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The Importance of Air Quality
Respiratory ailments, often attributed
to poor indoor air quality, represent the third
largest cause of death in the U.S., ranking only
behind heart disease and cancer, according to
the American Medical Association. The Environmental
Protection Agency has said that indoor air is
often 7-10 times poorer than outdoor air quality.
Airborne particles are divided
into two classifications:
Coarse- particles larger
than 2.5 micron in diameter, and
Fine - particles 2.5 micron
or less in diameter.
For reference purposes, a micron
is 1/25,000th of an inch in diameter! It is the
fine particles, 2.5 micron or smaller, that our
natural defense systems cannot eliminate. Individuals
with health problems, such as allergies or asthma,
need to be protected from poor indoor air quality,
as do certain other groups such as the elderly
or the very young, who may have compromised or
underdeveloped respiratory systems. Problems with
indoor air quality go beyond health related issues
- productivity, absenteeism, product integrity
and even one’s sense of wellbeing may be adversely
affected by poor air quality.
There are three basic approaches
to improving indoor air quality. You can:
- control or eliminate the source
of pollutant,
- dilute the contaminant, usually
through ventilation, or
- remove the contaminant from the
air by filtration.
You can’t always reduce or eliminate
the air contaminant source. Ventilation can be
a good approach, but the source of contaminant
may be in the outside air itself. Also, ventilation
can raise the cost of conditioning the air, since
you may be required to heat or cool more air than
before. When control and ventilation are not practical,
filtration becomes an important option.
Filtration of sub-micron particles
is not always easy. Most air filters are not designed
to remove the fine particles from the air stream.
The filters that come standard with a house furnace,
or even commercial heating and air conditioning
equipment, are not efficient at the removal of
the fine particles. In fact, they are designed
to protect the equipment from the larger particles,
and do nothing at all to protect occupants.
When you need to remove harmful
fine particles from the air, make sure you select
a filter or filtration device that is specifically
tested for its ability to remove very small particles.
Some air filtration products state high efficiencies,
but are really stating the capacity for holding
dirt according to a percentage of total weight.
This does not guarantee you will be able to filter
out a corresponding high percentage of the fine
particles. In a given sample of indoor air, about
98.5% of the number of particles present will
be 1 micron or smaller in diameter. If you need
to remove sub-micron particles, make sure the
product you are evaluating has been tested specifically
for its ability to remove particles in the 2.5
micron range and smaller.
There are three basic types of
filtration methods in use today:
Passive Filters
Passive filters use a fibrous filtering material.
They can range from very inefficient to highly
efficient HEPA filters. Generally, the cheaper
they are and the less air resistance they have,
the less effective they are. The higher the air
resistance, the more energy is required to overcome
the airflow resistance, contributing to higher
energy costs to operate. If a passive filter is
too restrictive, it can cause damage to mechanical
equipment.
Electronic, Corona Discharge
Filters
Electronic, corona discharge filters electrically
charge particles passing through them and then
attract the particles to a series of grounded
collector plates where the dirt accumulates. The
collector is then removed for cleaning. Unlike
passive filters that become more efficient as
they load, corona discharge devices tend to become
less efficient as they load, especially if the
cleaning regimen is not maintained properly. When
they become dirty, arcing may occur which can
cause the production of ozone, which the EPA has
identified as being harmful to health.
Active Electronic, Polarized
Media Filters
Active electronic, polarized media filters, such
as Turtle Clans superior proprietary filtration
systems, which represent the third major group
of air filtration devices. Our filters provide
solutions to indoor air quality problems while
reducing energy and operational costs. This newer
technology uses an electrical charge (safe, 24
volt current in our case) to establish a polarized
field. Airborne particles pass through the field
and adhere to the media. Like a passive filter,
polarized media filters increase in efficiency
as they load. Designed for use primarily in re-circulating
systems, polarized media filters can provide very
high efficiency with a static pressure drop much
lower than passive filters claiming a similar
efficiency. This may lead to a decrease in energy
consumption. Unlike corona discharge devices,
our filters cannot produce ozone, and maintenance
is easy with periodic replacement of a disposable
media. Our filtration outperforms HEPA and is
used in Casinos, Hotels, Hospitals, Schools, Corporations.
Click
for partial client list
Contact
us for additional information:
Phone: 914-361-9703
E-mail: info@turtleclan.com
Concerns relating to the presence
of mold in the home or dwelling requires an independent,
3rd Party, Certified Residential Mold Inspector
to conduct a thorough site assessment. Turtle
Clan will take the necessary and appropriate actions
to assure proper IESO, IAQA, ACGIH, IICRC, ISO,
NADCA, ASHRAE, OSHA, EPA, AIHA and all State and
local governmental protocol is followed in all
investigations.
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