The smell of cigarette smoke can leave behind some stubborn odors. If a room of your home has been smoked in for several months or years, you know just how oppressive that odor can be. Plus, the effects of second-hand smoke over a long period of time can prove harmful. Even before that, it may be enough to trigger the allergy and asthma symptoms in certain individuals.
Fortunately, there are some air quality systems out there that can help with eliminating those odors. Whether you enjoy lighting up a cigar every now and then or if you’re trying to clear smoke odors from a previous owner or tenant, the right combination of purifiers and filters can make all the difference.
Which Kinds of Air Quality Systems Can Eliminate Smoke?
Typically, air filters and purifiers in the home are used to reduce the presence of dust, dirt, mold, and pollen—the most common kinds of contaminants that end up floating into your home from the outdoors.
However, a wide range of filters exist for commercial usage to combat things like smoke, odors from industrial machines, and pollutants from chemical cleaners and substances. There are also instances where these types of contaminants can make it into your home, as well, such as in the case of using strong chemical cleaners or in our example of smoke from cigarettes.
HEPA Air Filters
The job of these filters is to capture particles of various sizes. The size of the particles it’s able to capture depends on the grade of it. It is possible to use such a high-grade filter that even air has a hard time getting through, thus making your HVAC system inefficient—it’s important only to use the required type of filter and not to go overboard.
The right type of HEPA filter can capture enough smoke particles to help make a difference, however, they’re much better at capturing smoke before the particles begin to disperse.
Active Carbon Air Purifiers
HEPA air filters are good to reduce smoke in a home or building with active smokers, but if your goal is to remove stubborn odors, then what you need is an active carbon air purifier.
When carbon is exposed to a high temperature, it is able to absorb all the chemicals, odors, and gasses that pass through it through adsorption. Once they’re trapped, they’re no longer able to emit an odor since they won’t be let back into the air.
Even a small pellet of carbon is able to contain a massive amount of contaminants, and several purifiers on the market provide carbon in pounds, meaning you’ll be able to use these filters for years. Of course, there are many cheap filters on the market that claim to eliminate smoke, but to truly make a difference, you’ll need the professional equipment approved by an indoor air quality expert in Long Beach, CA.
Finding the right air quality system for your home requires an assessment from a professional. Contact Greenleaf Heating & Cooling to schedule a service.
