Choosing between air filter suppliers in South Africa comes down to five questions. Do they hold your size in local stock? Can they produce the certification documents for the grade you are buying? Is the pricing clear about what it includes? Is there one accountable person to call? And can a single supplier cover your whole airflow chain? This guide works through each question, clears up the supplier-versus-manufacturer confusion honestly, and sets out what Prebur stocks in Pretoria and what we have made locally.
Get the checklist right and you avoid the two expensive failures a facilities manager knows well: an air handling unit down against weeks of import lead time, or an audit finding paperwork you cannot produce. If you want the grade theory behind the sizing, our guide to air filter grades explained covers the maths. This page is about choosing the supplier.
Air Filter Suppliers in South Africa: What to Look For
The buyer’s checklist for air filter suppliers is short and practical. Most procurement pain traces back to one of five gaps, so test any supplier against all five before you commit a repeat order.
- Local stock. Ask where the filters physically are today. A supplier who imports to order leaves you waiting weeks when an AHU loads up unexpectedly.
- Certification documents. “High quality” means nothing on its own. Ask which standard the filter is made to, and which test reports and certificates come with it. Section four lists exactly what to demand.
- Clear pricing. Ask for a price with its basis stated: what is included, whether delivery is in or extra, and what changes at volume. A published online price gives you a reference point; a quote for custom or volume work should still arrive in writing with its terms.
- One accountable contact. You want a named person who answers, confirms availability the same business day, and owns the order. A contact form on its own does not give you that.
- Whole-chain breadth. One supplier for G4 pre-filters through H14 HEPA, cartridges, media, and grease filters means one call, one delivery, one account, instead of chasing four vendors.
Score a supplier against those five and the shortlist tends to sort itself out fast. The rest of this guide shows how Prebur measures up on each.
Supplier vs Manufacturer vs Importer: What the Terms Actually Mean
Search results mix three different roles under one heading, which is why “air filter manufacturers in South Africa” and “air filter suppliers” often return the same companies. The three terms mean different things, and the difference affects your price and your lead time.
A manufacturer turns raw media, frame, and adhesive into finished filters at scale, and sells business to business, usually at high minimum order quantities. A distributor or supplier holds a contractual relationship with a manufacturer, warehouses stock locally, accepts lower order quantities, and delivers standard goods quickly. An importer buys direct from an overseas manufacturer and handles the customs and duty itself, which removes the layer of margin a local middleman would otherwise add.
Prebur is the supplier and distributor of the Airtech range of filters. We buy direct from the manufacturer, where the filters are made to EN779 and EN1822 standards in an ISO 9001 facility, and we hold the standard sizes in Silverton. Because there is no local middleman between that factory and our warehouse, you get the same certified-quality filter without the importer’s margin.
For custom and non-standard sizes we manufacture locally to specification. That covers panel and other framed filters in bespoke dimensions, and custom cartridge elements built to your housing. It is the reason a non-standard filter runs on a 7 to 10 day lead time rather than a six-week import.
The practical read for you: stocked standard sizes carry the price advantage of buying near the source with the local availability of a distributor, and anything outside that range gets made here rather than waiting on a container. You can read more about how we operate on the Prebur about page.
The Standard Sizes South African Facilities Actually Run
A good supplier stocks the sizes your buildings run every day. Prebur holds the standard airflow chain in Pretoria, and every line below links to its full specification. Browse everything on the Airtech product range, or go straight to the stage you need.
Pre-filtration. G4 panel filters in the common 595×595×48mm face are the first stage in almost every AHU. They carry the coarse dust load so the finer filters behind them last.
Secondary filtration. F9 pocket and bag filters in 330mm and 600mm depths capture PM2.5 and fine dust at 95% or better at 0.4µm. Where duct depth is tight, F9 V-bank filters deliver the same grade in a compact rigid cell.
Final filtration. H14 HEPA filters sit at the terminal stage in cleanrooms, theatres, and critical AHUs, holding back virtually all remaining particulate. If HEPA is your focus, our HEPA filters in South Africa guide covers grades, certificates, and stock in depth.
Industrial and specialist. Dust collector cartridge filters handle high-dust extraction on collectors and reverse-pulse systems. Stainless steel grease filters fit commercial kitchen canopies. And filter media by the roll suits built-up systems and custom cuts.
If you are unsure how often each stage needs replacing under Highveld dust loads, our guide to HVAC filter replacement intervals gives practical schedules by grade and location.
Certified Quality: What Documents to Ask a Supplier For
Quality is proven with documents, not adjectives, and the documents that matter differ by grade. Here is what to ask for, and what each one actually tells you.
“Manufactured to EN779 and EN1822.” EN779 is the European standard for general-ventilation filters, covering the coarse and fine grades (G and F). EN1822 covers HEPA and higher, rated at the most penetrating particle size. Ask which standard the filter is made to, and note the wording: a filter is manufactured to a standard, not “EN-certified”. The phrase “EN-certified” does not describe anything real, so it is worth clarifying what is meant wherever you see it.
ISO 9001. This certifies the factory’s quality management system, meaning its processes and controls are audited and disciplined. It does not certify the performance of an individual filter. Treat ISO 9001 as evidence of a serious manufacturer, then look to the test reports below for product performance.
CNAS laboratory test reports. These are independent lab reports on filter performance. Prebur holds CNAS test reports for G4, H13, and H14 grades. Ask to see the report for the grade you are buying.
Per-unit HEPA test certificates. Every HEPA unit from Prebur, H13 and H14 alike, ships with an individual serial-numbered EN1822 test certificate. The certificate belongs to that specific filter, and the paperwork goes straight into your validation file. Per-unit certificates are a HEPA feature, because EN1822 requires each HEPA filter to be tested individually rather than batch-classified. If you are offered individual certificates on G4 or F9, ask what the document actually is: it will be a grade-level test report rather than a certificate for your unit.
Grease filters: “UL Classified to UL 1046, File R39729.” UL 1046 is the US fire-safety standard for grease filters in exhaust ducts, referenced by NFPA 96. It assesses fire behaviour rather than capture efficiency. Note the exact wording again: the mark is “UL Classified”, which is a different mark from “UL Listed”.
If you need to verify that installed filters are actually performing, that is a separate service. Our air testing services cover cleanroom and HEPA integrity testing, with reports issued in accordance with the relevant ISO standard methodology.
Why Local Stock Beats an Import Lead Time
Local stock is the one advantage an import-to-order supplier cannot match on the day you need a filter. Sea freight from the Far East to South Africa runs around six weeks once you add clearance, and longer in the peak months from June to September. When your AHU loads up and the filter is on a ship, that lead time is your downtime.
Prebur holds the standard sizes in our Silverton, Pretoria warehouse. Orders for in-stock standard sizes placed before midday are despatched the same day. Delivery is free nationwide on online orders and is included in the online price. The store has been live since June 2026, so you can check availability and see a price without waiting on a reply.
There is a quieter benefit to buying from stock: predictable reordering. Once you know your sizes are on the shelf in Pretoria, you can plan filter changes around your maintenance calendar instead of around a supplier’s shipping schedule. For a contractor running several Highveld sites, that difference decides whether you are ahead of the maintenance or always catching up.
How to Order, or Get a Quote
Two routes cover every order. For stocked standard sizes, buy directly on the product pages: the price is shown with free nationwide delivery included, and the item despatches same day when ordered before midday. For anything non-standard, or for volume and trade accounts, get a quote instead.
Worth knowing before you compare the two: the online price is our online price, delivery included. A direct quote is priced for the specific order, taking in quantity, size, grade, delivery point, and whether it is a recurring monthly requirement, so it can land either side of the website figure. If you are buying in volume, ask for the quote.
Custom dimensions run on a 7 to 10 day lead time, stated up front so you can plan around it, and those are manufactured locally rather than imported. Send the face dimensions in millimetres, the depth, the grade, and the quantity, and you get a firm price and lead time back. Contractors and resellers buying monthly can call Nick to discuss trade pricing and a trade account.
When you call, you speak to an owner, not a call centre. Owner-run since 1989, Prebur answers the phone and confirms availability the same business day.
To order or to get a quote, call Nick Els on +27 74 159 1634 or Get a Quote.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who supplies air filters in South Africa?
Air filters reach South African facilities through manufacturers, distributors, and direct importers. Prebur is a direct importer, owner-run from Silverton, Pretoria since 1989. We hold the standard sizes facilities run in local stock and supply the whole airflow chain, from G4 panels to H14 HEPA.
Are you a manufacturer or a supplier?
We are the supplier and distributor of the Airtech range of filters. The standard sizes we import direct from the manufacturer, where they are made to EN779 and EN1822 standards in an ISO 9001 facility, and we hold them in Pretoria. For custom and non-standard sizes we manufacture locally to specification, which is why a custom filter runs 7 to 10 days instead of a six-week import.
Do you deliver nationwide?
Yes. Online orders ship with free nationwide delivery, and that delivery is built into the online price. Standard sizes held at Silverton are despatched same day when ordered before midday. Custom dimensions run on a 7 to 10 day lead time, and Nick confirms availability the same business day when you call.
Are your online prices the same as a direct quote?
Not necessarily. The prices on our product pages are our online prices, and they include free nationwide delivery. A direct quote is priced for the order in front of us: quantity, size, grade, delivery point, and whether it is a repeat monthly requirement. So a quoted price can land either side of the online price. If you are buying at volume or on a trade account, call Nick and get it quoted properly rather than working off the website.
What certifications do your filters carry?
The Airtech range is manufactured to EN779 and EN1822 standards in an ISO 9001 facility. CNAS laboratory test reports are held for G4, H13, and H14 grades. Every HEPA unit, H13 and H14, also ships with an individual serial-numbered EN1822 test certificate for your validation file.
Can you match a filter or size I already run?
In most cases, yes. Send Nick the face dimensions in millimetres, the depth, the grade, and the quantity. If it is a standard size we despatch from stock. If it is non-standard we quote it as a made-to-order item on a 7 to 10 day lead time.
Do you supply contractors and resellers?
Yes. We supply HVAC contractors, maintenance companies, and resellers buying at volume. Call Nick on +27 74 159 1634 to discuss trade pricing and a trade account for your monthly requirement.
Need help choosing the right filter?
Speak to Nick Els for expert advice on filter selection, cross-referencing, and pricing for your facility.
