Electrostatic air cleaner for central AC

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HearDoc
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Location: New England

Electrostatic air cleaner for central AC

Post by HearDoc »

Finally decided (mostly) to spring for central AC in our house without
pre-existing ducting ( baseboard HW / oil boiler). This will definitely get me kicked out of the frugal Yankee club here, but last summer was a killer and temps don't seem to be getting any cooler. The house is not used in the winter and the AC would be used from June to October.
One of the more reputable contractors is recommending an electrostatic
cleaner attached to the air return on the air handler in the attic. The claim
is that it significantly reduces airborne mold/pollen/dust which seems reasonable. The system is a Trane and not a fly by night manufacturer.
The added cost is about $1000 and I'm wondering about the efficacy of it. It would not add significantly to the operating cost. My wife has allergies, I've mostly outgrown them ( or just don't give a damn anymore).
Anyone have experience with it? recommendations?
pshonore
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Post by pshonore »

We installed an American Standard CA system a few years back (same as you, no exisitng ducts, with BB/HW). I believe Trane and Am Std are made in the same factory. In any case, my wife swears by the Electrostatic Filter that we installed. It was about $1K addtl.
http://freshairheatingcooling.ca/files/ ... eanDSA.pdf
I love the picture on Pg 2 of the brochure. (Of course it is a Manufacturers sale brochure)
Nice thing is the system can be run in "Fan" mode which just circulates air but the cleaner still operates. (Like with all the pollen this week). Kind of unusual to use AC in October in New England.
jwtietz
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Post by jwtietz »

I had the Aprilaire Model 5000 installed a few years ago and am happy with the way it works. it pulls a lot of dust from the air. The filters are easy to get and last up to a year. I buy them off ebay @ about $30 each. Case is plastic but it seems to do the job. I do run the multi-speed fan on low at peak cooling and heating times (carrier 2 stage cooling/heating system with a dc fan so lower elect draw). The install cost you were quoted seems high. I think ours cost $700 at the time. I had a few installers come in and there was a wide range of prices for the whole system I would shop around. I have seen these on ebay for $450 to $500 and the install should not be that much. You might want to do it yourself after they are done with the system.

http://www.aprilaire.com/index.php?znfA ... &item=5000
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Frugal Al
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Post by Frugal Al »

Don't expect anything extraordinary from an electrostatic filter system. While I'm sure some people are happy with them, no one I know has kept using them. Upon having reliability issues after a few years, most have gone back to thick pleated filter.
Manbaerpig
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Post by Manbaerpig »

electrostatic process induce ozone which is a worse pollutant than what you are trying to remove, in air filtration it's HEPA or nothing. electrostatic air cleaners are snake oil, period
sport
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Post by sport »

We bought a house in 1971 that had a Honeywell electrostatic air cleaner. It worked great. I had to wash it periodically to clean it and the wash water was always very dirty. Eventually it stopped working due to short circuit in the filter unit. I had it repaired and used it until it stopped again. That time, I paid to get it fixed and it still did not work. I gave up at that point. However, while it worked, it did a superb job of cleaning the air. I don't remember exactly how many years it worked, but it was about 15 to 20 years.

Jeff
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interplanetjanet
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Post by interplanetjanet »

I have one in the house I've rented for the last 3 years, a fairly new Trane.

They excel at ultrafine particulate removal such as cigarette smoke and are slightly better than HEPA filters at removing pollen. Their big downside is that they need regular cleaning to be effective, as once the wires and plates are coated with dirt and crud they rapidly lose effectiveness. This offsets the fact that you don't have to buy new filters.

If you do get one, make sure you can put the filter cells into a dishwasher and do it every month or two to keep it performing well. Otherwise you will not get much out of it at all. The cells get very hard to clean if you let them go too long, and it's difficult to get anything between the plates and wires to scrub with (and they're easily bent or damaged).

-Janet
Mister Moolah
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Post by Mister Moolah »

I don't see how electrostatic would remove any more than a high quality pleated filter.

I use 3M Filtrete 2200 MPR
sport
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Post by sport »

TranceLordSnyder wrote:I don't see how electrostatic would remove any more than a high quality pleated filter.
A pleated filter still has openings for air to pass through. If a particle is small enough, it can also pass through. An electrostatic filter will attract the small particles with static electricity and the particles stick to the plates in the filter, to be washed off later.

Jeff
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FrugalInvestor
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Post by FrugalInvestor »

Manbaerpig wrote:electrostatic process induce ozone which is a worse pollutant than what you are trying to remove, in air filtration it's HEPA or nothing. electrostatic air cleaners are snake oil, period
I don't know about the snake oil part, but we stopped using ours shortly after moving into the new house because we couldn't get rid of the ozone smell. I don't know if it is the fault of the installer or the unit (Honeywell). I now buy the best 4" pleated filters I can find online and use them in place of the electronic unit.
Have a plan, stay the course and simplify. Then ignore the noise!
Manbaerpig
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Post by Manbaerpig »

I can safely say categorically ALL electrostatic filters are snake oil. Not only are they ineffective they are dangerous and a health hazard (ozone), the only benefit those combo filters/electrostatic filters are getting is from the conventional filter. There is no better filter than HEPA or similar standards available. Everything you will read from the vendors that sell electrostatic filters (ion breeze is a fave) is marketing BS. Independent studies corroborate this. In industry and healthcare you will not find an electrostatic air filter. Anyone want to hazard a guess?

Electrostatic filters are as effective at collecting particulates as any exposed surface in a room, and remove particulates at approximately the same rate.
impeyan
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Post by impeyan »

HearDoc,

You might want to go to AllergyBuyersClub.com and check out the furnace filters they offer. I have an Envirosept electronic filter that I use in my system that does NOT produce ozone. They claim that it gets 99% of the particles which is better than the 94% claimed by the 3M Filtrete 2200. I have used both, and can't tell much difference, but am using the Envirosept filter.

I have been more than happy with the results with this furnace filter but it does require monthly changing. The filter pads are fairly expensive and they need to be ordered on-line rather than getting them at the local stores. This filter requires an electric outlet fairly close to where the filter goes in your system as there is a small transformer that needs power. The outlet may be a problem for you if one is not close.

The 3M 2200 is almost as good and needs no power outlet.
Call_Me_Op
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Post by Call_Me_Op »

Are you sure they are safe? I have my doubts.

What's wrong with a good old HEPA filter?
Best regards, -Op | | "In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity." Einstein
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HardKnocker
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Post by HardKnocker »

The thick filters in high-eff systems are very effective.

That extra $1k for the electrostatic is a profit center for the contractor.

Skip it. Then when it breaks in 3-5 years you won't have to fix it.
“Gold gets dug out of the ground, then we melt it down, dig another hole, bury it again and pay people to stand around guarding it. It has no utility.”--Warren Buffett
smackboy1
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Post by smackboy1 »

My wife has allergies and we have cats. We just upgraded our HVAC and decided against using an electrostatic precipitator (ESP). We chose the accordion pleated mechanical filter. The reasons:

- HVAC only filters air when the HVAC fan is running. Leaving the blower running all the time uses a lot of energy.
- If the ESP fails, there is no filtration until it is fixed. Hard to see how a pleated filter can fail, and if it does, it takes 5 minutes to swap it out.
- Cleaning the ESP is a PITA. If you damage the wires or plates it can be expensive to replace the unit. I prefer to just throw out the dirty pleated filter and get a clean new one every 6-12 months.

I prefer using the $ not spent on an ESP to buy small portable plug in filters I can place where they are needed. I have a Friederich ESP and several Honeywell HEPA units throughout the house.
Disclaimer: nothing written here should be taken as legal advice, but I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night.
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topper1296
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Post by topper1296 »

TranceLordSnyder wrote:I don't see how electrostatic would remove any more than a high quality pleated filter.

I use 3M Filtrete 2200 MPR
I also use the best 3M Filtrete filter on the market and I am happy with it.
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