Is a Whole House Air Purifier Worth It?

For those with allergies, asthma, and other respiratory conditions, a whole-house air purifier can be a great investment. This system helps reduce symptoms by removing pollutants from the air. When it comes to improving indoor air quality, you have two options: a portable air purifier or a whole-house system. If you have a duct network and forced air system, a whole-house system is the way to go.

Homes with radiant heat and without air conditioning will need to resort to autonomous models. Whole-house air purifiers can also extend the life of your HVAC system by reducing the amount of dust moving through it. This will result in greater long-term efficiency, so be sure to maintain its maintenance throughout the year. When it comes to cleaning the air in a single room in your house, a portable air purifier is enough.

But if you want to improve indoor air quality throughout your home, a whole-house air cleaner or air purification system can clean the air as it passes through your home's HVAC system. This will remove air pollutants throughout your home. While a single whole-house air purifier can clean your entire home, it can't match the hourly air change rate (ACH) of a portable air purifier in a given room. For example, if you buy an APCO duct-based air purifier, it removes odors, gases and particles before they spread into your home.

Your oven filter is there to protect you from dust and dirt, not to improve indoor air. On the other hand, if your HVAC or whole-house purifier malfunctions, you could end up with no clean air throughout the house. In addition, this model only filters moving air, such as when the heater or air conditioner is operating (although most HVAC systems have a “fan on” mode that maintains air flow through the ducts even when the heater or air conditioner is not working). When it comes to residential air purifiers, the EPA says: “The most effective air purifiers, those with high air flow rates and efficient pollutant capture systems, are generally the most expensive.

Obviously, unlike whole-house air purifiers, room air purifiers clean the air in one or two rooms, rather than entire houses. The main concern regarding the effectiveness of air purification throughout the home is the question of whether enough “dirty” air is actually introduced into the system to provide effective air cleaning. If your home has a duct system but doesn't have HVAC, you can get a standalone air purifier that connects to the inlet of your duct system and draws air in and out of your home through your air cleaning unit. I am of the opinion that advanced photocatalytic oxidation air purifiers are among the most useful types of air purifiers overall.

I think the most important benefit of whole house air purifiers is that they provide clean air throughout the house with a single device. If you want to do your best, there are units with multiple filters to capture particles in the air, plus an activated carbon filter to eliminate odors. A return air system is installed where air from the house is returned to the oven, before it is heated or cooled. Compared to portable air purifiers, whole house air purifiers are the best choice if you want discreet and quiet air cleaning.Combining that with a ventilation system and an AprilAire media air filter, you will not only continuously move air throughout the house and throughout the system, but you will also clean it and not just recycle it.

If you're thinking about air purification because you or someone you live with has asthma, you can put a personal air purifier in the room where the person with asthma sleeps.