Serving Lincoln, Nebraska since 1978. PHONE: (402) 421-2171 or toll-free: 1-800-889-5871
FURNACE FILTERS

The filter on your furnace serves two useful purposes...

The first is that it screens dust and debris out of the air to protect the blower motor.

Secondly, it screens dust and debris out of the air to protect you. In most homes however, the filter supplied with the unit from the factory is considerably deficient on both counts. It's very likely that unless you have already upgraded your filter, your system utilizes an inexpensive, inefficient filament filter.
By upgrading the filter on your system, you automatically improve the air quality in your home for the very simple reason that you are now filtering the air you breathe much better. Installing a more efficient air filter is particularly important after the air ducts are cleaned. This is the ideal time to preserve the new level of air quality achieved by having the ducts cleaned. Failure to upgrade the filter will result in recontamination of both the supply side and eventually, the return side of your system - particularly if the other steps mentioned in this website are not taken.

Since there are some extremely sophisticated air filtration and cleansing devices on the market, a discussion on these exceeds the scope of our website. For most homes, there are only three basic types of filters:
1. Electronic
 2. Filter Medium
 3. Electrostatic
ELECTRONIC
The theory behind these systems is that dust and particulate pass through a "charging" filter, thus giving it a charge, and then it passes through oppositely charged plates. These oppositely charged plates then "attract" the dust and particulate.
These are fairly expensive to install and they need to be cleaned frequently so that the plates operate efficiently. Because they have an electric current feeding them, care must be taken in their handling.
FILTRATION MEDUIM
These come in a variety of forms, from the very inexpensive to the very high-tech pleated ones which come in various widths. The inexpensive ones are not going to provide the kind of protection that is needed. to substantially improve air quality. The pleated filters, however, are another story .The filtration medium used in the construction of these is usually of such quality that it filters particulate to .3 microns. Their pleated design allows for more surface area to capture contaminants. These are not re-cleanable and must be replaced monthly for optimum efficiency.
ELECTROSTATIC
The term " electrostatic" means the electric charge something has at rest, or when it is static. This differs from "electronic" in that a charge is supplied to the filter by an outside source. Consequently, when discussing electrostatic filters, one is talking about the electromagnetic attraction between the filter and particles in the air, whereby the filter has a charge opposite the charge of the particulate in the air, thus the filter "attracts" it and removes it from the air stream

From a purely practical standpoint, this is the filter of choice. Not only does it attract particulate, it also filters particulate as tiny as .3 microns. The material packed inside the plastic or metal frame is a high-quality filtration medium which can be rinsed out and reused over and over. There is no electric current to worry about, nor expensive initial cost or installation fees. A-1 Cleaning Connection, Inc. can assist you in buying a high-quality electrostatic filter which is guaranteed for five years. Unless it is abused, there is no reason it shouldn't last a lifetime. AIl you have to do is rinse it out with a hose every month to remove the build-up of dust in the filtration material as well as the particulate it has attracted.

Regardless of where you buy your filter, the important thing is that, after the air ducts are cleaned, you need to upgrade the filtration device so that your clean air duct system stays cleaner longer.


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Franchise information: 4830 Rent-Worth Drive #1, Lincoln, NE 68516
contributions: Steve Bos, Joe Polish, Paul Fell