If you own a newer house in Chelan and Wenatchee, it was likely made with energy efficiency in mind. This means more insulation and windows and doors with improved seals. While these improvements are fantastic for keeping your energy expenses economical, they’re not so great for your indoor air quality.
Your heating and cooling system needs to operate with a filter. But if you have a flat filter, you won’t be getting adequate filtration. This style only delivers the lowest level of protection by stopping dust from getting into your HVAC system.
While you can upgrade to a pleated filter or one with a increased MERV rating, it still might not be adequate filtration, even more so if someone in your home has allergies or other respiratory issues.
That’s where a whole-house air purifier comes in. These systems are attached within ductwork to provide effective filtration around your home. Depending on the model you select, you’ll be able to filter allergens, odors and even some viruses under certain airflow conditions.
Here are our best options 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 made to shield scientists as they created the atomic bomb. Today, they’re a must-have in hospitals and other medical buildings.
The Healthy Climate HEPA Filtration System has a three-step filtration method. A prefilter draws bigger pollutants before the HEPA filter captures the rest of miniscule irritants. Then, a charcoal filter eradicates odors and chemical vapors.
The PureAir™ S Air Purification System connects to all HVAC brands and easily works with your smart home. It combats the three leading types of indoor air contaminants:
- Airborne particles
- Chemical odors and vapors
- Germs and bacteria, under certain airflow conditions
This air purifier can eliminate 99.9%* of pollutants, like mold spores, pollen, dust and pet dander. It’s also effective at reducing or eradicating 90%1 of flu and cold viruses under certain airflow conditions. And, according to laboratory and field studies, it decreases and destroys approximately 50% of your home’s odors and chemical vapors within 24 hours.
The PureAir S comes with sensing features that make it easy to maintain. When used with an iComfort® S30 smart thermostat, you’ll get a notification to install a new 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 made in a variety of MERV ratings to fit your needs. This rating calculates how capable filters are at trapping contaminants. The better the number, the greater the filtration.
The Healthy Climate Carbon Clean 16® Media Air Cleaner is recommended for residences with allergy suffers and pets. This is a HEPA filter air purifier, as it has a MERV 16 rating for hospital-level filtration. And it gets rid of more than 95%3 of unhealthy particles from your house’s air.
The Healthy Climate 13 Media Air Cleaner is suggested for households who are seeking 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 a great air purifier for allergies and in homes 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 deliver this effective filtration without driving up the bill for turning on your heating and cooling system.
These three media air cleaners work with any brand of HVAC system. However, it’s essential to know that some of the more substantial ones, like MERV 16 and 13, may decrease your system’s airflow. This can increase your energy costs.
3. UV Air Purifiers
The sun’s UV rays are the reason why you get a stinging sunburn. But this kind of light has a useful application when concealed in your ductwork. It’s also powerful enough to reduce germs, mold and fungi under certain airflow conditions.
In actuality, the Healthy Climate UV Germicidal Light can decrease the number of airborne microorganisms by 50% in as short as 45 minutes.5 This light damages cell structure, which stops 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 like it should. It eliminates of germs, mold and fungi lurking in ductwork and your system itself. This UV light air purifier accomplishes all this work without making lung-irritating ozone.6
Breathe Easier with the Support of Our Air Purification Specialists
Your family’s comfort and health matters to us at Lakeside Heating & Air. We are aware there are lots of options out there. That’s why we make it uncomplicated to partner with our indoor air quality professionals. We specialize in recommending solutions that fit your needs and budget, and we’d love to learn more about your home and your air quality issues. Give us a call at 509-284-4265 right away to get started.
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.
