UV lights, or ultraviolet lamps, are a valuable addition to HVAC systems, designed to enhance indoor air quality and promote healthier living environments. These lamps use ultraviolet light to disinfect the air and various components of the HVAC system, such as coils and ducts.
Key Benefits of UV Lights in HVAC Systems
Kills Harmful Bacteria, Viruses, and Mold Spores UV light is effective at eliminating microorganisms like bacteria, viruses, and mold spores that thrive in HVAC systems. By disrupting their DNA, UV lights prevent these pathogens from circulating in the air and contaminating your indoor environment.
Reduces Allergens in the Air UV lights help to reduce allergens such as dust mites, pollen, and pet dander by neutralizing them, making your home more comfortable for allergy sufferers.
Prevents Mold and Mildew Growth on Coils Mold and mildew thrive in damp environments, like the moist air within HVAC systems. UV lights prevent mold and mildew growth on the coils, improving system efficiency and preventing musty odors in your home.
Improves HVAC Efficiency and Longevity By keeping the HVAC coils and ducts clean from microbial growth, UV lights can help the system operate more efficiently, reducing strain on the unit, lowering energy costs, and extending the lifespan of your HVAC system.
Why Install UV Lights in Your HVAC System?
Adding UV lights to your HVAC system is a smart, energy-efficient way to ensure clean, healthy air in your home. These lights work quietly behind the scenes to eliminate harmful microorganisms and allergens, improving both air quality and system performance.
Adding UV lights to your HVAC system is a smart, energy-efficient way to ensure clean, healthy air in your home. These lights work quietly behind the scenes to eliminate harmful microorganisms and allergens, improving both air quality and system performance.
UV HVAC light systems, also called germicidal air purifiers, can effectively sterilize almost 100% of germs, viruses, mold spores, bacteria, fungi and other harmful microorganisms as they pass through your HVAC system. Installing a UV HVAC system in your condensing (indoor) unit provides a cost-effective method to clean your home's air as it passes through the system.
To help you decide if a UV HVAC light is right for your home, we'll go over:
Want a quote to install a UV HVAC air purifier? Call Reliable Heating & Air at (770) 594-9969 or schedule an appointment.
Our HVAC techs can recommend the best germicidal air purifier for your home. You'll also get the same 5-star customer service we've been giving Atlanta residents for the past 40 years.
How UV Light in HVAC Works
Germicidal UV HVAC lights are designed to purify the air in your home. UV air purifiers use UV-C light (a light wavelength of 254 nanometers) that's absorbed by the DNA of microorganisms.
The UV light doesn't immediately kill the organisms, but renders them unable to produce the proteins they need to survive and reproduce. This prevents them from causing harm and shortens their lifespan.
Types of HVAC UV light systems
You can choose between 2 types of UV lights for your HVAC system:
Coil sterilization: These types of UV air purifiers are mounted inside the air handler near the evaporator coil. The UV-C light is on 24/7 to prevent microbial growth on the evaporator coil and sterilize contaminants as they pass through your HVAC system.
Air sterilization: Installed in the return air duct, this type of HVAC air purifier is wired directly to your HVAC system, turning on only when your system is running and sterilizing the air before it is pulled into your system. Since it purifies all air passing through your system, the UV air purifier also helps sterilize HVAC components near the purifier.
Installing HVAC air purifiers
Only a professional HVAC technician should install UV lighting inside your system's evaporating unit. The technician will need to:
Install the air purifier properly, so it operates safely. Exposure to high doses of UV-C light can be harmful to people, so it's essential that only a trained professional installs your HVAC air purifier.
Wire the air purifier to your HVAC system (if you opt for air sterilization), so it turns on simultaneously with your HVAC system.
Clean the air handler system thoroughly and inspect the ductwork for leaks to prevent dust and debris from being sucked into your HVAC system.
This will ensure that your HVAC air purifier system performs efficiently as it should, allowing you to enjoy all its benefits.
Learn more about our HVAC UV light products on our UV light installation page.
Benefits of an HVAC UV Light System
Installing a germicidal air purifier will:
Restrict mold and mildew growth. Your AC creates a very damp environment that allows mold and mildew to thrive. By installing a UV air purifier, it will prevent mold and bacteria from growing in and spreading throughout your HVAC system.
Remove volatile organic compounds (VOCs). VOCs are organic chemicals that have strong vapors at room temperature. Common household VOCs that HVAC UV light systems neutralize include paints, solvents, aerosols, cleaners, disinfectants, repellents, and air fresheners.
Eliminate viruses and bacteria. HVAC UV lights sterilize viruses and bacteria before they can be recirculated back into your home, helping to reduce airborne germs that can infect healthy family members or those with weakened immune systems.
Help your AC run more efficiently. When bacteria (from dust, VOCs, or mold growth) build up on the evaporator coil, it prevents adequate airflow, which can cause your air conditioner to ice up. By keeping bacterial growth off of your evaporator coil, your AC will run more efficiently and help prevent expensive repairs.
While UV lights in HVAC systems are effective at sterilizing contaminants and allergens, they do have some limitations.
UV Air Purifier HVAC Limitations
Doesn't remove allergens
While germicidal air purifiers sterilize the air in your home, they don't actually remove the microorganisms. That means if you have allergies, they may still bother you since the dust and other contaminants are still present.
UV HVAC light systems are most effective when paired with another type of air filtration system. Most Atlanta homeowners pair germicidal UV lights with an air filter that has a high MERV (Minimum Efficiency Reporting Value) rating. The higher the MERV rating, the more effective the filter is at removing small contaminants.
Your average 1-inch fiberglass filter has a MERV rating of 1-4, which means it can capture roughly 20% of contaminants 3-10 microns in size. The most effective air filters on the market are high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filters, which have a MERV of 17 and can remove 99.9% of contaminants 0.3 microns in size.
Requires UV Light Contact
UV air purifiers are only effective if the microorganisms pass through the UV-C light inside your HVAC system. That means if your HVAC system has damaged or leaky ducts, the holes or gaps in the ducts can create a vacuum that draws in new contaminants (like dust and debris) from attics and crawl spaces, which don't pass through the UV light and so don't get sterilized.
Regardless of whether you install an HVAC air purifier, you'll want to get a duct sealing to make sure your ducts don't have any holes, tears, or gaps that can let contaminants in or conditioned/heated air out.
UV Light for Furnace
In addition to their use in HVAC systems, UV light for furnaces provides similar benefits in terms of improving air quality. By installing UV lights within the furnace, the UV-C light works to sterilize the air before it's distributed throughout the home. This helps eliminate harmful bacteria, viruses, and mold that could otherwise thrive in the warm, humid environment created by the furnace. Not only does UV light for furnaces improve air quality by deactivating microorganisms, but it also helps reduce the accumulation of dust and debris on the furnace components, ensuring more efficient operation. Over time, this can help extend the life of the furnace while contributing to a healthier living environment.
Want to Install a UV HVAC light? Call Reliable Heating & Air.
We offer the most reliable UV HVAC light installations in the Woodstock area. Our HVAC techs will explain the pros and cons of a germicidal UV light and other air filtration systems, and then give you a free quote to install one in your HVAC system. We'll help you improve your home's air quality in no time.
