In recent days there has been a certain interest in the CO2 meters, and it is that the delegation of some regional governments has forced the use of this type of device in the hospitality sector to guarantee perfect air quality. However, many users think that this type of device is only aimed exclusively at the professional world, and they are unaware that they can use one at home to control air quality. But how do they work? Which to choose?
What is a CO2 meter used for?
CO2 meters are small devices that have a series of sensors that are capable of analyze air quality of a certain room. Thus, it is possible to know exactly the level of CO2 that exists in the environment, since in the case of being high it would mean that there is no recycling of the air present with clean air.
This is obviously related to the risk of contagion from Covid-19, since in indoor environments the CO2 level could be high, and suspended particles (aerosols) would be present, which would increase the risk of exposure.
Factors that determine air quality
It is one thing to know what level of CO2 is in the environment, but another to control it. Air quality, and therefore the risk of contagion, will be determined by two factors, emission and exposure.
To reduce the issue, measures can be taken such as reducing the number of people, speaking more softly, engaging in relaxed physical activities and wearing tight-fitting masks.
In the case of the exposure, some measures that help to reduce it are the use of tight-fitting masks, reducing exposure time in that area or place, increasing interpersonal distance and ventilating or purifying the air, this point being very important and being related to CO2 meters.
Dangerous CO2 levels
Air purification is a basic measure to reduce the level of exposure and for this it requires the ventilation of the enclosure with outside air. The air renewal it can be estimated with some values that determine the number of air renewal cycles per hour, with 6 cycles per hour being the ideal and less than 3 cycles being negative.
An air cycle per hour is considered the process of renewing a volume of air in a room by an identical volume of outdoor air. This recycling will depend on several factors, such as the number of open windows, the existence of input and output current and the number of people present in the room.
Luckily technology arrives to facilitate these measurements, and that is where CO2 meters come into play. Those interior spaces in which there has been a high presence of people, will have high levels of CO2 if the space has not been adequately ventilated as we have previously commented.
The base reference that must be taken into account to determine if a space has high levels of CO2 is based on the 420 pm (parts per million) concentration of CO2 that approximately normally exists outdoors. Indoors, due to the exhalation of CO2 from the people present, this level will rise, hence we are forced to ventilate to reduce levels. Let's remember that the better the ventilation, the less the risk of covid contagion.
What CO2 meter to buy?
Normally, all the meters that you can find on the market offer the same features, and they will basically differ in the size of the screen, and the number of extra functions that they offer, but, in the end, what will interest you know is the amount of CO2 present in the environment, so the rest is practically secondary. These are some of the interesting models that you could buy:
InLovArts A-0378
It is one of the cheapest meters that you can find on Amazon, since it is a simple device with a small support that we can place on any surface so that it can take measurements through its built-in sensor. It has a rechargeable battery and is capable of offering measurements of CO2, HCHO and volatile organic compounds (TVOC), being able to detect harmful chemical substances.
It is a portable model that will allow you to take measurements anywhere, so it is ideal for those who want to have the sensor in several places.
See offer on AmazonKKmoon CO2 meter
This model has a design that we can find in other meters on the market. It has an upper air intake that allows real-time monitoring through its high-precision sensor. It has a rather striking interface in which the CO2 value stands out to a large extent within the 3,2-inch screen with a large figure, in addition to which we will see a bar of different colors with which to make a quick reading about air quality.
Its internal battery can be recharged through a USB port, and offers extra data such as the outdoor temperature and relative humidity of the place.
See offer on AmazonKecheer CO2 meter
This other model presents a more functional design that allows it to be placed anywhere as a digital clock. Its tiny size will avoid attracting too much attention, and on its 3,5-inch screen we will see the clear value of the amount of CO2 in the environment at a glance. Like other models, we can enjoy data such as temperature, relative humidity, date and current time.
See offer on AmazonRenz Air2color
It's one of the more interesting gauges we've seen, lacking displays and numbers that could complicate different readings. Instead, an illuminated band will indicate the level of CO2 present in the environment with green, yellow or red colors, being green for less than 1.000 ppm, yellow between 1.000 and 1.400 pm, and red for more than 1.400 ppm, being capable of launch several sound warnings in the event of exceeding 2.000 ppm.
See offer on AmazonNetatmo NHC-EC
This Netatmo air quality controller allows you to have a complete control center on your phone, since this interesting product has CO2, temperature, humidity and noise sensors that will send all the records to your phone via WiFi .
See offer on Amazon