Making Sense of What Air Filter to Use

You hear terms like MERV, HEPA and more when it comes to air filters but what do they all mean? It can get a bit confusing. In this post we hope to clear up some of the confusion out there and guide you to what air filter is best in some of the more common locations.

First let's look at the types of filters. The two most common are HEPA, which stands for High-Efficiency Particle Air filter. Sounds fancy. Basically a HEPA filter is the top of the line. It is going to capture the most particles and the “bad” things in the air. Next is MERV, which stands for Minimum Efficiency Reporting Values. MERV filters will also have a number after them like 8, 11, 13, 16 and so on. The number is the key component, as this will tell you how effective the air filter is in capturing particles. The higher the number the more it will capture.

At first glance most people would say it is an easy decision to just use the best, highest rated filter for everything. Unfortunately it isn’t that easy. Air filters are a balance of working efficiently and capturing contaminates. What happens is that the higher the efficiency of the air filter, the more restrictive the airflow through the filter.

That brings us to the main point of this post – what air filter to use. This is a little bit of a trick question. The answer is it depends on the situation. Let's take a look at the more common areas of the home that benefit from air filters.

HVAC System: This is a key component of the home and one you definitely want to get the air filters correct in. The HVAC system is going to provide air to the entire home so it makes sense that we want it to be the best it can be. As we stated earlier the temptation is to utilize HEPA filters then sit back and enjoy all that high quality air floating through the home. Sounds great but most current HVAC systems cannot handle HEPA filters. The filters constrict the airflow and can actually cause damage to the system or reduce the life of the system. We are hopeful that as technology advances so will the filtration systems. So what do we do? Enter in MERV. Most systems can handle up to a MERV 11 filter. While not a HEPA filter it still provides high quality filtration and will remove items like Pollen, Mold, Dust, Pet Dander, and Debris. What are missing from this list are items such as viruses, bacteria and allergens. To filter these out you need to move up to a MERV 13 or higher. You should always consult your HVAC professional to see what the highest rated filter your systems can handle is.

Portable Air Filtering Devises: If the HVAC system is unable to remove some of the more hazardous items or you don’t have a central system, we need to turn to other methods. Room level units are a good alternative. Here is where we go for the gold and you should look for a unit that is using a HEPA filter. There are a lot of these units on the market and they have varied effectiveness. You will also see units with added items like UV, IONs and so forth. The jury is still out a bit on the added technology so our recommendation is to focus on the HEPA air filter aspect of the unit. The downside to these units is they typically can only filter small areas (might need one for each room you use) and the filters can get a bit expensive to replace.

Air Intake Units: Many home, especially newer homes are required to have what is referred to as a fresh air intake system. This is typically a fan that brings outdoor air into the home to replace the air being exhausted out the home. While in most cases an air filter is not mandatory, it can make a very positive impact if it is used. This is also a case where your specific situation will dictate what filter should be used. We have already talked about a HEPA filter but here again we are faced with a HEPA filter restricting the airflow to a point where it may render the unit ineffective. That leads to using a MERV filter, but which one? In general outdoor air can be up to 5 times less polluted than indoor air. This is important because it means the air coming in doesn’t necessarily need to be filtered as much as the air inside the home. One big thing is generally you will not be bringing in viruses from the outdoor air. Most times you only need to be concerned with items like pollen, dust, particles and so forth. A MERV 11 or higher will be fine for that. Now if you live in an area that has high levels of pollution like in or close to a large city or in areas of the country that have wildfires, you might want to consider a MERV 16. MERV 16 filters are able to remove items like smoke, smog and even viruses.

So how do we bring this all together? At the root of this is improving indoor air quality. To do this takes a group effort. Just having good filters in your HVAC system won’t be enough just like having only a portable air filter won’t do it either. Developing a strategy is key. Having a proper ventilation system (bad air out) while bringing in filtered outdoor air will greatly improve the indoor air quality. Now add the highest rated filters you can to your HVAC system as well as a portable air filter and you’re onto something. Air King has developed what we refer to as the Total Home Ventilation system that utilizes air intake and exhaust to create a better living environment. To learn more about the system click here. Also make sure to view portable solutions from our Germ Guardian division.

For more information about the indoor air quality of your home and how you can improve it, please read through the many articles we have written over the years. For information regarding Air King exhaust fan and fresh air intake solutions visit airkinglimited.com.

How Is the Air In Your Office or School?

As we turn the calendar to a new year, we unfortunately are not turning the page on the COVID era. While almost all schools and offices have returned to a somewhat normal (however you now define normal) operation, the question still remains – how is the air in the office or school you are working in or sending your children to?

As our knowledge of COVID has increased our methods of combating it have also gotten better. Long past are the days where people in hazmat suits with foggers are going through public space after someone walks in. There has however been some good things. A focus has been placed on the indoor air quality of our homes, our workplaces and our schools. We are also now understanding that increased indoor air quality not only helps in the battle against COVID but also other viruses like the flu and colds.

So what is your workplace or school doing to improve the health of the working or studying environment? These are great questions to ask but, before you storm down to the HR department we want to encourage you to take a minute to stop, relax, and think of how you can be a part of the solution, working with your company or school rather than just demanding answers.

As we have navigated through all of this there have been some things that have been effective and some we thought were going to be effective but were not (Plexiglas dividers, the magical 6 feet, foggers, and so on). The challenge is always to do the best you can with the knowledge you have at the time, then use the test of time to figure out if it is effective. Through all this ventilation, fresh air and filtration have stood out as very effective ways to fight it. These “technologies” have been around for thousands of years so we think it passes the time test.

So using those test of time technologies lets take a look at what your office or school may be doing our could be doing.

Ventilation: Simply defined it is moving stale or contaminated air out of a given space. The most common way is exhaust fans. Many time people think they are only used in bathrooms or kitchens, but they should be used throughout all spaces. A test to see if the space is being properly ventilated is using a CO2 monitor. If you have a room full of people or kids, as they breath the CO2 level of the room will rise if it is not properly ventilated. Another way is the “human” test. Does the space feel stagnant, have smells and so forth. There are multiple ways a space can be effectively ventilated. Adding exhaust fans, air exchangers or utilizing existing infrastructure are some. Depending on the building there can be some low cost solutions or it might require a larger investment.

Fresh Air: Having a source that brings fresh outside air into the space to replace the exhausted air or at least dilutes it. There are basically two ways to do this. One is passive – doing things like opening windows or doors if it can be done without compromising the safety of the building. A second is mechanical – utilizing a fan to bring in fresh air. This can be done in a standalone unit or as part of the HVAC system. One thing to note about bringing in outdoor air is if you are in an area with very poor air quality such as near forest fires or locations with large air pollution, adding a filtration system to the incoming air is an almost must.

Filtration: Having a system in place that removes contaminates in the air, capturing them in a filter. All HVAC systems will have some type of filter with them. Filters are measured by what they can remove from the air. Filters are typically identified with a MERV rating. A quick explanation of the MERV number is the higher it is, the more effective it will be in removing particles from the air. Filtration is an extremely effective way to fight viruses as it removes them from the air. This goes back to our statement that if the virus is not there, it can’t infect you. We mentioned HVAC systems having filters but sometimes the system cannot handle higher MERV filters without compromising the effectiveness of the HVAC system. This is where portable air filters come into play. Generally room level air filters or air purifiers are very easy to add and in a lot of cases do not cost a lot of money. Utilizing something like the Lasko FF305 Air Flex is a quick and easy way to filter air in office spaces, classrooms or at home. There are additional technologies out there for improving indoor air quality but some of these have not be fully proven yet. You can read more about these in one of our earlier blog post.

Our goal is to give you the tools to create the best possible working, learning and living environments possible. If you have a good ventilation system with a source for air exchange (fresh air coming in) and are filtering the air within the space, you are well on your way. We encourage you to have open and productive conversations with your workplace, school board and so forth to find out what they are doing to ensure these items are taking place.

For more information about Air King’s line of ventilation solutions including exhaust fans, range hoods and fresh air intake, visit airkinglimited.com. Also check out our other posts about ventilation and indoor air quality.

Clean Air In Buildings Challenge

The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently launched the Clean Air in Building Challenge. As per the EPA: “The Clean Air in Buildings Challenge is a call to action and a set of guiding principles and best practices to assist building owners and operators with reducing risks from airborne viruses and other contaminants indoors.” So what does the clean air in buildings challenge involve? It is broken down into four steps.

Create an Action Plan. Do you know what your current indoor air quality is? A general understanding of how your HVAC is functioning is a vital part of this. Is your HVAC system bringing fresh air into the system or is it just re-circulating existing air? What type of filter(s) is installed and are they able to capture particles that could cause harm or the spread of viruses? As a general rule you will need a MERV 13 filter or better if your system can handle it. Do you have a maintenance plan to make sure the system as well as the filter(s) is checked regularly? This can be a contract with an outside service company or your own maintenance manager. Is the air flowing in a way that maximizes the delivery and ventilation in each room? This can be a little tricky to determine and you might need to enlist the help of a HVAC professional.

Side note: While this challenge from the EPA is directed at buildings almost all of these principles can be applied to residential homes as well.

Optimize Fresh Air and Ventilation. Making sure there is a proper amount of fresh air coming into the building has been proven to increase the indoor air quality. There are many ways to accomplish this. Something simple like opening doors and windows is a quick and easy way. The downside to this is you do not have a lot of control over the amount or quality of air coming in as well as the temperature. You could be bringing in things like pollen (rural areas) or carbon dioxide from cars (urban settings). A mechanical fresh air intake that has filtration might be your best option. In addition to fresh air coming in, you need to ensure the “bad” air is being ventilated out. The best way to solve for this is utilizing exhaust fans. Most people think of exhaust fans or bathroom fans as items that run on an as needed basis such as when a bathroom is in use. While this is correct research has shown that they should actually be running continuously when the building or home is occupied and in most cases a few hours before and after occupation. Organizations such as ASHRAE have set standards for building and home on how much and how long an exhaust fan should be operating. They refer to it as whole house or continuous ventilation. 

Enhance Air Filtration. We touched on this earlier with the HVAC filters. This can get a little tricky. You first need to determine what the highest rated filter you can use in your system is while still maintaining proper air movement though the system. Using too high a filter can also cause extra stress on the system shorting the lifespan. If your system can handle it, MERV 13 or higher are best and will remove almost all of the “bad” stuff. Items such as portable air cleaners can also be effective as a supplement. When choosing an air cleaner make sure it can handle the size of the room. In some cases multiple units might be needed. Although we are talking about filtration in this section it should also be mentioned that in high emission areas such as music rooms in schools, meeting rooms or gyms, adding extra ventilation and increasing the fresh air intake to those rooms along with filtration will be your best way to ensure the IAQ.

Community Engagement and Participation. It takes a commitment from everyone to make it work. Communicating with occupants can be a very effective way of ensuring everyone is doing their part. Hosting walkthroughs of the building as well as explaining the what, why and where helps everyone understand. It also engages everyone, allowing them to provide feedback and help identify items or systems that might not be functioning properly or could use improvement.

To learn more about the EPA’s Clean Air In Buildings Challenge visit www.epa.gov/indoor-air-quality-iaq/clean-air-buildings-challenge

For information about fresh air or ventilation solutions visit the Air King website at airkinglimited.com. Also be sure to visit Lasko’s website to view the current air purifier options available including the Air Flex™ Air Purifier and Room Fan.

5 Ways to Improve Your Indoor Air Quality

Finding ways to improve your indoor air quality (IAQ) has become a hot topic. More and more research is being done and studies are finding that when you improve your indoor air quality it can have some very beneficial results. Almost everyone can agree that better IAQ is good, but how do we get there? There are a lot of “solutions” on the market today. Some good, some not as good, and some that might be good but need more development. In this post, we are going to focus on the time-tested ways you can improve your IAQ. 

1. Ventilation

As a result of our daily living, contaminates build up in our homes. Each time we exhale we release CO2, when we cook all kinds of contaminates are released into the air, we use cleaning chemicals, and the list goes on. We can choose to stop breathing, cooking and cleaning, or have a strategy to combat these contaminates. A first line of defense is ventilation. It is a very simple concept – take the bad stuff and get it out of the home. Using a kitchen range hood that exhausts to the outdoors can be one of the most effective ways to instantly increase your IAQ. Add to that utilizing your bathroom exhaust fans and now that IAQ score is going to continue to rise. 

2. Dilutions / Fresh Air

Now that we know we have contaminates in the home, another effective way to combat them is diluting them by bringing fresh air into the home. There are many ways to accomplish this and it will look different depending on what area of the country you live. In mild climates, simply opening a window or door is an effective way to bring fresh air in – especially if you are utilizing your ventilation fans properly. The fans will draw the bad air out and the fresh air coming in will replace it. In areas that have more extreme temperatures a mechanical solution might be needed. This is basically a fan that brings air into the home. We have written many post about fresh air and you can learn more by reading through them. One large caution is in areas that frequently have forest fires or consistently bad outdoor air quality. In these cases, some type of filtration might be necessary for the air coming into the home. 

3. Filtration

For homes that have central heating/cooling systems, making sure your air filters are changed on a regular basis can have a big impact. Filters typically have a MERV rating. The higher the MERV rating the more pollutants it filters. A typical furnace filter is about a MERV8 which is effective for filtering out general pollutants including pollen and mold spores. A higher MERV rating will filter out more pollutants but be sure to consult your furnace manufacturer to see what it is rated for. You can read more about filters in our post – The Air Filter Debate – Is Too Much Too Much? The next time you check your filters (or your HVAC technician does), take a look at how dirty they are, and then realize that if the filters weren’t in place, you probably would be breathing that.

4. Remove

Ever walk into a laundry room and immediately are hit with a chemical smell that almost knocks you out? That is because the items you are storing in there are releasing contaminates that are just not good for you to be breathing. We already talked about using ventilation fans to take those contaminates out, but an even more effective solution is to store them outside of the living area if possible. We understand that it is not always possible or feasible to store these outside of the home but the more you can remove, the better your IAQ will be. 

5. Resist

Resist the temptation to utilize air fresheners and candles. These are effective at replacing the odors in the home with better smells but at what cost? No matter what type of candle you use, it will be releasing carcinogens of some type into the air. In the same way, almost all air fresheners (especially the more popular brands) are going to put chemicals into the air that are just not good for you. A good way to think about this is if you are trying produce the cleanest, purest air possible do you want to remove all the “bad” things or keep adding more things to it? Now before you go and tackle the next person in your house that tries to light a candle or excommunicate your kids because they sprayed an air freshener (okay that might be a little extreme), take a deep breath. If you are going to us candles make sure you are using them in a well-ventilated room (goes back to our first point) and use them for a limited time. Taking a bath with a candle or two lit in a bathroom with a properly functioning exhaust fan can be a good balance. 

For more information about how to improve your indoor air quality we suggest reading through the other Air King blog posts on related topics.

The Air Exchange is Now Open

As we welcome a new year, 2020 will go down in history as a one that most of us will want to forget ever happen. Words such as Quarantining, Social Distancing, Contact Tracing, Viral Load, and more are ones that we hope in the near future we will never need to hear again. But 2020 wasn’t all bad as we were able to bring some good words and phrases to the forefront - words such as Indoor Air Quality (IAQ), Air Exchange, Air Filtration and more. 2020 provided an opportunity to take a good long look at our living environment.

While Indoor Air Quality is not a new concept, it is gaining a lot of attention and will have lasting positive effects moving forward. Professionals in the HVAC and air movement industry have been working to improve IAQ for decades. Items such as better filtration in HVAC systems, more effective exhaust fans in the home, using range hoods and more have all contributed to a better living space. Now we are seeing and realizing that proper ventilation can play an important role in our overall health.

IMPORTANT NOTE: While studies are finding that a properly ventilated area (home, office, store, etc.) reduces the spread of viruses, it is not a magic solution that will 100% prevent it. It should be used as one part of a multi-part solution.

One aspect of proper ventilation is Air Exchange. First, let's define what air exchange is. Well, it’s fairly self-explanatory – it is exchanging the air inside a home/building with air outside the building. Good air in, bad air out. The complicated part is how do we do this and how do we do this efficiently and effectively. The American Society of Heating, Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) recommends 0.35 air exchanges per hour. Let's take a closer look at that number. If you have a 1,000 square foot home with 8 foot ceilings, that is a total of 8,000 cubic feet of air inside your home (for you engineers out there – yes the number will be considerably less than that because of walls, furniture, appliances and so forth – but just go with us on this for now). Take the 8,000 ft3 and times it by 0.35 and you get 2,800 (the quantity of air you need to move out of the home per hour). Now divide that by 60 (60 minutes in an hour) and you get 47. So to exchange the air at the rate ASHRAE recommends you should have an exhaust fan running at 47 cubic feet per minute (CFM) at all times. ASHRAE refers to this as continuous ventilation. Now, back to the engineers and numbers people out there. ASHRAE actually has a calculation for determining how much ventilation you need. Air King has a calculator at www.airkinglimited.com/ashrae622 where you can input your information to properly calculate how much ventilation you need.

Now that we have how much air we need to take out of the home, we can concentrate on how much air we need to bring into the home. Using our example, the easy answer is 47 CFM and that would be accurate. The challenge comes in how we bring that air into the home. Many homes will have what is referred to as natural air infiltration. The average person knows these as drafts. This is air coming into the home without any outside forces working on it. With newer “tighter” homes drafts are greatly reduced so a different solution is needed to bring fresh air in. The simplest way is to open a door or window. While very effective, there are two challenges with this approach. First, this will only work in mild climates. If you live in Minnesota, you are not opening a window in February. The same holds true in Texas during the summer months. The second challenge is you can’t be sure the air you are bringing in is any better than the air already in the home. If you live in an area with high pollution rates or bad air quality, not exactly what you want to bring in. The best solution is to control as many factors as you can. Adding an air intake fan such as the Air King Fresh Air Series will bring controlled and filtered air into the home/building. You now control how much air comes in and can ensure that it is filtered. In more extreme climates using an ERV or HRV is another great solution as these are designed to bring fresh, filtered air in while reducing the strain on your HVAC system.

The main point of all this is that we need to pay a lot more attention to the IAQ of our homes and working spaces than we have in the past. Having a viable solution to exchange the air is a great starting point and a major component of an overall strategy. To learn more about fresh air intake as well as ERV and HRV solutions, visit www.airkinglimited.com

Spring Cleaning Ventilation Checklist

The birds are chirping, its staying light a little longer, the temperature is climbing.... It can only mean one thing - Spring is here!

Spring marks the traditional time of the year to open the windows, air out the house and take care of those once a year cleaning projects. Most people have their standard checklists that probably include items such as cleaning windows, gutters and other items around the house that couldn’t be done during the winter months.

Those are all great and need to be done, but there are a few other things around the house that could use a little attention. When is the last time you did any maintenance to your ventilation systems? You exhaust fans provide a crucial function to the indoor air quality (IAQ) of your home. That is why it is important to keep them running properly. Here are a few tips to consider:

1. Clean your fans. ALWAYS FOLLOW THE MANUFACTURERS RECOMMENDATIONS FOR CLEANING AND TURN OFF THE POWER TO THE UNIT BEFORE STARTING. Most exhausts fans have grills that can be removed and washed with soap and water (As long as there are no electronics in the grill). The interior of the fan can either be wiped with a dry cloth or vacuumed. You might be a little surprised how much dust and dirt can build up in your fan. The good news is that means the fan is working. All that dust is going up into the fan instead of being breathed in by you.
2. Actually make sure your exhaust fans are working. Do a walk-through of your home and make sure the fans are operation correctly. Do they turn on? Are they making loud noises? Does it seem to be moving air?
3. Is anything stuck in your ductwork? Inspect the wall or roof cap where the air is exhausted out of for build up of dirt, debris, bird’s nests or anything else that would cause the air not to flow freely. Always use caution and take the proper safety steps when using a ladder or when up on a roof.
4. For range hoods, make sure the grease filters are clean and in good repair. This should actually be done 3 or 4 times a year. If you haven’t been doing it, now is a great time to start that cleaning schedule.

For more information about cleaning, maintaining and troubleshooting your exhaust fans and range hoods visit the FAQ section at www.airkinglimited.com

Getting Particular About Particulate Matter

If you have done any research into indoor air quality, you might have come upon the term Particulate Matter (PM). No it is not the stuff that runs the hyper drive of the spaceship in the latest sci-fi thriller. It is defined as “the sum of all solid and liquid particles suspended in air, many of which are hazardous. This complex mixture contains for instance dust, pollen, soot, smoke, and liquid droplets.¹” With that definition, we might prefer the spaceship thing.

Unfortunately our living environment is filled with particulate matter but there are a few things we can do to reduce its impact on us. Basically there are two types of Particulate Matter  naturally occurring (pollen for instance) and man made (like smoke from cooking). Particulate Matter is measured in microns. One micron is one millionth of a meter. A human hair is about 60 microns. A good strategy against Particulate Matter is Identify, Avoid, and Reduce.

The first thing you need to do is identify where the Particulate Matter is coming from. Some are simple to identify such as smoking. Without having to make a public health announcement, I think we can all agree that smoking is not “good” for our health. Some other sources are not as noticeable. Did you know that your kitchen is one of the larges sources for Particulate Matter in you home? During the cooking process, Particulate Matter is released in the form of smoke, grease, and gas (for gas cook tops). If not contained, these pollutants can go right into the air you are breathing.

Once you can identify the sources, avoid them as much as you can. Now we are not suggesting that you should lock yourself in an airtight chamber from spring until fall because there might be pollen in the air, just look for some things you might be able to avoid in your everyday life. When we can’t avoid them, we should look to reduce them.

A big way to reduce Particulate Matter is through filtration. Going back to the kitchen, the easiest and most effective way to reduce Particulate Matter in the home is through a range hood that exhausts to the outside. This takes the Particulate Matter directly out of the living environment before it can be breathed in. Another way is to filter air coming into the home. Many new homes now have some type of outdoor air device installed that brings fresh air from the outside into the home to exchange with the stale air in the home (like the Air King QFAM). These devices can be fitted with air filters (like on your HVAC system) that can filter out microns down to 2.5.

To learn more about kitchen range hoods, fresh air filtration and the codes that are currently in place for reducing Particulate Matter visit www.airkinglimited.com

¹ source: www.greenfacts.org