Indoor Air Quality Accessories That Can Help Keep You Healthy

Indoor air accessories can make a real difference, but none of them does everything. The right choice depends on what is wrong in your home: too much moisture, too little, dust, smoke, odors, or air that has gone stale. Name the problem first, then pick the tool built for it.

In the Tri-Cities the problems are fairly predictable. Winters get dry once the furnace is running, summers bring fine dust off the desert, and late-summer wildfire smoke can leave a house smelling like a campfire for days. Here is what the common accessories do and where each one falls short.

Humidity: dehumidifiers and humidifiers

A dehumidifier pulls moisture out of the air. Our climate is dry, so most living areas do not need one, but damp basements, crawlspaces and laundry rooms can, and moisture there feeds mold and that musty smell.

A humidifier does the opposite and earns its keep in winter, when dry air causes static shocks, scratchy throats and cracking wood trim. Go easy. Too much moisture shows up as fogged windows and damp corners, so a small humidity gauge is worth having. A whole-home unit connected to your furnace is usually a job for a licensed technician.

Filtration: filters, HEPA and electronic air cleaners

Your basic filter is the foundation. Filters carry a MERV rating, and a higher number catches smaller particles. The catch is that denser media also restricts airflow, and a blower that has to fight its filter runs hotter and works harder. Ask a technician what your system can handle before stepping up.

True HEPA filtration is excellent at trapping very fine particles, but it is usually too restrictive to drop into a standard furnace, so it shows up mostly as portable room units. Electronic air cleaners use an electrical charge to grab particles onto collector plates. They work well as long as the plates get cleaned on schedule; a dirty plate stops doing its job.

Ionic purifiers and air scrubbers

Ionic purifiers charge airborne particles so they cling to walls, furniture or a collector. Some designs can produce a small amount of ozone as a byproduct, so check what a specific unit does before you buy it. Air scrubber is a loose term for equipment installed in the ductwork that combines filtration with other treatment, so ask exactly what is inside before you pay for one.

Odors, smoke and germs

• Activated carbon adsorbs odors and some gases, which makes it the right tool for lingering smoke smell. The carbon fills up over time and has to be replaced.
• UV treatment lights installed near the indoor coil are aimed at microbes growing on wet surfaces and in passing air. They do not remove dust, pollen or smells.

Fresh air: air-to-air exchangers

Modern homes are built tight, which saves energy but also traps cooking fumes, cleaning products and carbon dioxide. An air-to-air exchanger brings outside air in while passing heat between the incoming and outgoing streams, so you ventilate without giving away all your heating or cooling. Air-Tech installs AeroBarrier air sealing in new construction, and the tighter a house gets, the more sense planned ventilation makes.

Whatever you add, plan for upkeep. Carbon media needs replacing, electronic cell plates need washing, UV bulbs lose strength over time and are usually swapped on a schedule, and a humidifier's pad or water tank needs regular attention. An accessory nobody maintains can end up doing less than a clean filter would, so ask what the yearly routine looks like before you commit.

One reminder before spending on anything: change your regular filter on time. A clogged filter undermines every accessory downstream of it.

If you are not sure which of these fits your house, Air-Tech can talk it through with you. Call (509) 392-2021 and describe what you are noticing, whether that is dry air, dust or a smell that will not leave.