I do believe it has made a difference , don't seem to have the allergy symptoms anymore.
The filter and bulb are not as long as I had expected and no spec was listed.
Being a sheet metal mechanic it was extremely easy to install.
I recently had the supply plenums for my two HVAC systems rebuilt due to the gradual growth of mold inside over the last dozen years. Since I don't have any confidence that mold won't slowly start to grow again, I added these to my systems as a preventative measure. I've had them installed for a few days now. I can't comment on whether they are actually making a difference, but there aren't any weird side effects either (e.g. ozone odor).
The installation was straightforward. I had to cut a 2.5" x 3" hole in each supply plenum using a utility knife and a mini hacksaw. I then used 3M 3350 metallic HVAC tape to attach each unit. I'm not entirely confident that the tape is going to hold, but I also needed to use an adhesive that is removable since eventually I'll need to remove the units to replace their UVC bulbs. The tape seems to adhere to the aluminum chassis and the exterior foil of the duct board pretty well, but it does not adhere so well to the areas covered with mastic. I might end up using different tape if the tape I used doesn't hold, or to address the condensation that forms on the tape due to how cold the aluminum chassis gets.
Each unit did come with some screws, and the base does have notches for the screws. I think these are only useful though if you are installing the unit in a metallic duct. I'm pretty confident that the screws wouldn't hold in duct board since there isn't any surface against which to cut threads, and even if they hold initially, I would expect them to fail over time as the the unit is serviced.
The main reasons that I bought this unit are:
- The unit has a titanium dioxide (TiO2) filter that is supposed to act as a photocatalyst making it more effective. I'm not sure how effective this is in practice, but the price was close enough to more basic units that I thought I'd give it a chance.
- This unit is made of aluminum, while some other units are made of plastic. Some plastics breakdown in UV light, potentially limiting their lifetime.
- The UVC bulb used by the unit appears to be standard, and as a result readily available. I'm not sure who makes the included bulb, but a Philips 325126 9W bulb with G23 base appears to be the same thing.
Here are some things to note about the units given my experience so far.
- The chassis only has tabs on two of the four sides. You'll get better tape adhesion if you tape the sides without the tabs first, and then overlay the initial tape with another layer of tape across the tabs.
- There is no indicator light with respect to whether the bulb is functioning. In order to check the bulb, you either have to remove the unit, remove the door for the evaporator coil, or poke a hole in the supply plenum to check for the bluish glow emitted by the UVC bulb. This is a simple but big opportunity to improve the product.
- The aluminum chassis is very thermally conductive. This is good for the electronics inside, at least in the summer, but in a very humid environment may result in condensation. I'm not sure how this might affect the lifetime of the unit.
- The TiO2 filter is not replaceable as it is in a C shaped aluminum frame that wraps around it on all sides. The manufacturer says it never needs to be replaced, but that is suspect to me. Even if it was replaceable, I'm not sure where you could buy a replacement though.
- I assumed that the line cord coming from the chassis would be directly plugged into an outlet. However, there is an additional power brick that is not shown in the photos. The power brick says that the "Open Circuit Voltage" is 600V, which I guess is the output voltage. The bulbs are advertised as being 60V in comparison. (Is the voltage on the power brick a misprint?) In any case, the power brick makes things a bit more complicated if you were thinking of powering this from a 24VAC transformer, or hard wiring it.
- The manufacturer, Green UV, states that the included bulb has an expected lifetime of 13,000 hours. The data sheet for Philips 325126 similarly sized UVC bulb states that the expected lifetime is 9,000 hours. The manufacturer may not be using Philips bulbs, but I think this is worth noting.
- The manufacturer, Green UV, says that if you don't use their bulbs, which I don't even know where you can buy, that the warranty will be void. I believe this statement violates the Magnuson Moss warranty act though and is invalid.
- If you need warranty service at some point, this may be a challenge. The manufacturer, Green UV, says that you should work through your installer for service. When that time comes, hopefully the Amazon seller is around and will help, or the manufacturer will step up and help.
- I saw another product that included a sheet metal frame that could permanently be mounted in the duct and then the unit attached to the frame. This would be a great improvement to the product.
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