Welcome to fall! Beautiful weather, fun festivities, cozy gatherings of family and friends… and a lot more time spent indoors. While you’re inside, you’ll be breathing a lot of recirculated air. So how’s your indoor air quality? Do you have an air filter?
If you do have an air filter, you might think you’re all set—your air quality must be fantastic, right? Well, not necessarily. You might need to upgrade your air filter. Why? Here’s all the info about how to tell whether your air filter is doing everything you need it to—or not.
Type of Filter
Many people think they’re all set in the air filter department because they know they have filters. They change them regularly: their air conditioner’s air filter in the summer and their furnace’s air filter in the winter. But there’s something you should know about those filters.
To some degree, your air conditioner or furnace’s air filter will cut down on dust and pet hair being recirculated out of your air vents. But that’s not the actual purpose of these filters. They’re designed to cut down on grit and grime inside the systems themselves. Gunking up your AC or heater with lots of particles increases friction and wear and tear, causing problems for the system.
A whole house air filter, on the other hand, is separate from your specific heating or cooling systems. It is installed as an addition to your HVAC system, and instead of filtering the air just before it enters the AC or heater, it filters all the air as it passes through your ductwork. This is the type of filter whose sole purpose is improving your indoor air quality.
Effectiveness of Filter
Perhaps you do have a whole house air filter. How is that working for you? If you’re concerned that your air could be cleaner, there are some possibilities that you should consider.
First, how long has it been since you changed the filter? Different manufacturers, and different filtration materials, require different schedules for filter changes, so check your owner’s manual for specifics. If you no longer have your owner’s manual, we’re happy to help answer questions about air filter replacement in New Braunfels, TX.
Second, do you have specific concerns about your indoor air quality? Are you experiencing problems that you think might be caused by contaminants in your air? Do you have allergies, asthma, or other respiratory challenges? Is there someone in your home whose immune system is precarious, either for medical reasons or simply by virtue of being an infant or elder? Consider an air purifier.
Air Purifiers
While a filter simply traps particles in mesh or layers of folded material, an air purifier takes additional steps which allow it to eliminate not just larger particles but even tiny allergens and germs. There are two different ways they approach this.
- Electronic Air Purifiers: These use an electric charge applied to the air to polarize the particles in it. Then, as the air passes over an oppositely-charged plate, the particles are drawn against it just like a sock stuck to a fleece blanket in the static electricity of your clothes dryer.
- UV Air Purifiers: These use ultraviolet light at a specific frequency to disrupt the integrity of organic particles like mold spores and bacteria, literally unraveling them so they can no longer reproduce or cause illness.
Either of these systems can reduce many unpleasant things: airborne illness, allergy symptoms, asthma attacks, and even headache and fatigue, not to mention mold growth and unpleasant smells.
A member of our team would be delighted to discuss your air quality concerns with you.
At Thayer Air Conditioning, your comfort is our #1 priority! Contact us today.
