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Should you be changing your air filter in your apartment?
The short answer is yes: You should be changing the air filter in your apartment.
The rest of the article will look at why you should be changing your apartment air filters — as well as what will happen if you don’t.
And we know, in a perfect world, your landlord would do this for you. But this often doesn’t happen. And so changing the filter is left up to you. And really, your landlord often does not have a strong incentive to change the filters.
Most of the benefits of regularly changing your air filter are for you.
They include quality-of-life benefits: things like your comfort, your health, and your budget.
So, what happens if you don’t change your air filter?
If your air filters are almost never changed, there could very well be long term (and expensive) damage done to your HVAC system.
And if your apartment has a dedicated heating and cooling system, then it will be easy for the landlord to trace that problem back to you.
But beyond that, the big reasons for changing your apartment’s air filter are the comfort of breathing clean air.
Along with any health problems that may be made worse from breathing unfiltered air — as well as reducing your energy bill by not having a clogged filter — it’s important to change your filter.
Even if you’re renting.
You’re the one breathing the air, after all.
What will a good air filter help block?
Quality air filters will make sure you’re not breathing some of the more common things that show up in our air — even things we don’t notice at first.
Here’s an overview of what a good air filter will block:
- Debris
- Dust Mites
- Dirt
- Mold
- Spores
- Pet Dander
It’s important to note: Not all filters will block out all of these particles and contaminants.
And so it’s critical that you check the MERV rating of your filter, no matter which brand you go with.
(More on MERV ratings below.)
At Filter King, we make sure to only sell quality filters.
Others will sell cheaper air filters, such as fiberglass (we’ve written on why fiberglass filters are not safe here).
So, which air filter should you go with?
If you’re looking for a reliable quality air filter, and you have no special circumstances, then we recommend starting with the MERV 8, or even a MERV 11.
However, if you have a newborn baby or allergies, then we recommend at least a MERV 11, or maybe a MERV 13, depending on your needs.
And if you have any chronic or other breathing problems, then a MERV 13 — especially the MERV 13 Titanium — would be a wise choice.
(For a quick breakdown on what you should know when picking out a good MERV rating for your filter, we talk about that at the beginning of ourMERV 13 reviews.)
How often should you replace your air filter in your apartment?
First, it’s a good idea to change it as soon as you move in.
There’s a good chance that both the tenant before you as well as your landlord may not have changed the filter recently.
And so that’s a good, safe practice.
But beyond that, 1-3 months is a good range.
Even a great filter, if not changed, will lose its effectiveness.
That means, the airborne pollutants and allergens that were previously getting filtered out, are now back in your home.
But also, having a dirty filter will cause your energy costs to rise because your HVAC system is having to work that much harder to push air through.
At the same time…
…we understand how easy it is to forget to change your filter.
That’s why we created our completely free automated reminder service. Even if you didn’t buy your filters from us, you can use it.
Just click here to subscribe and get free filter reminders — so that you never forget to change your filter, and always have clean air.
And, of course, if you have any questions along the way, you can always contact us here or call us at 877-570-9755. We’re always happy to help you in any way we can.
By the way…
We have a coupon code that is valid for everything we sell.
Just use the coupon code 5off on your next order and save $5!
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