If you live in a newer house in Manassas, it was likely made with energy efficiency in mind. This means increased insulation and windows and doors with improved seals. While these advances are fantastic for keeping your utility costs economical, they’re not so excellent for your indoor air quality.
Your HVAC system needs to run with a filter. But if you have a flat filter, you won’t be experiencing adequate filtration. This model only delivers the lowest level of protection by stopping dust from getting into your heating and cooling system.
While you can get a pleated filter or one with a increased MERV rating, it still might not be ample filtration, especially if someone in your house has allergies or other respiratory troubles.
That’s where a whole-house air purifier can be a good option. These systems are installed within ductwork to provide powerful filtration across your residence. Depending on the model you select, you’ll be able to remove allergens, odors and even some viruses under certain airflow conditions.
Here are our top 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 top-of-the-line filtration. These filters were first made to protect scientists as they created the atomic bomb. Today, they’re a staple in hospitals and other medical applications.
The Healthy Climate HEPA Filtration System features a three-step filtration method. A prefilter catches larger pollutants before the HEPA filter traps the rest of smaller particles. Then, a charcoal filter takes care of odors and chemical vapors.
The PureAir™ S Air Purification System works with all HVAC brands and seamlessly works with your smart home. It reduces the three key 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, including 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, as the result of laboratory and field studies, it removes and destroys approximately 50% of your home’s odors and chemical vapors within 24 hours.
The PureAir S is equipped with sensing features that make it simple 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 available in a variety of MERV ratings to work with your needs. This rating calculates how good filters are at removing contaminants. The better the number, the greater the filtration.
The Healthy Climate Carbon Clean 16® Media Air Cleaner is recommended 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 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 seeking better protection from viruses and bacteria. This filter removes 99% of larger particles including 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 fantastic 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 provide this powerful filtration without driving up the price of using your HVAC system.
These three media air cleaners can be used with any brand of HVAC system. Regardless, it’s important to be aware that some of the more substantial ones, including MERV 16 and 13, may decrease your system’s airflow. This can increase your energy bills.
3. UV Air Purifiers
The sun’s UV rays are the fault of why you get a painful sunburn. But this kind of light has a beneficial application when concealed inside your ductwork. It’s also strong enough to decrease germs, mold and fungi under certain airflow conditions.
In actuality, the Healthy Climate UV Germicidal Light can lower the amount of airborne microorganisms by 50% in as short as 45 minutes.5 This light damages cell structure, which stops these microorganisms from multiplying and infiltrating around your house.
And this UV air purifier can also help keep your HVAC system clean and operating like it should. It takes care of germs, mold and fungi that are hidden inside ductwork and your system itself. This UV light air purifier achieves all these things without developing lung-irritating ozone.6
Breathe Easier with the Support of Our Air Purification Pros
Your family’s comfort and health matters to us at Fire & Ice HVAC. We realize there are lots of possibilities out there. That’s why we make it easy to collaborate with our indoor air quality pros. We specialize in recommending solutions tailored to your needs and budget, and we’d love to hear more about your residence and your air quality challenges. Call us at 703-595-4157 today 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.