Troubleshooting guide
Troubleshooting and Repair Guide
Alpine / EcoQuest Fresh Air 120FA / 1.5
by Carl Powell III
Introduction
The Fresh Air 120FA or 1.5 model (EcoQuest seems to have named ALL their systems
“Fresh Air”, so you have to refer to them by the model number) has been a work horse
of an air purifier for a decade or more. The latest models from Vollara, Inc. (who
eventually bought most of EcoQuest International) use the same technologies, just with
a little bit of a twist. However, the 120FA and 1.5 models have been long ago
discontinued and Vollara no longer supports these models with parts and repairs.
But don’t worry, we still do! In fact, we’ve gone out of the way to help our customers
keep up and running with their old dependable purifiers! This guide is one example of
how we help our customers with their systems. We also answer questions and source
our own parts when they are no longer available.
How does it work?
Here you’ll find a down-to-earth, plain english description of what your purifier does.
Inside this machine, you’ll find four or five different methods (depending on the model)
of purification to make your home or office air cleaner. They are:
1) Ozone Production from the Ozone Plate or Purifier Plate
! Ozone, when released into the air, combines with odors, gasses and chemicals
in the air reducing them to odorless and harmless materials. The ozone combination
causes a chemical reaction that results in reducing them to oxygen and water.
A little ozone is a good thing, just be careful not to use too much. It can be an
irritant to some people (some much more than others). A good rule of thumb is to set
the unit so that you can smell just a little when you walk into the room, but don’t notice it
after a few minutes. If you can smell it all the time, it may be set too high. Use the
square footage guide on the LCD panel as a starting point and adjust as needed.
2) RF Ionization from the energized antenna
! The RF ionizer uses a radio-like signal that alternates to create a signal that
gives all the material floating in the air to take on either a positive or negative charge as
it works. When a piece of dust or other particle with a positive charge comes close to
one with a negative charge, they are attracted together. When enough get together, they
have enough weight to fall from the air to the floor where it can be vacuumed and
removed.
3) Needlepoint Ionization
! Depending on the model, you may also have a type of ionization that emanates
from a small needlepoint located in the front of the unit. This performs a similar function
to the RF Ionizer, but uses direct ionization instead.
Troubleshooting Guide for Fresh Air 120FA / 1.5! www.ecoquestparts.com ! Page 1