A Mount Kisco company is helping business eliminate the spread of the coronavirus in the air.

Early testing from places like Columbia University and MIT shows ultraviolet light UV-C can kill more than 99.9% of airborne coronaviruses.

This is even more important now as the World Health Organization noted on Thursday that studies evaluating COVID-19 outbreaks in restaurants, choir practices and fitness classes suggested the virus might have been spread in the air. Airborne spread “particularly in specific indoor locations, such as crowded and inadequately ventilated spaces over a prolonged period of time with infected persons cannot be ruled out,” WHO said.

 

The problem is these systems are expensive. UV-C lights could cost up to $1,500 per unit so many people didn't feel the need to get them.

But now demand is high with everyone looking for ways to limit the spread of the virus.

The way it works is simple; fans inside the machine suck the air in from a room, it gets radiated with the UVC light once inside and then the filtered air gets pushed back out into the room.

The system runs 24/7 and can filter a small business or office four times in an hour.

The owners of Clean Air USA in Mount Kisco, who distributes the product, tell News 12 why this technology is so important nowadays. “Up until this pandemic, nobody really cared. Nobody paid attention to it, nobody thought about it…this technology will help us all get back to work and help us lead a semblance of a normal life,” says Michael Lasner, co-owner Clean Air USA.

One of the things that makes this product different is that the UV light is built inside the unti instead of a lamp in a room because this type of radiation is harmful to the skin, according to the CDC.