The air in your home may seem clean, but there are tiny irritants floating around that could aggravate your allergies or bother your lungs when you have a respiratory condition. Dust, dust mites, pet dander, hairs, pollen, allergens, mold, bacteria, and viruses are some of the things that can float in the air and make you sick or bother your allergies. An air cleaner could make a difference in your home's air quality. You can buy portable air purifiers, but if you run your HVAC during many months of the year, you can have an air cleaner added that works as long as your HVAC blower runs. Here are some options in home air cleaners.

A Media Filter Traps Tiny Particles

The filter that you change monthly does a good job of trapping large dust particles, but those types of filters are often too big to catch tiny irritants. You can buy a pleated allergy filter for your HVAC, but these can restrict airflow too much, so you may want to talk to your HVAC contractor if you want to switch to something other than the recommended filter. A better solution is to have the HVAC technician install a filter in the return air duct of your home that's capable of cleaning out smaller particles on a continuous basis. These filters need to be fitted into an air duct, so they require professional installation.

The filters are similar to the filter that you change monthly except these are much thicker and they do a more thorough job of removing irritants. These media filters last longer than a standard HVAC filter, but you'll still need to replace the filter on schedule to keep the air in your home clean.

You can buy specialty media filters depending on your budget and preference. Some have charcoal filters, and these are useful if odors are a problem in your home. Others have an electrostatic charge that helps pull particles out of the air.

An Electronic Air Cleaner Pulls Particles From The Air

An electronic air cleaner works continuously as long as the HVAC blower is in operation, and it is placed in the return air duct by your HVAC technician. It has a filter that can be washed and cleaned, so you can save money on replacement costs. These filters work by charging particles in the air and then pulling the particles toward the filter. Some older models produced excess ozone during this process. Ozone can be a lung irritant, so if you decide to buy an electronic air cleaner, make sure the model you buy doesn't produce ozone.

Air cleaners for home use often just filter out particulates and allergens, but you can also have a UV light added that kills bacteria and viruses. A combination of different cleaners such as a UV light, charcoal filter, and HEPA filter might be needed if you have lung disease and are concerned about clean air for health reasons. Your HVAC technician can help you select the right air cleaner and teach you how to maintain it so the air quality in your home improves.

Contact a service, like L&L Heating and Air Conditioning, will help.