Heating / October 28, 2013

Lower Your Heating Bills: Change Your Heating Filter!

Did you know that your heating or furnace filter can greatly impact the efficiency of your forced air heating system? Most homeowners believe that a filter is a filter – as long as it’s clean, you’re fine! This misconception could be hindering the optimal efficiency of your heater and raising your energy bills. Fortunately, there is a uniform rating system which exists for you to understand which filter is the most efficient for your home.

The MERV Rating (Minimum Efficiency Reporting Value)

The MERV rating on a furnace air filter will help you better understand how efficient that filter will be when it is installed in your home’s heating system. This system is based on a rating scale that ranges from 1 (least efficient) to 12 (most efficient). Your common home filters will fall in the 1 to 4 range and are the most affordable. This affordability comes at the cost of lost efficiency, lower durability and overall lower filter quality.

Types of Heating System Filters

Generally, the MERV ratings have a correlation to both the material which the filter will be crafted from as well as the ability of the filter to effectively filter out a particulate of a certain size.

On the lower end of the MERV scale (1-4), you’ll find a number of commonplace disposable fiberglass panel filters, metal foam filters and similar. These filters generally only filter out particulates that are 10 microns or larger.

In the middle of the MERV scale (5-8), you’ll have some increased filtration benefits and increased efficiency. Some of these filters are fabricated from synthetic materials and can help improve the efficiency of your furnace. These filters will generally filter out particulates down to the size of 3 microns.

In the highest and best range of the MERV scale (9-12), you’ll find filters that use similar materials to prior filters but have been engineered for optimal efficiency and filtration qualities. You can expect these filters to help your furnace run at the highest efficiency possible while filtering particulates down to the size of 1 to 3 microns.

Make The Right Choice For Your Home

The MERV scale is an excellent way to evaluate your budget versus your home’s budget versus the efficiency and filtration properties of your furnace. Make sure to take the efficiency savings into account for your filtration system; more expensive filters might not be as pricey as they look when it pays off in your monthly energy bill!