Air Filters for House - Which Type is Best for Your Home?

There are many problems that you can encounter with your heating and cooling system, otherwise known as heating, ventilation, and air conditioning, or HVAC.  The most expensive problems can be as a result of the filter or fins becoming clogged.  When these are clogged, your unit continues to run, but the air flow is restricted from the clog, so little air gets through.  That will cost you money because it decreases the efficiency of the unit and makes the unit stay on longer to do its job properly.

You can easily prevent these types of clogs by changing the filter regularly, before clogging has a chance to occur.  There are three basic types of filters that you can purchase: fiberglass, pleated paper, and electrostatic. 

Most often you’ll find these in a blue color and they’re a woven fiberglass material.  These are the least expensive filters that you can buy, and often times they are even cheaper if bought in bulk.  Just like with many things, though, you get what you pay for and the result of buying the cheapest filters is that you will replace them more frequently.  This type of filter will filter out the debris that could damage your unit, but that’s about it.  Large dust, mold, mildew, toxins – they all still get through, so you have to keep that in mind.  If your windows are open a lot then it may not matter anyway because even a high-tech filter would have a hard time improving the air quality in your home. 

 These are the best type of filter that you can get, especially if there is someone in your home that suffers from allergies.  Electrostatic filters can get rid of smoke residue, many allergens, and other agents that can trigger asthma attacks or other symptoms.  These, of course, are the most expensive type of filter that you can buy, often costing at least $20.  The downside to these is that you can’t expect to start using one and have clean air instantly. To get the effect that these filters provide, your system needs to be used a lot.  You would benefit even more by using something to purify the air that will supplement your HVAC, like a portable air purifier in one or more rooms in your room.