How to Choose the Right Type of Filter for Your Industry

Your industry probably needs a filter, but the key is getting the right one.

You’ve probably heard of air filters, but there are a lot of other filters that are necessary for various industries to function efficiently. The right filter will keep your workplace safe, your materials clean, and your equipment protected.

If you aren’t sure what type of filter your industry needs, take a look at this guide. We’ll break down how to choose the right type of filter for your needs.

Air Filters

Air filters are probably the most common type of filter on this list (you can learn more about air filters at this company). In fact, most people have air filters in their homes.

These filters remove harmful pollutants from the air so people in the environment don’t have to breathe these pollutants in. For residential houses, these pollutants might include hair follicles, pollen, dust, and other allergins.

Other commercial or manufacturer locations may need to filter things like fumes, bacteria, and oils from the air. In these cases, are also must be filtered before being exhausted.

But even things like automobiles use air filters.

What Industries Need Air Filters?

Any industry that is exposed to things like dust, microbes, particulates, allergens, and even odors should use an air filter. These might include cleanrooms, spray booths, electronic enclosures, engines (such as automobiles), compressors, HVAC systems, etc.

Any industries that must return processed air to the environment (exhaust) should first clean this air with an air filter.

If you are exposed to these pollutants as you’re working jobs in several different buildings (think of painters, spray foam insulators, etc.), you should wear respirators or facemasks. These have small, replaceable air filters that protect you from breathing in harmful particulars.

Fuel Filters

Like air filters, fuel filters remove unwanted substances from the fuel itself. As the fuel passes through the filter, it catches things like debris or other unwanted material from the fuel.

This clean fuel then runs through equipment, and the good quality keeps the machines in good condition. Removing these things from the fuel also lets it burn more efficiently.

There are a lot of different machines and equipment that need clean fuel, so fuel filters come in all different types and sizes.

What Industries Need Fuel Filters?

Each fuel filter is usually specifically designed for its intended purpose. They are used for things like engines (diesel or aircraft), oil burners, fueling equipment, filling tanks, and anything else that needs filtered oil or gasoline.

Water Filters

These filters are used in countless different environments. You can find them in something as small as a kitchen faucet or as large as a tank of tuna at the aquarium.

And again, the type of water filter you need depends on how you plan to use it and what exactly you want filtered from the water. Obviously, a water filter used in an aquarium will be different than the one used in your sink.

Water filters usually remove things like debris, fuels, sediments, biological impurities, minerals, chemicals, and other pollutants from the water, which makes it clean and in some cases even safe to drink.

What Industries Need Water Filters?

Because so many industries use water, the list of environments that use water filters can go on and on.

A short list could include things like water parks, refrigerators wastewater facilities, aquariums, swimming pools, campers, households, purifying drinking water, showers, and waterworks. Some of these water filters could be quite large while others are small. It comes down to the application you need it for.

Hydraulic Filters

Hydraulic cylinders, or other systems that need hydraulic fluids, use these filters to remove debris, contaminants, and other particulates from the fluid. This keeps the fluid pure and allows it to work more efficiently.

When you decide what type of hydraulic filter is best for you, you’ll choose between things like the material of the filter, the type of filter, and the size and shape of the filter.

What Industries Need Hydraulic Filters?

Obviously, any industry that uses systems powered by hydraulic fluids should have a hydraulic filter. These industries could include the control systems to locations like steel mills, power plants, and pulp and paper mills.

Most commonly, however, they are used by hydraulic powered construction equipment.

You can typically find these filters as spin-on types (picture the filters used for automobile engines).

EMI/RFI Filters

These filters are electronic devices that remove electromagnetic interference (EMI) and radio frequency interference (RFI) from a specific system.

To get the best results, you should put these filters between the AC power line and the equipment you’d like to remove unwanted EMI and RFI from. But these filters can also work when you put them in a connector, on a PCB, and as their own component.

You’ll have to consider things like filter type, voltage, frequency ratings, current, electrical characteristics, and bandwidth as you’re choosing one for your needs.

What Industries Need EMI/RFI Filters?

Because they remove things like electronic noise and signals, EMI/RFI filters are typically used in military settings.

Other industries that use these filters include variable frequency drives, telecommunication applications, data acquisition systems, and anything else that needs to block signals that could interfere with electrical systems.

Optical Filters

An optical filter blocks certain light wavelengths so only the specific light you want can pass through.

Because there is a bunch of different light wavelengths, you can find optical filters designed for infrared, bandpass, UV, and more. Each of these filters allows a different kind of light through.

What Industries Need Optical Filters?

You can use optical filters for photography, but you can also use them for some other technical or scientific work (depending on the requirements).

Other common pieces of equipment that use optical filters are searchlights.

Get the Right Type of Filter for Your Needs

Getting the right type of filter for your needs depends on where you work and what you need to filter. Remember, skipping these filters isn’t usually an option. They are what will keep your environment safe and productive.

Worried installing the right filter will cost too much and put you behind? Take a look at these budgeting tips.