Healthy HVAC: What You Need to Know

Improved Ventilation, UV Light Air Sanitizers and Even a New Air Filter Can Make a Difference in your HVAC System

With so much in the news lately, it can be difficult to keep up with the latest instructions to maintain safety in both the home and workplace. We get asked quite a bit about the guidelines for best practices when it comes to heating and air conditioning systems.

Understanding the issues surrounding HVAC is essential in any discussion of public health. First, it deserves to be said: this is not like the movie “Outbreak.” In one memorable scene from that film, Dustin Hoffman’s character shouts, “it’s airborne!” and the camera pans to the air vents in the hospital. It’s a cinematic moment scary enough to send any heating and air conditioning professional running for the concession stand. Luckily, as per all the published research, today’s HVAC challenges are not nearly as dire. While measles is an airborne illness that spreads quite easily through air conditioning systems, the evidence is equivocal when it comes to illness transmission through HVAC in our current crisis. It does happen, but not to the degree it can with other common scourges.

Luckily, there are also solutions, including improved ventilation, frequently changed air filters and even UV light air sanitization where necessary. Read more, below.

Improve airflow

Check vents and registers throughout your home or commercial building to make sure they’re open and working.  A sofa pushed against the wrong wall or a few boxes covering an air register can block airflow and decrease healthy ventilation. Simply turning on ceiling fans can also help. Consider scheduling a routine HVAC maintenance call to ensure your system has no ductwork blockages or other issues preventing air exchange with the outside as your system cycles on and off throughout the day. Open a window where possible, and even a door if necessary to ensure that airflow is continuous and there’s plenty of ventilation.

Change air filters

While we’ve discussed the importance of changing your air filters many times in this space, it took the wild times of 2020 to find yet another reason to recommend doing so as frequently as necessary. The fact is that dirty air filters don’t trap as much debris, bacteria and indeed, viruses as clean ones. The good news is that air filters are relatively inexpensive, and easily swapped out. Make sure you stay up to date on regularly scheduled maintenance and these vital elements of a healthy HVAC system.

Sanitize your air with UV light

UV light technology has never been more relevant to the HVAC industry than it is in 2020. With multiple options for both home and commercial applications of this virus-destroying technique, ask your HVAC professional for information on how this may be an important upgrade for your home or workplace.

At Air-Tro, we care about your health and ours, not only as professionals but also as members of the community we proudly serve. Please don’t hesitate to call us for expert advice and up-to-date information on the ways we can help you create and maintain healthy indoor comfort not only today, but in the years to come.

 

Call Air-Tro today for all your heating and air conditioning needs. We’ve been keeping the San Gabriel Valley comfortable since 1969! (626) 357-3535.