A case of the common cold or flu can easily ruin the holidays and festivities throughout the winter season. Luckily, you can do more to prevent sickness than cook chicken soup and make sure everyone’s dressed warmly. Ultraviolet (UV) lights are an excellent weapon to fight against illness when the outdoor temperatures drop below freezing.
Luckily, there are a variety of air purification systems with integrated ultraviolet (UV) lights that are engineered to prevent the spread of mold and mildew in air ducts and ventilation systems. To help you combat viruses in your home, we have compiled a list of the top 4 benefits of installing HVAC ultraviolet (UV) lights.
4 Advantages of Ultraviolet (UV) Light Systems
Eliminates Mold, Mildew, & Bacteria
The air filters in your furnace are not designed to inhibit the the growth of mildew and mold in your air ducts. An average filter is only able to extract dirt, dust, and debris from the air in your home. A benefit of investing in HVAC ultraviolet (UV) lights includes the elimination of fungi and pathogens in your system. If you or a family member with asthma are having difficulty breathing, this is a sign of mold and mildew in the air. To protect the health of your kids or spouse, it’s important to install a ultraviolet germicidal light system in your household.
Reduces the Spread of Viruses
Your furnace and central air conditioner distribute air to each room of your household to maintain a livable temperature throughout the summer or winter seasons. If your daughter has a spreadable virus, it can be easily dispersed to another family member through the return and supply vents. The easiest way to keep your son or daughter healthy during the winter season is to become familiar with the benefits of using HVAC ultraviolet lights to eliminate microorganisms.
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Improves Indoor Air Quality
Ultraviolet lights terminate dangerous types of bacteria that can make you suck throughout the winter months. Germicidal lights reduce the quantity of contaminants in areas such as air ducts and insulation.
Keeps the HVAC System Clean
Installing ultraviolet lamps in your air ducts will help keep your HVAC system clean and safe. Prior to choosing a an HVAC ultraviolet light, talk with a certified contractor about the benefits of various types of air disinfection systems. He or she will also work with you to determine the total number of ultraviolet lamps you need to eliminate mold and mildew in your household.
Why Do People Get Sick in the Winter?
There’s a number of reasons why germs and cold bugs tend to circulate in our homes in the winter. For starters, we rarely leave our doors or windows open, since it’s far too cold outside. That makes good sense as far as preserving your home’s comfortable temperature, but it has the nasty side effects of letting germs circulate between all members of your family.
In addition, the cold air that comes with winter also means dry air, which can easily dry out your sinuses. That’s one of your body’s most effective defenses against colds and bugs, which means you’re more vulnerable in the winter than you are in the summer. On top of all that, you, and other people in your community likely did some traveling during the holidays, exposing them to a variety of new viruses. Those bugs are usually distributed throughout the community during the winter season, making life miserable for everyone.
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How Do Ultraviolet Lights Help?
You’ve seen ultraviolet (UV) lights before at rock concerts or amusement parks. They interact with chemicals in our laundry detergent to make our white clothes glow in the dark. But while they’re harmless to us (and to other multicellular life forms like pets), they are absolutely lethal to germs and one-celled organisms. It either kills them on contact, or fuses their DNA, rendering them incapable of replicating.
Ways to Take Advantage of Ultraviolet (UV) Light
You can’t simply place a giant ultraviolet (UV) light over your home, or even install hundreds of them in every conceivable corner. You need a practical way to expose the most amount of air in your home in a reasonably compact space.
Luckily, just such a space exists: at the apex of your air ducts in your furnace system. The air in your home gradually circulates through that spot as you run your heater or air conditioner. An ultraviolet (UV) air filter simply shines a sheet of ultraviolet light across the width of the ducts. As the heater operates, it pushes the air through it, eliminating germs and viruses in the process. Your family is left healthier and instances of illness drop.
Best of all, you don’t need to do anything but run your heater as you normally would. As long as the ultraviolet (UV) light is periodically maintained – which amounts to some basic cleaning and replacement of the light bulbs – you can expect it to work for many winters to come. If you want an ultraviolet filter for your house, give our team a call by phone at (484) 206-8594. In addition to offering indoor air quality filters, we also offer repair and installation services for malfunctioning air conditioners, inefficient furnaces, noisy water heaters, and broken water lines. We offer dependable heating, air conditioning, and plumbing services in Broomall and other areas of Pennsylvania.