Have you ever wondered about the air you’re breathing? Is it keeping you healthy? And if it isn’t, how can you fix it? Are air purifiers bad for you?
As you grow older, there are certain things that become important to you. For instance, eating healthier, regularly exercising, drinking cleaner water, and generally improving your lifestyle. Out of all the goals you might have of improving your lifestyle, getting access to cleaner air might be at the top of your list. That’s probably why you are here.
Regardless of whether you struggle with allergies and respiratory problems or whether you are a healthy person, air purifiers might be at the top of your list in terms of the benefits they give you in breathing fresher air. In the quest to search for the best one, though, you might wonder if they are actually good or bad for you. So read on to find out about our thoughts on that.
Are Air Purifiers Bad For You – What To Keep In Mind
Before rushing out to buy a new air purifying system, you should ideally start with improving the air quality in your home without the product. For instance, if you have problems with odors or smoke, then stop the problem by opening your windows, vacuuming more often, or stopping indoors smoking.
Once this is done, if the problem still persists, it is probably time to bring purifiers into the equation. But you need to consider a few factors before buying one, as not all these purifiers will actually be suitable for your home and its needs.
Types Of Air Filters
HEPA purifiers
Thanks to their benefits in medical environments like hospitals, HEPA products have quite a bit of popularity. They can trap almost 99.97 percent of particles of a size of at least 0.3 microns. The human eye is only able to see particles that are larger than 10 microns, so that means the HEPA filter can capture particulate matter that you cannot see.
They can filter out almost anything, from bacteria to viruses and chemicals. This makes your living environment safer and your air cleaner. And the good news is, it accomplishes all these things without relying on harsh chemicals or releasing harmful by-products.
To keep it in good working condition, ensure you replace the filter system every two to three years, as it will reduce in effectiveness over time (like with other filter systems). In addition, note that they cannot eliminate gases, chemicals or odors. You need activated carbon installation in the system if you want to deal with these issues.
Ionizers
These are also known as negative ion air purifiers, as they rely on the release of electrons to ionize air molecules. Ions are basically particles that occur naturally and have either negative or positive charges. They are everywhere – for instance, when you walk on a carpet while you are wearing socks and feel shocks as you walk.
The ionizer purifiers release electrons through the power they receive, and these proceed to ionize air molecules. Through the law of attraction, they will attract positively charged particles such as dust and pollen, and the particles become too heavy to continue being airborne. They will therefore fall to the ground, or remain inside the filter until you clean it.
Even though this sounds like the most amazing solution, it is also not the most ideal. One of the major problems they have is their tendency to mask smells, since they are unable to eliminate harmful particulate matter. When you take too long to clean up the mess, the particulate matter can become loose and re-enter the air.
Activated carbon
This method became popular in the early years of the twentieth century, as it took the building block of carbon and enhanced it to have the ability of absorbing large amounts of pollutants.
The activated carbon filters of today are reliant on very small amounts, which happen to be very high in their absorption abilities and bond with particulate matter in a chemical reaction. They can help you deal with a wide range of pollutants, including gases and odors.
If you are extremely sensitive to poor air quality, these filters can help you immensely. This includes the elderly, children, and people with respiratory conditions, as they do not use harmful methods in dealing with pollutants. However, take note that they are not particularly effective when dealing with allergens and particulate matter, which is where other filters such as HEPA come in.
Electrostatic
These are the most effective ones you can get. They function in a similar way to HEPA filters, but without the traditional air filter. Instead, they use electric charges that will trap the particles in the air. The charged particles eventually stick to the sides of the purifier, and let pure air pass through. This also allows them to trap any pollutant you can think of, both particulate matter and gases as well.
Their compact size allows them to be a great solution for smaller rooms as well. The cleaner your air becomes, the less you will need to replace the purifier. They also happen to be cheaper in terms of replacements.
UV rays
This approach is rarely in use as a singular solution in air filtration, similar to activated carbon. The usual instance is using it alongside other methods to get as maximum air quality as possible.
Even though it cannot remove particles from the air, it works well to eliminate gases, bacteria, and germs. The UV rays will kill microorganisms as they pass through the filter, therefore ensuring that allergens always are out of bounds.
Some of the UV filters will also change water and oxygen molecules into hydroxyl and ozone, which then destroy the pollutants by reacting with them. However, ozone is extremely harmful when inhaled in large amounts. Even small amounts can kill animals, so it is best to minimize their use as much as possible.
Benefits Of Air Purifiers
- They can play a role in reducing respiratory-related illnesses
- Removal of pet dander
- Clean your home air
- Deal with allergens and microorganisms (depending on the filter you use)
Cons
- You need to replace filters for the system to be effective
Conclusion
Air purifiers are not as bad as you might think, as they have a ton of benefits. As long as you select the correct type that will work for your living space, it will work well for you and you will maintain good air quality.
