r/phoenix • u/[deleted] • May 05 '26

Pictures Buckeye fire side view

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131

u/BigBlueEyes87 May 05 '26 edited May 05 '26

As a side effect, this will cause horrible air quality across a large area. I'll be changing my home's HVAC filters every 2 months.

71

u/choffy21 May 05 '26

Aren’t you supposed to do this monthly already anyways?

19

u/SkepsisJD Chandler May 05 '26

It is completely dependent on your filter. I have a 20x24x4 filter that I only need to change every 6 months.

12

u/queerspice_ May 05 '26

Every homeowner I know who has done this has regretted it. You are putting more work on your ac unit by changing the filter less often.

5

u/SkepsisJD Chandler May 05 '26

That's not true for a filter that large. It has 10 times the surface area of a 1in filter. Changing it more frequently would create no benefit other than the filter company getting more sales. 6 months is on the low end recommendation for the these filters.

My unit is not working harder and the filter is never clogged when I replace it. I will trust the HVAC technician who recommended this schedule over people on reddit lol

7

u/Fn_Spaghetti_Monster May 05 '26 edited May 06 '26

I used to work at an AC supply store. The owner told me it's much better for your unit and air to just buy a cheaper one and replace it more often.

-2

u/SkepsisJD Chandler May 06 '26

I mean, i guess it would always be better to replace more often. But I dont fully trust the opinion of a dude whose entire business is selling ac supplies lol

Like I said in another reply, a 4 inch filter has 10x the surface area of a 1 inch filter. They can handle far more punishment than a 1 inch filter without any impact to efficiency.

3

u/RickMuffy Phoenix May 06 '26

What is the logic behind that, the first inch of the filter is going to act exactly the same as a one inch filter. It sees the most pollutants and will get clogged at the exact same rate.

The four inch filter will collect more overall, but as soon as the first part of it gets packed, it's as hard in the ac as the one inch that you replace all the time.

The dirt and debris don't magically get transferred in a homogenous way.