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Air Purifier Buying Tips
There are a few items to consider before buying an air purifier:
1. Determine where the unit will be used.
There are room air purifiers, whole-house air purifiers that connect to
your ventilation system, car air purifiers that plug into a cigarette
lighter, and even personal air purifiers that are worn around the neck.
Get a unit that serves your purpose.
Tip:
It is usually more effective, and often cheaper, to get air purifiers
for each room of a house where they are needed most rather than getting
a whole-house air purifier.
2. Check for the AHAM certification seal.
AHAM stands for the Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers. AHAM
is an unbiased, independently agency that tests and certifies air
purifier performance. All reputable air purifier manufacturers display
the AHAM seal.
3. Check the CADR rating.
CADR, which stands for Clean Air Delivery Rate, is the single most
important piece of information you need to make a comparison of air
purifier performance. CADR measures the amount of clean air that an air
purifier delivers into a room. The higher the number, the faster the
unit filters the air. Three CADR values are usually listed: one for
dust, one for cigarette smoke and one for pollen. CADR takes into
account factors such as filter efficiency, air-flow, and room size.
Other metrics, such as filter efficiency, don't matter nearly as much.
4. Get multi-technology unit.
For the best results, look for an air purifier that uses different
technologies to help filtrate and purify the air. Some examples: a HEPA
filter with an ionizer, or an ionizer with a germicidal UV lamp. All
things being equal, the more technologies, the better the overall
effectiveness of the air purifier in general to eliminate dust AND germs AND odors, etc.
5. Look for a "true" HEPA filter.
Some air purifiers claim to include a HEPA (High Efficiency Particulate
Air) filter, but are not the real thing. Look for a "true" HEPA filter
that will trap 99.97% of particles down to 0.3 microns in size.
6. Get a unit with a pre-filter.
For air purifiers that use a HEPA filter, a pre-filter can help trap
larger particles, thus not clogging up the pores of the HEPA filter (or
the activated carbon filter) for the smaller-sized particles and
pollutants. This is a must.
7. Carbon is better than Zeolite.
To reduce odors and gases, some air purifiers include an activated
carbon or carbon-zeolite filter. Zeolite is cheaper but is not nearly
as effective as a true carbon filter.
8. Consider fan noise.
Many air purifiers contain fans to help draw air in and push filtered
air out. The larger the fan, the more air that can be filtered faster.
It's important to test the unit in operation in the room it will be
used in to see what is an acceptable level of noise.
The Sharper Image
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