furnace add-ons to improve home air quality - indoor air purifier

When considering the indoor air quality, we should think of the stove and the central air conditioner.
After all, every cubic foot of air in the House will eventually be absorbed through these systems.
And changed by this process.
Air mixes, filters, and redirects, and becomes hotter or colder, wetter or drier, cleaner or dirtier than before.
Handle your indoor air when it passes through forced air
The air system pipeline is not a new idea.
Most stoves have been built.
A humidifier is equipped in dust filters and some.
However, the latest filter is more effective than the standard model, adding or upgrading the humidifier is an easy way to enhance comfort and health.
In addition to these two components, we include something new --
A pair of UV probes designed to kill mold and bacteria. Ultraviolet (UV)
For years, lights have been used to kill bacteria in hospitals and municipal water supply systems, so they should also work at home.
The project was originally published in Popular Mechanics in September 2001.
You can find more great projects in the popular mechanical DIY center.
The standard disposable filter captures only the largest particles in the air and allows any particles less than 10 to 20 microns to pass through. (
As a reference point, the diameter of a person's hair is about 100 microns. )
Fungi can be as small as 0.
5 microns and bacteria 0. 3 microns.
The smoke particles are as small as 0. 01 microns.
The big gun for dust and allergen control is accordion-style paper (media)
Filter and electronic air purifier.
Either of them can be installed where the standard filter is found, but the support frame is larger --about 5 to8 in. wide.
In modifications like ours, this means re-processing the sheet metal that connects to the vertical return
Under the air of the stove. A media filter (
About $250, uninstall)
It is a popular choice for allergic patients.
Pollen can be as small as 6 microns and culture media filters can capture 6-99% of pollen
Micron and larger particles plus about 65% of 1-
Micron-grade particles
Interestingly, paper filters become more effective when they are full of dust.
They will capture 1-82% in six months
Micron-grade particles
Maintenance includes replacement of inserts (about $28)each year.
Electronic air purifiers are a bit complicated because they need 120
Volt socket within 3 feet.
A stove that provides electricity.
The air purifier's battery with a collection board then needs to be cleaned once a month instead of replacing the filter every year.
The work is easy, and the size of the cells is suitable for the dishwasher, but it is still a chore.
These devices produce a small amount of ozone, which is itself an irritating substance.
However, this amount is far below the Environmental Protection Agency's restrictions.
So, why choose the electronic air purifier?
Because they capture more tiny particles.
Those that precipitate the deepest in our lungs may be the most harmful.
The electronic air purifier captures 0 particles of 70%.
Size is 3 microns.
For this granularity, this is 4 to 5 times more efficient than the media filter.
The Cabinet of the electronic air purifier contains two metal pre-filters for pet hair and large dust particles, as well as two electronic batteries.
Cell contains high-voltage/low-
An ampere wire that passes through all the particles near them.
This charge causes the particles to stick to a row of metal plates with positive electricity behind the wires, and they will not stay there until you wash them off.
The equipment we're installing-
Honeywell Enviracaire elite, model F300 (c.
2001, unloading about $520).
Humidity has a lot to do with indoor air quality and comfort.
Humidity over the assembly corrupts windows and walls, causing mold and fungal growth.
Excessive humidity is a health problem, but the opposite is true of extreme conditions.
Too little humidity-
Below 20%-
Our skin breaks and our respiratory system dries, causing infection.
Wet air also feels warmer than dry air, so you can lower the thermostat and lower the cost of energy.
Traditional stove
The mounted humidifier has a drum covered with a foam rubber pad.
The bottom of the drum rotates through the reservoir and the air moving on the drum absorbs some water.
The units do a good job, but the water standing in the reservoir can be stagnant, so it needs to be dealt with regularly.
The type we choose is Bypass, traffic-
Through the humidifier (
Honeywell Enviracaire Elite, HE225 model, about $225, not installed c. 2001).
It uses a textured aluminum plate coated with absorbent clay instead of a reservoir.
This coating has an antibacterial effect and can therefore prevent the growth of bacteria, mold and algae.
The air moving on this piece of paper absorbs some water and the excess is about 3 gallons.
Send to nearby floor drain every hour.
This may seem like an inefficient mechanism, but it is a great way to get moisture while leaving minerals and microorganisms behind.
About once a year, you need to replace the aluminum/clay core.
These UV devices are very simple.
They are made up of plastic bases mounted on pipes for 120-
Volt socket, indicator light and UV tube.
There is a flexible gasket on the back of the base to prevent harmful UV leakage.
The two optical probes we use are similar in structure but have different functions.
The longer probe installed in the return pipe is intended to kill air-borne bacteria in the system.
The other is installed in a static pressure box, focusing on a sticky mold that grows in the air
Air conditioning evaporator coil.
These molds produce allergic reactions and they are responsible for the "dirty socks" smell that is common in air conditioning.
While the lights last three to four years, they lose about 10% of their efficiency per month, so you need to replace the bulbs once a year.
It takes about $100 to replace the tube.
Light in return-
Duct should be used continuously, but only in air-
Conditioning season.
We chose Honeywell Enviracaire Elite UV light (
Models UV100E1001 and UV100E1027).
We bought two units for about $815. 2001.
Install our wider range of electronic air
We need to replace the cleaner housing. Return to pipe works. Factory-made, return-
Plumbing components are available in the home center.
If you decide to install professionally, the cost can be between $200 and $300.
First, turn off the power of the stove.
Look for the toggle switch on the nearby wall, or look for the fuse switch on the side of the furnace cabinet.
Remove the furnace front panel and fiberglass filter.
Then, check.
Returns sheet metal.
This sheet metal box is made up of three or four parts, connected togetherlocks. An S-
Make the lock by bending 3 Pax 8-in.
Fold along the end of the mating box.
The fold is then pulled together by a curved sheet metal strip called a drive.
Bend the end of the existing drive straight and use pliers to pull each drive out of the lock.
If you are going to replace the whole return down, start near the top and work down.
When the upper part is separated and removed, enter and straighten back the label on the connecting flange and pull the lower box away (Photo 1).
If you only need to replace this lower box, place the above part in the appropriate position and adjust the new box according to them.
Using tin scissors, trim off the sufficient width of the new carriage return box to fit the width of the air purifier (Photo 1).
L-with prefabrication-
Flange, called vertical S-cleats.
Slide the fold of each piece over the edge of the box so that the flange is oriented inward (Photo 2).
Then, screw or blind rivets
The splint on the box.
Set the frame of the air purifier on the new return box and use self-Self-tapping screws (Photo 3).
Then, set the air-
The cleaner frame opposite the side of the furnace cabinet and twist the frame to the furnace cabinet (Photo 4).
If the existing cabinet opening is much smaller than the air purifier, expand the opening as needed. With the air-
A cleaner frame is installed and the return box is partially rebuilt one by one.
If necessary, start by expanding the opening in the horizontal retracement of the overhead --air trunk.
Hold down the prefabricated faucet at the opening (Photo 5)
And use the flangetapping screws.
Finally, connect the tap to the returnbox with a pre-made sheet metal section.
You need to cut the last part.
Measure the opening and add 3 ÷ 8.
To report the news-lock fold.
Slightly chamfer, fold using a manual tailor or folding tool.
Done by drawing the section with the drive.
Bend each drive at one end and hit the fold with a hammer.
Install air-
Cleaning components (Photo 6)
And add the cover.
The UV light comes with a paper template to help you arrange openings in your next return trip and static press box.
Start with the return light-
Air side, tape the template to the front of the lower box, about 40 in. off the floor.
Mark through the template and drive the old screwdriver into the sheet metal to start drilling.
Finish the opening with tin cut, with 1 ⁄ 8-in. bit (Photo 1).
Twist the lamp holder on the box (Photo 2).
Then slide the UV tube into the base, twist it clockwise and lock it in place (Photo 3).
It's more challenging to find stress-filled lights.
Mold is harder to kill than bacteria, so you need light to cover the whole air
Air conditioning coil.
We removed an old patch from the front of the ventilation room to locate the top of the coil.
If you can't get in easily, the position is as high as possible. Flow-
It is usually installed on the return trip through the humidifier-
Air drop box and connect to warm-
Air supply pipe with 6-in. vent pipe.
Mark the rectangular opening with a humidifier template, make the starter hole, and cut the opening with a tin cut (Photo 1).
Position the shell on the opening and the bottom label is on the lower edge of the opening.
Level the shell and screw it to the sheet metal with your own screwsSelf-tapping screws (Photo 2). Next, cut a 6-in.
Open in supply-side duct. Insert a 6-in.
The collar and fold the label to lock it in place.
If your stove is air-conditioned, the collar needs to have a baffle that can be turned off every summer.
With the collar of the baffle, attach an adjustable elbow and align it with the humidifier (Photo 3).
Connect the pipe to the humidifier, install the second elbow and fix all joints with screws (Photo 4).
Connect with sheet metal, connect water-
Feeding tube for humidifier pad assembly (Photo 5)
And push the component into the shell.
As for the connection of water, you need to decide whether to tap on the hot side or cold side of the water system.
Hot water improves the efficiency of the humidifier by about 10%, but it will flush out the water you use to heat it.
In any case, install a faucet on a nearby water pipe and then run the 1 ⁄ 4-in.
Copper pipe between faucet and humidifier.
Slide the compression nut and sleeve on each end and bend the tube to meet the fitting.
On the humidifier, coat the sleeve with a pipe paint and screw the nut to the solenoid valve of the equipment (Photo 6).
Make a similar connection at the Saddle faucet and tighten the nut (Photo 7).
Then install the humidifier cover (Photo 8). Run low-voltage, two-
Wire and Cable from humidifier to furnace cabinet and from stove to humidistat.
The exact wiring method will vary depending on the stove.
Some systems have humidifier faucets and some do not.
If you do not see the patch panel marked with the humidifier faucet, you need to connect to the wiring of the blower according to the manufacturer's instructions.
To power the unit, install the transformer on the side of the furnace and connect the low power
Voltage wires for two external terminals.
Done by connecting the cable to the ahumidistat of the adjacent room and connecting the wire to the wire using the twist connector (Photo 9).