Air pollutants indoors are any undesirable and harmful contaminants that may be present in the air inside your home. Statistics show that indoor air pollutants are among the leading causes of health-related risks. The best ways to minimize these health risks is by controlling and removing the sources of the contaminants and the particles. Another way for eliminating these pollutants may be home ventilation using high-quality outdoor air. Ventilations systems may be affected by weather and excessive levels of pollutants in the environment. These measures may not be sufficient enough and you will need to think about indoor air purification methods.
Table of Contents
Types of pollutants
Contaminants that alter the quality of air may be of two types.
- Particles which may include smoke, pollen, tobacco smoke, and fuel combustion particles. These contaminants may also include particles that come from microorganisms such as bacteria viruses and molds.
- Gas pollutants that are emitted from combusting materials. These include gas stoves, car exhaust fumes and smoke from cigarettes and tobacco. Products such as cleaning solvents, pesticides, paints and construction materials may emit these pollutants.
Why would you need an indoor air purifier?
- An home air purifier will help you keep your indoor air free of any harmful gases and contaminants that may result in serious health issues.
- Buying the best indoor air purifier is a good way to save on money that would otherwise be spent in hospitals to treat respiratory problems.
- Oxygen purifiers ensure that the air is free of any microorganisms, bacteria, and viruses that invade your home. This is very helpful for people who have respiratory problems and allergies.
- Diseases that come about as a result of inhaling contaminated are eliminated. The diseases may include cancers from inhaling toxic gases.
- Young children and babies are sensitive to the air. If you want your children to grow well in a clean surrounding, you may also consider buying an indoor ir purifier that will help with the health of your children and family as a whole.
Choosing the best indoor air purifier
Keep in mind the budget
You will need to know what budget you will work with before choosing your home air purification system. You will also need to know the different prices for oxygen purifiers in the market so that you do not under-budget. Choose a purifier that once you purchase keeping in mind that operational costs arise such as maintenance and replacement and cleaning of filters. Replacing the filters is not expensive and you can always replace them after ever three months. You will also need to pay the expert who will be servicing the home purification system. The purifier may be costly at the purchase point but if it works efficiently, this will mean running costs will be reduced significantly.
Your preferred HEPA filtration system
HEPA filtration technology for indoor air purification is the best for cleaning indoor air. HEPA filters any particles below 0.3 microns from the air in a room. The air is free from of any microorganisms making it healthy and non-hazardous when inhaled. HEPA purification systems have labels indicated either true HEPA or absolute HEPA as they under control by the government. These systems have filters that require yearly replacement and this may be a bit expensive but if you think about how effective they are, you will settle for them.
Typical air purification system looks like this (click for larger image):
The level of noise produced by the air purification system
Like any other machines, indoor air purifiers produce substantial noises when they are running. People constantly complain about this feature. You may, therefore, want to consider the noise level of the purifier you are buying. This is dependent on the location of the purification system in the house. You do not want to buy a noisy indoor air purifier for use in the bedroom. Best indoor air purifiers have small decibels and this will help you decide on what you will settle for. The location also affects the noise level from the purifier. Overall, the decibel levels are dependent on individuals. What may be comfortable for one person, may not be comfortable for another person.
Clean Air Delivery Rate
Abbreviated as CADR, the clean air delivery rate simply means the total amount of air filtered through the system. The CADR varies proportionally with the level of contaminants and pollutants in the air. The higher the levels of the contaminants, the higher the level of the CADR for the indoor air purifier. It is very important that you understand all the details and specifications on the label of the purifier before you take it home. Ensure that the purifier you have settled for is capable of handling the situation at home. Lower CADR means that the purifier can withstand long hours or air purification than one with higher CADR.
Area measurements for the indoor air purification system will also come in and in helping you determine the effectiveness of the purifier when it is used in smaller areas.
Ensure the size of the home air purifier system is correct
Before you go out to buy the indoor air purifier, ensure you have rough measurements of the room where you will place the oxygen purifier. This will ensure that you find the correct size of the purifier for that space. Quick measurements of the square footage of the room will go a long way. To obtain the square footage of the particular room, measure its length and its width in feet and the product of the two figures is the total square area of the room.
Also related to the size of the oxygen purifier is the purifier’s rate of change per hour, ACH. This rate determines how quick the home air purification system cleans the volume of air in the room every hour. Labels indicating the purifier as a rate of 4 ACH are most preferable.
Different home air purification systems available on the market
Home air purifiers vary in shapes and sizes as well as performance and versatility. Common indoor air purifiers available in the market include HEPA (high energy particulate Air) air purifiers. They trap slightly bigger particles with an accuracy of 99.97% without releasing any harmful compounds or byproducts. Once the filter is full of dust, it ceases the filtration instantly. Based on this plus the frequency of use, regular replacement of the HEPA filters will be necessary.
Other indoor air purification systems utilize Activated Carbon Technology which basically means that the filters are from carbon given them high absorbent properties. These filters are useful for filtering areas with smoke, tobacco smoke, and harmful emissions. These filters are not as efficient as their counterpart that is the HEPA filters.
We have reviewed a lot of indoor air purifiers starting from portable air purifier to medical-grade air purifier: Indoor Air Purifiers
Final verdict
Indoor air purifiers filter any pollutants, contaminants, bacteria, and viruses from the air inside the house. Take your time to research the available brands on the market and what they have to offer. It will require a lot of time before you get a purifier that effectively cleans your indoor air effectively. You can opt for either HEPA filters or activate carbon filters. Carbon filters are slightly less expensive. Another factor you may want to consider is the product warranty and guarantee of performance. Enough said, buy the best indoor air purifier immediately given the long-term health benefits it has to offer.
Read more: Best Wireless Home Camera System
I have over 15 years of knowledge in the technology field. Studied IT systems administration and now installing security cameras and smart home devices into user’s homes and offices.