As the Coronavirus (COVID-19) has made its way across the world, it has become imperative to find different solutions to help prevent the spread of the virus in any capacity available. From companies looking to find "work-from-home" solutions for their employees, to COVID-19 testing facilities, we at Sentry Air Systems are actively looking to supply ample solutions to create clean-air work environments for all applications.
Our greatest enemy right now is not the virus itself. It’s fear, rumours and stigma... And our greatest assets are facts, reason and solidarity.
- Source: World Health Organization
Coronavirus is a virus that comes in multiple forms that have been identified as several different strands, and different symptoms caused due to the virus. More specifically, COVID-19 (Coronavirus Disease 2019) is a newly found strand of the virus that originated in Wuhan, China in late 2019. While researchers are still scrambling to find answers to educate the public, the general consesus has been hypothsized that the virus attacks the respiratory system and has an incubation period of 14 days from date of contact.
The Coronavirus (COVID-19) is a specific virus that directly attacks the respiratory system which spreads primarily by attaching to discharge generated from an infected person's saliva, cough, or sneeze. Additionally, it can be found on surfaces that have become infected if not properly cleaned or wiped down, as well as moisturized environments of air, if not properly filtered. Nonetheless, while research is still being done on COVID-19, the CDC and WHO has determined that this virus is not airborne, but spread by person-to-person contact through discharge from an infected person.
Coronavirus (COVID-19) symptoms include:
In some cases, coronavirus COVID-19 can lead to severe respiratory problems, kidney failure or death.
In the event that you or someone you know is showing symptoms of coronavirus, please call your doctor or a health care provider and explain your symptoms via phone before leaving your home. If your symptoms become severe please consult with the CDC guidelines in order to make the right decisions.
In short form, yes, it can, however, it is important to remember that the coronavirus is not a stand-alone, "floating-in-thin-air" virus, but it must be attached to something (ie water droplets, bacteria, dust). So, to answer that question more specifically, a Sentry Air Systems HEPA filter tests up to 99.97% efficiency on particles down to 0.3 microns in size, and have the capability to filter down to 0.01 micron at a still extraordinary, yet lesser efficiency. The Coronavirus (COVID-19) falls in between 0.06 micron (60 nanometers) and 0.14 micron (140 nanometers) in diameter. In a 2016-study by NASA, it was tested and proven that HEPA filters were most efficient (almost 100%) at filtering particles at 0.01 micron, below the normal 0.3 test standard for HEPA filters.
It is not the position of Sentry Air Systems to use an air filtration system as the first line of defense against COVID-19, rather it should be utilized as a secondary engineering control to protect the environment in which work is being done.
For higher quality air filtration and fume hood protection, ULPA filters provide improved efficiency with the ability to filter smaller particles. ULPA filters offer up to 99.9995% efficiency on particles down to 0.12 microns compared to HEPA’s efficiency of up to 99.97% efficiency on particles down to 0.3 microns. Similarly, ULPA filters have a MERV rating of 20 while HEPA filters are rated MERV 17. The higher efficiency enables ULPA filters to capture more of the smaller respiratory aerosol particles containing the coronavirus and possibly even some of the coronavirus particles themselves. Learn more about how ULPA filters can help prevent the spread of the coronavirus on our blog.
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