Will A Heat Pump Set On Fan Only Filter Out Smoke

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***NOTE half dozen/16/2021: Additional information most the COVID-19 pandemic tin be found in Public Health Strategies to Reduce Exposure to Wildfire Fume During the COVID-nineteen Pandemic and in the Wildfire Guide Mail service-publication Updates page.***

During a wildfire, smoke can make the outdoor air unhealthy to breathe. Local officials may propose y'all to stay indoors during a smoke event. You should be aware that some of the smoke from outdoors can enter your home and make it unhealthy to breathe indoor air, as well.

If you are close to a wildfire, the fire itself, besides as heavy smoke and ash, can pose serious, immediate risks to your prophylactic and health. You and your family should be prepared to evacuate immediately if told to do so. Farther from a wildfire, you may be exposed to smoke fifty-fifty if the fire itself is far away.

Fume is made up of a complex mixture of gases and fine particles produced when woods and other organic materials burn. The biggest health threat from smoke is from fine particles. These microscopic particles can get into your eyes and respiratory arrangement – whether you are outdoors or indoors, where they tin can cause health bug such as called-for eyes, runny nose, and illnesses such as bronchitis. Fine particles also can aggravate chronic centre and lung diseases - and even are linked to premature deaths in people with these conditions.

If you are good for you, y'all're commonly not at a major risk from brusque-term exposures to fume. All the same, it'south a proficient idea to avoid animate fume – both outdoors and indoors – if you tin can help it. Learn more about the health effects of wildfire smoke.

This folio provides helpful information to reduce your exposure to wildfire smoke within your home.

On this page:

How Does Wildfire Fume Bear on Indoor Air Quality?
What Can I Do Now to Protect My Family from Wildfire Fume?
What Can I Do During a Wildfire Fume Result to Reduce My Family'due south Exposure to Smoke Indoors?
What Tin can I Do Afterwards a Wildfire Smoke Upshot to Protect My Family from Ash Indoors?
Additional Resource

On other pages:

Create a Clean Room to Protect IAQ During a Wildfire
Wildfires and Indoor Air Quality in Schools and Commercial Buildings

How Does Wildfire Fume Affect Indoor Air Quality?

Outdoor air, including fine particles from wildfire smoke, can enter your home in a few ways:

through open windows and doors, which is known asnatural ventilation.
throughmechanical ventilationdevices such as bath or kitchen fans that vent to the outdoors, or heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems with a fresh air intake.
through small openings, joints, cracks, and around airtight windows and doors through a process calledinfiltration.

illustration of how air enters a house — Means that outdoor air can enter a domicile

Wildfire smoke could impact your indoor air quality (IAQ) differently depending on the proximity of the fire and the density of the smoke. Hither are some situations you might experience and the actions you can take in each state of affairs:

Image of wildfires near structures in Los Angelos, CA — Active burn well-nigh buildings in Los Angeles, CA

If there is an agile burn down in your area and it is very close to your house:

It may be all-time to evacuate. Fires can spread speedily, and the fume plume can make information technology difficult to see in an evacuation. In add-on, it can exist nearly impossible to keep dumbo smoke from building up in the indoor air. Pay close attention to local emergency alerts to know when to evacuate.

Photo of wildfire smoke near strucutures in San Francisco, CA — High fume levels from a distant wildfire in San Francisco, CA

If there is an active burn down shut enough to cause loftier fume levels, but the burn is not threatening your home:

Fume may enter your dwelling house, making it harder to exhale. Learn more well-nigh what to do in this state of affairs and how to ready for it. If at that place is an agile fire in your area, follow your local news, EPA's AirNow website, or your state air quality website for up-to-appointment information.

Satellite image of wildfire smoke crossing the US on the jet stream. — Wildfire smoke crossing the Usa on the jet stream. Actively burning areas are outlined in ruby-red. Prototype credit: NASA

You lot may hear that smoke from a far-abroad wildfire has spread to your community, even if it is thousands of miles away.

While this can happen, the amount of smoke that may attain your community from such a distance is probably very small and may be overshadowed by local sources of particle pollution. In this situation, you tin can monitor your local outdoor air quality on AirNow.gov and manage your indoor air quality every bit you lot ordinarily would.

What Can I Practise At present to Protect My Family unit from Wildfire Fume?

If you lot live in an expanse where the wildfire run a risk is loftier, accept steps now to prepare for burn flavor. Being prepared for fire season is especially of import for the wellness of children, older adults, and people with center or lung disease. The Prepare for Burn Season fact sheet describes the central steps you should have to brand sure you are prepared to protect your family's wellness in the event of a wildfire. FEMA's How to Prepare for a Wildfire provides additional detail on how to protect yourself and your property.

Consider purchasing a portable air cleaner or high-efficiency HVAC Filter

You may decide to purchase a portable air cleaner or high-efficiency HVAC system filter every bit part of your preparation in order to help improve your indoor air quality during a wildfire smoke issue.

image of how to make DIY air cleaner — DIY Air Cleaner to Reduce Wildfire Smoke indoors Infographic (PDF) - click epitome to view full-sized

If you decide to buy a portable air cleaner, cull one that is sized for the room in which you lot will use information technology. Make sure the portable air cleaner does not brand ozone.

If portable air cleaners are not available or affordable, you may cull to use a do-it-yourself (DIY) air cleaner. DIY air cleaners are fabricated by attaching a furnace filter to a box fan with tape, brackets, or a bungee cord, and tin can serve every bit a temporary alternative to commercial air cleaners. At this time, there is limited data bachelor on how well DIY air cleaners filter fume particles. EPA does not recommend the routine use of DIY air cleaners as a permanent alternative to products of known operation (such equally commercially available portable air cleaners).

Tips - If Y'all Choose to Employ a DIY Air Cleaner

There are many ways to put together a DIY air cleaner. Some common designs are to identify one filter flat against the fan, two filters taped with cardboard to class a triangle against the fan, or even more than filters taped against the fan to form a cube. The Washington Department of Ecology and Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation have posted tutorial videos to aid users construct DIY air cleaners: i-filter design and two-filter pattern.

To maximize filtration, cull a high-efficiency filter, preferably rated Minimum Efficiency Reporting Value (MERV) 13 or higher, and marshal the arrows on the filter with the management of the air menstruation through the fan. Attempt to get a good seal between the fan and the filter.

If you lot utilise a DIY air cleaner, follow these safety tips:

Use a newer model box fan (2012 or after) and look for ane with a UL or ETL rubber marking. These newer models take added safety features. Fans built before 2012 may pose fire risks. If y'all must use a fan congenital before 2012, do not leave information technology unattended or use it while sleeping.
Follow the box fan manufacturer's instructions, which can include: practice not leave children unattended when the fan is in use; practice not use an extension string; exercise non use a damaged or malfunctioning fan; and ensure that there are working smoke detectors throughout the home.
Have extra filters on paw and change the filter when it appears dirty or starts to release smoke odors. During smoke events, filters may need to be changed every few weeks or days.
DIY air cleaners are probably about effective in a small room where you lot spend a pregnant corporeality of time, such as a sleeping accommodation.

If yous decide to purchase a loftier-efficiency HVAC filter to increase filtration, choose 1 with a MERV 13 rating, or as high a rating as your organization fan and filter slot tin can adapt. Y'all may need to consult a professional HVAC technician to determine the highest efficiency filter that volition work all-time for your organization.

You can find additional information nearly portable air cleaners and HVAC filters in the Indoor Air Filtration fact sheet and EPA's Guide to Air Cleaners in the Home. EPA is also conducting Research on DIY Air Cleaners to Reduce Wildfire Smoke Indoors; the study webpage provides more than information near this filtration option.

Know how to adjust your HVAC organisation or air conditioner to continue smoke out

It's also a skillful idea to get familiar with your HVAC organisation or air conditioner system, if you accept one, then y'all tin can suit information technology to keep fume out.

If you have a key HVAC system, find out if it has a fresh air intake. If it does, find out how to close information technology or plough the organisation to recirculate mode. Make sure the HVAC filter is in good condition, fits snugly in the filter slot, and is replaced as recommended past the manufacturer. Consider upgrading to a MERV thirteen or higher rated filter if your organization can adapt it.
If you have an evaporative cooler, avoid using it in smoky atmospheric condition considering it tin can result in more fume being brought within. Consider other cooling options like fans or window air conditioners.
If you lot have a window air conditioner, discover out how to shut the outdoor air damper. If you cannot close the damper, consider preparing other cooling options like a fan. Brand certain that the seal between the air conditioner and the window is as tight equally possible.
If you have a portable air conditioner with a unmarried hose, typically vented out of a window, do not employ it in smoky conditions because it tin can result in more smoke being brought inside. Consider other cooling options like a fan or window air conditioner. If you have a portable air conditioner with 2 hoses, make sure that the seal between the window vent kit and the window is as tight every bit possible.

Consider purchasing N95 respirator masks

Y'all should too consider keeping a supply of N95 respirator masks on hand. You lot can oft purchase these masks in hardware stores or drugstores. The Protect Your Lungs from Wildfire Fume or Ash fact sheet and this infographic will help you lot choose the correct mask and wear it effectively.

What Tin I Do During a Wildfire Smoke Event to Reduce My Family's Exposure to Smoke Indoors?

When wildfires create smoky conditions, there are things y'all tin can practise, indoors and out, to reduce your family's exposure to smoke. Reducing exposure to smoke is important for everyone's health — especially children, older adults, and people with heart or lung disease. The Reduce Your Smoke Exposure fact sail describes what you can practise.

If local officials advise y'all to stay indoors, accept these deportment in your domicile to reduce your smoke exposure:

Keep windows and doors closed.
Employ fans and air conditioning to stay cool. If y'all cannot stay cool, seek shelter elsewhere.
Reduce the smoke that enters your domicile.
- If y'all have an HVAC system with a fresh air intake, set the system to recirculate mode, or shut the outdoor intake damper.
- If you have an evaporative cooler, avoid using information technology unless there is a heat emergency because information technology tin can result in more fume being brought inside. If you must utilize the evaporative cooler, take advantage of times when outdoor air quality improves, even temporarily, to open up windows and air out the house.
- If y'all have a window air conditioner, close the outdoor air damper. If you cannot close the damper, do not utilize the window air conditioner. Make certain that the seal between the air conditioner and the window is as tight as possible.
- If you have a portable air conditioner with a single hose, typically vented out of a window, do not employ information technology in smoky conditions considering it can result in more than smoke being brought inside. If you have a portable air conditioner with two hoses, make certain that the seal between the window vent kit and the window is as tight equally possible.
Utilise a portable air cleaner or loftier-efficiency filter to remove fine particles from the air.
- If you use a portable air cleaner, run it equally oftentimes equally possible on the highest fan speed.
- If you cannot become a portable air cleaner, you may choose to use a DIY air cleaner every bit a temporary alternative. Run it as often as possible. See the box above for Tips – If Y'all Choose to Use a DIY Air Cleaner.
- If y'all take an HVAC organisation with a high-efficiency filter installed, run the organization'due south fan as frequently as possible to remove particles while the air quality is poor.
Avoid activities that create more fine particles indoors, including:
- Smoking cigarettes.
- Using gas, propane or wood-burning stoves and furnaces.
- Spraying droplets products.
- Frying or broiling food.
- Burning candles or incense.
- Vacuuming, unless you utilize a vacuum with a HEPA filter.
Avoid strenuous activity during smoky times to reduce how much fume you inhale.
Create a clean room. Sentry EPA's video about how to gear up a clean room at dwelling.
Have a supply of N95 respirators and learn how to use them.
Air out your home by opening windows or the fresh air intake on your HVAC arrangement when the air quality improves, fifty-fifty temporarily.

What Can I Do After a Wildfire Fume Event to Protect My Family from Ash Indoors?

After the smoke clears, you may need to clean upwards ash or other droppings left behind by the fire. The Protect Yourself from Ash fact sheet describes how you can protect yourself and your family and avoid getting ash in the indoor air while cleaning up.

Children, older adults, and people with eye or lung diseases, such as asthma, should not participate in cleanup work. Cleanup piece of work tin expose you lot to ash and other products of the fire that may irritate your optics, olfactory organ, or peel and crusade cough and other wellness effects.

Illustration of a man wearing appropriate gear to clean up ash after a wildfire — Analogy of a man wearing appropriate gear to make clean upward ash after a wildfire

Wear gloves, long-sleeved shirts, long pants, shoes and socks to avoid skin contact with ash. Article of clothing an N95 respirator to protect your lungs from breathing in ash. Alter your shoes and habiliment earlier y'all leave the cleanup site to avoid tracking ash offsite, into your car, or other places. To avoid tracking ash into clean indoor spaces, utilize doormats and clean them regularly. Remove shoes indoors when possible.

Ash deposited on surfaces both indoors and outdoors can be inhaled if information technology becomes airborne when you lot make clean up. Avoid stirring up or sifting through ash every bit much as you lot can. Avoid actions that kick ash particles up into the air, such as dry out sweeping. Before sweeping indoor and outdoor hard surfaces, mist them with water to keep grit downwardly. Follow with wet mopping. Employ a damp textile or wet mop on lightly dusted areas. When you moisture down ash, use every bit little water equally y'all can. If you choose to vacuum dusty surfaces, utilize a loftier-efficiency particulate air (HEPA)-type vacuum.

You may consider having your air ducts cleaned after a burn down, simply EPA recommends that air ducts only be cleaned as needed. For example, y'all should consider having the ducts cleaned if you find that your ducts are clogged with excessive amounts of dust and droppings and/or particles are actually released into your home from the supply registers. For more than data on air duct cleaning, including choosing a service provider, see Should You Take the Air Ducts in Your Domicile Cleaned?

Additional Resources

EPA'south Video on How to Create a Clean Room at Home
EPA's Smoke-Ready Toolbox for Wildfires
Wildfire Smoke: A Guide for Public Wellness Officials (2019)
ASHRAE Planning Framework for Protecting Commercial Edifice Occupants from Smoke During Wildfire Events
EPA'southward Wildfire Report to Advance Scientific discipline Partnerships for Indoor Reductions of Smoke Exposures (ASPIRE)
Enquiry on DIY Air Cleaners to Reduce Wildfire Smoke Indoors
AirNow Current Burn Conditions
EPA's page on Wildfires
CDC's page on Wildfires
CDC's Fix Wrigley Prepares for Wildfires & Fume
Ready.gov page on Wildfires
EPA'southward page on Natural Disasters
Emergencies and IAQ