Carrier launches higher-capacity OptiClean Air Scrubber for healthy IAQ in K-12 Schools

Portable, flexible device cleans contaminated air using HEPA filtration.

As schools make plans and take precautions for reopening in the fall, Carrier today announced the launch of its OptiClean 1500-cfm Dual-Mode Air Scrubber and Negative Air Machine, ideal for helping to maintain clean and healthy indoor air quality in classrooms, cafeterias, libraries, gymnasiums, restrooms and more. The new unit joins the existing OptiClean 500-cfm unit, which was launched in April to help create infectious isolation rooms in hospitals treating COVID-19 patients and is now used in hospitals and dental offices and is ideally suited for individual classroom use. The new model draws air from inside larger spaces, removes many contaminants and discharges cleaner, filtered air. Carrier is a part of Carrier Global Corporation, a leading global provider of innovative heating, ventilating and air-conditioning (HVAC), refrigeration, fire, security and building automation technologies.

“Schools and school districts around the country are making very difficult decisions about how to adequately prepare to reopen in the fall while keeping their students and teachers safe,” said Chris Nelson, Carrier’s HVAC President. “Our new OptiClean technology will provide one piece of the puzzle to help protect the health of students and teachers when they return to school. The new units can be plugged into a standard wall outlet in any room where students and teachers congregate during the school day to help reduce contaminants like the coronavirus, improve indoor air quality, and slow the spread of disease.”

Like the 500-cfm unit, the new OptiClean 1500-cfm unit plugs into a standard wall outlet and uses a greater than 99.97 percent efficient, long-life HEPA filter to significantly reduce the presence of coronavirus and other contaminants in the air. OptiClean units exceed the ASHRAE school reopening recommendation that portable electric HEPA machines be introduced into each classroom and provide a minimum of two air changes per hour.

The Carrier OptiClean units are portable, taking only about three-square feet of floor space when oriented vertically, and can also be operated horizontally, allowing for convenient, unobstructed placement in classrooms, cafeterias, libraries or gymnasiums. One 500-cfm unit can adequately clean the air in an average-sized classroom; the new 1500-cfm unit is designed for larger spaces. In both cases, multiple units can be used for more expansive spaces.

OptiClean is one of a number of solutions offered through Carrier’s Healthy Buildings Program that can aid school districts in enhancing indoor air quality. Other product features and upgrades include filters with high MERV ratings; UV lights; Agion anti-microbial coating, which can be applied to protect against bacterial growth; economizers; and a Humidi-MiZer dehumidification system.