Why You Should Change Your Air Filter Every Month

As a homeowner, it's essential to understand the importance of changing your air filter every month. Not only does this help keep your home's air clean and free of allergens, but it also helps to prevent breakdowns in your HVAC system. In this article, we'll explain why you should change your air filter every 30 days, what type of filter you should use, and how often you should check it. The general rule for pleated air filters (such as those made by FilterBuy) is to replace the filter every 30 days.

As the filter traps more dirt, dust, and allergens from the air, its efficiency decreases. This is why it's important to check your air filter once a month to see how dirty it is. If you or a family member has a history of allergies or asthma, plan to change the filter once a month, following recommendations from medical associations, including the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology. The most expensive pleated air filters can get away with changing them up to every six months. As air passes through a building's air conditioning system, air filters trap and collect large and small particles, such as dust, allergens, and microorganisms.

However, many homeowners aren't aware of how often air filters need to be replaced, making their system vulnerable to damage. In general, most air filter manufacturers and HVAC companies recommend changing the air filter every 30 days or 3 months. Compared to other DIY home improvement projects, changing air filters is a quick and painless process that can be done in less than an hour. The MERV rating is a scale from 1 to 20 and evaluates how well an air filter can remove particles from the air. Vacation homes or vacant homes that don't get much use usually wait to change the filters every 9 to 12 months.

Although it's a good rule of thumb, you'll need to check your air filter more often to see if it needs to be changed. And when this poor air quality circulates through the air filters, breakdowns are more likely to occur. However, some air conditioning systems have filters inside the return air ducts spread over several rooms in the house. The only type of filters that trap allergens and spores are HEPA filters, or high-energy particulate air filters. If you don't want your air filter to expel more dirt than before into your home, we strongly recommend that you change it every 30 days or as needed, as described above. This will help keep your home's air clean and free of allergens while also preventing breakdowns in your HVAC system.

Simon Genz
Simon Genz

Infuriatingly humble social media practitioner. Incurable communicator. Friendly internet trailblazer. Zombie fan. Lifelong foodaholic.