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Air Purifiers – A Beginner’s Guide

If you are in the market for an air purifier for your home, your head may be spinning from finding out just how many makes, models and types of air purifiers there are.  Fear not, this short guide will help you figure out what to look for so you can get the right unit for your needs.

The first item to cover is that different types of filters are designed to filter different things from the air.  Some are designed to pull allergens from the air, others eliminate smoke and odor, while others clear the air of dangerous chemicals such as VOCs from paints, pesticides and chemicals.So, if you need an air purifier to help control allergies, getting one that is great at filtering chemical is not going to be the best choice you can make.

Here are the filter technologies you will likely see:.

HEPA

HEPA is short for “High Efficiency Particulate Arresting” and this is the type of filter most commonly seen in the marketplace.A paper-thin maze of fibers make up a HEPA filter.  As air passes through the filter, particles in the air are grabbed by a fiber and the air that passes through the other side of the filter is clean.If you look at a HEPA filter, you will notice that there are many folds in it.This increases the number of exposed fibers and allows as much air as possible to pass through the filter.

In order to be a true HEPA filter, 99.97% of all particles 0.3 microns or larger must be removed from the air.  IQAir developed its HyperHEPAfilter to capture particles down to a size of 0.003 microns.  IQAir HealthPro air purifiers achieve 99.97% efficiency at removing particles 100 times smaller than the standard used to determine filtering efficiency.

Primary Use: Allergen and particle control

 

Activated Carbon

If you have a water filter, you may be familiar with the term “activated carbon” because that is the technology used to filter impurities from water, too.  An activated carbon filter adsorbs chemicals from the air (adsorb is something like absorb, but not the same).Without getting too scientific…as air passes through the filter, Van der Waals forces cause the chemical molecules to stick to the filter surface.As the filter cleans the air it becomes covered with a film of the chemicals it has removed.Once this happens, the filter will need to be replaced as it will not be able to capture any additional gases.

The IQAir GC Multigas air purifier uses activated carbon to control the widest spectrum of gaseous compounds, smoke and odors from the air.There are a number of IQAir GC air purifier models and each is designed to control certain gases.

Primary Use: Control airborne chemicals and odors

 

Ultraviolet Light (UV)

UV filters are used to control viruses, bacteria and mold spores and they work by attacking the DNA of the microorganisms as they pass though the unit.  The burst of UV radiation (which is low-intensity at 150 – 300 nanometers) either kills the organism or at least prevents it from being able to reproduce.

Because light radiation is not effective for capturing air particles or airborne gases, this technology is generally used in conjunction with another technology in order to be an everyday-use air cleaner.  Because these filters use light radiation to do the work, the bulbs will have a limited effective life, so changing bulbs periodically is necessary.  Please note that just like tanning beds,  the bulbs will still emit light even after they no longer emit the radiation needed to actually do what it is designed to do.

Primary Use: Control airborne microorganisms (viruses, bacteria, spores)

 

Electrostatic

Electrostatic air purifiers work by charging particles as they pass through the filter then collecting the charged particles before the air leaves the unit.In the first stage all particles are charged to one polarity while the second stage collecting plate is charged with the opposite polarity.As the charged particles pass near the plate in the second stage they get stuck to the plate and are removed from the air.In time the plate will become covered by the charged particles cleaned from the air, which will reduce the filter’s performance so the plate will need to be cleaned off.

This type of technology is generally used in commercial locations, such as in bars and restaurants.  There are residential applications for this technology, namely whole house systems.

One downside to this technology is that the filtering process may create ozone, which is a dangerous gas.

Primary Use: Removing airborne particulates

 

As you can see, there are a number of different filtering technologies used in air purifiers today.  Simply knowing what it is you need to clean from your air will allow you to easily narrow down your search, which will help you find the right air purifier.

To learn more about IQAir HealthPro Series air purifiers, please visit IQAirHealthProSeries.com.

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