If you live in a newer home in Georgetown, it was likely constructed with energy efficiency as a priority. This means increased insulation and windows and doors with better seals. While these advances are great for keeping your utility bills reasonable, they’re not so fantastic for your indoor air quality.
Your heating and cooling system needs to run with a filter. But if you have a flat filter, you won’t be getting enough filtration. This model only provides the lowest level of protection by keeping dust out of your heating and cooling system.
While you can install a pleated filter or one with a better MERV rating, it still might not be adequate filtration, even more so if someone in your house has allergies or other respiratory issues.
That’s where a whole-house air purifier comes in. These systems are placed within ductwork to provide effective filtration throughout 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, gives top-of-the-line filtration. These filters were first made to defend scientists as they developed the atomic bomb. Today, they’re essential in hospitals and other medical facilities.
The Healthy Climate HEPA Filtration System includes a three-step filtration procedure. A prefilter draws significant pollutants before the HEPA filter catches the remainder of smaller irritants. Then, a charcoal filter eradicates odors and chemical vapors.
The PureAir™ S Air Purification System works with all HVAC brands and smoothly works with your smart home. It combats the three key types 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, 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 reduces and eliminates approximately 50% of your home’s odors and chemical vapors within 24 hours.
The PureAir S includes sensing features that make it easy to service. When paired 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 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 calculates how effective filters are at removing contaminants. The better the number, the better 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 aggravating particles from your residence’s air.
The Healthy Climate 13 Media Air Cleaner is great for families who are seeking enhanced protection from viruses and bacteria. This filter traps 99% of larger particles such as dust, pollen and lint. And up to 54% of miniscule 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 deliver this effective filtration without increasing the cost of using your heating and cooling 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 limit your system’s airflow. This can increase your utility costs.
3. UV Air Purifiers
The sun’s UV rays are the reason why you get a blistering sunburn. But this type of light has a useful application when placed in your ductwork. It’s also powerful enough to decrease germs, mold and fungi under certain airflow conditions.
In fact, the Healthy Climate UV Germicidal Light can reduce the concentration of airborne microorganisms by 50% in as little as 45 minutes.5 This light wrecks cell structure, which prohibits these microorganisms from multiplying and moving around your residence.
And this UV air purifier can also help keep your HVAC system clean and operating efficiently. It wipes out of germs, mold and fungi lurking within ductwork and your system itself. This UV light air purifier does all this work without producing lung-inflaming ozone.6
Breathe Better with the Support of Our Air Purification Specialists
Your loved ones’ comfort and health matters to us at Miller Climate Control LLC. We know there are a lot of options out there. That’s why we make it easy to collaborate with our indoor air quality specialists. We specialize in making solutions that match your needs and budget, and we’d love to hear more about your home and your air quality issues. Call us at 512-937-2001 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.
