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Dirty Air Filters May Cost More Than You Thought

18 October 2005

In the few minutes that it takes to
change your furnace or air conditioning filter, you might cut your electric
bill by as much as $10 this month. Or $20. Or $80 or even more, depending
on the type of filter you are using and how much you run your system.

Power company websites mention changing air filters as one way to save
energy. If not maintained, that little filter could be one of the biggest
energy wasters in your home. That's according to calculations derived from
the ASHRAE (American Society of Heating Refrigerating and Air Conditioning
Engineers) Handbook.

The calculations take into account your fan motor's efficiency, the cost of
electricity in your area, airflow resistance of the air filter and the
amount of time the fan motor is in use. For those of you with a technical
mind, the formulae are presented at the end of this article.

The one value in these formulae that changes most frequently is the airflow
resistance of the filter. Every filter has a certain amount of airflow
resistance and dust building up on the filter eventually begins to block
airflow. The longer the filter is used, the more dust it catches, the more
it blocks airflow and thus...the more electricity it wastes. That's why
electric companies remind us to change our air filter on a regular basis.

There's more to it than that. Some filters have an innately higher airflow
resistance than others, even when brand new. Why? According to filter
manufacturer Flanders Precisionaire, it's all about filtering performance.
Technical Services Manager Hugh Cannon said, "Typically, the more effective
a filter has been at catching more and smaller particles, the higher the
airflow resistance has been. For example, the very basic spun glass panel
filter has resistance of about .04 inches water gauge. (Water gauge is an
industry method of expressing airflow resistance. The higher the number,
the higher the resistance. And the higher the resistance, the higher the
energy cost.) But some of its ultra-high performance cousins may have
resistance as high as .36 inches water gauge in high velocity systems
before they've caught the first piece of dust."

Below are a few examples of how much that extra airflow resistance costs in
energy. The figures are representative of a typical residence moving 820
cubic feet of air per minute, 24 hours per day at a cost of eight cents per
kilowatt hour. (Some homes will not run their air conditioner 24 hours per
day and electricity may cost more or less depending on area, but keep in
mind that this energy waste represents JUST the cost of the fan running and
does not account for wasted heat/cooling effect.)
Initial Airflow Resistance DAILY Electric Cost
In Inches Water Gauge to Run Fan Motor
.05 $ .16
.10 $ .33
.16 $ .49
.20 $ .66
.25 $ .82
.30 $ .99
.35 $ 1.15
So are the "high performance" filters something to avoid? "Not at all,"
said Cannon, comparing them to automobiles: "A cheap economy car will get
you to the store just as well as a big SUV. The SUV will get you there
more comfortably and more safely, but you'll use a lot more gas. It's the
same with filters. A basic spun glass filter will protect your equipment
well if you change it monthly. But it's not going to catch much of the very
small airborne particles, such as smoke, dust mite debris and grass pollen
that a high performance one will. So the high performance one provides
greater comfort and perhaps even safety."

"Stay tuned, though," Cannon said. "Just like the automobile
manufacturers, there's pressure on filter manufacturers to improve energy
efficiency. Very soon you'll be seeing filters that catch the very small
stuff, but with much better energy efficiency. In the meantime, if every
home with central air in this country just changed their filter every
month, the savings for the country could be as much as a billion dollars or
even more every month.

Here are the formulae for calculating electric use based on airflow
resistance:

Total horse power required = (CFM) (SP)(6370)(0.65)
CFM is airflow expressed in cubic feet per minute
SP or Static Pressure is basically just another way of saying airflow
resistance. It is expressed in inches water gauge.
6370 is a factor from ASHRAE Fundamentals 1989 Page 20.22
Kilowatt hours usage per year = (H.P. Required)(8760 hours)(0.746Kw/H.P.)
H.P. is rated horse power of the blower motor
Kw is the kilowatts of electricity used by the blower system.
8760 is the number of hours in a year
The assumed electrical consumption of the fan is 0.746 kw.
Flanders Precisionaire has posted an energy calculator on their website
(www.flanderscorp.com)

For further information on Flanders and its products, visit its web site at
http://www.flanderscorp.com/ or contact Steven Clark at (727) 822-4411.

Contact:
Steven Clark
Chief Executive Officer
Flanders Corporation
(727) 822-4411
2399 26th Avenue North
St. Petersburg, FL 33734
(727) 822-4411
SOURCE: Flanders Corporation