Air Purifier Buying Guide

Counter the high air pollution levels by buying an air purifier. This air purifier buying guide will help you to take an informed decision. Because of various brands prevailing in India buying an air purifier is somewhat tricky. There are many factors to consider before buying and air purifier. It is very important to go through the specifications of each model.

Things to consider before buying an air purifier.
:- Note the size of the room or the car in which your want to install an air purifier.
:- Avoid ionizers, UV light-based models. These air purifiers release ozone as the byproduct which has the adverse effect.
:- Cost of the replacement filters and the electricity should be kept in mind.

Avoid Ozone and Ionizers
Most air purifier available in the market produces Ozone as the byproduct which is very harmful for the humans. Ozone is lung irritant and can affect especially the eyes and respiratory organs. Unfortunately Ozone kills the bacteria and viruses present in the air that's why most of the manufacturers came with the idea to have ozone in air purifiers. These purifiers generally have ozone generators, definitely these can kill bacteria and viruses but also has the adverse effect in the health.

Also some air purifier also produce ions. These, simply charges air particles which then makes bacteria, viruses stick to your walls, ceiling and beds. The point is that it doesn't kills but makes them move to the walls, ceiling and beds from air. But the issue is that these can also produce the Ozone. So, is you are choosing these make sure they have mentioned zero percent Ozone in there product description.

Certifications
Certifications for an air purifier defines the minimum quality and the performance standard of an air purifier model.
Most of the air purifier does not provide certifications in India. Certifications must be taken seriously while buying an air purifier. One thing must be noted that all models may not be certified.

Type of the Filter Used.
The quality and the effectiveness of an air purifier depends upon the type of the filter used. Currently most commonly used filter in the market is HEPA (High Efficiency Particulate Air). HEPA filter can filter out 99.9% of the airborne particles of small size of up to 0.3 microns. Some brand provide filters that can filter ultra fine particles. Like E2f filter by Clair, which can filter particles of size 0.1 microns. To target odor you need to have activated carbon filter. Note HEPA filter does not remove odors. Activated Carbon are of different types, some have the mesh like structure and some provide the carbon pellets. These can remove the cooking odors, gaseous and chemical odors.
Some models provide pre-filter that can be washable. Opt for the air purifier which have pre-filter because it increases the life span of the HEPA filter.

Performance
Performance of the air purifier depends upon the area it can cover, CADR and ACH. CADR is the Clean Air Delivery Rate and ACH is Air Changes per Hour. These three factors are crucial and one must keep in mind while buying an air purifier, most of the brands talk about the coverage area and CADR but remain silent on ACH.

ACH
Air changes per hour defines How often the air purifier can clean the air of its claimed coverage area in an hour. This is important because pollutants constantly enters your room and the air purifier need to constantly clean the air.
For example if a brand claims 4 ACH, that means that an air purifier can clean the entire claimed area 4 times in an hour or we can say in every 15 minutes the air inside the room is completely replaced.

Operating Cost
Other things to note while buying an air purifier is :-

Cost of the replacement filter and there lifespan.
The replacement filter's life depends upon the level of air pollution in the particular area. Usually the filter life is of six months. The replacement filter cost around Rs 1000 - Rs 3000 also check the availability of the same.

Electricity Cost.
These are the recurring cost which has to be kept in mind. Try to find the air purifiers which has the energy star ratings.

Noise Levels
Because the air purifier need to kept in running every time. How much noise it produces has to be considered for better sleep.