If you have a newly built home in Northridge, it was in all likelihood constructed with energy efficiency at the top of the list. This means increased insulation and windows and doors with enhanced seals. While these advances are great for keeping your utility expenses economical, they’re not so excellent for your indoor air quality.

Your HVAC system needs to work with a filter. But if you have a flat filter, you won’t be getting adequate filtration. This style only gives the bare minimum of protection by keeping dust out of your heating and cooling system.

While you can get a pleated filter or one with a better MERV rating, it still might not be adequate filtration, even more so if someone in your house has allergies or other respiratory issues.

That’s where a whole-house air purifier can be a good option. These systems are installed within ductwork to provide mighty filtration across your home. Depending on the kind you choose, you’ll be able to get rid of allergens, odors and even some viruses under certain airflow conditions.

Here are our top systems from Lennox, an industry leader in air purification.

Best Air Purifiers from Lennox

1. HEPA Air Purifiers

A HEPA air purifier, like the Healthy Climate® High-Efficiency Particulate Air Filtration System, gives premium filtration. These filters were first developed to protect scientists as they created the atomic bomb. Today, they’re a staple in hospitals and other medical settings.

The Healthy Climate HEPA Filtration System features a three-step filtration process. A prefilter draws larger particles before the HEPA filter captures the remainder of smaller particles. Then, a charcoal filter eradicates odors and chemical vapors.

The PureAir™ S Air Purification System is compatible with all HVAC brands and easily works with your smart home. It fights the three leading types of indoor air irritants:

• Airborne particles
• Chemical odors and vapors
• Germs and bacteria, under certain airflow conditions

This air purifier can eliminate 99.9%* of pollutants, like mold spores, pollen, dust and pet dander. It’s also capable of removing or eradicating 90%¹ of flu and cold viruses under certain airflow conditions. And, according to laboratory and field studies, it decreases and destroys approximately 50% of household odors and chemical vapors within 24 hours.

The PureAir S includes sensing features that make it uncomplicated to service. When used with an iComfort® S30 smart thermostat, you’ll be notified when to install a new filter and UVA light.² This home air purifier must be used with communicating Lennox systems and the iComfort S30.

2. Media Air Cleaners

Lennox Healthy Climate® Media Air Cleaners are available in a variety of MERV ratings to match your needs. This rating determines how effective filters are at capturing contaminants. The better the number, the better the filtration.

The Healthy Climate Carbon Clean 16® Media Air Cleaner is ideal for residences with allergy suffers and pets. This is a HEPA filter air purifier, because it has a MERV 16 rating for hospital-strength filtration. And it gets rid of more than 95%³ of irritating particles from your home’s air.

The Healthy Climate 13 Media Air Cleaner is great for homes who are looking for stronger protection from viruses and bacteria. This filter removes 99% of larger particles like dust, pollen and lint. And up to 54% of miniscule particles down to 0.3 microns.⁴

The Healthy Climate 11 Media Air Cleaner is a an excellent air purifier for allergies and in houses with pets. It removes more than 87% of bigger particles down to 3 microns and more than 28% of miniscule ones down to 0.3 microns.⁴ It’s able to provide this effective filtration without running up the cost of using your HVAC system.

These three media air cleaners can be used with any brand of HVAC system. However, it’s essential to be aware that some of the more substantial ones, including MERV 16 and 13, may limit your system’s airflow. This can hike up your utility costs.

3. UV Air Purifiers

The sun’s UV rays are the fault of why you get a blistering sunburn. But this wavelength of light has a useful application when placed within your ductwork. It’s also powerful enough to decrease germs, mold and fungi under certain airflow conditions.

In fact, the Healthy Climate UV Germicidal Light can lower the concentration of airborne microorganisms by 50% in as quickly as 45 minutes.⁵ This light destroys cell structure, which stops these microorganisms from multiplying and moving across your house.

And this UV air purifier can also help keep your home comfort system clean and operating like it should. It wipes out of germs, mold and fungi that are hidden in ductwork and your system itself. This UV light air purifier does all these things without creating lung-aggravating ozone.⁶

Breathe Better with the Help of Our Air Purification Professionals

Your loved ones’ comfort and health matters to us at Enertek Air Conditioning & Heating. We are aware there are lots of options out there. That’s why we make it easy to work with our indoor air quality specialists. We specialize in developing solutions that match your needs and budget, and we’d love to find out more about your home and your air quality issues. Give us a call at (818) 727-9993 today to start the process.

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¹Based on laboratory and field studies.

²PureAir™ S requires the iComfort^® S30 and a communicating indoor unit.

³Leading consumer magazine, January 2012. Based on the published CADR, which is the standardized measurement system to determine the cubic feet of clean air produced per minute. Particles captured range in size down to 0.3 micron. One micron = 1/25,000 of an inch in diameter.

⁴Based on lab tests conducted on filters with conditions included in ASHRAE standard 52.2 for E1 and E3 size ranges.

⁵Based on constant circulation of air in the home, 3,000-square-foot home with a 5-ton air handler.

⁶U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, “Ozone Generators that are Sold as Air Cleaners: An Assessment of Effective and Health Consequences,” August 2006.