Air filter is an essential part of the engine as they filter out the unwanted dirt, insects and derbies that may result in clogging the engine. So, you should maintain your air filters clean and replace them from time to time. If you want to replace the air filters, there are two common types of air filters in the market for today’s vehicles – disposable air filters and durable air filters. The cost and benefits of using these air filters is mentioned below.
Disposable air filters
These are most common type of air filters available for today’s vehicles. These are made of paper – so, they can be disposed easily. There are several reasons for using the disposable air filters for the vehicles. They are less expensive, when compared to the durable air filters. Though they don’t serve for long time, you can save a lot of money spent on the air filters – nearly half of the money. Along with the cost, they also don’t require general maintenance – because – you can just simply replace it with the new one, if it is clogged or dirty.
In general, the paper air filters need the replacement after every 10,000 to 15,000 miles. But, the disadvantage with this air filter is, if you are in a dusty environment or driving in dusty area, you may have to replace the air filter much frequently – it can be for every 6,000 miles which increases your budget on it than the durable air filters.
Durable air filters
The name itself signifies that these are durable. In other words, they are made of much more durable materials. These air filters can be cleaned easily with a small brush or through a simple rinsing process of the same with water hose. But, some air filters need a special solution, which you need to purchase it and the cleaning procedure is quite easy. As they use better materials, they can filter the contaminants in a better way, allowing rich volume of air into the engine which helps in better combustion and leads to better performance of the engine.
These air filters are comparably 2 to 3 times costly than the disposable air filters. Durable air filters can serve the better performance for nearly 2 to 3 years – and the purchasing costs may add or decrease based on the area.
This is all about disposable and durable air filters. So, depending on the area you drive or live, you need to choose the air filter for your vehicle.