Stay away from the 3M Filtrete filters. They are too restrictive for the average system. A media filter is better. More surface area and less restrictive to airflow.

 

you've been duped. the aprilaire filter is WAY better than any 1" pleated filter!

 

The 4" media filter is better than the 1" higher MERV filter.. Media filter changed out twice a year, and 1" every month... $$$ adds up on the 1".

 

The Filtrete is better how?

Who told you that?

Based on my tests and experience, the Spaceguard (Aprilaire) is WAY better!!!

 

Stay away from those 1" filtretes.

Unless you don't want much air flow.

 

Excuse me for borrowing your post beenthere, just being lazy today I guess.

Unless you want:
possible damage to your heat exchanger(s)
possible damage to your venting components
possible damage and/or freezing up of your air conditioner
possible constant service call bills for parts wearing out prematurely
possible uneven heating and cooling of your home

then there's always the potential for your furnace warranty being voided because the external static pressure exceeds the manufacturers specifications.

I used to make a lot of money on extra service calls when those electrostatic filters first came on the market.

 

I've had bad luck with them. They filter great, but on two out of four systems, the blower kept tripping out on the thermal overload. They are restrictive as the devil. I've been tempted to do a DIY filter box that takes two of these in a A setup to improve flow, but the view isn't worth the climb. Yes, I do tinker... So, let the pros have at me.

 

Yes ,more surface area when using Filtretes will help,as the "load up" fast,so more area will help.

Down side is more filters to buy,and the cost soon equals or exceeds replacing a 4 or 5" media filter,as the media will be replaced less often.

 

If you go filtrete, I wouldn't go with anything above the Filtrete 300, 600 or 700 filters.

 

The only thing the Filtrete is good for is our business and insufficient heat calls and stuck open limits!

 

I never had an issue on my last furnace. I changed them regularly and didn't notice a significant change after installing a new one. Actually the new VS furnace seems to put out less airflow even at what should be 1200CFM... but it much just be a perception because after fixing the ductwork it could be spread more evenly between all the registers.

Although the blower was probably running a higher speed than nessesary and I was using a 16"x25" on a 3 ton blower running a 2 ton A/C and 70k BTU furnace. So it had plenty of airflow.

 

VS motors can often handle the restriction of these filters.

Downside is a likely increase of 175 watts or more in electric useage of the motor.

 

I was just doing a "Filtrete" search on here... has anyone actually run the numbers for pressure drop across their various offerings?

I see a LOT of posts declaring that they are bad... but only one or two mentions of actual PD ratings, and only on the lower end filtrete filters. (if I recall correctly, filtrete claims their airflow goes up in the higher models, based on pleats/total filter area)

Just curious. I don't have a good way to measure PD but I suppose I could throw a clamp-on ammeter on my blower motor and try swapping some filters around to see what happens to power draw...

 

Amp meter will show less amps with a restrictive filter,if you have a standard PSC motor,and you'll get less air flow,Amps will go up with a VS motor.

Might be best to heed the advice here and avoid Filtretes!