If you own a newly constructed house in Long Island, it was in all likelihood made with energy efficiency at the top of the list. This means more insulation and windows and doors with improved seals. While these advances are good for keeping your energy expenses affordable, they’re not so fantastic for your indoor air quality.
Your heating and cooling system needs to work with a filter. But if you have a flat filter, you won’t be getting enough filtration. This model only gives the smallest amount of protection by blocking dust from infiltrating your heating and cooling system.
While you can install a pleated filter or one with a increased MERV rating, it still might not be adequate filtration, especially if someone in your residence 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 provide powerful filtration across your house. 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 best systems 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 the best filtration. These filters were first made to protect scientists as they developed the atomic bomb. Today, they’re necessary in hospitals and other medical operations.
The Healthy Climate HEPA Filtration System includes a three-step filtration procedure. A prefilter draws larger pollutants before the HEPA filter traps the rest of miniscule pollutants. Then, a charcoal filter takes care of odors and chemical vapors.
The PureAir™ S Air Purification System works with all HVAC brands and seamlessly integrates with your smart home. It combats the three key kinds 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, including 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, as the result of laboratory and field studies, it removes and eradicates approximately 50% of your home’s odors and chemical vapors within 24 hours.
The PureAir S is equipped with sensing features that make it easy to service. When paired with an iComfort® S30 smart thermostat, you’ll be notified when 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 fit your needs. This rating determines how good filters are at removing contaminants. The better the number, the finer the filtration.
The Healthy Climate Carbon Clean 16® Media Air Cleaner is ideal for households with allergy suffers and pets. This is a HEPA filter air purifier, since it has a MERV 16 rating for hospital-grade filtration. And it gets rid of more than 95%3 of irritating particles from your residence’s air.
The Healthy Climate 13 Media Air Cleaner is great for homes who are looking for improved protection from viruses and bacteria. This filter captures 99% of larger particles like 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 an excellent air purifier for allergies and in homes with pets. It catches 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 provide this powerful filtration without driving up the cost of turning on your HVAC system.
These three media air cleaners work with any brand of HVAC system. However, it’s essential to know that some of the more substantial ones, including MERV 16 and 13, may limit your system’s airflow. This can inflate your utility expenses.
3. UV Air Purifiers
The sun’s UV rays are the fault of why you get a painful sunburn. But this type of light has a useful application when installed inside your ductwork. It’s also tough enough to reduce germs, mold and fungi under certain airflow conditions.
In actuality, the Healthy Climate UV Germicidal Light can lower the number of airborne microorganisms by 50% in as fast as 45 minutes.5 This light destroys cell structure, which stops these microorganisms from multiplying and moving throughout your residence.
And this UV air purifier can also help keep your heating and cooling system clean and running efficiently. It eliminates of germs, mold and fungi that are hidden inside ductwork and your system itself. This UV light air purifier does all these things without producing lung-irritating ozone.6
Breathe Better with the Help of Our Air Purification Professionals
Your household’s comfort and health is important to us at Airmax Long Island. We realize there are lots of possibilities out there. That’s why we make it easy to work with our indoor air quality professionals. We specialize in creating solutions that fit your needs and budget, and we’d love to find out more about your home and your air quality issues. Reach us at 631-737-5566 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.