How Long Do Air Filters Last

How Often Do I Really Need to Alter My Air Filter?

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By FilterBuy

Replacing the filter in your air-conditioning and/or heating organisation regularly keeps your appliances working properly and your energy bills low. Information technology'south also a job that many homeowners forget about for months at a time, which tin can send your energy bill skyward and potentially contribute to other maintenance issues down the line. Read on to find out the best charge per unit at which to alter your air filter!

General Recommendations

So, how frequently should yous change your air filter? The answers is: it depends.
Typical recommendations range from every 30 days for cheaper fiberglass filters (which often don't do a great job of filtering), to equally long every bit 6 months for higher-end pleated filters. These estimates assume average use and take into account the type and size of your filter.

A full general dominion of thumb for pleated air filters (like ones made by FilterBuy) is to replace your filter every ninety days. As your filter traps more than dirt, dust, and allergens from the air, filter efficiency decreases. Find out below if y'all should be replacing your filter more often.

a fresh air filter blocks unwanted particles while allowing clean air to flow through

Does someone in your home have asthma and/or allergies?

Those with asthma and/or allergies are much more than sensitive to airborne particles than those without. If you take an asthma- or allergy-sufferer at domicile, alter your filter every 6 weeks to ensure indoor air quality is at its best.

Does someone in your home accept asthma and/or allergies?

Those with asthma and/or allergies are much more than sensitive to airborne particles than those without. If you have an asthma- or allergy-sufferer at habitation, change your filter every vi weeks to ensure indoor air quality is at its all-time.

a fresh air filter blocks unwanted particles while allowing clean air to flow through

Practice yous have pets?

Cats and dogs shed and accept odors that can build up in your space, making it necessary to change your filter every 2 months. By and large, cats and dogs shed most when winter turns to jump and summer turns to fall, which are key times to supersede your filter.

ac units require consistent maintenance to ensure longevity and cooling power

Do you have young children?

Superior indoor air quality is especially of import with kids around. Keep your home clean and air quality under control by replacing your vacuum filter every 2-3 months.

Factors that tin can impact your HVAC air filter's lifespan include:

Image of an HVAC mechanic standing next to an AC unit

The rate at which you lot utilise your heating and/or cooling organisation

If y'all alive in a temperate climate and employ your heater and/or air conditioner up to a few hours every twenty-four hour period, a single filter can concluding y'all from a whole flavor to an entire year. If your HVAC system is running on a near-constant basis, however, change your filter every few weeks (especially if you're using a cheaper fiberglass filter).

The rate at which you utilize your heating and/or cooling arrangement

If you live in a temperate climate and apply your heater and/or air conditioner up to a few hours every day, a single filter can last you from a whole season to an entire year. If your HVAC system is running on a near-constant basis, however, change your filter every few weeks (especially if y'all're using a cheaper fiberglass filter).

Image of an HVAC mechanic standing next to an AC unit

The size of your dwelling house

Furnaces and air conditioners in smaller homes need to pump less air for the aforementioned amount of temperature alter, which may mean less frequent filter changes. These appliances are frequently congenital with smaller filters, though, and thus may need to be inverse only every bit regularly as a filter in a larger home.

graphic of a house

air filters impact air quality and airflow in your home

The air quality within your domicile

The air within or outside your home volition also impact your filter's replacement cycle. Pets or poor air quality, for example, will crave yous to supercede your air filter more frequently.

The air quality within your home

The air within or outside your home will also affect your filter's replacement wheel. Pets or poor air quality, for example, will require you to replace your air filter more often.

air filters impact air quality and airflow in your home

How to Tell When Your HVAC Air Filter Needs Changing

Any utilise will atomic number 82 to some amount of clay being trapped in your air filter - that's its job, later on all.
So how do yous know when your filter has trapped too much dirt and needs to exist replaced?

Repair Man Image

There's no strict guideline, simply if your filter shows simply a subtle layer of dirt under which the filter's material is still visible, your filter is in fine working gild. Once it gets much beyond that point, it'due south set to be inverse out. If there's a visible coating of dirt roofing nearly of your filter's surface that is fairly thick to obscure the filter material itself, that'southward a sign that your filter has been in your HVAC organisation far too long.

Every few weeks, take out your filter and give it a look! Is at that place a musty odor? Is the filter covered in dust? If in doubt, it's e'er best to err on the side of replacing your filter. They're relatively inexpensive, and that small price to keep your heating and cooling vents clear will be well worthwhile when your energy bill comes due. If it'south been a while since you've changed your filters, we can help yous find the right size, brand, and blazon of HVAC air filter for your furnace and/or air conditioner.

Set to supplant your filter? Click here and get your system back to clean efficiency!

How Often Do I REALLY Need to Change My Air Filter?

FAQ

How practice I know if my air filter needs changing?

At that place are ofttimes obvious signs that your air filter needs changing. They include:

Dust and debris accumulating on your intake vents
Grit and debris accumulating virtually your output vents, often on the ceiling and walls nearby
Dust accumulating on fan blades, curtain rods, on acme of cabinets, indicating that at that place is an backlog of dust in apportionment
Noticeable loss of cooling ability in your AC system
Sounds of excessive strain when your Air-conditioning system starts upwards
Longer periods of run time for your Air conditioning system to cool to desired temperature
Indicator on your AC controls telling you to modify your air filter

When in dubiety, buy a replacement air filter and modify it out.

How long tin can you go without changing the air filter?

The longest you should go without changing your air filter is the recommended ninety days. However, if replacing your air filter is simply out of the question for an extended period of time, going beyond xc days is not going to cause irreparable harm to your AC system. However, you will put unwanted strain on your HVAC system, resulting in poor air quality and air apportionment.

What are the symptoms of a dirty air filter?

Symptoms of a dirty air filter can include:

Dust and droppings accumulating on your intake vents
Dust and debris accumulating near your output vents, often on the ceiling and walls nearby
Grit accumulating on fan blades, curtain rods, and on top of cabinets, indicating that there is an excess of dust in circulation
Noticeable loss of cooling power in your Air conditioning system
Sounds of excessive strain when your Ac system starts upwardly
Longer periods of run time for your AC system to cool to desired temperature

Does changing the air filter make a deviation?

Yes, changing your filter has several impacts on your HVAC system'south ability to cool your house and the overall quality of your air. When yous change your air filter, you allow more air to menstruation through your system with less power usage resulting in improve circulation, cleaner air, and a lower electricity beak.