Categories: Home Improvement

How Many Air Filters do you need in Your House?

<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">Heating and cooling is an essential part of our lives today&comma; but it’s that filter that keeps our homes the temperature we desire&period; With an efficient filter&comma; our homes can be odor&comma; pet dander&comma; and almost dust-free&period; A clean filter can keep out micro particles and therefore keep the HVAC free of clogs and breakdowns&period; Even with all those facts when coming to choosing the perfect one&comma; we need to look at the properties of each one&period; We also need to consider how many filters are actually needed in our home&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">High-efficiency particulate air filters &lpar;HEPA&rpar; help remove airborne particles that make allergy sufferers worse&period; They also increase air quality for those who have respiratory difficulties&period; With a 99&period;97&percnt; effectiveness against screening contaminants&comma; it’s no wonder that the US Department of Energy suggests this as a good type for all of us&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">Fiberglass comes in at the most affordable and they are able to catch large debris&comma; but they are better at protecting your air conditioning system rather than removing particles from the air&period; This type is not suitable for those with allergies or respiratory issues&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">Pleated filters are made of polyester or cotton and their pleat structure eliminates more particles without increasing energy consumption&period; The number of folds in the pleat is important as it increases surface area catches more&comma; without decreasing airflow&period; Therefore&comma; this is essential when looking for advanced filtration&period; This type doesn’t necessarily require you to change your duct work&comma; it will fit in the way you would with a standard flat filter&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">The washable kind are quite expensive as it’s not often that you will need to purchase them&period; Eventually&comma; you will save money&comma; as you just remove wash and put them back&period; However&comma; there is a slight downfall to this option&comma; you need to ensure that they are fully dry before putting back&period; There is the problem that mold and bacteria could grow if not cleaned well&period; If you have these or looking to purchase&comma; make sure you read the manufacturer&&num;8217&semi;s instructions to ensure you know to maintain them&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">Electrostatic uses an electric charge to trap dust&comma; pollen&comma; and other microparticles from coming into your home&period; These filters can be available in a washable kind&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">UV filters kill both bacteria and viruses in and around your home using ultraviolet lights&period; Although they are not as efficient as the pleated in eradicating dust and various pollutants&comma; they can still fight off tiny particles that are just as hazardous for our health&period; For more information about filters&comma; follow these <a href&equals;"https&colon;&sol;&sol;filterking&period;com&sol;air-filter-guides&sol;how-often-should-air-filters-be-changed" target&equals;"&lowbar;blank" rel&equals;"noopener">simple guidelines here<&sol;a>&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<h2 style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">MERV ratings<&sol;h2>&NewLine;<hr &sol;>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">How do filters get rated and what does that number exactly mean for the homeowner&period; The minimum efficiency reporting value &lpar;MERV&rpar; is the way in which we air quality around the home is calculated&period; MERV was established in 1987 by the American Society of Heating&comma; Cooling&comma; and Air-Conditioning Engineers&period; The higher the rank the more effective the filter is at removing those unwanted particles out of our air&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">MERVS range from one to twenty&comma; the higher end of the scale is usually used in hospitals&comma; nuclear plants&comma; and cleanrooms&period; A MERV of one to four will remove dust mites&comma; pollen&comma; sand dust&comma; and carpet fibers&period; Moving on to five to eight will give you the optimal rating for your home&period; This MERV removes dust&comma; hair products&comma; mold&comma; and pet dander&period; The higher you go the more filtered the home will be&comma; this is mostly needed for individuals who are quite vulnerable as a nine to twelve will eliminate humidifier dust&period; Lastly&comma; thirteen to sixteen will remove bacteria and saliva&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">You may be thinking which MERV is good for my home and there are so many things to consider&period; A rating of eight will remove the most common pollutants that we all use on an everyday bus&period; In addition&comma; it will cover our little furry friends that live with us&period; If some of your family members have medical conditions&comma; respiratory conditions&comma; you may opt for nine to twelve&period; By choosing a MERV of under eight you will most likely protect your HVAC without cleaning the air for yourselves&period; A level of eight will reduce the amount of dust meaning less housework&period; Improving the air quality especially if you spend a lot of time indoors&period; Furthermore&comma; it keeps your HVAC clog and corrosive free&period; Cleaner indoor air can make it easier to breathe&comma; reduce allergy symptoms&comma; and assist asthmatics&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">Most houses require one filter&comma; larger houses may require more as they have more than one HVAC system&period; You can start by locating the air handler which should be next to your air conditioning system&period; The air handler has both the fan and motor inside a metal box&comma; it can be found in your basement&comma; attic&comma; or in a cupboard&period; Once you have found it&comma; you will see how the filter fits inside as you will see the existing filter inside&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">HVAC’s are usually placed where they can’t be seen and therefore the air filters are in the return vents&period; Return vents can be found in a wall&comma; in the floor&comma; or even in the ceiling&period; Once you have located it you will see the filter and that’s how you know the size yours requires&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">Filters are tested to find out the MERV rating&comma; they do this by the number of particles before and after the test was conducted&period; The end result is then given a percentage of how many particles were successfully cleaned out of the air&period; As the test is performed six times the lowest result is chosen and that where the minimum part comes in&period; This means that the lowest rating for that filter&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">Pressure drop happens when the barrier between your HVAC and vents slows down the air coming through your vents to your system&period; The pressure drop is different for each filter&period; Filters that are made tightly together make it harder for the air to pass through&period; In addition&comma; the more dirt&comma; dust&comma; dander&comma; and pollutants will decrease the airflow&period; By replacing your filters every three months you will <a href&equals;"https&colon;&sol;&sol;newsforpublic&period;com&sol;ways-improve-indoor-air-quality&sol;">keep your HVAC and home happy<&sol;a>&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;

Hardik Patel

Hardik Patel is a Digital Marketing Consultant and professional Blogger. He has 16+ years experience in SEO, SMO, SEM, Online reputation management, Affiliated Marketing and Content Marketing.

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