Air Filtration Services
A Healthy Home begins with great Indoor Air Quality
Ever noticed that your home can actually feel hotter at night than it does during the day? While the actual temperature inside the house may not really be higher at night time, it can feel like it when the temperatures outside drop when the sun goes down. Your house and its contents spend all day absorbing the heat of a warm day and can then take a while to lose that heat.
Air Filtration Services
Attic Fan & Ventilation
Humidity Control
Duct Cleaning
Highest Quality Heat Recovery Ventilation in the Upstate SC Area
Energy Recovery Ventilation that Will Save Energy
Energy Recovery Ventilation (ERV) systems are similar to heat recovery ventilation systems, but they recycle both cool and warm air. Instead of expelling conditioned air outdoors, ERV units capture it and recirculate it within your living space, preventing wastage. These systems result in energy savings throughout the year. If you’re interested in having an ERV system installed at your property, start by calling us today.
questions? call today and schedule a service call!
Unrivaled Ultraviolet Air Cleaning
Your air conditioning system filters the air continuously, leading to moisture buildup in the vents and ductwork. This creates an ideal breeding ground for mold, mildew, bacteria, and viruses, which can reduce air quality within your home. Ultraviolet air cleaning is the most effective way to ensure air free of these contaminants. While newer HVAC units often come with this technology, owners of older systems can have standalone ultraviolet lights installed to achieve the same result.
Air Filtration Systems
The air filter in your home’s furnace, air conditioner, or HVAC System is an important but often overlooked component of the system as a whole. Though they may look like nothing more than a big box full of fibers and pleated material, air filters actually impact several crucial areas of indoor comfort and HVAC equipment performance and efficiency.
Air filtration components are critical to your home’s heating and cooling system. An air filter is generally made up of a spun fiberglass material or from pleated paper or cloth enclosed in a cardboard frame. The basic function is to clean the air that circulates through your heating and cooling system, therefore into your home. Filters trap and hold many types of particulates and even contaminants that could affect your health and comfort, including:
Dust and dirt particles
Pollen and Allergens
Mold and mold spores
Fibers and lint particles
Metal, plaster or wood particles
Hair and animal fur
Bacteria and other microorganisms
All of the air moving around in your home, the air that heats or cools your home will eventually process through the air filter in your HVAC system.
This is why it’s extremely important that you keep clean filters in your heating or cooling unit.
Dirty, or clogged air filters:
- Are a common source of HVAC system malfunctions. In more extreme cases, very dirty filters can significantly damage heating and cooling units.
- Can lessen the airflow inside the HVAC system, which can cause air-handling fans to have to work harder and therefore wear out quicker.
- Can’t perform very well to remove particulates and contaminants effectively, which allows these materials back into your indoor breathing air.
- Can cause contaminants to accumulate in the inner parts of your HVAC system’s ducts, and make it difficult to ever get the whole system pure again.
- Will cause HVAC equipment to work even harder, increasing energy usage and become costly to your monthly energy bills.
Indoor air quality frequently asked questions
What is indoor air quality?
A critical factor in good IAQ is the amount of outside air that comes into the building. The more ventilation a building has, the lower the pollutant levels, odors, temperature, and humidity there will generally be in the indoor environment.
What type of HVAC filter should I use?
HEPA filters are also extremely efficient at removing particulate matter from the air. They are capable of trapping particles as small as 0.3μm, which are known to be harmful to your lungs and overall health.
Should I have a UV light installed?
Any decision on whether to have a UV light installed will depend on health. If you or anyone in your household suffers from allergies or breathing problems, a UV light may help to reduce the concentrations of allergens in the indoor air supply.
What are the signs of low indoor air quality?
If you would like to keep track of your indoor air quality, you can invest in an IAQ sensor. This device will give you a real-time breakdown of the air that you are breathing.
What should I do if my home has poor indoor air quality?
- Change your HVAC filter
- Increase ventilation
- Check your air ducts
- Keep rugs and carpets clean
- Use a kitchen extractor fan
- Buy indoor plants to clean the air
How much ventilation does my building need?
The organization recommends that homes receive minimum ventilation of 0.35 air changes per hour and greater than 15 cubic feet of air per minute (CFM) per person. This is the minimum requirement for a healthy IAQ.
How can I control dampness in my home?
However, a dehumidifier will not fix the underlying causes of the excess humidity. If you have a terrible damp problem, you may need to call in a professional to help you troubleshoot the possible causes.
Why is indoor air quality important?
Studies carried out by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) have found that levels of pollutants found indoors can be 2-5 times higher than outdoors. In extreme cases, levels have been found to be up to 100 times higher.
Should I have my ductwork cleaned?
The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) does not recommend the routine cleaning of ducts. However, if you are concerned about the poor air quality in your home, you may want to hire a professional HVAC contractor to come and clean them.
How often should I change my HVAC filter?
Generally speaking, you should look to change a quilted filter once every 3-6 months. If you use a fiberglass filter, you should change it every 30 days.
What are volatile organic compounds (VOCs)?
VOCs are known to be responsible for causing reactions, ranging from minor respiratory complaints to serious health issues.
What are the symptoms of sick building syndrome?
The causes of SBS are generally related to poor indoor air quality, including poor ventilation, high levels of dust, the presence of mold or fungus, and tobacco smoke.
How can I tell if my house is too humid?
- Condensation build-up on windows and walls
- Damp in the basement
- Mold growth
- Poor ventilation
- Increased asthma
The Environmental Protection Agency (APA) recommends that indoor humidity is maintained at below 60 percent. When it rises above this level, health problems can occur, and damage may be done to drywall, furniture, and building materials.
questions? call today and schedule a service call!
Heat Recovery Ventilation Best Practices
Have you ever wondered what happens to the conditioned air generated by the HVAC system in your house? The truth is that most of it quickly escapes as exhaust air while it is still cold or warm. If this seems like a waste, it is because it is! The amount of conditioned air that leaves your building before can have a significant impact on your energy bill.
But what if there was a way to capture the temperature in this air and recirculate it back into the system? If this idea sounds like something that might interest you, you may want to have a look at getting a heat recovery ventilation unit installed in your house. While they do not come cheap, the overall savings they provide on energy bills may make them worth the outlay in the long run.
What Is Heat Recovery Ventilation?
Heat recovery ventilation (HRV) is the name given to an energy recovery ventilation system that is increasingly employed as a means of reducing energy and heating demand in both commercial and residential buildings. It works by recovering the heat from exhaust gas from a building’s HVAC system and using it to preheat fresh air that is sucked into the system. In effect, this gives the system a head start, allowing it to work more efficiently and saving the building owner money on energy bills.
An HRV usually consists of three elements: a core unit, ductwork ducts for fresh and exhaust air, and a blower fan. The core unit contains a heat exchanger and is attached to the building’s existing HVAC ductwork. When the heating is switched on, the heat exchanger uses the air as a heat source, which recovers between 60-95 percent of the energy contained in the system’s exhaust air.