To improve the quality of the air in your home, Cates Heating and Cooling recommends a few different products. Take a look at a few of the products that can help make the air in your home cleaner.

AIR PURIFIERS

Air purifiers are a great way to help reduce the pollution and allergens in the air in your home. There are a few different kinds of air purifiers that you could consider, including UV, ionic, carbon, ozone, and HEPA purifiers. Here’s a brief explanation of each type:

• UV Air Purifiers: Using UV light, UV air purifiers kill bacteria, mold, and viruses in the air with electromagnetic radiation.
• Ionic Air Purifiers: Ion generators inside ionic air purifiers use a steady stream of negatively charged ions to attract dust and allergen particles that have a positive charge. The ions attach to the particles, which makes them too heavy to stay airborne. Once the particles fall to the floor, you can sweep or vacuum them up.
• Carbon Filtration Systems: Activated carbon filtration systems help purify the air in your home by absorbing allergens and contaminants from the air. These systems work best in combination with HEPA air purifiers.
• Ozone Air Purifiers: This type of purifier oxidizes the air contaminants and also gets rid foul odors. But they can be hazardous to use around small animals. Generally, ozone air purifiers are only used in commercial buildings and after emergency situations like floods.
• HEPA Air Purifiers: HEPA air purifiers use special HEPA filters to trap small particles that are in the air. There are three stages that the air in your home will go through in a HEPA air purifier, and this allows both small and large particles to get removed from the air.

Air purifiers are one of the best ways to combat indoor air quality problems, and they come in a variety of price ranges. Homeowners should have no problem finding an air purifier that works with their home, lifestyle, and budget.

To learn more about air purifiers, visit our HVAC Extras page.

AIR FILTERS

A high-quality air filter can extremely beneficial in the improvement of your home’s air quality. An air filter is your first line of defense against contaminants and allergens that could be residing in your home. Unwelcome residents like dust, dirt, and other allergens are likely to get caught in your air filter instead of circulating around your home if you have a clean, undamaged air filter that was installed properly.

We recommend changing air filters at least once a month to prevent clogs and damage that could let potentially problematic debris into the air of your home. If someone in your home is battling allergies or asthma, you might need to replace your air filter more frequently. You can also get reusable or washable air filters to use in your home. You will need to clean these filters on the same schedule that you would normally use to change a disposable filter. We recommend keeping two washable air filters on hand at all times, so when you take one out to clean it, you aren’t without an air filter. Keep in mind that you will still need to replace washable air filters every few years based on the manufacturer’s recommendations.

HUMIDIFIERS AND DEHUMIDIFIERS

When you think about humidifiers and dehumidifiers, you probably first thing of the comfort benefits they bring to your home. However, these pieces of equipment can also have a huge impact on the air inside your home. When the air in your home is kept at the proper humidity levels, you are less likely to notice a buildup of mold, mildew, and fungus that could lead to air quality problems.

Dehumidifiers can reduce the amount of dust floating through the air of your home, which is extremely beneficial to the air quality in your home. Moist air helps mold, dust mites and mildew thrive, so a dehumidifier can help reduce the risk for allergens in your home in general.

On the other hand, a humidifier can help add moisture to the air when the air is so dry that it is causing problems for people with allergies and asthma. Dry air is great for viruses, so adding some moisture back into the air can prevent viruses from passing from person-to-person in your home.