UV lights for air cleaning

Americans are growing more conscious about healthy indoor air

and with good reason. Indoor air can be close to 100% more polluted than outdoor air - and since we spend a great deal of our lives...first indoors at schools, then indoors at work...it is important to be breathing safe air.

While larger buildings - such as those that house schools and major corporations have indoor air quality standards that are regulated by the federal government, your home can be just as polluted.

To avoid breathing contaminated air in the home, the heating and cooling industry has developed several ways of dealing with cleaning indoor air. Indoor air quality can be regulated by a couple different means. All air systems use some kind of filter to prevent the re-circulation of dust particles from the home, back into the home through the air conditioning or heating. However, there are different tiers of quality of these filters. The basic filters pretty much catch only large particles.

If the air quality in your home isn't good enough - if family members are having difficulties breathing, or you would like more protection, there are some other filter options. An electrostatic filter catches smaller dust and pollen particles because it has an electric charge running through the filter. These filters are washable, so in three months, you just wash and dry the filter and re-install it.

Filters aside, some homeowners are turning to new air system technology to prevent mold or bacteria in their systems. A popular and up-coming addition to HVAC systems are UV lights placed near the coil or in the duct-work to kill any germs and prevent mold and mildew. For the time being, the cost is a little high (as this is new technology) but the results are so encouraging that with a little more product development, these lights may be common place in houses in a couple of years.

One company, working out of Orland Park, Illinois has already began product development to kill more bacteria and more efficiently utilize the UV lights in a HVAC system. This company is also determined to make their product "green" and avoiding chemicals that might harm the environment. For these reasons, this company is quickly becoming a viable option for homeowners (or businesses looking to comply with EPA standards) to keep their home (or office space) germ free and comfortable.

Source: http://www.azonano.com/news.asp?newsID=5812 last access 3/25/09.