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Eco-Friendly (Washable!) Air Filters for a Healthier Home

This post is sponsored by K&N®.

If you follow along with us on Instagram, you may have seen this post when we talked through our initial impressions of K&N®’s new washable home filters. Your excited response to the few Stories we shared made us even more excited – excited about air filters, you guys! – and so today, I’m super duper excited to really break it down for you. That’s a whole lot of excitement. Should we start a Washable Home Filter Fan Club? Let’s do it.

Disposable vs. Reusable Filters

We’ve utilized a few different styles of ‘reusable’ filters in the past, but we’ve never felt that they did as good of a job filtering the air as a high quality disposable filter. And yet, tossing the disposables every season felt so wasteful! In hindsight, the reusable filters we’ve tried in the past were on the lower range of the MERV rating scale (more on that in a second), so we were actually right – scientifically!

As we saw it, that left us with two options. We could either move forward with the unreliable reusable filters (that don’t do a great job of actually filtering the air we breathe in our home), or we could continue purchasing high-quality, yet expensive and wasteful, disposable filters. We were stuck in a bit of a lose/lose situation, if you will, and for a household with two large dogs, an allergy-prone elder cat and a toddler, what we use with our HVAC system matters. That all changed, however, when K&N released their new line of washable home air filters!

Washable and reusable HVAC filters for a healthier home // via Yellow Brick Home
sectional | arm chair | coffee table

The washable filters are reusable for the lifetime of your HVAC system, which is upwards up 15 years in most cases. So for fun, let’s do that math: 1 disposable filter every 3 months is 4 times a year, times 15 years is 60 disposable filters. Washable filters eliminate the disposables from the landfill while saving you money. As an added bonus? No more last minute trips to the hardware store!

The Sweet Spot

We have two HVAC units in our home (one for each floor), and with our K&N home air filters, we’ve found the perfect middle ground. The washable and reusable filters are constructed incredibly well and feature a MERV rating of 11, which is a dream for folks like us with both pets and allergies (and pets with allergies)!

A quick note on MERV ratings from the K&N FAQs: K&N home air filters are manufactured at MERV 11 (minimum efficiency rated value). Filters rated at MERV 11 (according to the National Air Filtration Association) help filter dust, hair, plant spores, pet dander, mold spores, cement dust, insecticide dust, pollen, dust mites, bacteria, and tobacco smoke.

Washable and reusable HVAC filters for a healthier home // via Yellow Brick Home

Immediately prior to installing the K&N filters, we were using disposable filters that claimed to help filter pet dander and allergens. Even still, Kim and I would often wake up in the morning with stuffy noses from our respective allergies. While there are certainly many contributing factors to indoor air quality, we’ve both noticed a decrease in sinus congestion since installing the washable filters!

Washable and reusable HVAC filters for a healthier home // via Yellow Brick Home
sectional | rug | ‘work hard’ print

Filter Installation & Cleaning

Much like the K&N replacement engine air filters we’ve been using in our vehicles for years (yes, that K&N!), the home filters are 100% washable and reusable. Because of this, we’re not only able to keep disposable filters out of landfills, but we’ll save a significant amount of money over the life of the filter. As an added bonus, the K&N filters will help reduce strain on of our HVAC equipment and even helps to increase its efficiency! As with most HVAC filters, the filters install in a matter of seconds with no tools required. Simply remove the old filter and slide the new one into place.

Washable and reusable HVAC filters for a healthier home // via Yellow Brick Home

Tip: If you’re unsure of which size filter to purchase, chances are good that your current filter has the size printed on the side. Both of our furnaces require a 16″ x 20″ x 1″ filter.

We live in the heart of Chicago in an urban, yet fairly green, setting that can be quite dusty and full of pollen. Prior to moving to these washable filters, we changed our disposable filters as much as every 2 months to reduce allergens caused by our environment and pets. For our first K&N filter cleaning, we simply followed the instructions and sprayed the filter with cleaning spray, waited a few minutes, then rinsed it off with a gentle shower from the garden hose. That’s it! The entire cleaning process took a few minutes from start to finish, and the filters were dry and ready to re-install the same day.

Washable and reusable HVAC filters for a healthier home // via Yellow Brick Home

Better Air Quality for All of Us

Now that we’re a (human) family of three, it’s even more important for us to maximize the quality of the air we breathe in our home. Admittedly, two adult environmental allergy sufferers electing to share their home with two large dogs and a fragile elder kitty is not wise from a health perspective. Our pets, however, are an integral part of the family, and the joy they bring us and Lucy far outweighs the sinus inconveniences.

Washable and reusable HVAC filters for a healthier home // via Yellow Brick Home
stair runner | door mat

After hoping for years that this exact product would be introduced to the marketplace, K&N has exceeded our expectations in every way. We’re no longer wasting money on disposable filters that will end up in a landfill after only a handful of weeks, and we’re impressed with their ability to help create a healthier home environment for our entire family.

Will you make the switch to washable home air filters?

Thank you to K&N for collaborating with us on this post. You can view the entire line of washable home air filters right here!

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  • Danielle7.18.19 - 7:36 AM

    Maybe a silly question, but how do you plan to wash them during the winter?ReplyCancel

    • Kim7.18.19 - 8:49 AM

      It’s not a silly question! We’ll spray and then use our handheld sink sprayer. Or a handheld shower head could also work!ReplyCancel

      • Hannah7.18.19 - 9:44 AM

        I had the exact same question (midwest girl here …from Minneapolis). So the gunk that comes off would be ok going down a garbage disposal or the shower drain?) Thanks!ReplyCancel

        • Scott7.18.19 - 9:59 AM

          Hi Hannah! The dirt that comes off of the filter is largely airborne dust (and in our case, pet dander and fine hair), so we personally don’t have any concerns about it going down the sink or shower drain. Hope this helps!ReplyCancel

          • Hannah8.12.19 - 10:05 AM

            I just remembered I had commented on this. And here you had bothered to answer. Thank you! Going to order once my disposable filters I have on hand run out. Much appreciated!

      • Danielle7.18.19 - 10:50 AM

        Thanks so much for the answer! 
        I love this idea, but wasn’t sure if my husband would be won over because of some of the same issues you mentioned from using other reusable filters. He grew up in a mechanic’s shop though, and when he saw that they’re K&N he immediately said he trusts it. Thanks for the recommendation and information!ReplyCancel

        • Kim7.18.19 - 11:00 AM

          Scott is a K&N auto filter customer as well, which is what swayed us. We’ve been so happy!ReplyCancel

  • Katie Fletcher7.18.19 - 4:25 PM

    We’ve used K&N car air filters for decades, thanks to my husband who is a Car Guy, haha. When I saw your IG Story about this, I immediately told him, he got on his phone and read a bit on their website, then said “order it!”. We were even more excited to get the Prime Day discount for it! I’m not sure if your affiliate link will get credit for my purchase (I ended up buying it the next day, on my computer), but I wanted you to be able to tell K&N that your story convinced us to purchase!???? We had no idea these were available. ReplyCancel

    • Kim7.18.19 - 5:12 PM

      Hooray! So happy to hear this. Thanks, Katie!ReplyCancel

  • Jessica7.18.19 - 4:41 PM

    Ordered mine the other day when you posted about them being on sale via Amazon! Can’t wait to try it out.ReplyCancel

  • Marin7.18.19 - 7:48 PM

    Hi! How long do they take to dry? Just wondering how long the whole washing process takes before you can put it back into the furnace.
    Thanks!ReplyCancel

    • Marin7.18.19 - 7:52 PM

      Oops, clearly didn’t read all the words ???? you already answered this!ReplyCancel

  • susan7.22.19 - 8:19 AM

    Totally off topic but what are the details of that wall cabinet? I’m assuming it holds shoes or something?ReplyCancel

    • Kim7.22.19 - 9:27 AM

      It’s an old IKEA cabinet that holds shoes! It’s maybe 18″ wide x 4′ tall.ReplyCancel

  • Juanita Pine3.26.21 - 11:09 AM

    ..Question on how ECO-friendly this product really is? I have read the hazard warning for the spray and it recommends to follow hazardous waste disposal…if you spray this off then it just ends up in your local water system. Have you found a way to clean this without the use of the spray?ReplyCancel

    • Kim3.26.21 - 11:25 AM

      We’ve cleaned it using just the handheld sprayer in our bathtub!ReplyCancel

  • Matthew11.8.21 - 1:01 PM

    Do you have 2 filters so you can swap them and leave the recently cleaned one out to dry?ReplyCancel

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