HVAC contractors can guarantee cleaner air - Contracting Business

Posted: 31 Mar 2020 07:23 AM PDT

The coronavirus (COVID-19) is spread by person-to-person contact and coming into contact with contaminated surfaces. Coronavirus can survive on surfaces for an extended period of time.

Even the most powerful air purifiers can only capture particles as small as 0.1 microns or larger, and the vast majority of air purifiers will only capture particles 0.3 microns or larger.

Mold, pollen, and pet dander are all larger and can be caught and eliminated by a standard HEPA filter.

Viruses are roughly 100 times smaller than bacteria, and typically range from 0.004 to 0.1 microns in size. This means even the best, most efficient air filters wouldn't necessarily clear the air of viruses.

COVID-19 belongs to a family of viruses known as coronaviruses. The 2013 SARS epidemic was also caused by a coronavirus, which was 0.1 microns in size. The size of COVID-19 is approximately 0.125 microns. Even if a HEPA filter traps the virus, it won't be destroyed. Instead, it will remain alive inside the filter for as long as the virus survives. In some cases, this can be for as long as nine days.

PCO UV Lights
A PCO (photo catalytic oxidation) UV light mounted in the airstream destroys odors, bacteria, VOCs, mold, and viruses.

A PCO UV light will not only kill microbes and destroy airborne viruses, it also cleans surfaces.

UV light, particularly UVC, destroys viruses, bacteria, and mold by damaging their DNA and RNA, so they can't multiply, however, the exposure to the light isn't long enough to do so. A PCO UV light mounted in the airstream relies on creating hydrogen peroxide to clean the air and surfaces.

A catalyst in a PCO UV light reacts with moisture in the air to create hydrogen peroxide. The hydrogen peroxide created by the UV light settles on surfaces and continues to kill microbes.

Hydrogen peroxide is the safest disinfectant around. It's been used by the medical community for 170 years.

I'm not aware of a specific test on the effectiveness of UV lights on COVID-19, but PCO UV lights have been thoroughly tested and proven effective on airborne and surface bacteria and viruses like MRSA, e-coli, Norwalk virus, and SARS, (which is a coronavirus) so there's no reason to believe it won't have the same success against COVID-19 as it has with these other contaminants. I have PCO UV lights in my own home. I can get exercise induced asthma, so I kept an asthma inhaler on a table in the hallway that leads into my workout room. I was in the habit of taking a hit off it just prior to exercising as a "pre-emptive strike" against an asthma attack. I had my PCO UV lights installed in my home for a month before I realized I was no longer using the inhaler. Also, even my ex (to her bitter disappointment) came over for a visit a month after I had them installed and had to admit that the house, which didn't smell bad to begin with, smelled even better.

Ionizers
I believe the wave of the future in air purification is in ionizers. They're normally mounted on the indoor blower housing. Two advantages they have over PCO UV lights are that there is no bulb to be changed and there is absolutely no ozone. They work entirely differently from a PCO UV light. Ionizers create positive and negative ions. These ions break pollutants and gases down into harmless compounds like oxygen, carbon dioxide, nitrogen, and water vapor.

When the ions come in contact with viruses, bacteria or mold, they remove the hydrogen atoms, thereby removing the pathogens source of energy, consequently destroying them.

Ionizers create positive and negative ions. These ions break pollutants and gases down into harmless compounds like oxygen, carbon dioxide, nitrogen, and water vapor.

The ions also attach to allergens like pollen and other particles, causing them to band together until they are large enough to be caught by the HVAC system's air filter.

Recently, I purchased a 40-year old manufactured home. I immediately replaced the ductwork and had the system thoroughly cleaned. When it became occupied, the occupants complained of a musty smell. I installed an ionizer and the complaints went away. I've been in there myself and it now smells like a brand new home.

There is now a combination PCO UV light and ionizer, which would provide the most comprehensive protection.

A Word of Caution
We're not doctors, so never give anyone medical advice.

We can't guarantee cures, but we can guarantee cleaner air. Invest in a particle counter, and take a particle count prior to installing any indoor air quality products. Then, if their effectiveness is ever questioned, take another reading and see if there are fewer airborne particles.

We're not doctors, so never give anyone medical advice.

Don't guarantee that they won't get coronavirus. Viruses tend to travel short distances between people or land and linger on surfaces. An air purifier, even if equipped to kill a virus, can fail to catch a virus before it comes into contact with a person or surface.

In response to contracting professionals' need for information related to COVID-19, Refrigeration Service Engineers Society (RSES) has established a page on the RSES.org website devoted to coronavirus-related information.

"We'll be adding to it as more information becomes available. We hope that these resources will help you survive and recover from the current crisis," said Lori Schiavo, RSES executive vice president.

CLICK HERE to reach the RSES COVID-19 Resource Page.

New PLP-LED Replaceable Filter Offers High Efficiency Filtration - ThomasNet News

Posted: 31 Mar 2020 04:30 AM PDT

Press Release Summary:

Combines biological contaminant disinfection, VOC removal and particulate capture
Designed to fit the most common one-inch filtration rack sizes in residential and commercial air handlers
Uses mini LED light arrays, advanced photocatalytic-coated reactive chemical adsorption media and polarization technology to disinfect biological contaminants, remove VOCs and collect particulates

Original Press Release:

PLP-LED Air Filtration for HVAC Systems

The Purity Low Profile LED is the industry's first combination of biological contaminant disinfection, VOC removal and particulate capture in a one-inch replaceable filter format.

Jupiter, Fla.--Fresh-Aire UV®, Jupiter, Fla., a leading manufacturer of indoor air quality (IAQ) products, introduces the Purity Low Profile LED (PLP-LED) the HVAC industry's first one-inch-thick (24-mm) replaceable filter that combines biological contaminant disinfection, VOC removal and particulate capture. The PLP-LED offers high-efficiency filtration with minimal static pressure loss and is designed to fit the most common one-inch filtration rack sizes in residential and commercial air handlers.

The PLP-LED is the 2020 Air Conditioning Heating and Refrigeration (AHR) Expo Innovation Award winner in the IAQ category. Fresh-Aire UV also won the same award in 2011 for its APCO® combination UV, carbon-media and photocatalytic oxidation air purifier.

The PLP-LED is a three-stage filter using mini LED light arrays, advanced photocatalytic-coated reactive chemical adsorption media, and polarization technology to disinfect biological contaminants, remove VOCs and collect particulates, respectively.

The PLD-LED consists of three filter layers held together inside a corrosion-resistant, latched aluminum framework/mesh grill clamshell. The top and bottom blue layers are a particulate-capturing, UV reactive fiberglass media treated with Nanotech™ antimicrobial and photocatalytic coatings. They're sandwiched between a black carbon core for improved VOC removal. The frame's grill, which includes two UV LED disinfecting arrays, opens easily for quick media replacement every four to six months. The PLP-LED also employs low-voltage negative and positive polarization to charge, attract, impinge and agglomerate particulates into the fiberglass media.

The three stages are:

The UV-reactive media adsorbs household odors from chlorine, acetones, formaldehyde cooking odors, pet smells and other VOCs from the air.
The polarized media capture 97-percent of particulates as small as 0.3-microns (.00001-inch). The polarization, activated by a 24V connection or optional plug-in transformer, electrically charges particulates so they attract to polar opposite counterparts and agglomerate in the fiberglass media. Unlike electrostatic technology where collector plates need periodic cleaning to continually attract contaminants, the PLP-LED polarized media requires only replacement.
The LED disinfecting light field, the first in the HVAC industry to appear on a one-inch polarized filter, disinfects biological contaminants, such as viruses, bacteria, mold and mildew, that agglomerate into the fiberglass media.

The PLP-LED performance can be enhanced with an optional installation of a Fresh-Aire UV's renowned Blue-Tube UV® or APCO system for keeping the evaporator coil, air handler interior surfaces and airstream free of mold and other biological contaminants.

Other PLP-LED features include:

Doesn't create ozone, which has been defined by ASHRAE, UL-Spot.com, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), California Air Resources Board (CARB) and other organizations as harmful to human respiratory systems.
Fresh-Aire UV's LED array methodology has been found effective in 2017 for surface sanitizing efficacy according to test standard ASTM E1153 "Test Method for Efficacy of Sanitizers Recommended for Inanimate Non-Food Contact Surfaces" administered by third-party lab, Microchem Laboratory, Round Rock, Texas.
Lifetime warranty. LED arrays are replaced every five years;
Unlike other carbon-based filters, VOC adsorption media is replaced and disposed cleanly without loose particles falling into the air stream channel, because its sandwiched between the two fiberglass media;
Air handler requires no modifications;
Functions similar to a high efficiency filter, but with the static pressure loss of a conventional filter.

Fresh-Aire UV has been a leader in biological and VOC removal for nearly 20 years; now the third segment of IAQ–particulate collection–gives a comprehensive air cleaning option for residential and commercial spaces.

The PLP-LED will be available at most HVAC wholesale distributors in the first quarter of 2020. For more information on the Fresh-Aire UV products, please visit www.freshaireuv.com; call 800-741-1195; or email: sales@freshaireuv.com.

About Fresh-Aire UV®:

Fresh-Aire UV® is a division of Triatomic Environmental Inc., Jupiter, Fla., a leading manufacturer and developer of germicidal UV light systems designed for commercial/industrial and residential HVAC systems and ice machines. Among their products is the patented Blue-Tube UV®, the first 24 volt low-voltage germicidal UV light for HVAC, which has become the most popular product of its type in the world. Fresh-Aire UV's revolutionary APCO® (advanced photocatalytic oxidation) system, which combines UV-C light with activated carbon cells for comprehensive odor, VOC and microbial control, was an international Innovation Award winner at the 2011 AHR Expo. Fresh-Aire UV® systems are sold through wholesale HVAC/R distributors, specified by consulting engineers and installed/serviced by air conditioning contractors. Fresh-Aire UV® continually strives to engineer, develop and market products to meet the demand for a greener world and healthier environment. The UV products improve air quality, enhance the efficiency of HVAC/R systems and reduce maintenance costs. For more information please visit www.freshaireuv.com, call 1-(800) 741-1195 or email: sales@freshaireuv.com.

Contact:
Chris Willette--President
Fresh-Aire UV
800-741-1195
chris@freshaireuv.com

John Parris Frantz
JPF Assoc. Communications
773-871-2600
john@jpfcomm.com

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