What Is MERV vs MPR?

MERV Rating is the Minimum Efficiency Reporting Value for air conditioner furnace filter media as determined by the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air Conditioning Engineers, ASHRAE. MERV is the primary international air conditioner furnace filter industry standard and is used for rating the ability of a furnace filter to capture and hold particles and pollutants. The measurement used in these ratings is a Micrometer, or micron.

• A micron is one millionth of a meter (0.000001m) and is not visible to the human eye.
• A piece of copy paper is about 100 microns.
• A human hair averages 80 microns in size.
• Pet dander is 2-4 microns and can linger in the air for hours before it settles on a surface!

NordicPure.com uses the MERV Rating system. NordicPure.com AC Furnace Air Filters are manufactured direct since 1960. We have all standard AC Furnace Air Filters and all custom sized AC Furnace Air Filters. In the average American home, the most common air filter is only a MERV 4. These are usually the furnace filters that you can see through and do not stop particles smaller than 10 microns. Most residential systems are well able to use the MERV 12.

MERV Rating is the established air filter industry rating system, but, some companies have developed their own rating systems, based on the ASHRAE MERV Rating.

MPR Rating, or Microparticle Performance Rating, was developed by a large manufacturer to grade their air filters based on the ability to filter air particles smaller than 1 micron. The microparticle performance rating is not considered to be the industry standard by the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE). The published MPR Rating numbering system is a scale of 0 – 2700, with their highest published furnace filter equaling the Nordic Pure MERV 13.

Some of their air conditioner filter descriptions refer to the MERV Rating and the MPR Rating, but don’t always agree.

It’s important to note that the MERV Rating is the “MINIMUM” initial efficiency rating. It’s the efficiency rating given to the air conditioner furnace filter when it is brand new and is expressed as a percentage of the total airborne particles of a certain size. As the new air conditioner furnace filter traps more debris, it becomes more efficient – trapping the smallest particles as time goes by. Eventually, every air filter will trap the tiniest particles less than 1 micron, until it becomes so dirty that air cannot get through. Air Filter Gages measure the building pressure behind the aging furnace filter and can let you know it’s time for a AC Furnace Air Filter. Our customers also benefit from our Free Reminder Service that will automatically notify you by email or phone that it’s time to check, change or replace your air conditioner furnace filters. Nordic Pure manufactures many different air filter media options: MERV 7, MERV 7 Plus Carbon, MERV 8, MERV 8 Plus Carbon, MERV 10, MERV 10 Plus Carbon, MERV 12, MERV 12 Plus Carbon, MERV 13, MERV 13 Plus Carbon, MERV 14, MERV 14 Plus Carbon, MERV 15 and MERV 15 Plus Carbon.

Nordic Pure AC Furnace Air Filters are available in ½ inch air filters, 1 inch air filters, 2 inch air filters, 3 inch air filters, 4 inch air filters, 5 inch air filters, and 6 inch air filters. Custom size furnace air filters are also available. Please call us at 1-800-590-0339. For more information on What is MERV, and MPR please see our FAQ’s.