From homes and apartments to office buildings, hospitals, and schools, the average American spends 87 percent of their life indoors — and another 6 percent in enclosed vehicles. That means for the overwhelming majority of Americans, the air entering their bodies every day is directly impacted by the buildings that make up the environment.
Restrictive, undersized filter selection generally ranks high on the list causing underperforming HVAC systems. There have been effective electronic air cleaners around for many years, but for our conversation within this article, we will focus on media or fabric material filtering.
Regular maintenance keeps your HVAC equipment operating reliably and at peak efficiency. More importantly, it greatly reduces the risk of breakdown during extreme weather conditions when the unit is needed most- and repairs are the most costly. It also adds extensive longevity to the life of the unit.
Where clean air is needed, an air filter is usually not far away. In the last decade, the filtration industry has made tremendous progress in filter technologies. With new materials and designs, advances in nonwoven fabric manufacturing, and pleating methods, as well as new developments like nanofiber layers and coatings, filters have become more efficient, reliable, and compact. Demands on the filtration industry are also changing. It’s no longer solely about filter efficiency and dust-holding capacity; with soaring energy prices and increasing awareness of sustainability, filter media are expected to contribute to lower energy consumption.
Serionix, a startup fundamentally changing the way we look at air, received a $750,000 contract from NASA to fund continued development of filters to remove toxic gases from next-generation spacesuit life support systems. The same technology is on its way into consumer products expected to launch within the year.
The ECOsine Active 3420 is a harmonic filter that provides harmonic compensation in real time for demanding industrial and commercial environments. With a capacity of 30-300 A, operating at 200-480 vac, the connection-ready 3420 (3-wire) cabinet models include forced-air cooling and internal-liquid cooling (200-300 A) for the power electronics.
In last month’s article, “Inside Filter Driers,” which appeared on Page 18 of the Feb. 6 issue of The NEWS, we covered the internal construction, filtering, and drying materials within a refrigerant filter drier. This month, we’ll deal with troubleshooting, service, and replacement of the filter drier.
Bob and Tim have responded to a service request where the customer is explaining that their heat pump is running all the time. The indicator light on their thermostat is lit most of the time, indicating the strip heat is on as well. The weather is cold today but has been warm some days and cold some days. It’s a very unusual heating season.
Filter driers are designed to remove foreign materials, such as moisture, dirt, sandpaper grit, soldering flux, small solder beads, and acid from a refrigeration or air conditioning system. However, filter driers are notorious for becoming restricted from moisture, sludge, dirt, or oil that has entered the system from a poor service practice or extreme operating conditions.