LESLIE: Now we’ve got Brenda in Illinois who’s got an HVAC question. What’s going on?
BRENDA: I have an excessive amount of dust and lint that comes out of my vents when the furnace is running?
TOM: OK. Yep.
BRENDA: It’s the heat pump that we have. The heat pump is two years old. So I’d like to know, is there anything that you would suggest that we might need to look into?
TOM: Yeah, I think the reason that this is happening is because you don’t have an adequate filtration system on your heating-and-cooling system. What kinds of filters do you have on this, Brenda? Do you know?
BRENDA: The name of it is Air Bear Supreme Media. We change these about every four to six months.
TOM: What’s happening here is the dust and the dirt that’s circulating in your house is forming in your house. And what happens is it’s not getting collected by the filter. The filters could be improperly installed, there could be gaps where the air is getting around them.
What you really should think about doing is installing an electronic air cleaner. This is an appliance that fits into the return-duct side of the HVAC system. It’s an appliance; it’s not just a fiber filter or a mesh filter. It’s an actual appliance and it is very effective at taking out 99-percent plus of the airborne contaminants. I mean these things are so good today, they can come out – they can take out virus-size particles.
You could take a look at two brands that we can recommend. One is Aprilaire.
BRENDA: OK.
TOM: That’s April – a-i-r-e. And the other air cleaner is Trane CleanEffects. Those are two highly rated, very efficient electronic air cleaners that I think will make a world of difference for you in cutting down on the dust that you’re seeing. I just don’t think your filtration system is working properly.
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