In today’s world, people understand more about how air quality affects their well-being and health. Using HEPA filters in your Boulder, CO, home is an easy way to promote better indoor air quality. These filters can capture microscopic particles, helping to ensure purified air throughout your space. To help you decide whether these filters are a good idea for your home, let’s learn more about them.
HEPA Filter Basics
A HEPA filter traps and retains allergens, contaminants, and particles from the air. They are a type of mechanical air filter that has a dense fiber arrangement. This makes it possible for them to purify the air by capturing the particles as air passes through the filter. Also designed to protect your HVAC equipment, these filters promote adequate air flow and reduce the buildup of particles on the interior components of your furnace and air conditioner.
There is a set of criteria that the US Department of Energy uses for true HEPA filters. They standardize them based on how efficient they are at capturing particles. For a filter to be a true HEPA filter, it must be able to collect a minimum of 99.97% of particles that have a diameter of 0.3 micrometers.
There is a mat inside HEPA filters that has a random arrangement of fibers made from fiberglass and other similar materials. The dense maze that these fibers create traps particles as air makes its way through the filter.
There are three primary mechanisms that the filters use to capture particles. Interception involves stopping smaller particles with the filter fibers. With impaction, there is a trapping of bigger particles after they collide with the fibers in the filter. Diffusion is the third mechanism. This involves the erratic movement of extremely small particles, which increases the chances of the fibers capturing them.
HEPA Filter Applications
When it comes to residential use, it is common to utilize a HEPA filter to improve indoor air quality. You can choose an air purifier that requires these types of filters for this purpose. Their use ensures the capture of a variety of dust, allergens, and pollutants. They can be particularly ideal for homes where there are people with allergies or respiratory conditions.
Your HVAC system might also benefit from a HEPA filter compared to a traditional filter. A professional can let you know if your system is compatible with HEPA filters. While providing cool or hot air to your home, the HEPA filter can better trap airborne particles to keep them from circulating throughout your space.
There are also vacuums that utilize HEPA filters. They will trap and hold small particles as you do your normal vacuuming. While you clean, the HEPA filters retain these particles so that they do not go back out into the air. This is an additional step you can take to better enhance your indoor air quality and promote cleanliness.
HEPA Filter Benefits
HEPA filters present several benefits for your home. They help to effectively trap pet dander, pollen, and dust mites. This is beneficial for people who have allergies or asthma since these particles are common irritants for respiratory conditions. A HEPA filter is also good for capturing smoke odors and particles. This includes the smoke and odors from cooking or tobacco use indoors.
If you want to make your home cleaner and healthier, a HEPA filter can help. They can help prevent airborne pathogens from spreading. For example, this applies to pathogens that cause the common cold and the flu. This is ideal for everyone, but especially for those who are more vulnerable to getting sick or experiencing complications from illness.
Choosing the Right HEPA Filter
There are some factors you should consider when selecting a HEPA filter for your home. First, make sure that you are looking at a true HEPA filter and not just a HEPA-type filter. This provides all of the benefits that come with HEPA filtration, rather than just falling for false advertising. In addition to HEPA filtration, you’ll want to look at the MERV rating of a filter. Using a filter with a too high MERV rating can damage your HVAC system. Something with too low a MERV rating won’t trap particles efficiently.
Make sure that the filter you choose is compatible with your current air purifier. A professional can inspect your system and help you decide if a HEPA filter is ideal for your system.
Think about the replacement schedule for your filters. Like any air purifier or HVAC filter, you have to either clean or replace a HEPA filter regularly to keep it at peak effectiveness. Check with a professional and the manufacturer’s guidelines to determine the cleaning or replacement frequency for your chosen HEPA filter. Most filters should be replaced anywhere between 30 and 90 days.
Think about the noise level that you are comfortable with in your home. There are some systems that use HEPA filters that will create some noise, particularly when you are using higher settings. This might not be a concern in most spaces, but for an office or bedroom, you might need one that operates quieter.
You can choose a built-in or portable filtration system. If you want some flexibility about where you use the filter, you might choose a portable system in addition to your traditional HVAC system. A portable air purifier can be moved around your home as needed. There are also built-in filters for systems like your HVAC system that can provide total home air purification without having to move them around.
The size of your space also matters. Talk to an expert to choose a system and filter that will have the capacity to efficiently work in the area you’re focusing on.
HEPA Filter Maintenance
A professional can help you tackle HEPA filter maintenance to ensure that this process is completed properly. This also allows your filter to work as effectively as possible. If your filter requires cleaning, a professional can come out and clean the surface to remove accumulated debris while also cleaning the interior of your HVAC system. They will also prevent clogs in your filter by vacuuming the external surface. If you have a filter that you replace instead of cleaning, this can be done on a regular schedule as part of annual maintenance.
There are a number of factors that determine how long a HEPA filter will last. The type of filter you use impacts its lifespan. Also, the level of pollutants in your home will determine how long a filter will last.
HVAC Experts in Boulder
HEPA filters are vital for promoting clean and healthy air in your Boulder home. Whether you use one as a stand-alone air purifier or as part of your HVAC system, the key is to choose the proper filter for your space. Our team at Precision Plumbing Heating Cooling & Electric can help you decide which type of filter is ideal for your house. Once we finish this task, our professionals can help with other things too, such as your plumbing, electrical, and other HVAC needs. We offer installation of new plumbing, electrical inspections, routine HVAC maintenance, and indoor air quality assessments.
Contact Precision Plumbing Heating Cooling & Electric today to learn more about HEPA filters and to schedule an appointment with one of our experienced technicians.
