Air purifiers bundled with a HEPA filter can trap particles of a size that is even smaller than that of coronavirus so yes if you have been wondering so far “Do HEPA filters remove Covid?”
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Is It True HEPA Filter Remove Covid?
Yes, as per the studies conducted by CDC or the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, HEPA filters can trap the virus. HEPA air purifier or even the Portable HEPA filter can play a significant role in securing the air around you from viruses that are harmful, including COVID. Air purifiers help to reduce Covid changes around us. So the use of a HEPA filter is a good idea for all users.
How Can a HEPA Filter Remove COVID?
CDC announced on 5th October 2020 that COVID can be spread through the air. It spreads by using the medium of small droplets and various suspended particles in the air around us. They can remain in the air ranging from minutes to hours.
With that information, it is extremely important to cleanse the air surrounding us to deal with those viruses before they get into our respiratory tract and finally our lungs.
Portable HEPA filters do a great job safeguarding the medical personnel deployed in several facilities. It has been in practice since World War II started which clearly indicates that using Portable HEPA filters to acquire protection from diseases is not a new idea at all.
Our article today touches upon the points that discuss whether HEPA filters would stop the virus before we inhale the air and whether we save ourselves from the infection and the medical treatment cost or not.
What Is a HEPA Filter?
HEPA filters or High-efficiency particulate air filters are sort of mechanical filters with the capability to capture airborne contaminants and enable an environment full of fresh and breathable air.
It has a mesh structure inside and a high-density filter to carry out the said process of arresting microorganisms, dust, pollen, and fungus particles in the room. Experts say HEPA is capable of eliminating a minimum of 99.97% of airborne particles as small as 0.3 microns and HEPA has high MERV values to bear the testimony for it.
What MERV Indicates In HEPA Filters?
MERV or minimum efficiency reporting values indicate the capability of a certain filter to arrest particles ranging between 0.3 to 10 microns.
However, further studies established the fact that HEPA is well-equipped to capture particles and objects of the size of 0.01 microns and above.
Our topic today is to stop the spread of COVID-19 within our home premises. We should know that the coronavirus is approximately 0.125 microns or 125 nanometres in diameter which clearly means that HEPA filters can swiftly capture the viruses floating in the air.
What Are The Importance Of HEPA Filters In Rooms For COVID?
It is also important to note that HEPA filters come in different sizes and capabilities that vary with the different requirements of different-sized rooms.
To ensure the HEPA filters installed in our rooms work effectively in the long run, we need to take care of their cleaning and replacement requirements. It should be done more often during the season of allergy and more pollen and dust counts. On average, one can decide to clean and replace the filter quarterly a year to guarantee the optimum result in the room.
Is the HEPA Filter Totally Reliable To Put Viruses At Bay?
If you ask us for our opinion based on some solid data extracted from multiple studies conducted by some leading institutions, we may disappoint you by stating that the research studies are pretty few that say that HEPA filters can remove viruses in the air entirely.
But when we inhale the air around us and we worry about the virus transmitting from the very air we are breathing, the viruses that are responsible for respiratory diseases most of the time stay airborne being enclosed in the droplets or bubbles emitted by an infected individual while coughing sneezing and talking. In this case of being airborne enclosed in the droplets, the droplets that carry the viruses are bigger in size compared to the virus and thus get easily thwarted by the HEPA filter installed in your living room.
However, before you decide to rely solely on a HEPA filter to clean an infected environment where there is a possibility of non-aerosolized COVID-19 viruses being present in the air, consult environment experts, and their tried and tested methods.
What Do The Studies Tell Us About HEPA Filter Remove COVID?
Here comes the most awaited section and that is “Do HEPA filters remove viruses like COVID?” we are going to find out the answer to that question by taking a cue from the studies undertaken so far.
During COVID times, when we visited the hospitals, we found out that though the PPE kits are disbursed and implemented properly, none could effectively stop the spread of COVID. That is the time when we all suspected that the transmission was happening through the air. Later it was established that actually, COVID has been spreading through aerosols.
An experiment in Addenbrooke’s hospital in Cambridge found that there could be slower viral replication at later stages of the disease and using a HEPA filter in a general ward where patients are admitted at the early stage of the infection, resulted in no SARS-CoV-2 particle in the air, in contrast with the result where they didn’t use the filter and found the traces of the virus.
It was also realized that the HEPA filter installed in the ward, helped stop not only the COVID transmission but also the other pathogens which cause serious diseases, but so far, they were considered not to be spread through the air but it seems they do with the help of aerosol.
The EN 1822 test or the factory test that determines the quality of a filter, showed HEPA filters capable of blocking particles like COVID viruses which lie in the range of 0.12 to 0.16 microns. Also, the viruses can’t move autonomously in the air and they always get stuck with aqueous particles in the air. In this case, coronaviruses find the droplets, the key medium of human-to-human transmission as per WHO, the respiratory particles from the infected person when they sneeze, cough, or talk.
So, the goal is to trap the droplets or the respiratory particles from infected individuals and HEPA filters are well-equipped to do that.
Why Choose HEPA Filter To Remove Covid?
Yes, this question is still bugging a lot of our readers now that they know what HEPA filters can do. But, as we said earlier, all HEPA filters are not identical. They vary based on size and capabilities which will decide whether that particular filter is apt for your target room.
To make the matter clearer to you, HEPA filters with high CADR value can be tailor-made for big halls, large drawing rooms, or a conference room adjacent to your personal cabin.
What Is CADR?
CADR or Clean Air Delivery Rate determines the volume of air to be filtered in a unit of time. So, a high CADR value would mean a huge intake of air inside the filter and be cleaned at a time. At a high rate, you can rest assured that the air you breathe when you roam inside the room is instantly the best air to breathe.
Whereas, if your concern is to disinfect your room amidst an atmosphere filled with smaller than usual particles, viruses, bacteria, and other stuff that are hard for other filters to trap, make sure to choose the HEPA filter that is equipped to filter micro and nano-sized particles.
This way, you can look at the HEPA filters available in the market and remember the key is to understand the requirements of your specific room and narrow down your search based on those requirements.
Frequently Asked Questions – HEPA Filter Remove Covid
Do HEPA Filters Remove Viruses?
As we said, HEPA filters are now a standard for institutions to keep inside their space to deal with a virus-prone environment. We thoroughly demonstrated the studies conducted and the results achieved after that. The results showed that HEPA filters not only remove COVID but also other pathogens and viruses that have slim chances of transmission through the air.
Are Portable HEPA Filters Useful?
Yes, they are. But it is not like you should always have those filters around with you scientists and CDC recommends healthcare workers have those portable HEPA filters with them as PPE alone didn’t turn out to be foolproof.