Air cleaning technology evolves to address indoor air quality

QUINCY (WGEM) - According to the Environmental Protection Agency, everyone spends 90% of their lives inside.

COVID-19 heightened awareness about the dangers of indoor pollutants such as viruses, mold and other allergens.

Mold at the Adams County Courthouse and Illinois Veterans Home are just two examples of how indoor air quality can make people sick.

That’s why more people are turning to new technology for cleaner air.

John Howard works for Peters Heating and Air Conditioning in Quincy.

He spoke to the Adams County Board Tuesday night about new equipment now available to remove indoor pollutants.

“In the more recent past, even prior to COVID, indoor air quality has been, fresh air has been at the utmost importance of any design job on an HVAC project,” Howard said.

Howard said new technology has evolved to help make that happen, including air scrubbers that claim to kill bacteria, viruses and mold.

That’s why it’s one of the solutions proposed for the mold at the Adams County Courthouse.

“We wanted to approve this, get our RFP,” Building committee chair Dave Bellis said. “We won’t install these until we’ve signed a contract with our guy to make sure we’re doing it right.”

Adams County Board members put out a request for the air scrubbers after hearing Howard speak.

“The active tech ones or the newer ones, that’s what we refer to at the courthouse,” Howard said. “Those use UV light as well as ionizing the particles. These are something that people can install in the residential homes.”

They’re also being used in schools and commercial buildings.

“Homes used to be more breathable than what they are today, and because we’re building everything so tight, which is great, the quality of construction is going up,” Howard said. “Because you have these buildings built so tight, they’re not breathable. You’re not getting as much fresh air into the space unless it’s added to the space. These devices really help clean that air.”

The air scrubbers were created to clean 99.9% of indoor air pollutants such as allergens, mold and viruses.

Building committee chair Dave Bellis said the county plans to wait for air study results from an industrial hygienist before making a decision to buy and install the air scrubbers.

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