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11-05-2012, 02:30 PM #1
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Using return air grille filters in addition to existing furnace filter?
I have a Aprilaire 2210 under my upflow furnace. Airflow is 1000 CFM in cooling and 1100/1300 in heating. I have two returns 20x10 and 20x14, feeding into a large plenum under the furnace. The return inlets currently have louvered grilles on them. I just cleaned out the plenum and found a lot of stuff in there - dirt, cobwebs, etc. I'm wondering if I could put filters on the return grilles to reduce the junk that ends up in the plenum, if I used very non-restrictive 1" filters in both of the return grilles. This is sort of a "rock catcher" idea. The Aprilaire seems to do a great job so I'd want to keep that in place.
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11-05-2012, 04:35 PM #2
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As they get dirty, they will add resistance to air flow. That junk under your furnace may have taken 20 years to get there.
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11-05-2012, 04:40 PM #3
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NO !!!
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11-05-2012, 04:53 PM #4
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Actually it was about 3 years ago that I last cleaned it. The first time I found all sorts of construction debris along with the dirt and cobwebs, and that was 6 years worth. I guess I could just clean it out more often.
Originally Posted by beenthere
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11-05-2012, 04:57 PM #5
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This would be the better solution. Originally Posted by garya505
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11-05-2012, 04:58 PM #6
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Rock catchers may help or hinder the system, depending how well you stay after them. They would need changed more often as your media filer nears the end of its life span.
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11-05-2012, 05:11 PM #7
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Don't do the "extra" filters. The dirt (in the plenum) isn't hurting anything. If it really bothers you, clean (the plenum) as you feel the need.
It'll be less effort than replacing the two filters ever month.
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11-05-2012, 05:20 PM #8
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It's good I came here to ask. I can see the downsides of this idea now, the major one being that if I forgot to clean the extra filters this could cause real problems. I think an overall better approach would be to make the cover on the return plenum easier to open so I would be inclined clean it out more often. Currently there are a ton of screws to remove to get in there. And like you said, the dirt in there isn't hurting anything.
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