Here's an odd odd question for you. I am building a houseboat from a pontoon boat base. I will have a water/splash proof under deck at the level of the 3 pontoons. I have an 18" riser of space between the base deck and my cabin deck where I will be living. The reasons for the riser are multiple and varied. I have 2 kayaks that will be pulled in and out of there so it serves as a mini "kayak garage" as well as a place free of sunlight to store my potable water tank and water filtration and pumping system. Also the rise gives me better visibility to other boaters as well as a higher view to enjoy wildlife etc. But most important, I live in Southwest Florida on the Gulf coast. The air under the boat, due to shade and water temperature and evaporation is cooler than the surrounding air. As a consequence (since my living space is under 200 square feet) I plan to set up a simple remote controlled, easy access air conditioner beneath the floor deck. I will run a drip tube down to get rid of condensate water not otherwise recycled by the air conditioning unit. A floor vent will introduce cool air into the cabin. Hot air will be vented out from the sides of the boat. I will take in air from a compartment between the decks to allow the AC to take in air that starts out much cooler than the surrounding air. But because I am intaking the air from beneath my floor, between the two decks, I want to pre-fliter the air with a 4" 13 rated filter to pre-dry and pre-filter air before it even gets to the AC unit. Is this viable? And should I hook up a small fan to aid the AC in running such a pre-dry, pre-filter system? I appreciate your thoughts and input on this. I am hopeful that pre-filtering and drying the air before the ac unit circulates it should be less strain on the unit. I will run a dehumidifier in the cabin space itself since humidity is the nemesis of the boat dweller. Thanks. Erik

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Good one haha

You didn't get filtered, eh?

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Well your stupid stupid

Does someone change your underwear?

Static eliminators of the type sold to the general public have been used to eliminate dust on records, film negatives, lenses, etc. In general, they employ an alpha emitting radioactive source, usually polonium-210, to ionize the air immediately in front of the device.

you are 100% correct

So add another return, it's not difficult...

IF your adding refrigerant that often you have a leak.

@@bustertn2014 that's what I was thinking. I had a tech at my house one time, he had to add like 2-3 lbs of refrigerant, and the idiot didn't tell me that it means it clearly had a leak (which it did), but he prevented me from being able to take care of it fully in the warranty period.

in Georgia too our a/c couldn't keep up well last summer. Around midnight the upstairs would get down to 76, which was at least 'livable'. I've pondered, but haven't acted on it, getting some powerful rolling type unit (like costco sells) to supplement things. Our neighborhood doesn't allow window units. That's something you could consider doing. But I was told that the 8k btu ones are too weak. Get a 12k+ btu unit if you go this route.

Thanks for the support! Happy to share the info with everyone :) cheers

Are all your returns blocked or none existant? Merv2-4 should never trip unless they are so dirty you could use them as blackout coverings. I'd be looking beyond the filter here.

On my ceiling returns the frame has tabs that can be bent to get the filter to stay in place.

You are right 👍 My Trio air bear needs original filter because it has felt to secure in place snug,but almost to snug🤕

My earbear filter is 5 in thick so it has extra felt on besides which keeps it secure. You have to put it in exactly square and slowly to fit properly My the contractor who put it in said it wouldn't matter if it had play in it but I don't believe it I think that air flow and debris would get by even as a non-HVAC technician

Airbear

I purchase the same filter from lowes online. 20 percent discount if you order 4 at a time .

It's a Merv 12 at best

You got it bro! 🙌🏼

Of course! Happy to share the knowledge I do have haha

What part of AZ

That’s exactly right

Thicker filters also tend to last longer due to the increased surface area.

That's exactly right. If you want a more in depth explanation of why, practical engineering has a great video on weirs (like a dam that's meant to be overtopped) and they have a similar phenomenon, where jagged or wavy ones have a higher throughput than a straight line across the same span.

My furnace is like 35 yrs old & runs great, but inefficient. I'm gonna drop to low merv. It's only me living in my 862 qs home with a cat so I think a low merv will be OK. But I'll be checking into a new furnace some day.

put it on auto

put it on auto

Thanks for the suggestion!

Be careful with that as it is decreasing your overall flow/ increasing air friction.

I used that type for many years in a couple locations and the frame finally gave out. I changed to a washable one in an aluminum frame and have had it for about 10 years now. We wash it monthly.

Great advice thanks

Do lower Merv ratings save on electric with less restriction?

Yes, because it has much more surface area

You should put the 4" filter at the bower and leave the returns empty.

No because you are using two one inch filters of the same merv, so basically a two inch filter. And the thickness doesn’t effect merv

Yes, you constantly have air moving across it so it’s going to lessen the time between changes for sure.

go with some stand alone air purifiers around your home..... helps alot

24x36 is massive! I’ve never seen one that big. I have a video on installing a new filter rack on my system. Maybe that will give you some ideas. If you’d like remote assistance with tackling this, check out Patreon.com/diyhvacguy where we can walk you through how to get that retrofitted! Cheers

We have 3 cats, so I am hearing from other places, that they are a major source of dust.

Smart! Thanks for sharing

This was originally what I had planned when I got a new AC unit and the technician didn’t recommend because of airflow. Now I’m learning more on lowering my MERV 13 (inside filter) to an 8 and considering a cheap outer. What MERV is your outer filter? I’m assuming airflow is better with those two than a MERV13 one inside ?

Yes the blower will last longer but by how much longer no one can say. They generally last about 10 years or so. Ironically the warranty is 10 years so that’s probably why 🤣

Thanks for the info. Have you done a video on fall preventative maintenance for a furnace, and spring for an AC unit. I have always had a HVAC tech in every other year for a tune up, and I general vacuum the furnace out, and check the drain hose function. I check the drain line for the AC, and clean the outside unit out with the hose.

Love project farm! You might have to go middle of the road like merv8 for your setup, or adjust your fan speed up

I would recommend an air purifier that operates independently from the system, and a lower rated filter for your system. The primary and most important purpose of the HVAC filter is to protect the equipment.

Filterbuy sells odd sizes like 16x24x1 no problem. A 16x25x1 probably won’t fit. Here’s a link for filterbuy. They have great discounts when you buy them in bulk 👍🏼 filterbuy.com/qYEa1J0knccjlwekk7Hc/

Hey Todd. How long did you have your filter installed before you noticed it overheating?

I though there was only one merv 11? Any of them will do good. If you have allergies I’d go with the black one.

Depends on their reasoning. If they said the higher ones were too restrictive that’s one thing but I couldn’t tell you without that piece of info.

Totally up to you. I run merv11 in my home but a lot of folks run merv 8.

13 merv

I think I used to have something like that and it was a pita. I'd have to unfold it and put those two plastic combs in it, making sure only one pleat went between the teeth. I think it was cutting edge design in the late 1990s or something.

Carrier and some other AC manufacturers have been recommending MERV 8 filters for at least a few years. The HVAC guys will stay stuck on cheap filters for a while, in part because cheap filters mean they get paid to clean the HVAC coils and heat exchangers.

No. It’s that the system has to be designed for a Merv 13. If you want to spend the money then you can get a return v bank filter plenum so that you can use merv 13 filters

@@livingaboard The thing that actually works and should be the standard always costs more money doesn't it? Funny how that works.

*Dyer Instruments' differential manometers are superb for this application. Amazon carries them. Cheers!*

Wrong

Not wrong. Pressure drop vs face velocity curves are measured and published for filters, they have to be by law in CA. You can look them up.

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Yea it happens a lot. Did you try having the fan speed adjusted?

@@diyhvacguy No, the local HVAC company came and switched it out for a lesser one that worked.

Yes that’s the real way to check, but a homeowner could pop one in and if they don’t have any codes pop up they’re probably good to go 👍🏼

@@diyhvacguy Thank you. I put a magnehelic gage on my filter box so that I can pay attention more to the "strain" that's on the motor. My filter box has space for a 4" element and I wanted to make sure I didn't put unnecessary stress on the unit. I'm enjoying your videos, thank you!

Average maximum total static pressure of a residential furnace is .5”. That’s only .25” return and .25” supply. So how would one be able to wait until 1” to change a filter?

@@rodgraff1782 I'm going off my days of paint booths and EPA filter measuring. When I was doing that, 1" for the filter was the time to change and records were kept. I'm assuming it's the same for a furnace (perhaps not and excuse a new homeowner). When I contacted 3M, they stated for the Filtrete filters, 0.75" is when they would change them. In my setup, I'm measuring 12 inches in front of the filter and 12 inches after the filter. I'm using probes and have them turned into the air stream. I'm ready to be corrected if I'm doing something wrong.

@@milogger7556 Something is wrong with the way you are measuring, or the instruments that you are using. There is no way a residential furnace could have 12”WG on the return. Could it actually be .12”? You would not want a probe that is facing into the airflow, as that would be measuring velocity also. I don’t know what type instrument you are using. I use magnahelic gauges, or incline manometers. Try just using a fitting that is flush with the inside of the duct, and see what that reads.

Might as well use cardboard. 😎

Brilliant

Those do next to nothing, basically just protecting your equipment, definitely not your lungs. I’d get a pleated merv8 minimum 👍🏼

What are you doing wrong?

It's clickbait titling, and it seems like it worked