Virginia Electrical and HVAC Contractor License 2705181607
HVAC UV Light Installation in Northern Virginia
A UVC lamp aimed at your evaporator coil keeps the wet inside of your system from growing anything. Installed properly across Fairfax, Loudoun, Arlington, and Prince William Counties, with a straight account of what it does and what it does not.
Two Products, Two Very Different Levels of Evidence
HVAC UV is sold as one thing. It is two, and they are not equally well supported. The difference is exposure time: a lamp over the coil shines on a fixed wet surface continuously, while a lamp in the duct has to do its work on air that is past it in a fraction of a second.
Coil and drain pan lamp
The one worth buying
Continuous exposure, fixed surface, measurable result
- Keeps biological growth off the wet evaporator coil and drain pan
- A clean coil transfers heat better and restricts airflow less
- Peer reviewed work has measured the improvement in heat transfer and the drop in pressure across the coil
- Cuts the musty smell that comes off a fouled coil when the system starts
- The benefit is mechanical, so it shows up on the bill rather than only in a brochure
Air stream lamp
Treat the claims carefully
A fraction of a second of exposure, no standard to compare by
- Has to deliver a lethal dose to air moving past it in a fraction of a second
- The dose depends on lamp output, air velocity and duct geometry
- EPA states there is no standard measurement for the effectiveness of these
- EPA states typical home units have limited effectiveness against bacteria and molds
- Effective destruction of some viruses and most spores usually needs far more exposure than a home unit gives
What we would tell you on the phone. If you want a cleaner coil, better airflow and less of that musty smell when the system kicks in, a coil lamp is a sensible, modest upgrade and we will happily fit one. If you are hoping a lamp in the duct will clean the air your family breathes, please read the right hand column first, and spend the money on better filtration instead.
The cautions above are the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's, not ours. See the EPA Guide to Air Cleaners in the Home, which states that UVGI cleaners should be applied with, but not as a replacement for, filtration systems, that typical home units have limited effectiveness in killing bacteria and molds, that there is no standard measurement for their effectiveness, and that because dead mold spores can still produce allergic reactions UVGI cleaners may not reduce allergy and asthma symptoms. Also EPA on whether UV lamps kill mold. On the coil side, the University of Colorado work by Luongo and Miller measured the effect of UV coil cleaning on heat transfer and pressure drop.
What a Coil Lamp Actually Does for You
A coil that stays clean
This is the main event. Growth on a wet coil is what UV in an HVAC system is genuinely good at preventing.
Better heat transfer and airflow
A fouled coil restricts air and transfers heat poorly. Keeping it clean is the mechanism behind any efficiency benefit, rather than anything happening to the air itself.
Less of the musty start up smell
The one that arrives with the first cool air of the season. That smell comes off the coil, which is exactly where the lamp is pointed.
Quiet, and mostly hands off
One bulb change a year. There is nothing to empty and nothing to hear.
Why Have Us Fit It
It is an electrical install
A UV lamp needs a supply, and it needs one that does not compromise your equipment warranty or the safety of the air handler. Under Virginia contractor license 2705181607.
Positioned where it does something
Aimed at the coil and the drain pan, at a distance that matters, rather than fitted wherever the wire reached.
Fitted alongside filtration, not instead of it
EPA is explicit that UVGI should be used with, and not as a replacement for, a filtration system. Your filter is still doing the heavy lifting on particles.
Told honestly what it will not do
There is a whole section above on that. We would rather you buy the right one for the right reason than be disappointed by the wrong one.
Financing is available on request, and the veteran discount program applies.
Get a Free HVAC UV Light Estimate
Tell us what system you have and what you are hoping it will fix. Or call 703.225.8222.
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HVAC UV Light Questions, Answered
What does an HVAC UV light do?
A UVC lamp fitted inside your air handler emits ultraviolet light in the germicidal range. Pointed at the evaporator coil and drain pan, it stops biological growth taking hold on those wet surfaces. That is the application it is genuinely good at. Lamps fitted in the air stream to treat moving air are a different proposition, and there is a section further up this page explaining why.
Can a UV light improve my indoor air quality?
It can help, in a specific way: by keeping the inside of your system from becoming a source of growth and smell in the first place. What we will not tell you is that it cleans your air in the way a filter does. The EPA is clear that UVGI cleaners should be used alongside filtration rather than instead of it, and that typical home units have limited effectiveness against bacteria and molds.
Where is an HVAC UV light installed?
Inside the air handler, usually positioned to shine on the evaporator coil and the drain pan, because those are the wet surfaces where growth actually happens. Some systems also take a lamp in the return duct.
Does it kill mold?
On the coil, with continuous exposure, it prevents growth taking hold, which is the practical benefit. EPA's own wording is that a properly designed UVGI cleaner may destroy some molds growing on the moist interiors of HVAC surfaces, but that typical home units have limited effectiveness in killing bacteria and molds, and that most spores need far higher exposure. If you have a mold problem in the house, this is not the answer to it.
Will it help my allergies or asthma?
We are not going to claim that. The EPA states that dead mold spores can still produce allergic reactions, and that UVGI cleaners may therefore not be effective in reducing allergy and asthma symptoms. If allergies are your reason for asking, better filtration, humidity control and source removal are the places to spend first.
Do I still need air filters if I install one?
Yes, absolutely, and this is not a close call. UV does nothing about dust, pollen, dander or any other particle. Filtration is what removes those, and EPA says plainly that UVGI should be applied with, not as a replacement for, filtration.
How long does a UV bulb last?
Output falls off well before the lamp stops lighting, so a bulb that still glows may be doing very little. Plan on replacing it roughly annually, and note that a lamp nobody ever changes is an expensive ornament.
Is a UV light safe for my home?
Yes, when it is installed properly. The lamp is sealed inside the air handler and is not visible or accessible in normal use. UVC is harmful to eyes and skin on direct exposure, which is exactly why it belongs inside the equipment and why the interlock and the positioning matter.
Will it make my system more efficient?
Indirectly, and only through the coil. A coil kept free of growth transfers heat better and restricts airflow less, and that is where any efficiency benefit comes from. It is not a claim about the air.
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HVAC UV coil lamps installed across Fairfax, Loudoun, Arlington, and Prince William Counties, positioned where they do something, wired by licensed electricians, and sold with a straight account of what to expect.
Call 703.225.8222Get a Free EstimateLicensed in Virginia. Electrical and HVAC Contractor License 2705181607.