Switching on Big Energy Savings With Air Filtration

(Air Filtration Update) – Energy efficiency — and the resulting savings — can be achieved in surprisingly easy ways. That’s something hospitals, manufacturers, schools, and other organizations that have switched from using ordinary light bulbs to compact florescent (CFL) bulbs know well. With just a small investment — the cost of the bulb itself — energy use is reduced and the bottom line improved. But what is less well known is that light bulbs are just the beginning. Even greater energy savings — again, with minimal upfront costs — can be achieved by switching to more sustainable, efficient low energy air filters.

If switching to CFL bulbs was a wise choice, then switching to a new generation of energy efficient air filters is a no-brainer. Consider, for example, that while the cost premium of a CFL bulb versus a traditional incandescent bulb is 8 times the price, the premium of a sustainable air filter — like the 5-Star Durafil 4V from Camfil Farr — is just 2 times the price of a less efficient filter.

Both a CFL bulb and an energy-efficient air filter more than recover their cost premium. A CFL bulb may cost 8 times more than a traditional light bulb but it lasts 10 times longer. For sustainable air filters, the equation is even more favorable, as a filter that costs twice as much as a less efficient product lasts three times longer.

Then there are the energy savings. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the annual energy savings per CFL bulb is $4.50. Meanwhile, the savings per sustainable air filter is $ 135+ (thus it takes roughly 30bCFL bulbs to achieve the energy savings of a single 5 Star air filter). How long does it take to install 30 light bulbs versus 1 air filter?

Factor that $135 savings by the 300 air filters used by the average hospital, and switching to low-energy air filters can save $ 40,500 a year in energy costs, with no capital expenses. The same hospital would have to replace almost 10,000 conventional bulbs with CFL bulbs to achieve the same savings.

Keep in mind, too, that unlike light bulbs — which contain mercury — disposing of used air filters presents no health and safety concerns. And because sustainable filters from manufacturers like Camfil Farr last far longer than more conventionally designed products, there are fewer of them to dispose of, in any event — further reducing their impact on the environment.

Hospitals, manufacturers, and other organizations have seen significant — and easily obtainable — benefits by switching to compact florescent bulbs. Moving to low-energy air filters is the logical next step: a simple, low-cost strategy to boost savings even more.