If you live in a newly built home in Columbia, it was likely constructed with energy efficiency at the top of the list. This means increased insulation and windows and doors with enhanced seals. While these enhancements are good for keeping your heating and cooling costs economical, they’re not so good for your indoor air quality.

Your HVAC system needs to operate with a filter. But if you have a flat filter, you won’t be receiving ample filtration. This model only delivers the smallest amount of protection by keeping dust out of your heating and cooling system.

While you can get a pleated filter or one with a higher 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 comes in. These systems are attached within ductwork to provide effective filtration around your residence. Depending on the kind you go with, 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, delivers the best filtration. These filters were first created to shield scientists as they worked on the atomic bomb. Today, they’re a staple in hospitals and other medical buildings.

The Healthy Climate HEPA Filtration System includes a three-step filtration process. A prefilter attracts bigger irritants before the HEPA filter captures remaining miniscule pollutants. Then, a charcoal filter wipes out odors and chemical vapors.

The PureAir™ S Air Purification System works with all HVAC brands and easily connects with your smart home. It reduces the three major varieties 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, such as mold spores, pollen, dust and pet dander. It’s also effective at decreasing or eradicating 90%¹ of flu and cold viruses under certain airflow conditions. And, based on laboratory and field studies, it removes and eliminates approximately 50% of residential odors and chemical vapors within 24 hours.

The PureAir S is equipped with sensing features that make it simple to maintain. When linked with an iComfort® S30 smart thermostat, you’ll receive an alert to install a new filter and UVA light.² This home air purifier must be installed with communicating Lennox systems and the iComfort S30.

2. Media Air Cleaners

Lennox Healthy Climate® Media Air Cleaners come in in a variety of MERV ratings to work with your needs. This rating calculates how good filters are at trapping contaminants. The better the number, the better the filtration.

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

The Healthy Climate 13 Media Air Cleaner is recommended for homes who desire better protection from viruses and bacteria. This filter traps 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 a fantastic air purifier for allergies and in houses with pets. It catches more than 87% of bigger particles down to 3 microns and more than 28% of smaller ones down to 0.3 microns.⁴ It’s able to offer this strong filtration without increasing the cost of turning on your HVAC system.

These three media air cleaners can be used with any brand of HVAC system. Regardless, it’s essential to realize that some of the denser ones, such as MERV 16 and 13, may restrict your system’s airflow. This can hike up your heating and cooling expenses.

3. UV Air Purifiers

The sun’s UV rays are the fault of why you get a stinging sunburn. But this wavelength of light has a beneficial application when concealed inside your ductwork. It’s also powerful enough to eliminate germs, mold and fungi under certain airflow conditions.

In actuality, the Healthy Climate UV Germicidal Light can lower the concentration of airborne microorganisms by 50% in as fast as 45 minutes.⁵ This light damages cell structure, which stops these microorganisms from growing and moving around your residence.

And this UV air purifier can also help keep your home comfort system clean and operating efficiently. It wipes out of germs, mold and fungi hiding inside ductwork and your system itself. This UV light air purifier does all these tasks without developing lung-inflaming ozone.⁶

Breathe Easier with the Help of Our Air Purification Pros

Your family’s comfort and health is our top priority at Watts Electric & AC. We are aware there are many solutions out there. That’s why we make it simple to partner with our indoor air quality professionals. We specialize in making solutions that fit your needs and budget, and we’d love to find out more about your residence and your air quality challenges. Reach us at 601-736-7362 now 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.