If you’re looking for ways to improve your home’s indoor air quality, you’re not alone. After all, nobody wants to breathe dirty air. However, many homeowners seem to believe that improving air quality comes at the cost of higher HVAC operating expenses. There are plenty of ways to improve indoor air quality while reducing your HVAC costs. Here are some expert recommendations.
Install a Whole-Home Dehumidifier
Maintaining the proper humidity level in your home is a key part of ensuring high air quality. Ideally, you always want your home’s humidity between 30% and 50%. In this part of the country, however, high indoor humidity is common. To correct that, you can install a whole-home dehumidifier. It works in tandem with your AC or on its own to keep your indoor humidity within the right range.
You may not realize it, but high humidity forces your AC to work harder. There are multiple reasons why. One is that humid air makes you feel hotter than the air temperature suggests, boosting AC demand. The other is that your AC removes moisture from the air as it works. Excess humidity can reduce the heat transfer efficiency of your AC’s evaporator coil. That forces your system to run for longer to reach your desired temperature.
Install an Extended Media Filter
Some homeowners try to improve their indoor air quality by increasing the MERV rating of their HVAC air filter. Unfortunately, an HVAC air filter isn’t there to keep your air clean. It’s there to keep dust out of your HVAC’s inner workings. If you install a filter with a MERV rating that’s too high, you can restrict airflow through your HVAC system. That creates unnecessary wear and tear and harms system efficiency.
As an alternative, you can install an extended media filter. They get installed in your HVAC return duct and will improve your indoor air quality without affecting HVAC airflow or efficiency. They also keep even more dust out of your HVAC system, improving its longevity.
Install an Energy Recovery Ventilator
Finally, inadequate ventilation is one of the most frequent causes of poor indoor air quality. However, opening your doors and windows to get some fresh air risks wasting energy. Instead, you can have an energy recovery ventilator (ERV) installed. ERVs bring in fresh air from outside, while transferring heat and humidity from your home’s air. They can help you reduce the air pollution in your home without wasting conditioned air.
Now you know that your home can have clean, fresh air without harming HVAC efficiency. However, not every home needs all the solutions mentioned above. So, contact Integrity Home Solutions for an indoor air quality assessment in Tampa, FL, today to see which solutions are right for you.