Air Cleaners FAQs

People are often very skeptical about investing in an air purifier. Thoughts like, ‘Is indoor air really unhealthy?’ are common questions. When in doubt, it is best to turn to the experts. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency [EPA] suggests that indoor air is one of the worst environmental health problems today. Close to 50% of all illnesses are either caused or aggravated by indoor air.

Why is indoor air proving to be such a hazard? The answer lies in the ventilation of your apartment. In order to conserve energy avoid exorbitant electricity bills, most indoor spaces are tightly insulated and have poor ventilation. This means that a large volume of air present in the room is stale and burgeoning with aerial bacteria that multiply over time.

This is when the next question pops up, ‘how to avoid this problem?’ The solution is the use of air purifiers that ensure that a variety of pollutants like smoke, dust, pollen, animal dander and odors are removed. Fixtures like filters and ozone emitters in the air purifiers are meant for this purpose.

Are they effective? Yes and no. That is, air purifiers are material specific, which makes them effective against some allergens and ineffective towards others. In order to get rid of odors, a unit that uses an activated carbon filter can be used. Air cleaners without these special features do not remove gaseous pollutants, and they do not reduce their harmful effects. Electronic air purifiers reduce cigarette smoke, but they do not eliminate the odor. To get rid of dust and pollen, a mechanical filtration system that traps large particles, like a HEPA filter, can be installed. These filters are effective only against airborne particles, so allergens that settle on surfaces remain neglected.

What things should one consider while choosing one unit over another? With the overwhelming variety of units available, the best advice would be to pick a hybrid unit that targets several pollutants at the same time. You must match the purifier to the size of the room. The Clean Air Delivery Rate ((CADR) shows how many cubic feet of air the unit can clean per minute. The replacement parts should not be very expensive and the noise level of the unit must also be taken into account.

One must remember that no gadget is foolproof and each has its own limitations and drawbacks. In this light, it’s equally important to control the source of pollution too.