1200 sq. ft. home in Texas

[elozio32]

Did you change the tape?

[ME_Andy]

I don't know what you mean...

[ME_Andy]

I took the plunge and bought two, infinitely reusable K&N home air filters. The cost was something like $130 but we'll worth it, IMo. They should pay for themselves in about 3 years. They're very heavy and seem well-made. No cardboard here.

The filter efficiency rating is 11, which is at the high end of the residential range. It's almost hospital-grade. The picture shows a comparison of the new K&N against the crappy Tru-Blu I was using before. It's pretty obvious which one will filter better.

[Daox]

Awesome! Glad to hear it seems like a good product off right off. Hope to hear more good reports. I'd love to hear how easy they are to clean, how often they need to be replaced, etc.

[MN Renovator]

"crappy Tru-Blu"

Not sure why you say that. They are decent filters and they don't cost much, 2 for $3, when on sale. They do a good job of protecting the A-coil from getting gunked up without adding additional static pressure(resistance to air flow) when changed out fairly often.

[jeff5may]

Originally Posted by MN Renovator

"crappy Tru-Blu"

Not sure why you say that. They are decent filters and they don't cost much, 2 for $3, when on sale. They do a good job of protecting the A-coil from getting gunked up without adding additional static pressure(resistance to air flow) when changed out fairly often.

I second that opinion. The main filter in a central HVAC system is not meant to be a HEPA filter. They're there to keep the bugs and lint off of the heat exchangers and to cause as little pressure drop as practical. One of the worst things you can do to destroy performance is to put in a filtrete filter in the spot that the factory one came out of. They drop way more pressure than they should and starve the air handler. Everything wears out faster when it runs 30 to 60 percent longer cycles to satisfy the comfort load.

If you feel the need to have super clean air, buy a HEPA filter and use it. That being said, I hope the super hotrod air filter works out for you. I sure hope it doesn't stress out the central HVAC system. I'm sure those things cost a pretty penny when they go south.

[CrankyDoug]

Originally Posted by jeff5may

One of the worst things you can do to destroy performance is to put in a filtrete filter in the spot that the factory one came out of. They drop way more pressure than they should and starve the air handler. Everything wears out faster when it runs 30 to 60 percent longer cycles to satisfy the comfort load.

I can attest to that fact. I put the largest filter/grill assembly I could find in the return air duct at my mom's house. I figured twice the area would allow me to use the best Filtrete on the shelf.

It created so much pressure drop the 18" round, heavy gage steel return air duct collapsed. And that was on a 1.5 ton unit. I doubt if four times the original filter surface area would have been enough.

[ME_Andy]

I had a feeling that would be Jeff's opinion. There's an interesting chart here to look up exactly what your filter stops. I'm not convinced TruBlu was even catching most dog hair.

https://www.serviceexperts.com/indoo...our-air-filter

[MN Renovator]

Originally Posted by ME_Andy

I had a feeling that would be Jeff's opinion. There's an interesting chart here to look up exactly what your filter stops. I'm not convinced TruBlu was even catching most dog hair.

https://www.serviceexperts.com/indoo...our-air-filter

I just looked it up, it's a FPR 5 / MERV 7 filter. Not sure how you think a pleated filter isn't going to catch dog hair. Here's a link showing it's MERV 7. I get these on sale from a different home improvement store at 2 for $3.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/True-Blu...6201/100352750

[ME_Andy]

The fiberglass kind is worse. And even cheaper than 2/$3, I think