To improve the air you breath on a daily you must know more about your furnace filter air quality and how it works..
Two of the most common air filters on the market today are Fiberglass and Pleated air filters for your home furnace. Regardless of the filter you choose, we recommend a combination of maintaining a scheduled inspection of your filter along with dusting and vacuuming on a regular basis. Below are some reasons why upgrading your filter brings more bang for your buck!
Filter Replacement
For many years HVAC experts have suggested to change or at lest inspect your furnace filter(s) monthly. Pleated air filters can be changed every 90 days considering the quality vs the flat fiberglass filter. Reducing your change rate by 3x can reduce your time and money. Make sure to schedule a reminder! If the pleated filter gets clogged, it can increase the workload of your furnace by blocking proper airflow. Fiberglass filters are to be changed monthly.
Time vs Money
Fiberglass filters cost on average $4 per filter and pleated costs about $25-$30. Fiberglass may protect your wallet and your HVAC system but do not protect your lungs and health compared to a Pleated Air filter that has a longer life and have the ability to capture the smaller particles that cause harm to your health. The $25 you spend on a pleated air filter gives you 3x more time allowing less hassle. Could possibly even reduce your doctor bills..
Remove Allergens
The biggest advantage of using a pleated air filter vs fiberglass is that the pleated style increases the total surface area air flow and can remove up to 80 percent more lint, dust, pollen, mold spores.Pleated is up to 10x better at collecting the small particles than flat fiberglass filters. These small particles are in the 3 to 10 microns size range which are usually the ones that aggregate allergies and sickness.
To give you an idea, below are example particle sizes:
| Particle | Particle Size (microns) |
|---|---|
| Textile Fibers | 10 – 1000 |
| Tobacco Smoke | 0.01 – 4 |
| Typical Atmospheric Dust | 0.001 to 30 |
| Viruses | 0.005 – 0.3 |
Electrostatic Charge
The pleated filters can also provide an electrostatic charge which is just like the static that clings on your clothes in the dryer or hair on a ballon. It basically works like a magnet to grab those tiny particles and along with the particles in smoke from cooking indoors. We recommend a quality pleated air filter to give you less hassle by doing a majority of the work for you. As long as the blower fan is running, the charges are activated.
Dust Traps?
When you take a look at the big picture you need to consider the total inside air quality. There is an 80/20 rule for many things in life. We’d recommend your weekly and monthly cleaning routines (vacuum, sweep, mop) while your furnace filter works the remaining 80%. We all have our own personal dust clouds especially when we wake up and walk across the carpets. Your carpet floors are the #1 spot for dust / dander build-up. It’s imperative to keep the carpets vacuumed, swept and mopped.
If you forget to change your filter, overtime it could do more harm to your energy bills by being too clogged and inefficient. Set a reminder to change your pleaded air filter quarterly to avoid the build up or sign up for our Maintenance Agreement Plans. To ensure the best air possible, make sure to keep a consistent combination of filter maintenance along with various dusting and vacuum cleaning.
