If you’re having issues with your home’s air quality, you might want to get an air purifier.
However, with lots of different air purifier types to choose from it can be difficult if they are effective.
Asthma, allergies, air pollution, all these are real issues affecting more and more people daily.
However, are air purifiers a real answer to their issues?
Do these air purifiers actually work, and if so, how?
First, what are air purifiers?
An air purifier is quite self-explanatory; they are systems that help in purifying the air. These devices help in trapping airborne contaminants such as smells, mold, dust, chemicals, and other pollutants.
But based on the technology, different kinds of these systems are great at capturing different kinds of contaminants.
Once air purifiers trap the contaminants, they will help in releasing the purified air back into the house, thus help to replace the contaminated air with clean air.
Do air purifiers really work as required?
For years, air purification technology has increasingly become popular. It’s effective in lots of commercial and industrial uses. However, it is only more lately that household air purifiers have increased in popularity.
These devices can eliminate allergens, kill bacteria, filter the air, get rid of dust, and a lot more. However, is any of this true, or are these devices only another craze?
In a nutshell, specific models are effective when you use them in the right way, but in no way are all these worth purchasing.
How do air cleaners work?
Generally, these devices are often meant to get rid of pollutants in the air. These pollutants include dander, smoke, dust, fur, and pollen, and at times even smells, bacteria, and mites.
Though all air purifiers come with the same purpose, different kinds of these devices function in different ways.
Where some air purifiers are extremely effective especially when placed strategically, others are a swindle. You should know what to shop for.
The most popular kinds of commercially available household purifiers include HEPA filters, ozone generators, ultraviolet filters, and air ionizers.
Are air purifiers effective as people say?
In a nutshell, yes, but, this device probably will not neutralize or get rid of all irritating particles in your home.
The reason being, most particles will sit on soft surfaces, like on the carpet, bedding, bed and other kind of furniture, as well as hard surfaces, like the walls.
The devices might work as a filter and other methods for helping remove these particles.
- Indoor pollutants
Not only will your house be a source of mold and airborne allergens, but it might also be a source of pollutants from personal care products, cleaning products, and much more.
When the particles thrive in the air, they may become hazardous to the body.
An air purifier might also trap these pollutants; however, the right method of removing contaminants in your house is by minimizing their use first of all.
- Mold
Just like irritants, mold particles in the house walls can get particularly hazardous for those suffering from asthma and other lung issues.
These devices might work to some extent; however, filtration is much more effective in removing mold in your air inside your home.
Air purifiers with Hepa filter will work well, together with minimizing your home’s level of humidity.
- Allergens
These are substances that will create negative immune reactions in the form of asthma and allergies. Dust mites, pet dander, and pollen are among the most popular airborne allergens.
An air purifier can work together with HEPA filter, the latter which is popular for trapping airborne allergens.
- Smoke
Air purifiers that have a filter might also get rid of smoke in the air. In addition, they cannot remove the odor of smoke completely, and there might still be instances of smoke discoloration on ceilings and walls in spite of their usage.
What air purifiers will not work for?
While these devices will help in cleaning the air in your home, they often work more effectively when you combine with a filter. In addition, you will want to consider the purifier’s size.
A bigger air cleaner model is perfect if you want to get fresher air for the whole house.
Or else, you may require multiple portable or smaller models for every room. In spite of their possible advantages, these devices might be useless if you do not adhere to other steps of creating fresh air in your house, as well.
They just get rid of particles in the air; however, they will not help a lot once the particles rest on your home’s surfaces.
Additionally, you can do the following to help in preventing hazardous particles from entering your house:
- Every one to 3 months you should change HVAC air filters.
- Change to nontoxic cleaners, if you can. If you want to use harsher chemicals you can open a window and run fans to aerate your house.
- In case of severe allergies, you can replace carpeting with hardwood or vinyl flooring.
- Clean your bedding in hot water once weekly.
- Your house should be a no smoke zone.
- Regularly clean up fabric (pillows, bed sheets, clothes e.t), furniture, carpeting, and rugs. At the least, use a HEPA filter vacuum to sweep the areas once every week.
- Regularly bathe pets. If you are allergic to animal dander, don’t sleep with pets.
- Ensure the house is at the correct humidity so that it is low enough to keep away mold and dust mites.
Before you buy an air purifier, you may think about carrying out an air quality test of your house first to check if you require one.
Filtering your home’s air will certainly help in getting rid of hazardous particles, especially mold, smoke and allergens.
Still, an air purifier works well together with the home clean up methods and the right filtration.
These devices will not work to increase the quality of indoor air alone, but they will definitely help.
Do you have any underlying health problems, like allergies and asthma?
Consult with your doctor on ways of improving the quality of air in your house to manage the symptoms you have.
