If you’ve reached the stage of life where you’re a responsible homeowner, you know there’s an endless list of maintenance projects you need to stay on top of. But remembering to check the air filters on your home’s heating, ventilation, and air conditioning system is no longer one of them, because 3M’s new filters will automatically alert your phone when they need to be replaced.
The Filtrete Smart Air Filters install and work exactly like 3M’s previous offerings do, trapping particles like pet hairs, dust, smoke, and other unwanted airborne particles as air is circulated through your home. The only difference is the addition of a small yellow disc that contains a Bluetooth-connected pressure sensor to measure and monitor the flow of air through the filter. When the detected pressure drops, it means less air is able to move through the dirty filter, and it’s time to be disposed of and replaced.
To make it even easier to know when it’s time to swap filters, the new sensor-enhanced versions connect to an accompanying Filtrete Smart app, available for iOS and Android mobile devices, that provides more info than you’ve probably ever wanted to know about the air quality in your home. More importantly, the app will also notify you of exactly when it’s time to swap in a new filter so you don’t replace a clean filter too soon, and don’t leave a filthy one installed too long.
When available sometime this Spring, 3M’s new Filtrete Smart Air Filters will sell for somewhere between $US22 to $US30 depending on the size and filter type you need, which is almost exactly what the same sensorless filters will cost you today. So unless you refuse to have a smartphone or tablet in your home, there seems to be little reason not to choose the smart option, and scratch at least one thing off your to-do list.
[3M]