The majority of systems I come across have high static pressure. Almost all homes need more than 1 return air duct. Get a 2nd return air duct and grill installed. Then you can install a nice filter without hurting airflow. The purpose of your HVAC system is to easily move warm and cool air through your home. If you have properly sized ductwork and low static pressure you are going to be more comfortable.
@@NewHVACGuide I'd like to have access to your brand guide. It would be cool to have a HVAC contractor rate to access the brand guide. If Mitsubishi and or Trane is near the top of your list I'd be happy to buy a copy from you.
So the majority of the systems that you come across that have high static pressure, have high static pressure on the return side? Or both supply side and return side?
Our HVHC installer recommended a whole house Aprilaire filter for our Rheem system. We like it much better than having to mess with filters all the time.
This is something I've paid attention to over the last three to four decades, with no intention of contradicting anything you said, Josh, I'll be happy to share a couple tidbits of my findings. I found that the pressure drop, within a reasonable range, doesn't have much effect on the quantity of airflow generated by the blower. That was counterintuitive. Another counterintuitive finding was fan current variation due to flow restriction. I expected fan current draw to increase when blocking off the inlet such as choking filter might cause, but no, fan current drops. The blower motor draws the most current (thus presumably works the hardest) when there's no restriction and it's moving the most air. Probe that current and give it a try, it's a real eye opener. I bought a box of inexpensive fiber filters some 25 years ago, and I've trashed one or two since then. I go about a year without touching them, at which time I pull them down, take them outside, and blow them clean with an air gun, then reinstall. I have three filters stacked behind the front one at the grille site, plus another at the blower itself. The later filters accumulate deposits very slowly (years before anything noticeable) because the first filter catches all but a miniscule fraction of airborne particulates (dust). I don't feel any difference in the strength of air at the delivery registers between the clean filter, the year old dust plastered filter, and even no filter at all. Pretty whack!
Sq inches of filter surface area is very important. My 2.5 ton Trane HP was being filtered by an undersized 16x20x1 slot in the return duct close to the AH. I wanted to use a least a merv 8 to keep the evap coil clean. I tried one and got static drop of .23-.24 with my manometer. That's high for a clean filter. My returns could handle 3 ton unit with 1200 cfm, so I'm good there. My supply trunk would be sized right for my 2.5 ton @ 1000 cfm if it didn't have the 1" duct liner on the inside walls. That makes it adequate for 2 ton @ 800 cfm. according to duct sizing charts. Tried Purolator F312 fiberglass filter and got static of .10 @ 1000 cfm. That's good, but it's not gonna keep my coil clean in the long run. Had a Honeywell 20x25x4 cabinet fitted into the return that came with a merv 11 filter. Got static drop of .10 @ 1000 cfm clean filter. Less than half of the 1" merv 8 ! Measured TESP and got about .4. Compressor and ECM are happy.
When the filter gets plugged, the motor speeds up, which means its unloaded, so it's not working harder, it's not working as hard. So how does that hurt the motor? The furnace will run hotter, and be less efficient. In an electric furnace that could damage the heating element(s).
The way my unit is setup, there is no place for me to put in a 4 or 5 inch filter. For now, I’ve always had a 1” filter placed right below the coils in the AH. I have 2 return grilles in my living room ceiling as well as 3 more in the bedrooms. I replaced all of these return grilles with an egg crate filter return grill that can hold a 1” filter. Since surface area increase air flow, would using 5 different 1” filters in the return grilles increase air flow as opposed to the single 1” filter that’s in the AH?
In the past year I have closed vents in the basement that lead to rooms we don’t really use. Because of this my furnace “pops” when the air is done blowing. Is this unhealthy for my furnace? Someone said I should just open all vents but I don’t want my bill to raise for rooms I don’t use
If your duct pops you may need to adjust your fan speed. As far as closing vents, generally I would leave them open. Closing too many will be hard on the system and won't actually save you money.
One thing most manufacturers don't provide you as a filter loading curve. Oftentimes the filter loading curve is 1 of the most crucial things. One of the best things you could do is pick a filter you like and start looking at pressure readings on a regular basis and figure out how fast does the filter change pressure. I seized my nerve 16 filters I manufacture at 200' per minute In order to ensure I start at a low enough static pressure that I can get a minimum one year out of my filters.
Do you do a zoom meeting consult? If so rate? I have had two professionals come in and tell me my system is fine. But their answers do not make sense considering my home.
I replaced my 4" furnace filter with a 1" filter at the vent and it helped improve the airflow greatly and allowed the system to cool lower than it did before.
what about the amp draw and temp of the blower mtr..........also what about the cfm across the evap.......that changes things also........static pressure is important and each system is manufactured to operate at a set static pressure......Placing a higher MERV into the system could cause many problems.....In the heat mode it could cause the combustion chamber of a gas unit or the limit switches on an electric furnace to begin to trip.......My recommendation would be to put on it what the manufacture says its rated for........depending on the system or where the home is located they may need to install an electric filtration system to control the dust levels
I bought an older home (1930)1800 sq ft in late 2019. I upgraded the AC/Heat system to a 4 ton AmStd Platinum communicating system with variable speed along with a whole house duct cleaning in 2020. The system has a 4" media filter. Originally there were 2 vent grates with no filtration at floor level. I replaced these with custom sized registers (16x16x1 and 18x18x1) and have been using Merv 8 pleated filters in them as a dust/animal hair prevent. The media filter is also a pleated Merv 8. Am I doing more harm than good?
My house has a ac1 general aire filter. It seams to do a good job. My guy said chance once a year. After 6 months I had it changed and that’s when he said go one year it was still clean.
When using a 16"x25"x4" pleated media filter, would you also recommend using a pre-filter and/or post-filter at the same time? If using a MERV 12 media filter, for example, would adding a pre-filter and/or post-filter create too much static pressure? Thanks!
I have a whole-home filter in the attic, 4" and I change it consistently as directed. I also have return vents in almost every room (1900sqft home) and the ducts are getting dusty and cobwebs all up in there, but the vents covers are screwed to the ceiling on all sides. Am I going to place undue stress on the system if I additionally install cheap filters at ea. return vent? My thinking is that some sort of low-rated, cheap filter would at least pull large particulate from the intake air BEFORE it gets into my ducts and starts building up... want to avoid normal duct cleaning (if possible) thanks for the video!
Very on point The filter stretch demo opens eyes never ever use the purple 3m I have a heathy climate pure air merv 16 carbon with Uv catalyst my wife has bad allergies shots monthly after installing no symptoms no shots or medications yes it’s a $400 filter and component change out every year but the savings in medical is more which is a plus I would pay far more than that for a happy healthy wife I have many customers with similar stories air is life
I have a Bryant system 987MA66120V24A-B ac/gas. Uses 20 1/4 x 25 3/8 x 5 1/4 M8-1056 Amana MERV 11 would using a Amana,Goodman Filter Model Number: G8-1056 Exact Size: 20.25" x 25.375" x 5.25" Filter Rating: MERV 15 increase static pressure too much in my system? How can I tell if it does? Thanks!
I have a rudd system and I swear I've been getting sick and not sure if it's from the furnace or not. I think its an electrical one but not 100 percent sure. It's affecting me psychology we even thought the house was haunted. Not sure what to do. I told my landlord and nothing was done yet. So I got a y201 gas detector and calibrated it outside and it went off pretty good in my apartment not sure what to do now.
Most likely you have a gas furnace with a cracked heat exchanger delivering (CO); carbon monoxide aka "The Silent Killer"; get out of there very fast; Fire department may take a reading and certify your furnace is bad!
@@NewHVACGuide do you have a video on this topic? I'm trying to decide on purchasing metal frame and mess filter for our home ac unit and would like to be better informed before purchasing. Husband has allergies and I normally get merv 8 to 11 for him. Any info to help?
Sorry, but I think that's BOVINE SCAT.You must work for one of the disposable filter companies. If you really believed that, you would have backed up your claim with at least a couple of facts.
I have a 80% Bryant 70kbtu furnace paired with a 2.5ton AC. When I moved in system had 14x25x1 fiberglass filters. I always ran those changed monthly no issues. Wanted better air quality inside the home so I switched to pleated but went with a very low Merv 4 or 8 can't recall rating I believe by filtrete basic(clearly this low Merv rating would not help the quality of air that I was wanting but that's what I started off with). System was too restrictive with that 1" pleated filter even though it was a low Merv. Kept tripping the system. About sucked the filter into the blower. Clean filters installed with the air flow in correct position. Quickly took those out and went back to the fiberglass. No issues since. I went ahead and made 2 corsi Rosenthal style air filter/cleaners for the home to improve air quality. Running (4) 20x30x1 filtrete 2200 filters on each unit. If their is a solution on the market to change my 1" 14x25x1 filter slot into something larger 4" or 6" deep I believe that might give enough surface area to not restrict my system as much and give me the higher merv rating I am looking for for air quality and stop running the corsi Rosenthal boxes.
How did you hook up the Corsi Rosenthal filter setup to your ductwork? Or did you just set up a fan separate from the ductwork to the Corsi Rosenthal boxes? Thank you :)
@@Tadders stand alone unit. One is downstairs. One is upstairs. Downstairs filter seems to last about three months. I'm assuming the cooking has something to do with that. Upstairs filter I am getting six months or more out of. Nothing super scientific. If I set a sheet of paper against the filter and the suction holds it in place I assume the filter is still working ok. Alot of UA-cam videos on the corsi Rosenthal design
Just flipped through all your videos. Didn’t see what I was looking for. I have a 220v whole house air cleaner. It’s a Honeywell probably from the 80’s. I just bought the house and have never seen one of these before. Do they work or should I remove it and use one of the large house filters you recommend. Thank you
If it's an electrostatic filter that has not been maintained well, chances are it's useless now. They have to be maintained and kept claim to work well
I just had an HVAc tech do some work on my furnace. Before he left, he suggested replacing my 5" filter with a 1" filter as he said the issue with my low airflow rate was the pleated filter causing additional back pressure (increase in static pressure). I did not think this sounded correct and decided to check and VOILA..many of these HVAC guys are talking from their rear. The moral of the story is to check those questions in the back of your mind with Google or the people that actually know their $hit..like here!
once your filter is covered with debree its done. about 2 weeks is what a filter is maxed out at...and that depends on the air poluation of its types,,, it could be soiner than 2 weeks...filters are way overated as far as time useable...sorry to bust the bubble ...but its fact.
The purpose of a filter is to protect the evaporator coil from blockage not clean your house. Use the least restrictive filter and get the proper air flow.
I am closing on my home Friday and the new system only uses a 1-inch filter instwad of 2 or 4-inch. I have been looking at many options for what to use. The 3M 1900 seems really good balance. What is your opinion on the 3M 1900? Great video comparing. ua-cam.com/video/RkjRKIRva58/v-deo.html
If you do not have a brand new house that's extremely tight you may be sucking air through all the cracks and with that air comes lots of dust there is a thing called a fresh air damper you can bring in fresh air on your own terms in other words filtered versus extremely dirty contaminated air from the outside and or your crawl space etc etc Griffin can hook you up :-)
a video just to do a video to make money. All info is based on if a person changes their filters as needed. To assume a person will not remove a washable filter, clean and re-install is also the same type of person who will never change their paper or other media when necessary.
The majority of systems I come across have high static pressure. Almost all homes need more than 1 return air duct. Get a 2nd return air duct and grill installed. Then you can install a nice filter without hurting airflow. The purpose of your HVAC system is to easily move warm and cool air through your home. If you have properly sized ductwork and low static pressure you are going to be more comfortable.
Well said pal!
@@NewHVACGuide I'd like to have access to your brand guide. It would be cool to have a HVAC contractor rate to access the brand guide. If Mitsubishi and or Trane is near the top of your list I'd be happy to buy a copy from you.
So the majority of the systems that you come across that have high static pressure, have high static pressure on the return side? Or both supply side and return side?
Is that the same as back pressure?
Our HVHC installer recommended a whole house Aprilaire filter for our Rheem system. We like it much better than having to mess with filters all the time.
Whats the best 4in filter to buy?
Thank you for recording and posting this valuable educational video.
This is something I've paid attention to over the last three to four decades, with no intention of contradicting anything you said, Josh, I'll be happy to share a couple tidbits of my findings.
I found that the pressure drop, within a reasonable range, doesn't have much effect on the quantity of airflow generated by the blower. That was counterintuitive. Another counterintuitive finding was fan current variation due to flow restriction. I expected fan current draw to increase when blocking off the inlet such as choking filter might cause, but no, fan current drops. The blower motor draws the most current (thus presumably works the hardest) when there's no restriction and it's moving the most air. Probe that current and give it a try, it's a real eye opener.
I bought a box of inexpensive fiber filters some 25 years ago, and I've trashed one or two since then. I go about a year without touching them, at which time I pull them down, take them outside, and blow them clean with an air gun, then reinstall. I have three filters stacked behind the front one at the grille site, plus another at the blower itself. The later filters accumulate deposits very slowly (years before anything noticeable) because the first filter catches all but a miniscule fraction of airborne particulates (dust). I don't feel any difference in the strength of air at the delivery registers between the clean filter, the year old dust plastered filter, and even no filter at all.
Pretty whack!
Sq inches of filter surface area is very important. My 2.5 ton Trane HP was being filtered by an undersized 16x20x1 slot in the return duct close to the AH. I wanted to use a least a merv 8 to keep the evap coil clean. I tried one and got static drop of .23-.24 with my manometer. That's high for a clean filter. My returns could handle 3 ton unit with 1200 cfm, so I'm good there. My supply trunk would be sized right for my 2.5 ton @ 1000 cfm if it didn't have the 1" duct liner on the inside walls. That makes it adequate for 2 ton @ 800 cfm. according to duct sizing charts. Tried Purolator F312 fiberglass filter and got static of .10 @ 1000 cfm. That's good, but it's not gonna keep my coil clean in the long run. Had a Honeywell 20x25x4 cabinet fitted into the return that came with a merv 11 filter. Got static drop of .10 @ 1000 cfm clean filter. Less than half of the 1" merv 8 ! Measured TESP and got about .4. Compressor and ECM are happy.
Wow! Now that’s a testimonial!
Switched from 1” to a 5” media filter with a Merv 16+ carbon. My air feels so fresh. Probably overkill but I get great airflow.
When the filter gets plugged, the motor speeds up, which means its unloaded, so it's not working harder, it's not working as hard. So how does that hurt the motor? The furnace will run hotter, and be less efficient. In an electric furnace that could damage the heating element(s).
The way my unit is setup, there is no place for me to put in a 4 or 5 inch filter. For now, I’ve always had a 1” filter placed right below the coils in the AH. I have 2 return grilles in my living room ceiling as well as 3 more in the bedrooms. I replaced all of these return grilles with an egg crate filter return grill that can hold a 1” filter. Since surface area increase air flow, would using 5 different 1” filters in the return grilles increase air flow as opposed to the single 1” filter that’s in the AH?
In the past year I have closed vents in the basement that lead to rooms we don’t really use. Because of this my furnace “pops” when the air is done blowing. Is this unhealthy for my furnace? Someone said I should just open all vents but I don’t want my bill to raise for rooms I don’t use
If your duct pops you may need to adjust your fan speed.
As far as closing vents, generally I would leave them open. Closing too many will be hard on the system and won't actually save you money.
What are your thoughts on the 4-5” pleated filters for use in regular 1” return grilles? Like the Honeywell fc40r
What can i do to eliminate allergens?
There's different air quality products on the market that do different things... Check out this video: ua-cam.com/video/NVyZse268FE/v-deo.html
One thing most manufacturers don't provide you as a filter loading curve. Oftentimes the filter loading curve is 1 of the most crucial things. One of the best things you could do is pick a filter you like and start looking at pressure readings on a regular basis and figure out how fast does the filter change pressure. I seized my nerve 16 filters I manufacture at 200' per minute In order to ensure I start at a low enough static pressure that I can get a minimum one year out of my filters.
Shoot me an email with your info. I’d like to chat with you on a few things.
I would like to know how to change a new filter using the arrow
Easiest way is to remove existing filter carefully and see which side the arrows are on.
Always point the arrow towards the unit.
Do you do a zoom meeting consult? If so rate? I have had two professionals come in and tell me my system is fine. But their answers do not make sense considering my home.
Go to newhvacguide.com and check out our advice package. Thanks!
My A/C unit takes filters of only 1" thick, so how does a 4" filter, which won't fit, come into any consideration??????????????????
The 1” filters are the return air. Those would be in the ceilings. If you have a 4” filter it would be next to the unit up in the attic.
Absolutely the best explanation! Thank you for the lesson :)
I replaced my 4" furnace filter with a 1" filter at the vent and it helped improve the airflow greatly and allowed the system to cool lower than it did before.
what about the amp draw and temp of the blower mtr..........also what about the cfm across the evap.......that changes things also........static pressure is important and each system is manufactured to operate at a set static pressure......Placing a higher MERV into the system could cause many problems.....In the heat mode it could cause the combustion chamber of a gas unit or the limit switches on an electric furnace to begin to trip.......My recommendation would be to put on it what the manufacture says its rated for........depending on the system or where the home is located they may need to install an electric filtration system to control the dust levels
I can't disagree with you on any of that 🙂
What's the Merv number filter 14x25x1 works best on a regular house furnace ?
I'm currently using a Merv 10.
Switched from 4-inch pleated air filter to a washable flat one. Works great and saves money.
If I have a whole house filter in the attic can I take away the disposable ones
Thanks for the info!!!
You’re welcome!
I bought an older home (1930)1800 sq ft in late 2019. I upgraded the AC/Heat system to a 4 ton AmStd Platinum communicating system with variable speed along with a whole house duct cleaning in 2020. The system has a 4" media filter. Originally there were 2 vent grates with no filtration at floor level. I replaced these with custom sized registers (16x16x1 and 18x18x1) and have been using Merv 8 pleated filters in them as a dust/animal hair prevent. The media filter is also a pleated Merv 8. Am I doing more harm than good?
My house has a ac1 general aire filter. It seams to do a good job. My guy said chance once a year. After 6 months I had it changed and that’s when he said go one year it was still clean.
Wow that’s interesting. You must have a clean home
@@NewHVACGuide ...and an honest guy.
When using a 16"x25"x4" pleated media filter, would you also recommend using a pre-filter and/or post-filter at the same time? If using a MERV 12 media filter, for example, would adding a pre-filter and/or post-filter create too much static pressure? Thanks!
Unless the unit is designed for multiple filters it will cause problems to double filter.
Filter 10+ years ago blocked units. Todays disposable 1” do not impede air flow as long as they changed frequently 12 weeks at minimum
I have a whole-home filter in the attic, 4" and I change it consistently as directed. I also have return vents in almost every room (1900sqft home) and the ducts are getting dusty and cobwebs all up in there, but the vents covers are screwed to the ceiling on all sides.
Am I going to place undue stress on the system if I additionally install cheap filters at ea. return vent? My thinking is that some sort of low-rated, cheap filter would at least pull large particulate from the intake air BEFORE it gets into my ducts and starts building up... want to avoid normal duct cleaning (if possible)
thanks for the video!
That’s what I have in my house actually.
@@NewHVACGuide awesome - thanks!
Very on point The filter stretch demo opens eyes never ever use the purple 3m I have a heathy climate pure air merv 16 carbon with Uv catalyst my wife has bad allergies shots monthly after installing no symptoms no shots or medications yes it’s a $400 filter and component change out every year but the savings in medical is more which is a plus I would pay far more than that for a happy healthy wife I have many customers with similar stories air is life
I have a Bryant system 987MA66120V24A-B ac/gas. Uses 20 1/4 x 25 3/8 x 5 1/4
M8-1056 Amana MERV 11 would using a Amana,Goodman Filter
Model Number: G8-1056
Exact Size: 20.25" x 25.375" x 5.25" Filter Rating: MERV 15 increase static pressure too much in my system? How can I tell if it does? Thanks!
I have a rudd system and I swear I've been getting sick and not sure if it's from the furnace or not. I think its an electrical one but not 100 percent sure. It's affecting me psychology we even thought the house was haunted. Not sure what to do. I told my landlord and nothing was done yet. So I got a y201 gas detector and calibrated it outside and it went off pretty good in my apartment not sure what to do now.
Eek! May be time for a new apartment?!
Most likely you have a gas furnace with a cracked heat exchanger delivering (CO); carbon monoxide aka "The Silent Killer"; get out of there very fast; Fire department may take a reading and certify your furnace is bad!
You are correct, sir.
Thanks pal
Well done Griffin air conditioning
Thanks pal!
Always beware of metal-framed washable air filters; they're compressor killers!
I have not heard that. I have them in my house lol!
Explain plz
@@NewHVACGuide do you have a video on this topic? I'm trying to decide on purchasing metal frame and mess filter for our home ac unit and would like to be better informed before purchasing. Husband has allergies and I normally get merv 8 to 11 for him. Any info to help?
Sorry, but I think that's BOVINE SCAT.You must work for one of the disposable filter companies. If you really believed that, you would have backed up your claim with at least a couple of facts.
I have a 80% Bryant 70kbtu furnace paired with a 2.5ton AC. When I moved in system had 14x25x1 fiberglass filters. I always ran those changed monthly no issues. Wanted better air quality inside the home so I switched to pleated but went with a very low Merv 4 or 8 can't recall rating I believe by filtrete basic(clearly this low Merv rating would not help the quality of air that I was wanting but that's what I started off with). System was too restrictive with that 1" pleated filter even though it was a low Merv. Kept tripping the system. About sucked the filter into the blower. Clean filters installed with the air flow in correct position. Quickly took those out and went back to the fiberglass. No issues since. I went ahead and made 2 corsi Rosenthal style air filter/cleaners for the home to improve air quality. Running (4) 20x30x1 filtrete 2200 filters on each unit. If their is a solution on the market to change my 1" 14x25x1 filter slot into something larger 4" or 6" deep I believe that might give enough surface area to not restrict my system as much and give me the higher merv rating I am looking for for air quality and stop running the corsi Rosenthal boxes.
Sounds like you ductwork could be undersized if you can’t put a merv 8 filter in
How did you hook up the Corsi Rosenthal filter setup to your ductwork? Or did you just set up a fan separate from the ductwork to the Corsi Rosenthal boxes? Thank you :)
@@Tadders stand alone unit. One is downstairs. One is upstairs. Downstairs filter seems to last about three months. I'm assuming the cooking has something to do with that. Upstairs filter I am getting six months or more out of. Nothing super scientific. If I set a sheet of paper against the filter and the suction holds it in place I assume the filter is still working ok. Alot of UA-cam videos on the corsi Rosenthal design
@@JSATI thank you
Just flipped through all your videos. Didn’t see what I was looking for. I have a 220v whole house air cleaner. It’s a Honeywell probably from the 80’s. I just bought the house and have never seen one of these before. Do they work or should I remove it and use one of the large house filters you recommend. Thank you
If it's an electrostatic filter that has not been maintained well, chances are it's useless now. They have to be maintained and kept claim to work well
I just had an HVAc tech do some work on my furnace. Before he left, he suggested replacing my 5" filter with a 1" filter as he said the issue with my low airflow rate was the pleated filter causing additional back pressure (increase in static pressure). I did not think this sounded correct and decided to check and VOILA..many of these HVAC guys are talking from their rear. The moral of the story is to check those questions in the back of your mind with Google or the people that actually know their $hit..like here!
once your filter is covered with debree its done. about 2 weeks is what a filter is maxed out at...and that depends on the air poluation of its types,,, it could be soiner than 2 weeks...filters are way overated as far as time useable...sorry to bust the bubble ...but its fact.
The purpose of a filter is to protect the evaporator coil from blockage not clean your house. Use the least restrictive filter and get the proper air flow.
^^^This^^^
WHAT DOES A WHOLE HOUSE HOME FILTER LOOK LIKE, WHERE IS IT INSTALLED, AND HOW MUCH DOES IT COST?
I put a few in the video description. Check them out!
I am closing on my home Friday and the new system only uses a 1-inch filter instwad of 2 or 4-inch. I have been looking at many options for what to use. The 3M 1900 seems really good balance. What is your opinion on the 3M 1900? Great video comparing. ua-cam.com/video/RkjRKIRva58/v-deo.html
I still have dust....
In your house? Filters don’t eliminate dust in your house.
If you do not have a brand new house that's extremely tight you may be sucking air through all the cracks and with that air comes lots of dust there is a thing called a fresh air damper you can bring in fresh air on your own terms in other words filtered versus extremely dirty contaminated air from the outside and or your crawl space etc etc Griffin can hook you up :-)
a video just to do a video to make money. All info is based on if a person changes their filters as needed. To assume a person will not remove a washable filter, clean and re-install is also the same type of person who will never change their paper or other media when necessary.
Nobody understands this, really?