How does one keep your customers’ homes healthy? For starters, you'll include wall caps and roof vents that protect a building’s rainscreen. But the building envelope isn’t the sole source of contamination. Sometimes the HVAC equipment itself introduces unhealthy microbes into the air. a method to attenuate this and ensure good indoor air quality (IAQ) is to put in ultraviolet lights within the HVAC system.
How Ultraviolet Works?
Ultraviolet light (UV) is a component of the electromagnetic (EM) spectrum, which is organized supported wavelength and frequencies. UV light, with wavelengths starting from 180 nanometers (nm) to 400 nm, falls between light and X-rays on the EM spectrum. About 10% of the sunshine from the sun is UV light. The UV spectrum is split into three categories: UVA, UVB, and UVC. UVA has the longest wavelengths (315–400 nm) and UVC has the shortest (180–280 nm).
The lights utilized in HVAC work on the UVC spectrum. UVC radiation can break chemical bonds during a process called ionization during which electrons break away atoms. This separation causes the atoms to interrupt chemical bonds or form new ones. This process destroys bacteria and molds.
The germ-killing powers of ultraviolet were discovered quite 100 years ago. In 1903, the Nobel prize for Medicine was awarded to Niels Finson for his work using ultraviolet to combat tuberculosis. Germicidal lamps are utilized in hospitals, conservatory operations, at food establishments, and for sterilizing water.
For HVAC application, UVC lights are typically installed inside the air handler where they continue to be turned on 24 hours each day . Any airborne or surface microbes (molds) within the light’s line of sight are going to be destroyed.
UVC in HVAC.
Ultraviolet germicidal lamps destroy airborne and surface microbes. When installed with HVAC systems, they can:
• Improve heat transfer performance
• Reduce equipment maintenance costs
• Improve IAQ
Microbial buildup, sometimes called biofilm, in coils, plenums, and other HVAC components may be a common issue which will impact system performance and introduce contaminants into the air. Microbes can reduce system performance by the maximum amount as 25% within five years of installation if left unchecked. In some cases, this equipment is difficult to wash . Best UV lights for HVAC is minimize this buildup, allowing the equipment to run at its most effective . the continued prevention of microbial buildup also will reduce maintenance costs.
Improved IAQ.
According to the American Society of Heating, Refrigeration, and air con Engineers (ASHRAE), HVAC systems can either accelerate or hamper the spread of infectious diseases like influenza, the cold , and even tuberculosis. With Best UV lights for HVAC, building operators can minimize the microbes introduced into the air by destroying them.
In a 2012 study, researchers at Duke University center and therefore the University of Carolina Hospital System used UVC to kill drug-resistant bacteria in patient rooms. In one example, 98.1% of colony-forming units of bacteria was reduced.
UV light deployment also means the chemicals typically wont to clean biofilm from HVAC equipment won't be introduced into the air, which avoids the introduction of potential respiratory irritants.
Other UV Applications.
UV technology also can be utilized in leak detection. The flex inject sealant tool features a UV dye that mixes with refrigerant sealant. The mixture is shipped through the system as a mist, and therefore the dye permeates hairline cracks and leaks, which may then be easily identified with a UV light.
By now you'll be asking, if UVC is so great, why isn’t it a typical feature in HVAC equipment? at some point it'd be, but currently, the difficulty is cost. UVC lights are expensive. And not every household needs UVC lights in their HVAC system. except for individuals with allergies or buildings in humid environments, the extra expense is worthwhile .
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