Best Air Filters for Dust – 3 Features That Define The Best Furnace Filters For Dust (They Will Surprise You!)
Say goodbye to dust when you find the right air filter for your furnace.
Do you feel like you spend a lot of time dusting furniture? When sunlight streams in your windows, can you see dust particles floating in the air? Dust is an annoying problem shared by every homeowner. Thankfully, there is a simple step you can take to reduce the amount of dust floating around your home: invest in a good-quality air filter for your furnace.
Why is dust a problem?
You may have been told that most of the dust in your house is made up of dead skin cells. (Ick!) Relax. That’s not exactly true. While there are some skin cells in the household dust, more than two-thirds of the dust in your home comes from outside. That means all those airborne particles are made up of things like pollen, animal hair, soil, soot and even microplastics. It’s not exactly what you want to be breathing in.
Dust is more than an annoying housekeeping issue. Too much dust can affect your health and the health of your family by compromising the quality of the air you breathe, causing allergy symptoms to flare, triggering asthma, and more. It’s impossible to stop dust from coming into your home. But you can take steps to capture it before it circulates around your house via your HVAC system.
Your furnace filter is the first line of defence against dust.
To keep dust levels in your home under control, you can:
Schedule regular duct cleaning services to prevent dust and other allergens from gathering and being blown around when you turn on the heat or cooling.
Change your furnace filter regularly during periods of high furnace use, and during the spring and summer it is dry, trees are budding, or pets are shedding.
Choose the best air filter for dust that is compatible with your furnace.
This last option shouldn’t be overlooked. Choosing the best furnace filter for your needs is a smart and simple way to keep dust at bay and enjoy better air quality. A furnace filter is positioned between the furnace and the air ducts that carry warm and cool air through your house. Filters capture and hold dust and other particulates, stopping it from being circulated through your ducts and into the air you and your loved ones breathe. It’s a simple piece of equipment with a very important role.
The 3 Fs: How to choose the best furnace filter for dust.
At British Empire Fuels, we know a thing or two about furnaces—and furnace filters. You might be surprised to know that we don’t use a special, brand-name filter. With 60 years in the heating and cooling business, we know that the most important furnace filter features for controlling dust are: Fit, Filter and Flow—not brand name.
Fit
If your filter isn’t the right size, it cannot effectively filter the air flowing through it. If the filter is too small, all the dust that has collected in your ducts and is blown in from outside is being pushed past or around the filter, through your ducts and into the air you breathe.
Filter
Every furnace filter has an MERV (Minimum Efficiency Reporting Value) rating that tells you how well the filter traps particles. The higher the rating, the more particles the filter can trap. If you or your family members have asthma or allergies, you will want to remove as many irritants from the air as possible and may benefit from a filter with a higher MERV rating.
Flow
Higher MERV-rated or HEPA filters can restrict airflow. That means your furnace has to work harder to push the air through the filter and around your home. If you choose a filter that restricts airflow too much, you can put strain on your furnace, reducing its efficiency and potentially overworking the motor. Knowing your furnace's capacity before choosing a filter is a must.
The better your furnace filter fits and filters, the more success you will have reducing household dust.
Let British Empire Fuels Help You Choose The Best Furnace Filter For Dust
If dust is a problem in your house, it’s time to think about getting a better furnace filter. Instead of wasting time and money wandering through hardware stores and worrying about brands, talk to an HVAC expert at British Empire Fuels. We can assess your furnace and get you a filter that
Fits properly
Traps more dust, and
Doesn’t restrict airflow or compromise the efficiency of your furnace.
We keep your filter data in your customer profile, so replacing your furnace filters is a hassle-free experience every time.