Overkill.

Residential air treatment/quality products are just ineffective gimmicks which were designed strictly to improve profit margins.

UV lights are only useful for killing mold and bacteria on cooling coils.

Electronic air cleaners rarely work properly and require frequent maintenance. If you don't believe me, take a look inside the blower compartment of any system which has had an EAC installed for a few years.

5" media filters are excellent for keeping equipment clean, but there is absolutely no credible evidence which suggests that whole house filtration improves IAQ.

If you want clean indoor air, just stop polluting it and use exhaust fans as required.

Furnaces and air conditioners were never designed to be used as air purifiers.

 

Filters

Lennox makes a filter that combines a MERV 12 Media filter, UV light and photo catalytic converter to destroy organic contaminants. It comes in two sizes. If you have bad allergies, this could be a good idea. I have installed one with good results.

If you do not have allergies, it is probably a waste of money.

The Lennox PCO has 5 UV bulbs that must be replaced every year and the media filter needs replaced every year. The catalytic metal strips need replaced every other year. You are talking a first cost of about $1500.00 to $2000.00 installed and a $300.00 to $500.00 upkeep cost yearly.

Second Wind has the same thing with only 1 to 2 bulbs. Lower first cost and maintenance costs for milder allergies.

If you just want to keep dust down, any MERV 8 to MERV 12 filter should do fine, without the UV and photo catalytic converter. Anual media costs about $50.00 plus installation.

Kevin

 

Lennox PCO would be your best option. You can get this with a merv 16 filter. That would help keep the dust down. If its not to late see if you can get a variable speed blower on your indoor equipment. This will allow you to run your fan with reduced power usage.

 

amd is right. Go with a 4" merv 8 and call it good. The best remedy for good indoor air is to bring in more outside air. Make sue you have a good seal around filter.

 

Filters can only clean the "air" of what actually gets to the filter.If you have a big dust problem,you likely have a problem that filters won't solve.

For example supply air duct leaks ,outside the conditioned space,cause negative pressure in the home causing infiltration of outside air.Makeup air or repairing duct leaks will solve this.

UVC light is great for keeping the cooling coil clean,and free of nasty stuff growing there.

The Carrier Air purifier,captures and Kills mold,virirsus,bacteria etc., great because it's all dead and benign when you change the filter.Trane has the Clean Effects ,requires cleanung ,kills ,nothing ,but is a great filter.


EAC's work very well ,as stated when they are working properly.Shouldn't need or want an EAC and a pleated.


All better filters,except an EAC are much more resistent to air flow,so before adding insiste that the ESP(resistance of ducts to air flow)is tested ,to be sure your existing system can handle it ,and deliver the required air flow to protect the equipment!!

 

Filters: Yes they do work

While I'm sure that AMD is right about some products.... I'd like to shed a little light on my own personal experience, and observations. No I'm not in the HVAC biz, so I won't argue the technical.

1) the Electronic filters do work, but they also generate ozone. You need to be prepared to clean them at least monthly or don't waste your time putting them in.

2) Combing filters isn't a bad idea. I personally use a electronic filter and have a replaceable filter in front of it. This catches the big stuff and keeps it out of my electronic filter. The main benefit to doing this is it keeps the occassional cat or dog hair from landing in the electronic filter and going ZAP.

3) UV Light will kill organisms. Hospitals use it routinely to sterilize ORs. In the world of Saltwater aquaria (aquariums) UV is the single most effective way to kill Algae and "nasties". I used to maintain a 150 gallon reef style show tank.

4) My Allergist here in Houston has a specialty practice dealing with allergies and asthma. They recommend a series of things to their clients to improve their responses. One of them is installing a UV light and a Electronic Air Filter. It helps cut down on the amount of stuff in the air. The UV lights are supposed to zap mold, but I too would be inclined to think you won't get enough contact time to do the trick anywhere but your coil.

I did read some interesting studies that the EPA/DOE did using "dust". They had a hard time because there weren't clear standards on what dust is. But they found that a good filtration system would remove stuff from the air in a room quickly. They also noted that most allergens were large enough that if they were allowed to settle that was it for them. They wouldn't be a problem again.

And on that note, I'd recommend a central vac that exhausts outside. That was the other thing that I installed that made a HUGE difference. Now all the nasties on the floor get expelled if they are too large to be caught by the vacuum filter.