Most air purifiers use a filter in their purification process to trap pollutants and remove them from the air. However, once the filter accumulates dirt and clogs up, you must change or clean it to maintain the purifier’s optimum efficiency. So, how do you recognize a dirty air purifier filter?
You can tell your air purifier filter is dirty when you notice a color change from white to gray or black. A decreased functioning or effectiveness of the device may also indicate a dirty filter. If pollutants clog a key cleaning component, the air purifier won’t clean as it should.
This article describes what a dirty filter looks like and how you know your air purifier filter is dirty. I also discuss knowing when your air purifier needs a new filter.
What Do Dirty Air Filters Look Like?
Air filters are a convenient way to improve the air quality within your home. You’ll find them as components of three systems in a home:
- HVAC (heating, ventilation, and air conditioning) system
- Furnace
- Air purifier/cleaner
These devices and systems circulate air within a room or throughout the home, often trapping particles and recirculation cleaner air. Unfortunately, the pollutants and particles they trap result accumulate over time, changing how they look and function.
Here’s a description of the contaminants that make air filters dirty:
Dirt, Fibers, And Dust
Household dust comprises fibers from beddings and upholstered furniture, dead skin cells, and dirt you track in from outside. These pollutants become airborne as you constantly interact with surfaces and objects in your home. The ductwork or air purifier picks them up, and they dirty up the filter
Pollen
A significant contributor to allergens within the home, pollen from outside can get into the house from various sources. Once they grab a ride on clothing, skin, pets, hair, and shoes, their final destination becomes your air filters. Pollen is particularly fond of furnace filters, seeing as furnace filters were made for them (most effective at trapping them).
Mold Spores
These pesky microscopic pollutants are particularly harmful to the respiratory system. Thankfully, air filters within the home can trap them as they travel within the ductwork or air purifier.
Smoking Indoors
Like how cigarette smoke blackens the lungs, the smoke wafting through your indoor air can dirty up the air filters. It also clogs them up faster than it would if you opted to smoke outdoors.
While clean filters are white or off-white, dirty filters can appear gray, ashy-looking, tan, brown, or black. They could also have black spots or some general discoloration. Whatever their appearance, it’s a result of pollutant build-up.
Ensure that you examine the air filter under sufficient light to avoid changing a filter that can still trap some dirt.
How Do I Know If My Air Purifier Filter Is Dirty?
No one desires to breathe dirty air, but that’s an unfortunate result of a dirty filter. Each air purifier uses a specific filter technology, and it’s crucial to check if the filter is dirty. The motivation behind identifying dirty air purifier filters is knowing when to clean or change them.
Having a clean, functional filter is one essential thing you can do to keep your air purifier in optimum condition. To neglect this maintenance activity is to give way for your air purifier to malfunction. It also exposes you to poor indoor air quality.
Since you can’t ignore the effects of a dirty air purifier filter, here’s how to know when it’s messy:
Physical inspection
You can open the device and inspect the filter’s condition. If the air purifier has a three-filter system, you’ll have to check them one after the other. Most three-filter air purifiers have a HEPA filter in the middle, and it’s often the primary concern.
Remove the pre-filter and check the HEPA filter. If it’s dirty, you will find clumps of dust and dirt on it. As mentioned in the previous section, it may also look black.
Indoor Air Quality (IAQ)
This is more or less a functional indicator of a dirty filter. When an air purifier is in perfect working condition, it delivers clean air to the space. You may not “see” the absence of pollutants in the air, but you can gauge the indoor air quality.
If you notice a decline in the IAQ, a dirty filter may be responsible for the air purifier’s ineffectiveness.
Time
It might be an unusual method, but it’s a good way to wing it. Regardless of your air purifier’s filter technology, each comes with a manufacturer’s recommendation for cleaning or replacement. So, once a scheduled filter change approaches, you acknowledge its dirty state by changing it.
Remember to read the air purifier’s user manual to determine the recommended filter cleaning schedule. Also, knowing that your air purifier’s filter is dirty is only half the task. If you don’t take action, this knowledge will be useless to you and your air purifier.
How Do I Know When My Air Purifier Needs a New Filter?
With all the work your air purifier is doing, it’ll get clogged up eventually with particles and dust. If it’s bogged down, your air purifier must work harder to circulate air within the space. A dirty and clogged filter will also release polluted air throughout the room when it should recirculate cleaner air.
It’s normal for your filter to get saturated with dirt, but it’s neither typical nor ideal to leave it so. Many people can’t determine when their air purifiers need a new filter, and that’s dangerous. However, it’s easy to tell once you understand the factors that affect filter changes, including:
Filter Type
Many air purifiers have a three-filter purifying mechanism (or less than that). The idea is to use as many filters as possible to tackle as many pollutants as possible. Pollutants come as particulates and gasses or odors, and few filters can handle both.
The issue with using multiple filters is that they have different changing times. Therefore, it may be unclear if your air purifier uses several filters. However, the information here will make it easier for you.
HEPA (high-efficiency particulate air), carbon, and mesh pre-filters are the most common filter types in today’s air purifiers.
Although each type may come with a manufacturer’s recommendation for changing, you can change them according to this schedule:
- Mesh pre-filter—every two to four weeks
- True HEPA filter—every three to four months (24/7 use) or six to 12 months (12/hr use)
- Activated carbon filter—every six to 12 months
Other filters, like negative ion filters, ozone, and UV, should follow the manufacturer’s recommendation.
Filter Efficiency
A filter’s efficiency often determines how often it needs replacing. An inefficient filter will allow more particles to recirculate in the air and require fewer replacements. In contrast, high-efficiency filters tap more pollutants from the air and will need more frequent replacements.
Besides the recommended change times, here are other ways to know when your air purifier needs a new filter:
Change Indicators
Most modern air purifiers have indicators that beep or light up when it’s time to change the unit’s filter. It’s convenient and helps you track the period between filter changes. However, even though your air purifier has this indicator, it’s prudent to check manually.
Some of these change indicators are just timers that tell you that the recommended change time has passed. Also, the timer may be programmed according to the manufacturer’s recommended replacement schedule. If it is, then it may not go off even when your filter gets dirty faster than the recommended time.
Color Change
As discussed above, discoloration or a change in appearance may show a dirty filter that needs replacing. However, a color change isn’t necessarily a replacement indicator, e.g., HEPA filters may darken after a short period of activity.
It doesn’t mean that the filter is saturated, just that it’s doing its job. Contrarily, a clean filter doesn’t necessarily mean you shouldn’t change it. This is because microscopic pollutants exist, and filter damage can also be microscopic.
Functional And Physical Indicators
A dirty-looking filter is not the only indicator for a filter change. If your air purifier’s fan is louder than usual, it could mean that it’s working harder to suck in and release air. The filter could be the underlying cause of this strain on the fan.
With a reappearance of particulates and allergy symptoms, your air purifier may be telling you it’s time for a filter change. Likewise, pet dander reappearance is a significant indicator of a clogged filter.
As you pay attention to these filter change indicators, you should know that not all filters need to be changed or replaced. Some air purifiers use permanent filters that last as long as the device does. Light and gentle cleaning with a vacuum addition are recommended for these permanent filters.
Other filters are reusable once you wash them. Ensure that a filter is washable before you rinse it, and when you do, avoid using harsh cleaning agents. Filter media/fibers are highly delicate, and hard chemicals can destroy them.
It doesn’t take much to monitor when your air purifier needs a filter change. If the device doesn’t have a smart change indicator, you can write out a schedule and keep it around the air purifier. Vigilance and prompt action are better than inhaling dirty air and risking your health.