If you have a newly built house in Mission Viejo, it was likely constructed with energy efficiency at the top of the list. This means more insulation and windows and doors with better seals. While these improvements are good for keeping your utility costs economical, they’re not so good for your indoor air quality.
Your HVAC system needs to work with a filter. But if you have a flat filter, you won’t be getting adequate filtration. This style only delivers the smallest amount of protection by keeping dust out of 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, particularly if someone in your residence has allergies or other respiratory problems.
That’s where a whole-house air purifier can be a great solution. These systems are attached within ductwork to provide powerful filtration around your home. Depending on the kind you choose, you’ll be able to get rid of allergens, odors and even some viruses under certain airflow conditions.
Here are our favorite 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, provides premium filtration. These filters were first made to defend scientists as they made the atomic bomb. Today, they’re necessary in hospitals and other medical operations.
The Healthy Climate HEPA Filtration System includes a three-step filtration process. A prefilter draws bigger irritants before the HEPA filter traps remaining tiny irritants. Then, a charcoal filter wipes out odors and chemical vapors.
The PureAir™ S Air Purification System works with all HVAC brands and easily works with your smart home. It combats the three major varieties of indoor air contaminants:
- Airborne particles
- Chemical odors and vapors
- Germs and bacteria, under certain airflow conditions
This air purifier can remove 99.9%* of pollutants, including mold spores, pollen, dust and pet dander. It’s also potent at removing or eradicating 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 your home’s odors and chemical vapors within 24 hours.
The PureAir S comes with sensing features that make it simple to keep up. When linked with an iComfort® S30 smart thermostat, you’ll receive an alert to change the filter and UVA light.2 This home air purifier must be installed 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 match your needs. This rating determines how good filters are at removing contaminants. The higher the number, the greater the filtration.
The Healthy Climate Carbon Clean 16® Media Air Cleaner is great for homes with allergy suffers and pets. This is a HEPA filter air purifier, since it has a MERV 16 rating for hospital-strength filtration. And it removes more than 95%3 of irritating particles from your house’s air.
The Healthy Climate 13 Media Air Cleaner is suggested for households who want better protection from viruses and bacteria. This filter catches 99% of larger particles such as 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 residences 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 offer this effective filtration without running up the bill for using your home comfort system.
These three media air cleaners are compatible with any brand of HVAC system. Regardless, it’s important to know that some of the more substantial ones, like MERV 16 and 13, may limit your system’s airflow. This can hike up your heating and cooling costs.
3. UV Air Purifiers
The sun’s UV rays are the reason why you get a painful sunburn. But this type of light has a useful application when installed in your ductwork. It’s also powerful enough to reduce germs, mold and fungi under certain airflow conditions.
In reality, the Healthy Climate UV Germicidal Light can decrease the concentration of airborne microorganisms by 50% in as quickly as 45 minutes.5 This light wrecks cell structure, which halts these microorganisms from growing and spreading around your home.
And this UV air purifier can also help keep your home comfort system clean and operating properly. It eliminates of germs, mold and fungi lurking within ductwork and your system itself. This UV light air purifier achieves all these things without making lung-irritating ozone.6
Breathe Easier with the Support of Our Air Purification Specialists
Your household’s comfort and health is our top priority at 1st Choice Heating & Air Conditioning. We realize there are many solutions out there. That’s why we make it easy to collaborate with our indoor air quality pros. We specialize in recommending solutions that match your needs and budget, and we’d love to hear more about your house and your air quality challenges. Call us at 949-204-0859 now to start the process.
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.