Choosing The Right Filter

Choosing the right filter for your home comfort system can have lasting effects on your furnace and air conditioning system. The filter you use can make a big difference in the quality of air circulation through your home.

Filter Basics

Your home air filter, or “furnace filter”, plays a major role in keeping your furnace’s heat exchanger and air conditioning evaporative coil clean. Keeping these components clean will prolong your equipment’s life and cut down on service fees!

The style of filter you choose will also have a great effect on the indoor air that your family breaths.

Filter Style

There are so many different home filter options, so which one do you choose? Well that depends on your needs. If allergies don’t bother you, then a basic one, two, or four-inch filter should be fine. On the other hand, if allergies are a major concern to you or your family, then you would be much better off with getting an upgraded filtering system; such as a media filter or an electronic air cleaner.

The least effective style would be fiberglass filters because they do not capture much of the smaller debris that travels throughout your home, while pleated filters have a tighter thread to them which capture more and smaller debris. A media filter is normally around four inches wide and slides into a filter cabinet that is mounted on the side of your furnace. These have a much greater surface area, so is more efficient at cleaning the air.

Filter Brand

The brand of filter you use is an important factor when it comes to keeping your equipment clean. It is definitely worth spending the couple extra dollars to prolong the life of your furnace, coil, and other household belongings. We see equipment that needs to get replaced all the time because a knock-off filter was used instead of the brand name filter which was designed to be part of the system.

Aprilaire, a leading manufacturer of home air filtration products, and Pharo Heating Company strongly believe that a knock-off filter will not protect your equipment as well as the brand name filter that the system was designed for. Our technicians see the difference between them all the time and agree that a brand name filter will help keep equipment much cleaner, just ask them!

Choosing the right filter can have a long-lasting impression on you and your home comfort equipment!

High and Low Return Grills

Our customers often ask us what the point of having both a high and low return air is. Well the simple answer is for comfort. Having both a high and low return allows you to fine tune your home comfort system by pulling the warm air off the ceiling during the summer and cold air off the floor in winter.
In the winter, you should open the low return which will pull the cold air off the floor. This will also help pull the heat down off the ceiling, giving a more even comfort level.
In the summer, you should close the low return and allow the air to be pulled from the high return. This will pull the heat that is trapped at the ceiling out of the room. Having the high return open will also pull the cold air off the floor and mix it around the room, giving a more even comfort level.
To learn more about controlling the comfort level of your home, give us a call at 608-233-1001 or email clint@pharoheating.com and receive a free Indoor Air Quality consultation.