your Fort Wayne home, you must resort to more effective air cleansing methods. Explore the different technologies used in air cleaners to find the best match to meet your IAQ needs.
How Air Cleaners Work
The most effective air cleaners are whole-home systems installed inside the return air duct. The air cleaner utilizes the furnace blower and duct system to purify air through the entire home. Portable models are also available. They're relatively small units that may be moved from room to room.
Considering that the HVAC system blows air all through the home, the effectiveness of a portable model is questionable. Additionally, a whole-home system protects HVAC components, too.
Air Cleaner Technologies
There are different air purifying technologies used in air cleaners. Some air cleaning systems use more than one technology for more comprehensive air cleansing. Consider the following air purifying technologies and the contaminants they're designed to capture or destroy:
- Electrostatic - Electrostatic precipitating air cleaning systems are a type of electronic air cleaner that give an electrical charge to airborne particles and microorganisms. The charged particles stick to oppositely charged plates in the collection area. The process is safe, quiet and effective at removing about 95 percent of particles.
- High-Efficiency Particulate Air (HEPA) filters: HEPA filters capture particles and microorganisms by impaction. They're rather good at it, too, capturing a minimum of 99.97 percent contaminants to 0.3 microns in size.
- Ultraviolet (UV): UV light systems are not a filtering air cleaner. UV light systems are designed to kill or "deactivate" microorganisms, such as molds, viruses, fungi and bacteria, as they pass by the lights installed in the ducts. When combined with a catalyst, UV lights remove certain types of harmful gasses.
If you need assistance with the different types of air cleaners available for your Fort Wayne home, contact Hartman Brothers Heating & Air Conditioning, Inc. today. We've served the residents of Fort Wayne area since 1963.
Our goal is to help educate our customers in New Haven, Indiana and surrounding Fort Wayne area about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). For more information about air cleaners and other HVAC topics, download our free Home Comfort Resource guide.
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