If you own a newer house in Des Moines, it was probably made with energy efficiency at the top of the list. This means increased insulation and windows and doors with enhanced seals. While these enhancements are excellent for keeping your energy expenses economical, they’re not so good for your indoor air quality.
Your home comfort system needs to run with a filter. But if you have a flat filter, you won’t be getting adequate filtration. This model only provides the lowest level of protection by blocking dust from infiltrating your home comfort system.
While you can get a pleated filter or one with a higher MERV rating, it still might not be ample filtration, particularly if someone in your home has allergies or other respiratory problems.
That’s where a whole-house air purifier comes in. These systems are installed within ductwork to provide mighty filtration across your residence. Depending on the model you select, you’ll be able to filter allergens, odors and even some viruses under certain airflow conditions.
Here are our best 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 created to defend scientists as they created the atomic bomb. Today, they’re essential in hospitals and other medical settings.
The Healthy Climate HEPA Filtration System includes a three-step filtration method. A prefilter catches significant pollutants before the HEPA filter captures remaining tiny pollutants. Then, a charcoal filter takes care of odors and chemical vapors.
The PureAir™ S Air Purification System connects to all HVAC brands and seamlessly works with your smart home. It fights the three leading kinds of indoor air irritants:
- Airborne particles
- Chemical odors and vapors
- Germs and bacteria, under certain airflow conditions
This air purifier can eliminate 99.9%* of pollutants, like mold spores, pollen, dust and pet dander. It’s also capable of removing or destroying 90%1 of flu and cold viruses under certain airflow conditions. And, according to laboratory and field studies, it reduces and eradicates approximately 50% of residential odors and chemical vapors within 24 hours.
The PureAir S is equipped with sensing features that make it simple to service. When used with an iComfort® S30 smart thermostat, you’ll get a notification to replace the filter and UVA light.2 This home air purifier must be linked 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 capturing contaminants. The better the number, the better the filtration.
The Healthy Climate Carbon Clean 16® Media Air Cleaner is recommended for households with allergy suffers and pets. This is a HEPA filter air purifier, because it has a MERV 16 rating for hospital-grade filtration. And it gets rid of more than 95%3 of irritating particles from your home’s air.
The Healthy Climate 13 Media Air Cleaner is recommended for homes who desire enhanced protection from viruses and bacteria. This filter captures 99% of larger particles like 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 an excellent air purifier for allergies and in houses with pets. It traps 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 powerful filtration without increasing the cost of operating your heating and cooling system.
These three media air cleaners are compatible with any brand of HVAC system. But despite that, it’s critical to know 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 to blame when you get a stinging sunburn. But this type of light has a beneficial application when installed inside your ductwork. It’s also tough enough to reduce germs, mold and fungi under certain airflow conditions.
In reality, the Healthy Climate UV Germicidal Light can decrease the number of airborne microorganisms by 50% in as little as 45 minutes.5 This light wrecks cell structure, which prohibits these microorganisms from flourishing and moving 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 inside ductwork and your system itself. This UV light air purifier accomplishes all these things without developing lung-inflaming ozone.6
Breathe Easier with the Help of Our Air Purification Pros
Your family’s comfort and health is our top priority at Kohles & Bach Heating & Cooling. We are aware there are many solutions out there. That’s why we make it uncomplicated to work with our indoor air quality pros. We specialize in developing solutions that match your needs and budget, and we’d love to hear more about your house and your air quality problems. Call us at 515-207-6569 right away 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.