Maybe you’ve got allergies. Maybe you’ve gotten one too many push notifications about the air quality in your area. Maybe you heard it can help prevent the spread of COVID-19. Whatever your reason, you’re considering getting an air purifier, but deep down, you can’t help but wonder: Do air purifiers work? They promise to filter out dust, pollen, smoke, even germs, but do they really deliver on that, or are they just overpriced fans?

Air purifier designed to improve the air quality in a single room. The EPA and many doctors agree that air purifiers are helpful. Especially if the outdoor pollution is high, or if it’s too cold to throw open your windows and let in tons of fresh air.

“Viral droplets, like SarsCoV2 and the flu, these can stay suspended in the air for hours, so an air filter can't hurt, but remember the droplets can also land on surfaces and sit there as well,” explains Dr. Elliott. “An air purifier shouldn't replace mask wearing, hand washing, isolation, not sharing personal products and sanitizing measures.” As the CDC says, consider ventilation part of a “layered strategy” to preventing the spread of the coronavirus.

So what types of air purifier we should choose and avoid?

Some types of air purifiers, specifically ozone generators emit ozone during purification process. Ozone is a colorless, toxic and unstable gas that has three oxygen atoms in each one of its molecules. The gas occurs naturally in the upper atmosphere, but it is also a common component of man-made smog. Ozone generating air purifiers deliberately emit ozone gas as a strategy for eliminating bacteria and chemicals in the air. The California Environmental Protection Agency states that ozone exposure is harmful to cells in the lungs and airways. Side effects of exposure to the gas can include shortness of breath, coughing and chest tightness. Patients with asthma or other preexisting health conditions may experience intensified symptoms of those conditions as a result of ozone exposure.

Is it better off to choose an air purifier that uses fibrous media air filter?

Essentially, most of the purifier use a filter—or a combination of filters and UV light—to remove impurities and pollutants from the air. They’re designed to improve the air quality in a single room. However, many air purifiers rely on the use of disposable, replaceable filters, which means you need to spend anywhere between $30 and $200 each year on new filters. If you do not change a purifier's filter periodically, the filter does not function optimally. For purifier models that employ re-usable containers or plates to collect contaminants, you must periodically clean out these components. While maintaining these latter types of purifiers is less expensive, it is also more labor intensive. Not changing and cleaning the filters in time may potentially worsening the quality of the air in your home or office. Pure HEPA air purifiers also do not remove odors, chemicals, or gasses. These are substances that are smaller than the 0.3-micron holes in a HEPA filter. Therefore typical HEPA air purifiers have some level of activated carbon-based material to absorb odors and chemicals that will not be caught by the HEPA element itself.

Is there any professional-grade air purifier, that not uses a filter and still deliver great air purification result?

Everyday, businesses trust Airwoods to help protect indoor air for their customers and employees. Airwoods Adopts medical grade disinfection purification technology. Effectively remove odor, smoke, haze, pollen, dust, VOCs, bacteria, virus, etc. Suitable for home, office, school and medical places.