A woman is going viral on TikTok after sharing what her home’s air filter looked like after only one month.
User @theskyisfalling_222, who lives in Minnesota, said she normally changes her air filters once per month to avoid a build-up of dust and other debris. But she said once other content creators warned about HVAC filters getting dirty when it’s foggy out, she got spooked and changed her own again.
And when @theskyisfalling_222 saw her once-clean air filter after only a month’s use, she said she’d never let it go that long without getting replaced again.
“OMG YO… WTF is in the air?” @theskyisfalling_222 wrote in the accompanying video caption of her clip. As of Sunday, @theskyisfalling_222’s video had amassed more than 1.7 million views.
Checking HVAC filters when there’s fog
In her video, @theskyisfalling_222 said she’s been dealing with ongoing respiratory issues due to the fog outside.
As a result, she said she decided to change her air filters—something she normally does once per month.
“I keep them on deck because I like clean air,” the content creator said.
The TikToker then showed viewers a side-by-side of an old versus new air filter. While the new one was white and pristine, the second was nearly black.
“I’ve never pulled out a filter this dark in my life. This is not normal, y’all. It’s black,” she said. “Never in my life have I ever seen a filter like this.”
In a follow-up video, @theskyisfalling_222 said she successfully changed the filter. While she couldn’t say for certain why her old filter was practically charcoal black, she admitted to opening all of her home’s windows and one door the week before to “get the stale air” out of her house.
During this time, @theskyisfalling_222 also said it was “extremely foggy” outside, but didn’t realize this would affect her air filters.
Fog can clog your air filters
Fog can make air filters clog faster, according to the National Library of Medicine. That’s because the tiny water droplets in fog can get trapped in the filter’s fibers, especially when the fog is dense. The result is reduced airflow and, in some instances, the fog can act as a mist that can cause build-up on the filter over time.
Indeed, when the water droplets from fog get trapped in the filter fibers, they can build up rapidly, especially in areas that frequently experience fog. This can lead to a clogged HVAC filter, as @theskyisfalling_222 experienced.
As a result, people who live in foggy areas should check their air filters more frequently and change them as needed to promote optimal airflow. You might also consider using a high-quality air filter with denser fibers which can help capture fog droplets more effectively.
@theskyisfalling_222 OMG YO….. WTF is in the air? #fyp #fog #foggyweather #weather #foryoupage #airquality #minnesota #usa #diorbags #mysterious #airfilter #biden #trump #russia #ukraine #wtf ♬ original sound – TheSkyIsFalling_222
Viewers agree
In the comments section of @theskyisfalling_222’s video, some users who lived in similarly foggy areas said the black filters were atypical.
“HVAC guy this is not normal I agree,” one worker said.
“One month?! Mine looks like that but that’s because I only remember to change them like once or twice a year,” another admitted.
“That is not from fog,” a third user claimed.
Others shared conspiracy theories linking the increased fog to reports of drone sightings in the Northeast.
“Definitely not normal,” one woman wrote. “Wondering if they’re creating fog so that we don’t see what’s happening in our skies with the drones.”
“Part of me wonders if the fog is to hide the ‘drones’ in the sky,” another questioned.
And some people in other parts of the world said they were similarly impacted by increased fog.
“I’m in San Francisco and there’s fog EVERYWHERE,” one woman shared.
“I’m in Indiana and have been having respiratory issues since November,” another echoed.
“I live in Nova Scotia, Canada, and we have this weird fog too,” a third user said.
The Daily Dot has reached out to @theskyisfalling_22 via TikTok comment.
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