HVAC Contributor
Like most people, you probably don’t give your HVAC system and its impact on the quality of your indoor air much thought. To keep the air in your house clean and healthy, however, your HVAC system is essential. Installing UV lamps in your HVAC system is another approach to improve your indoor air quality besides using air purifiers. Given that you may spend up to 90% of your time indoors, it’s critical to think about how pollutants may affect your long-term health and how UV lamps for your HVAC system may be able to help.
What Does An HVAC System’s UV Light Do?
The air in your home can be cleaned and purified with the aid of an HVAC UV lamp. These lights are attached to your HVAC system’s air handler or ductwork. The bacteria and allergens that are spread throughout your home by the air finally pass through the UV light that sanitizes the air as it circulates through the house.
What Kinds of UV Light Are There?
The spectrum of light contains a variety of different types of light, including ultraviolet light. The majority of HVAC systems employ UV-C light, sometimes referred to as short wave. UV-C light is the sweet spot for HVAC since it has the ability to remove certain terrible pollutants.
How Do UV Lights Operate?
Special ultraviolet lamps known as “germicidal UV lights” are used in HVAC systems to eliminate or inactivate airborne pathogens such as bacteria, mold, and viruses. Both household and commercial environments frequently employ them. In hospitals, UV lamps have been used for almost a century to treat conditions including tuberculosis.
The systems emit light that is similar to sunlight but with more intensity. The nucleic acids of bacteria can be destroyed by such high illumination. As a result, the bacteria’s DNA is damaged, making them unable to reproduce (some die right away).
The Efficiency of UV Lights
It has been discovered that UV lights are incredibly good at reducing microbial development inside your HVAC system. Niels Ryberg Finsen actually won the Nobel Prize in Medicine in 1903 for his work using UV light radiation to treat skin ailments. Because UV lights are so efficient at sterilizing equipment, many hospitals, eateries, shops, and other companies utilize them.
Studies on UV lamps in HVAC systems have produced important findings as well. According to one study, UV lamps can lower the amount of mold and germs by 97% in a test home. According to a different study, UV light air purifiers can lower the amount of airborne flu virus by 90%.
Where Are UV Light Installations Made?
The two primary UV light types for HVAC systems are:
Coil Sanitizing Lights – They are made for air conditioners that are placed next to the evaporator coil, which is where the refrigerant used to chill your home is stored. Along with dirt, garbage, and pet dander building up, this is also a damp environment for mold and germs to flourish.
Air Sanitizing Lights – Your supply vents, which are a part of the ductwork of your central HVAC system, have these installed in them. Prior to being circulated throughout the house, the air is cleaned by these UV lights.
AC UV Lights
Airborne germs, mold spores, and viruses are all around us, yet they thrive in wet, delicate places deep inside your air conditioning system. You may prevent impurities from spreading throughout your home by placing UV lights in your HVAC system to clean the exposed edges and grooves.
Furnace UV Light
It’s crucial to inspect and clean your air ducts before adding UV lamps for a furnace. Your UV light’s effectiveness will be diminished if your ductwork is leaking. A large amount of pollutants could be pulled in through the ductwork’s gaps, reducing the impact.
Air filters and UV Lights
When the air conditioner is running, an HVAC air filter stops dust, irritants, allergens, and big particles from entering the cooling coil. Particles smaller than 0.3 millimeters can pass through even a HEPA (high-efficiency particulate absorption) filter, though. UV lamps for air conditioning systems add an additional degree of security and support your air filtering system.
How Safe Are UV Lights?
When placed and managed appropriately, UV lights are safe. A competent professional will follow these safety guidelines and take the required installation precautions:
- Using UV light of the right spectrum
- Installing the light as directed by the manufacturer.
- Putting on protective eyewear and gloves when handling or installing the light.
- Installing correctly to ensure that no UV light ever enters a home’s occupants’ eyes.
Advantages Of UV Light
You might be surprised to learn that indoor pollutants might be more harmful than those found outside. The principal advantages of HVAC UV lamps are:
- Enhanced effectiveness and airflow
- Lower energy prices
- The removal of mold and mildew
- Fewer allergies, asthma attacks, and respiratory discomfort
- Kills bacteria and viruses
- Decreases odors
- Enhanced indoor air quality
If the quality of your indoor air is a problem, switching to a UV light system will increase the HVAC system’s energy efficiency while simultaneously lowering your energy expenditures.
Negative Effects of UV Lights
The following are the primary drawbacks of HVAC UV lights:
- It may be costly to install them.
- They demand routine upkeep.
- They can harm your ducts or system if put improperly.
Do UV Lights Make Sense?
You understand the value of having healthy indoor air quality if you or a member of your family suffers from respiratory conditions like allergies or asthma. Installing an HVAC UV lamp will improve the quality of your indoor air by removing mold and mildew, killing viruses and bacteria, and reducing odors.
What Are the Prices of UV Lights?
The size of your system and the UV light you select will affect the price of your HVAC UV light system. However, in general, a high-quality UV light system costs between $1000 and $2000.
How Much Time Do UV Lights Have?
Depending on the model and manufacturer, UV bulbs should be updated every one to five years. For instance, it is advised to replace a Carrier coil UV light every year or after 9000 runtime hours. Every 2 to 3 years for REME HALOs and every 4 to 5 years for REME HALO LEDs. If your UV bulb isn’t functioning well or if you observe a drop in the quality of your indoor air, you might need to replace it sooner.
Additionally, while performing your routine HVAC repair, request the following from your HVAC expert:
- Remove any dust from bulbs to increase the UV light’s power and efficacy.
- Stay away from UV lamp surfaces. Oil found in fingerprints reduces UV output and could lead to uneven lamp heating.
The Best UV Light For HVAC
The RGF REME-HALO, with its unique design that may actively eliminate pollutants, is our suggestion for the best UV lamp for an HVAC system. The REME-HALO is made to combine a UV-C light with a cutting-edge catalyst to produce low quantities of gaseous hydrogen peroxide in the air that spread throughout your area.
For removing VOCs, odors, viruses, bacteria, and other microbes from surfaces and the air in your home, hydrogen peroxide is a great natural disinfectant. Due to REME-capacity HALO’s to generate small amounts of hydrogen peroxide in the air that circulates through your air conditioner and indoor areas, your home’s air quality is being actively improved while growth in your air conditioner is actively reduced.
Can I Set Up My Own UV Light?
A fantastic approach to enhance the quality of the air inside your home is to install a UV lamp in your HVAC system. UV lights are reliable, efficient, and reasonably priced. But you can’t do this yourself. The UV light must be properly fitted in your HVAC system for it to do its magic (and if you’re not careful, UV lights might hurt your eyes). To guarantee appropriate installation, be sure to talk to a qualified HVAC specialist.
Installing UV lights in your HVAC system has many advantages. It will not only make your interior air quality better, but it can also help your HVAC system last longer.
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