Ok, the straight scoop. Whole-home high efficiency air cleaners - the kind installed in your heating and cooling system - have the ability to trap airborn allergens like no portable air purifier can. Its just a fact. A portable air purifier can only work in one room and only in a small area of that room!

Sure, if the allergens and other crap in your home are not airborne, the installed air cleaner can't trap it. You have to vacuum and dust.

But here's the key. The whole-home air cleaner only works when your HVAC system blower operates. When the blower operates it delivers conditioned air throughout your home and the air that's already there has to go somewhere. That's where your return air ducts come in. The old air,  and the crap in it, are returned to the HVAC system thru the return ducts and the air cleaner traps the crap before it goes thru the system again to be heated or cooled.

BUT, you can clean the air more often than when you are heating or cooling. Just run your blower fan more often (put it in the "on" position) and it'll recirculate that air even when you're not heating or cooling - so your CLEANING the air more often.

Installed, whole house air cleaners also help protect your expensive HVAC system and can reduce the amount of dusting and vaccuming you have to do. So, while some portables may take a few contaminants out of a small room, they don't do ANYTHING to protect you HVAC system. Nor will you see an appreciably difference in having to clean the place!

I'm a bit of a social media/tech nut. I love watching (and let's be honest being active in) Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc. change the world. And further, I love that my smart phone can track and post to it all now. My mother, in her infinite wisdom commented that the day would come people forget life without smart phones. I'm already there.

I stumbled on a crazy app today for Droid phones called "Allergy Tracker." I have spring time allergies that are really just starting to subside as summer rolls in, so I wouldn't really need the app right now, but since I'm still so close to that dreadful time of year, I was intrigued. Essentially the app creates a network of people who 'touch inform' the app about their allergy conditions. The app locates you every time you tap into it, and effectively tracks allergen levels by creating a real time allergy map from everyone's responses. Pretty sweet, but does it work?

By the looks of it the answer has to be - not really - bummer. With some horrible reviews, I won't be downloading the app, however it does bring up a good point - if you have allergies, your best weapon is information. While we're never going to be able to stop allergens from existing in general, there are things we can do to keep them from existing in our homes, but you've got to be informed. It's easy to see these small air purifiers and see a solution, but fixing a room isn't as good as fixing your home. There are better, holisitic solutions for your home. Central Air Filters, dehumidifiers, and humidifiers all have their place in fixing your indoor air quality problems.

Check out the informational link from eMedicine health and then some information from us at Aprilaire. After all, information is your best weapon.

eMedicine health
http://www.emedicinehealth.com/indoor_allergens/article_em.htm
Aprilaire
http://www.aprilaire.com/index.php?znfAction=IAQ&category=filtration

Consumer question:

We are building a new home and the HVAC contractor has recommended Aprilaire 5000 as a possible air cleaner because I have allergies. We have had an electronic air cleaner for many years in our current home and have been pleased with it. Newer homes are designed and built tighter, leading to a concern that small amount of ozone which most electronic air cleaners emit is potentially harmful to our health. The latest issue of Consumer Reports of September, 2010, declined to rate electronic air cleaners for that reason.  http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/appliances/heating-cooling-and-air/air-purifiers/air-purifier-buying-advice/types-of-air-purifiers/electrostatic-precipitators/closeup-electrostatic-precipitator-advice.htm
What amount of ozone is generated by the Aprilaire 5000?


Aprilaires' response:

Thank you for contacting us with regards to our Model 5000 Electronic Air Cleaner. Aprilaire shares our customer’s concerns about ozone, and wants to reassure you that our Model 5000 Whole Home Electronic Air Cleaner is not designed to produce ozone.

Ozone is produced as a result of many factors, some are man-made and some originate from nature. On any given day in the US, outdoor levels can be as high as 150 ppb.  More polluted areas typically have higher outdoor ozone levels because there is a greater concentration of the components that create ground level ozone. 

Levels of ozone inside our homes typically range from 10 to 70 percent of the level found outdoors, primarily depending on whether windows and doors are left open. (ref. “Ozone Decay Rates in Residences”, Harvard School of Public Health, Environmental Science and Engineering Program).  The reason indoor levels are lower than outdoor levels is because ozone readily reacts with other gases and surfaces.

As a manufacturer we look to government organizations to set the standards as which to develop and produce products by.  As such, we offer an air cleaner that produces 2 ppb, well below the established FDA standard of 50 ppb for medical devices and the UL standard to evaluate products for consumer safety.

The high voltage power supply contained in this (and any other) electronic air cleaner produces ozone only as a byproduct of operation; the small amount of ozone generated dissipates by the time clean air filters out and into your home. In addition, the Model 5000 removes particles from the air that have proven by research to be harmful to humans. 

There are a select group of people who are sensitive to ozone.  For these people, we recommend using the Aprilaire High Efficiency air cleaners Model 4200 or 4400.  For everyone else, the Aprilaire Model 5000 is the best air cleaner for your home.

As the new college intern beginning my summer with Research Products-Aprilaire, I had little to no idea what IAQ even stood for. Only after a couple weeks did I learn the importance of keeping home air clean and safe. It’s true that most college students and young adults could care less about the air quality in their low-rent homes. Since whole-home product installations are out of the question, here’s one convenient trick that may help improve the indoor air you breathe everyday: house plants. Plants remain the most simple and organic way to purify your air. Those of you like me who have little cash to spend on home air improvement can quickly and affordably improve your air by purchasing a few house plants. Besides making your home look nice and well-cared for, plants do a fine job at removing VOC’s and other allergy causing toxins in your home. Some recommended plants include: Aloe, snake plant, golden pothos, chrysanthemum, weeping fig, azalea, English ivy, Chinese evergreen and warneck dracaena. If you rent and aren’t quite sure what air purifying system is in your residence, I recommend visiting a nursery and picking up a few house plants!

Consumer question submitted to Aprilaire:

I just finished my basement in late March and have been monitoring
humidity levels in the basement as well as on 1st and 2nd floors of
house and outdoors.

Each floor is about 1,200 sf in area.

So far humidity in basement regularly stays about 10-15% higher than 1st
and 2nd floors and has approached 60% so far but maintains at about 55%
or less.  I am a little concerned that humidity will go above 60% in
basement during summer months but this summer will be first summer that
I will have humidity-level monitoring capability so will not know if
humidity problem exists until then.  I also understand it is more ideal
to have humidity at or below 50% as opposed to 60%.

I had an Aprilaire wholehouse air purifier (filter and UV light system)
installed by a local contractor in January.  I continually run the
furnace blower as recommended for the air purifier for it to function
most effectively.  Same contractor also installed HVAC ductwork for
basement to central furnace system so that basement benefits from
wholehouse air purifier as well, but mainly to provide a better
heating/cooling system for basement.
 
However, now that outside temperatures have been warmer, I close the
outlet vents for the ducts for the basement due to no need to send cool
air to basement since it is naturally cooler than rest of house.  This
reduces air purification for this part of house.

I am considering a central dehumidifier to better control humidity level
in basement as well as remainder of house.  However, I have concerns
that to dehumidify basement, I will need to open duct vents to circulate
air but this will rob upper floors of cooled air and send cooled air to
the basement where I don't need it.

I understand that a separate duct can be routed to the basement.  But I
have installed soundproofing material in the walls of my furnace room to
deaden sound of furnace and hotwater heater (gas) blowers in furnace
room.  They are both very noisy.  I have concerns that if I install
ductwork from dehumidifier that penetrates furnace room walls that it
will significantly compromise ability to deaden sound within furnace
room.

Any insights on this situation?

Aprilaires' response:
Thank you for contacting Aprilaire. It is very common to see different relative humidity (RH) readings through out the house. You will find that most basements will have a higher humidity level because of lower temperatures. Relative humidity is relative to temperature, as temperature goes down RH goes up, as temperature goes up RH goes down. If the temperature in every area of your house was the same, the RH level in every room would be close to the same.

In most homes with basements you find that the basement is the source of the moisture that is causing high RH levels. If you use a good quality dehumidifier like the Aprilaire Model 1750A  to dry out your basement you will dry out the rest of the house.

I am not an expert on soundproofing but cutting holes through you sound proof walls may give you an increase in the noise coming from your furnace room. So you will need to decide if small increase in noise is worth the benefit of having a dry basement/house. The decibel level of the Model 1750A is 48 - 52 dBA.

I don't often link to blogs because there are so many out there that go right to poorly-worded content about how great portable room air purifiers are without giving mention to whole house solutions. Of course they always link to ads for.....room air purifiers. Horray!

 Here's a better one! Not only because it discusses whole house solutions but also because it doesn't have an ad associated with its contents. Pretty credible, then.

Of all the information out there about HEPA filters and air purifiers that help rid the air of unwanted allergens, it seems clear that you can benefit from a healthier home environment by using a high-efficiency air cleaning system that will reduce airborne contaminants.

There are plenty of manufacturers' claims about how best to clean the air in your home. Portable air purifiers , or even larger HEPA filters can be pretty effective at cleaning air in one room.

Of course, we believe that for homes with forced air HVAC systems and duct work, using an air cleaner installed within this system, is a more comprehensive and efficient way to clean the air, because it works throughout your house. As your system blower operates, air movement takes place throughout your house and airborne contaminants flow through your return air ducts where an air cleaner captures them before the air is recirculated through your system and back throughout your home.

But let's get beyond the obvious health benefits for a minute. If you're in the market for cleaner air at home and doing your homework to make the best decision, but still struggling with which way to go, consider this.

A high efficiency air cleaner installed with your system also keeps your system cleaner, which keeps it running more efficiently, which in turn saves energy! It also prolongs the life of your HVAC system, which saves you even more money!

Here's proof. This photo compares two air conditioner A-coils; both 10 years old. One from a system that used an Aprilaire air cleaner (left); the other used a standard 1" furnace filter.





A-coils are messy, expensive things to have cleaned; even more expensive to replace.


So consider whole-house air cleaning and also consider preserving your expensive HVAC system and saving energy!

One of the most passive ways to purify the air in your home is with a house plant.

Another way is with an ionizer, which may or may not be very effective and only works in one small area.

If you have a forced air HVAC system, you can actively control air cleaning with a simple touch of a button, and EFFECTIVELY clean the air in the whole house automatically.

And, it's really not that active. It's a simple push button; no complicated programming. But you can choose various modes to run your system blower at various intervals based on your needs, instead of waiting until your HVAC system decides it's time to run heat or cool.

In the mean time, go sniff a Chlorophytum elatum - (Green Spider Plant)

With all the bad news out there these days I hate to write a blog about anything negative, but let’s see if I can’t spin something seemingly negative into a big ball of positive.  One of District Sales Mangers in Pennsylvania called me up.  He had one of his best Aprilaire dealers giving out an article about the dangers of particulate pollution to every homeowner he saw.  He wanted his valued customers to be aware of the risks they were being exposed to if they decided not to install a whole home air purifier.

The article talks about the short term and long term effects of exposure to particulate of different sizes in the air.  The effects can be astounding; they range from more severe asthma attacks to a premature death.  Sounds pretty grim right?  Well there is hope.  A whole home air cleaner is a great way to protect against the harmful effects particulate pollution can cause. 

Aprilaire offers some wonderful options to make your home a safe place for you and your family.  We have 3 different levels of protection the 2000 series, 4000 Series and our flagship air cleaner the Electronic Model 5000(which won best air cleaner 3 years running).  So no matter what level of protection you want Aprilaire can provide a solution.

Back in 1973, Aprilaire developed a cutting edge filter technology that utilized glass fibers to capture the harmful particulate in your home.  At the time, this type of air cleaning technology was the best of its kind, but recently, Aprilaire developed new air purifying technology that performs better than any other air filter on the market.

True to the tradition of developing the most innovative indoor air quality products available, the engineers at Aprilaire developed a new electrostatically charged, depth loading MERV 13 (What’s MERV?) filter for the latest line of Aprilaire whole-home air cleaners. 

The new Aprilaire air cleaner line has been a hit with homeowners.  It’s no wonder people love it.  With increased efficiency, easier maintenance, longer filter life, and no pleat spacers, it’s all good!  

If you already have an Aprilaire whole-home air filter, you can benefit from our new filtration technology too!

We put our engineers to task to create an Upgrade Kit for the Model 2200/2400/2120/2140 and SpaceGard air cleaners.  They were able to develop a very easy to install, no tools required Upgrade Kit that enables you to take advantage of all the benefits of Aprilaire’s enhanced air cleaner media with your currently installed unit.

The Aprilaire Upgrade Kits offer many benefits.

A one-time upgrade will:

1.) Improve Filter Performance- The new electrostatically charged media achieves MERV 13 performance levels.  That means you get almost two times as much contaminant removal over the original Aprilaire MERV 10 media.

2.) Eliminate Pleat Spacers (black plastic combs)- No more fighting with pleat spacers.  The new media is collapsible, slide-in media that can be replaced in 30 seconds or less.

3.) Keep your heating and cooling system running at peak efficiency-which means you save energy.

4.) Make your home a healthier, cleaner, more energy-efficient place to live.

According to the American Lung Association, “American adults spend about 90% of their time indoors, and thanks to our more tightly insulated/sealed homes and workplaces, the concentration of pollutants indoors may be even higher than outdoors.”

What’s even more astonishing, the EPA reports that indoor air pollution may be up to 100 times worse than outdoor air.

When you hear reports like that you may think, well I better go get a gas mask to wear at home, but you don’t need to do that.  Instead, just find your nearest Aprilaire dealer here.   Give them a call and ask about upgrading your current Aprilaire Whole Home Air Cleaner today.   It takes just minutes to install and comes with media so when you upgrade, you get your replacement filter too.  Aprilaire makes it easy to clean your indoor air!

 

I have to admit, when I started working here at Aprilaire just over 10 months ago, I didn’t even know what a whole home air cleaner  was.  Of course, I knew about that skinny little filter in my furnace that you can literally watch the nightly news through.  You know what I’m talking about that so called “air purifier” that is supposed to be changed every month—does anybody actually change their furnace filter every month?  I was also aware of portable air cleaners since I had one sitting right in the middle of my living room.  (In the interest of full-disclosure it happened to be an Ionic Breeze.)

I think it was my second day here at Aprilaire when we began training on the Aprilaire High Efficiency Air Cleaner product line.  That’s when I realized that the 1” furnace filter connected to my HVAC system wasn’t worth its weight in lead and my portable air purifier was really nothing more then a false sense of security. 

I remember saying to our corporate trainer “This is a no-brainer.  Everyone needs to have a whole home air cleaner.  I just wish I had known about them before now."  His response really hit home with me, he said "Being that your in marketing you have the opportunity to help others like yourself.  You can educate people so they don't have to live with poor indoor air quality."

And that folks is the challenge Aprilaire faces on a daily basis.  How can we let more people, who care about their family’s health, comfort, and overall indoor air quality recognize that they need a high efficiency whole home air cleaner--preferably an Aprilaire:-)  We know people are aware of the importance of clean indoor air, but they just don’t know the best means to get there.  Aprilaire is doing everything we can to get the word out…we’ve even teamed up with doctors to communicate the health benefits and importance of clean indoor air.

Thankfully for everyone, the importance of Indoor Air Quality has gained more and more attention in recent years.  The Freedonia Group, Inc., a Cleveland-based industry research firm, recently announced that due to consumers’ growing concerns over indoor air quality, demand for whole house air cleaners is expected to increase.

So if you’re looking for an easy and inexpensive way to improve the health, comfort and sustainability of your home look into an Aprilaire high efficiency whole home air cleaner.  You can find an Aprilaire dealer in your area here   In the meantime check out this article from the Farmers Almanac; they offer some other easy ways to reduce indoor air pollution.