According to the EPA, HEPA filters can remove up to 99.97 percent of airborne particulates, such as dust and pollen. If you're looking to improve the air quality in your home, you may be wondering if a whole house HEPA filter is worth it. In this article, we'll discuss the benefits of a whole house HEPA filter and how it can help you detoxify your home. When it comes to air purification, there are two main types of systems: portable and whole-house.
If you have a duct network and forced air system, a whole-house system will work best. Homes with radiant heat and without air conditioning will have to resort to portable autonomous models. Yes, by using HEPA filters in both vacuum cleaners and air purifiers, the user can reduce the amount of allergens and airborne pollutants in a home. HEPA filters will effectively remove most allergens, dust, pollen and mold from the air.
However, they will not eliminate viruses or VOCs. Mold can grow inside fibers, so it's essential to replace it regularly every 12 to 18 months or when needed. When it comes to cleaning the air in a single room in your house, a portable air purifier is enough. But if you want to improve indoor air quality throughout your home, a whole-house air cleaner or air purification system can clean the air as it passes through your home's HVAC system. This will remove air pollutants throughout your home. There is a lot of misinformation about “whole house air purifiers”; some air purifiers are marketed as such, but in reality they are just large portable units.
All of these systems require some form of regular maintenance, whether it's changing the filter every few months or cleaning the collector plates annually; the level of inconvenience depends on how the filter was installed. In addition, there are other things happening in your home that can affect effectiveness, such as ventilation (windows open or closed) and new particles that constantly emerge, so the air may not be as filtered as the claims lead you to believe. Instead of sticking a HEPA filter under a working faucet, which is almost guaranteed to damage the filter when water pressure contacts the delicate folds, the best way to wash a HEPA filter is by submerging it. However, when used in air purifiers, there are many misconceptions about what the filter can and cannot do. An air purifier, by its nature basically a fan and a filter, is noisy, especially at higher speeds. If you want to do your best, there are units with multiple filters to capture particles in the air, plus an activated carbon filter to eliminate odors.
In fact, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) warns that the functionality of air purifiers is limited in terms of filtering gases and that you should replace filters frequently for optimal functionality; usually about every three months. Manufacturers of high-quality HEPA filters voluntarily test and certify their filters to meet DOE standards, labeling them as “absolute HEPA” or “true HEPA”. By purchasing a HEPA air purifier that contains additional filters such as a carbon filter and pre-filter, the unit will remove a maximum amount of contaminants in the air. The three most common appliances that use HEPA filters are whole-house filtration systems designed to treat complete HVAC systems, portable air purifiers, and vacuums. It could be as simple as a filter where the air return enters the oven (which is primarily intended to protect oven components from debris rather than purify the air), or it could be an electronic system integrated into the duct network. Whole house filters and portable filters trap dust, pollen and more to clean air and improve indoor air quality. Ultraviolet light causes airborne bacteria and viruses to fall into oblivion; which is why hospitals use UV air filters in TB wards. For any type of polluting particles including pet dander, pollen, mold spores and tobacco smoke particles; a whole-house air purifier with a HEPA filter will work best.
