Healthy indoor air quality should be top priority for a business. One way you can ensure such is by incorporating commercial air cleaners around the office. Not only can you save money by protecting your HVAC system with one, but you also protect the health of your workforce and foster an environment conducive to healthy inhabiting.
The Difference Between Air Cleaners and Air Purifiers
When looking for commercial air cleaners, you may come across air purifiers instead. While the terms may be “used interchangeably,” as Air Solutions notes, there are quite a few differences between the two.
The biggest difference between air cleaners and air purifiers are that the former “filters” out harmful airborne particles, while the latter “sanitizes” the air. Essentially, while air cleaners remove irritants, air purifiers effectively kill off bad airborne particles.
Complex Air Filtering
When considering commercial air cleaners for your business, consider the fact that they provide complex air filtering for your workspace. With many people coming in and out of an office, harmful airborne particles can travel and hurt your employees. Think of all the dust, dirt, bacteria, and other irritants that can lead to poor indoor air quality.
Through several applications, there are a number of ways to clean a commercial space’s air. Bi-polar Ionization (BPI), for example, sees the release of charged atoms that bind to and ultimately deactivate harmful irritants in the air. BPI systems can be installed in Air Handling Units (AHU) to combat airborne contaminants.
Another important application of removal to be aware of is UVGI. Short for Ultraviolet Germicidal Irradiation, this method kills harmful irritants through UV-C lighting (generated through special lamps). As these types of UV rays are harmful to humans, they are only administered in certain settings.
Per ESD, you have in-room and upper-room disinfection. These are the settings you’ll see most commonly in doctor’s offices, hospitals, and more. The disinfection process occurs once zero people are in its presence, giving ample time for the next patient to receive clean air upon arrival. The only difference between these two are the lamp intensity, as the former uses a higher intensity lamp while the latter uses standard intensity.
HVAC systems can also greatly benefit from such through in-AHU surface and airstream disinfection. These methods regulate biofilm and microorganism growth through irradiation, which ultimately improves heat transfer and throttles air pressure drops.
Lastly, there’s the process of advanced photocatalysis, which works to emulate the naturally-occurring outdoor air cleaning process, but indoors. Utilizing UV-C lights and a catalyst to speed up the chemical reaction, advanced photocatalysis replicates a tree’s photosynthesis by creating oxidizing molecules to eradicate harmful airborne contaminants.
At Donnelly, we offer installation of different applications based on size and space. Whether it’s through BPI or UVGI, we ensure your indoor air quality is up to par with its environmental needs.
A Perfect Addition to Your HVAC System
Commercial HVAC systems are indeed very powerful, though they may face certain limitations in your building. Perhaps there are certain sections of the office that your HVAC system cannot reach. This is where commercial air cleaners can help out. In fact, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) says to “Consider using portable air cleaners to supplement increased HVAC system ventilation and filtration, especially in areas where adequate ventilation is difficult to achieve.”
Furthermore, they advise all to “direct the airflow so that it does not blow directly from one person to another,” which ultimately “reduces the potential spread of droplets that may contain infectious viruses” — especially in light of the coronavirus pandemic.
Additionally, they note that “Air cleaning may be useful when used along with source control and ventilation, but it is not a substitute for either method.”
It should also be noted that air cleaners don’t eliminate carbon monoxide.
Portability
Another added benefit of commercial air cleaners is their portability. Despite being rather costly, air cleaners can be carried from room to room — thus covering plenty of ground in your commercial office space.
If a certain section of your office is prone to foul odors such as smoke or garbage smells, it can be a good idea to place an air cleaner in that section. As Air Solutions notes, “An air cleaner filters pollution from smoke, VOCs or other gases.” This way, that space benefits from clean air while your HVAC system maintains good indoor air quality for the rest of the office.
However, if portability isn’t an issue, you can also consider installing an ambient air cleaner. According to Sentry Air, ambient air cleaners feature “a highly efficient dual-stage industrial air filtration system that is effective in cleaning and the removal of airborne pollutants without the assistance of external ducting.:
Installing Commercial Air Cleaners with Donnelly
Every commercial space deserves healthy indoor air quality. With custom solutions catered to your building and its individual air quality needs, Donnelly’s experts have you covered. So whether it’s installing commercial air cleaners or general maintenance, Donnelly has your back for all your commercial HVAC needs, 24/7.
To find out how Donnelly can install a commercial air cleaner for your business, please visit our website and contact us today! We’re here to support you. Proudly serving New York City for over 30 years.
Get in Touch