Ways to Improve The Air Quality In Your Home
Do you want to improve the air quality in your home and have the piece of mind that your family isn't being exposed to harmful bacteria, fungi, and viruses? Microorganisms tend to build up inside HVAC systems, negatively effecting the air you breath. The quality of the air in your home can effect your risks for illness. Fortunately there are effective options for keeping your heating and cooling system sanitary.
HVAC systems are great at controlling the temperature in your home, but to remain energy efficient, they must constantly recycle the same air. Because of this, the germs that enter your home don't leave. The air handler in your HVAC system is prone to humidity, making it a likely place for mold and other microorganisms to grow. Even with regular maintenance such as changing your air filters, dust still ends up in your air ducts, creating an ideal breading ground for harmful microorganisms.
The good news is, there are good options out there for improving the sanitary conditions of your HVAC system and the air you breath. Upgrades to your system include: improved filtration, UV lights, and photohydroionization (PHI) generators. Each work in different ways and will improve the air in your home.
Your home already has a filtration system in place, but it is likely setup to use 1 inch filters. These filters are great for protecting your HVAC system from larger particles in the air, but are not very good at removing finer particles and germs. There are 1 inch filters out there with higher MERV ratings, which are more capable of removing finer particles from the air, but they will also put more strain on your system by restricting air flow. Having a filter cabinet installed that can hold 4 inch filters will allow you to use a higher MERV rated filter without much air flow restriction.
UV light has a long history of being used for medical sanitation and for treating both drinking water and waste water. More recently UV light has been applied to treating heating and cooling systems. The same ultra violet light that is responsible for causing sun burns is very effective at killing microorganisms. The UV light that we are exposed to from the sun is very weak, because the ozone layer in our atmosphere blocks most of it. The UV light produced by UV lamps, made for disinfection, is much stronger and very capable of destroying harmful microorganisms. Coil sterilization is the most common type of system used in HVAC. A UV light is installed inside the return air duct. It shines UV light on the air handler coil, killing microorganisms and preventing them from building up there.
Photohydroionization (PHI) generators rely on creating a gas of hydroperoxides. Hydroperoxides are chemical compounds that are similar to hydrogen peroxide. They are effective at neutralizing microorganisms, odors, smoke, allergens, and volatile organic compounds, through the process of oxidation. UV lights are most effective when they shine on a surface. PHI generators are effective at treating surfaces and the air in your entire home.
PHI generators are easily installed into the air handler of an HVAC system. The PHI generators have a UV light and a metal element with a catalytic coating. The UV light shines on the metal element, causing it to react with the surround air, creating hydroperoxides. The hydroperoxide gas that is created travels through the air ducts circulates through the home.
The Reme Halo by RGF is a great PHI generator. It is highly effective as well as energy efficient. We highly recommend this unit to all our customers looking to improve the quality of the air they breath. It does an excellent job at reducing allergens, odors, bacteria, fungi, and viruses.
