Indoor air quality is a growing concern for many people. There are a few options for indoor air filtration, including mechanical and electronic air filters, notes the EPA, but one that is becoming increasingly popular is ozone air filtration. Using an ozone filtration system in your home or office can help to keep the air indoors clean this winter.
How Do Air Quality Problems Occur?
As homes and offices have been built to be more energy efficient, it has resulted in less natural air circulation from drafts, which were commonplace in older homes. While drafty windows and doors may have been inefficient and even uncomfortable during winter, they did at least provide some natural ventilation for buildings. Tightly sealed buildings without natural ventilation are often susceptible to air quality problems, particularly during the winter months when windows and doors remain closed for a number of months.
Dust, pollen, pet dander and odors can all build up indoors during the winter. At a minimum, these pollutants can produce unpleasant smells or irritate allergies. Unfortunately, in many situations these indoor pollutants can also cause health problems for people who spend time in the building. That’s why many people are choosing to use an air filtration system to improve the air quality indoors.
Uses of Ozone Air Filtration
Ozone air filtration can effectively remove many indoor pollutants, as Air Purifier Review notes. An ozone filtration system may remove odors caused by humans and animals, such as smells from cooking or tobacco smoke, and can also help to prevent the growth of mildew and mold. These systems are also commonly used in restoration work following a fire as they are quite effective at removing smoke odors from buildings.
Ozone filtration systems are used in a number of commercial environments, including medical facilities, public restrooms, fish markets, veterinary offices, kennels, bars, fitness centers, livestock compounds, hotels and motels, offices, butcher shops, restaurants, nursing homes, pet stores, industrial buildings and clubhouses. They also are a great choice for homes and are highly effective at improving overall air quality in any situation. Nearly any structure can benefit from using an ozone air filtration system.
How Ozone Filtering Works
The process of ozone filtration is straightforward, with systems working to destroy organisms or contaminants that are causing odors. Ozone is another form of oxygen, but is a powerful element that is able to destroy odors. It is formed when electricity and air are combined. Ozone contains three oxygen atoms instead of the two contained by pure oxygen. As the extra molecule in ozone joins with other pollutant molecules in the air, the ozone is converted back to oxygen, oxidizing contaminants in the process.
The great thing about ozone air filtration is that it actually destroys the odor-causing organisms. Unlike air fresheners that merely mask or cover up unpleasant odors or filters that attempt to trap the irritating particles, ozone filtration eliminates the problem completely. Ozone completely destroys germs, bacteria, odors and more. As long as the source of the odor is not reintroduced to the building, it will not reoccur after ozone treatment. In locations where the odor source is continuously reintroduced, periodic treatment with an ozone filter will be needed to maintain the quality of the air.
Ozone is found naturally in the air. It may be produced naturally by lightning, or manually with ultraviolet radiation or an electric charge. Ozone is also sometimes called activated oxygen.
A number of different types of particles can be cleared from the air using ozone filtration. These include fungus, bacteria, spores, mildew, and mold.
Using Ozone Filtration
Using an ozone air filtration unit is simple. Unlike complex HEPA filtration systems that require expensive installation, ozone filtration units are often portable and don’t need to be installed at all. Instead, you can simply place the unit on a table or floor in any room that you need to treat. The unit can be plugged into a standard household AC outlet. The outlet on the unit should be positioned so that it points toward the air conditioning return, returning clean treated air to your central HVAC system, or into the area of the room that you are targeting with treatment.
Once this simple setup is completed, you can turn on the ozone unit and leave the room. Treating a room with ozone filtration may take as little as minutes or as long as hours, depending largely on the concentration of odors and other issues being cleaned and the size of the room. Larger areas or stronger odors may also be treated using a larger ozone filtration unit or multiple units.
Ozone filtration units should not be used in rooms when people or pets are present. Despite the fact that ozone is naturally present in the air, it is recommended that people and animals vacate the room when treatment is in progress as active ozone may cause lung irritation. Since ozone will pair with contaminant particles and become regular oxygen, following treatment the room or areas being filtered are completely safe.
Ozone Pure Water Inc. leads the ozone industry in research and development, new product introduction, and new ozone applications. We also pride ourselves on providing outstanding products and service. Our air ozone units work efficiently and safely to improve the quality of the air inside your home, office or other building. We maintain a large stock of ozone filtration units that are ready to ship to customers.
Contact us by calling 800-633-8469 to learn more about our innovative ozone products or to order an ozone filtration unit today.