How to Choose Your Air Purifier

Don’t Settle for only a Half of an Air Purifier!

Since the energy crisis of the 1970s, our homes have become more and more airtight, trapping gases and airborne chemicals inside. Poor indoor air quality is seen as a major source of the tripling of asthma and allergies in the last 20 years. Allergies now afflict one out three people. The Mayo clinic reports that almost all sinus problems are caused by airborne mold toxins. Mycotoxins are carcinogenic.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) states that indoor air quality has become the No. 1 air pollution problem. EPA says that indoor air is normally 2 to 3 times, or up to 100 times, more polluted than the outdoor air in large cities. In addition to allergy-causing particles like pet dander and pollen, indoor air carries many chemicals, gases, and odors, which can also trigger asthma. The immediate health effects of chemical contaminants are often similar to those from colds, but years of exposure may cause respiratory diseases, heart disease, and cancer. 

Chemical fumes and gases have become a bigger threat to our health than particulate pollution. Many organic chemicals are known to cause cancer in animals. While our breathing system can filter out most particles, we are completely defenseless against airborne chemicals, toxins, and gases. Once inhaled into the lungs and absorbed by blood, they circulate throughout the body.

What pollutes the air we breathe?  

Poor indoor air quality may be the source of most headaches, stuffy noses, dry throats, itchy eyes, and general fatigue. But the good news is you can do something about it! Studies show that productivity of employees increases by up to 20 percent when they work in clean air. You can get a state-of-the-art air purifier and make sure that your family enjoys pure and healthy air at home.

But air cleaners sold in stores do only a half of the job – they just remove particles from the air but do nothing against the chemical contaminants and odors. That’s why the only complete air cleaner is the combination HEPA Plus Carbon air purifier - a true HEPA air filter for particles and a deep carbon for airborne chemicals, gases, and odors. (We mean many pounds of activated carbon, not just a few token ounces.)

Children spend more time indoors and are more vulnerable. Place the air purifier in an area, where your family spends most time.

Basement Air is the Worst

In a typical house, fresh air infiltration through the building envelope ensures that the indoor air changes every 2 to 3 hours. However, this does not happen in basements because they are surrounded by ground. Instead of fresh air, there is just “soil gas” seeping in from the ground through openings and pores in the concrete walls and floor. It carries lots of moisture, decomposition gases, and usually, radon gas. (Before finishing the basement, deep-seal all the concrete with RadonSeal penetrating concrete sealer.)

Chemicals and gases like radon are heavy and accumulate in basements. Biological contaminants like molds and bacteria prosper in higher humidity. Combined with the low ventilation, basement air is the worst air in the whole house. And keep in mind that the A/C and heating system spreads the contaminated basement air throughout the house. 

If your children play in a finished basement or you have a basement office, or somebody sleeps down there, you should install the HEPA Plus Carbon air purifier.

HEPA Air Filters are the Best for Particles

“Lung damaging particles” are in the range from 9 to 0.3 microns in size – small enough to get through your sinus cavities but large enough not to be exhaled. Larger particles such as pollen can be removed with a pre-filter. Smaller allergens from 0.3 to 5 microns (1/1,000 mm), including animal dander, mold, some bacteria, and dust mite allergens, will be removed by HEPA mechanical air filter. (For comparison, the diameter of human air is 60–100 microns.)

HEPA (“high-efficiency particulate air”) was developed during the Manhattan Project to trap radioactive particles. It removes at least 99.97% of any airborne particles with a size of 0.3 microns. This “most penetrating particle size” is the most difficult to capture – larger or smaller particles are trapped with even a higher efficiency.

HEPA filters are made of pleated sheets of randomly arranged microfibers of boron silicate. They do not work like a “sieve” but mainly, by the particles impacting and adhering to the fibers. Amazingly, as the filters collect more particles, they become even more efficient! However, this increases the air pressure drop and the filter has to be eventually replaced.

Other Types of Air Purifiers

The main disadvantage of the electronic air cleaners widely sold in stores is that they emit some ozone gas, which is a toxic substance and an irritant to the respiratory system. Ozone is harmful to health, regardless of whether you have allergies or asthma. EPA warns against the use of ozone air purifiers. Outdoor air pollution is measured by the concentration of ozone – when it rises too high, people are advised to avoid outdoor exertion.

Electrostatic precipitators are inexpensive and widely marketed. They ionize particles by a series of wires, which are then attracted to oppositely charged metal collection plates. They can collect particles as small as 0.1 micron but as the collection plates become dirty, their efficiency drops dramatically (from 80% to as low as 20%). It is imperative to clean the plates as frequently as daily or weekly, which practically nobody does. They generate a fair amount of ozone.

An improved electronic precipitator is the media charged filter, which has an electrostatic filter instead of metal plates. Their efficiency also drops quickly as they become dirty (as low as 50%) but the filter at least continues to collect large particles.

Ion generators (negative ionizers) are simple and inexpensive. They do not remove any particles from the room but just charge them, so that they are attracted to positively charged walls, furniture, draperies, etc. But as they loose their charge, the particles get released and fall back into the air. And ionizers release a good amount of ozone.

The most dangerous air cleaner is the ozone generator. It releases large amounts of ozone meant to react with gases and odors in the air. However, the newly formed oxidized air pollutants might be worse than the original. And ozone may cause a permanent lung damage.

Activated Carbon to Capture Chemicals 

Although there are strict limits on chemicals in drinking water, people still use carbon filters to clean trace chemicals and to make the water smell and taste better. Since there are no limits on indoor air pollution, it makes even more sense to clean chemicals, gases, and odors from the air we breathe.

Even the finest HEPA air filters cannot capture gas molecules. Activated carbon (charcoal) is the proven solution for cleaning out gases and chemicals from both air and liquids. Battle-tested in gas masks and a must for operating rooms and clean rooms.

Activated carbon traps gases by adsorption - when gas molecules pass close to its surface, it pulls them in from the air (by van der Waals forces) and holds them. Activated carbon can trap an extremely wide spectrum of chemicals, gases, and odors because of the different types and sizes of pores in its structure. It has a huge surface area – one pound has a surface area of 125 acres!

Activated carbon can adsorb up to 60% of its weight!

Reducing Radon Gas

Radon is the second leading cause of lung cancer, the deadliest of all cancers, and the leading cause among non-smokers. Radon gas accumulates in basements and that’s where you should tackle this health threat to your family before it diffuses throughout the house.

Radon is a single atom gas but its atoms are larger than any other gas in nature. This makes it ideal for adsorption to activated carbon. It is already used extensively for removing radon from water in water treatment plants and in whole-house carbon filter systems. The removal efficiency of radon and its decay products from water by activated carbon is spectacular – it ranges from 95 to 99%.

Activated carbon is also effective on removing radon gas from indoor air. It is used in “charcoal test kits” to capture radon from the air before mailing it to a lab for testing. Of all the air cleaners, only activated carbon bed adsorbs both radon gas and all its decay products. But not enough research has been done yet to promise a specific improvement.

EPA “does not endorse nor discourages” the use of air cleaners for reducing radon. However, EPA recommends air cleaners when radon cannot be controlled at its source (sub-slab depressurization) or when the resulting radon level is not acceptable.

Consider installing the HEPA Plus Carbon air purifier in your basement for reducing radon if:

• your basement is already finished (if not, you can seal it using RadonSeal)
• if you already have a radon mitigation system but the radon level still hovers around 2 pCi/L
• if you do not have a radon mitigation system and the radon level is in the range 1 to 10 pCi/L
• if you do not like adding the piping, fan, and stack of a fan mitigation system.
• if your basement needs a good air purifier anyway.

The Clear Choice – HEPA Plus Carbon Air Purifiers

We are the authorized dealer for AllerAir Industries. This air purification system is very unique and much more complete when compared to store-sold air cleaners. It combines the benefits of true HEPA filtration with the advantages of activated carbon bed. In addition to filtering out airborne particles, it also removes chemicals, odors, and gases, including radon.

The best choice for your main living area and particularly, your finished basement. For product details, visit HEPA Plus Carbon Air Purifiers   

ORDER ONLINE

PayPal

Order Form

Any questions? Please contact us by e-mail,
telephone (203) 225-0366 or toll-free 1-800-472-0603

MADE IN USA
Products not sold through retail stores. Available exclusively from:
Radon Mitigation & Waterproofing Concrete Sealer Co.
Novion Inc., 18 L'Hermitage Drive, Shelton, CT 06484 USA
RadonSeal™ is a registered trademark. Copyright © 1998-2008. All rights reserved.

HOME PAGE

Products and Prices

ORDER ONLINE

Quick Answers