Air purifiers can help you in case of respiratory diseases. The problem is that, if it is the first time you are interested in one of these products, it is not easy to know what to look at or how to choose the best model. So let's see everything what you should know to buy the best air purifier.
What is an air purifier
An air purifier is, as its name suggests, a device designed to remove contaminants that are present in the air. For example, dust, mites, pollen or even others such as tobacco smoke.
In order to eliminate these impurities, various types of solutions can be used, but for the consumer market, the usual thing is to use special filters that capture the air from the room and expel it cleaner again.
This capture and expulsion process is carried out by means of a fan that is in continuous operation. Thanks to this and the current that is generated, little by little it is able to absorb all the air from the room in which it is located. Of course, depending on its capacity, renewing all the air will be a more or less slow process.
So, to choose the ideal purifier you have to know What are the key elements and how do they affect depending on the needs of each user.
Types and characteristics of HEPA filters
High Efficiency Particulate Air o HEPA filter It is the element in charge of trapping all those particles that are in the air and that reduce its quality. As you can imagine, there are different types of filters depending on the degree of retention that it is capable of achieving. What's more, there is a nomenclature that you can find in many purifiers and that you are also interested in knowing to know what it means.
Un HEPA type filter is not the same as a HEPA filter, that is, it is similar but does not meet the same functionality standards. Therefore, particle retention may be less efficient or fail to do so with the same number of types. So, since you are going to invest in an air purifier, even if they cost a little more, the ideal is that it includes a HEPA filter and not a HEPA-type filter. Yes, it can be a bit confusing now, but it's just a matter of making sure before you buy by looking at the tech sheet that you'll even see on the box.
Going back to HEPA filters, they offer different levels of retention and nomenclatures.
- HEPA filters E10, E11 and E12: offer a total retention of between 85 and 99,5% PM (Particle Matter)
- HEPA H13 and H14 filters: they offer a total retention between 99,95 and 99,995% and more than 99,7% local retention PM (Particulate Matter)
- HEPA filters U15, U16 and U17: total retention between 99,99995 and 99,9999995% and local retention of up to 99,9999% PM (Particular Matter)
It goes without saying that the higher the retention percentage, the cleaner the air returned by the purifier will be. Nor that these filters will need to be replaced according to the manufacturer's instructions depending on the time or number of hours of use.
How to choose the ideal air purifier
Now that you know what the function of a purifier is and what HEPA filters are, the next step is to know what other aspects should be considered to choose the most suitable model according to your needs that you have.
The first basic point is to know what the volume of air you want to purify. Or in other words, what is the volume of the room where you want to use it. If you intend to do it in several rooms, logically you will need the data of the largest.
With this information you will be able to choose the purifier with the adequate power for it. If not, if it has less power, the time it will take to clean the air in the room will be longer and the efficiency of the air will drop.
Being a device that you are going to have on for long periods of time, it Ideally, it should also be as quiet as possible.. Because at certain times of the day it will not bother you with daily activity, but when you want to be quiet for a while, you will notice that the hum that can cause your ventilation system is very annoying. Below 30 dB is considered very quiet, perfect to leave during the nights, and up to 40 dB would be optimal for the day.
From here, everything that a purifier adds compared to another model will be an extra that you will have to assess again to what extent you are interested or not. Because it is likely that the final price of the product will increase.
And it is that, a purifier that you control manually is not the same as another that has integration with home automation systems or that you can remote control via app. Neither does it include some type of system that allows it to monitor air quality and activate itself accordingly, or an activated carbon system to also combat odors.
In summary, to choose an ideal purifier you must take into account the following:
- Power according to the room you want to purify
- Particulate matter or PM retention level you want to achieve
- If you want it to be a HEPA filter or a HEPA type filter is enough for you
- Maximum and minimum noise level
- Additional smart options
With that, you will be ready to start seeing different models -like the ones you can find in this analysis-, assess its capabilities and if it is what you are looking for or not.
*Note to the reader: this article contains sponsored links. Even so, the agreement has not influenced the development and recommendations of the content of this publication.