If you own a newly built house in Tucson, it was in all likelihood made with energy efficiency in mind. This means greater amounts of insulation and windows and doors with better seals. While these improvements are fantastic for keeping your utility costs in check, they’re not so excellent for your indoor air quality.
Your heating and cooling system needs to work with a filter. But if you’re using a flat filter, you won’t be getting enough filtration. This kind only gives the smallest amount of protection by keeping dust out of your HVAC system.
While you can get a pleated filter or one with a higher MERV rating, it still might not be enough filtration, particularly if someone in your home has allergies or other respiratory problems.
That’s where a whole-house air purifier can be a good option. These systems are attached within ductwork to deliver mighty filtration across your house. Depending on the model you go with, you’ll be able to remove allergens, odors and even some viruses under certain airflow conditions.
Here are our favorite styles 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, delivers the best filtration. These filters were first developed to guard scientists as they worked on the atomic bomb. Today, they’re a staple in hospitals and other medical facilities.
The Healthy Climate HEPA Filtration System features a three-step filtration procedure. A prefilter attracts larger irritants before the HEPA filter captures the rest of smaller particles. Then, a charcoal filter wipes out odors and chemical vapors.
The PureAir™ S Air Purification System is compatible with all HVAC brands and smoothly works with with your smart home. It reduces the three major varieties 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, such as mold spores, pollen, dust and pet dander. It’s also effective at decreasing or destroying 90%1 of flu and cold viruses under certain airflow conditions. And, based on laboratory and field studies, it decreases and destroys approximately 50% of residential odors and chemical vapors within 24 hours.
The PureAir S includes sensing features that make it easy to maintain. When paired with an iComfort® S30 smart thermostat, you’ll get a notification to change the 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 available in a variety of MERV ratings to match your needs. This rating determines how capable filters are at removing contaminants. The greater 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 eliminates more than 95%3 of unhealthy particles from your house’s air.
The Healthy Climate 13 Media Air Cleaner is suggested for homes who are looking for stronger protection from viruses and bacteria. This filter removes 99% of larger particles like dust, pollen and lint. And up to 54% of smaller particles down to 0.3 microns.4
The Healthy Climate 11 Media Air Cleaner is a an excellent air purifier for allergies and in houses with pets. It eliminates 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 offer this strong filtration without increasing the price of using your heating and cooling system.
These three media air cleaners can be used with any brand of HVAC system. However, it’s essential to be aware that some of the more substantial ones, such as MERV 16 and 13, may restrict your system’s airflow. This can hike up your energy costs.
3. UV Air Purifiers
The sun’s UV rays are to blame when you get a painful sunburn. But this type of light has a helpful application when concealed inside your ductwork. It’s also tough enough to eliminate germs, mold and fungi under certain airflow conditions.
In actuality, the Healthy Climate UV Germicidal Light can reduce the concentration of airborne microorganisms by 50% in as quickly as 45 minutes.5 This light destroys cell structure, which prohibits these microorganisms from multiplying and moving across 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 that are hidden inside ductwork and your system itself. This UV light air purifier does all this work without creating lung-aggravating ozone.6
Breathe Healthier Air with the Help of Our Air Purification Professionals
Your loved ones’ comfort and health is our top priority at Ambient Air. We realize there are lots of possibilities out there. That’s why we make it uncomplicated to work with our indoor air quality pros. We specialize in developing solutions tailored to your needs and budget, and we’d love to learn more about your house and your air quality challenges. Call us at 520-357-4912 now 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.