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Room Air Purifier - which is best?

23K views 22 replies 21 participants last post by  quatsch 
#1 · (Edited)
I am trying to decide which room air purifier is best to buy.

Right now I just have the (CADR) Clean Air Delivery Ratings (as certified by AHAM -which didn't even show Oreck, Eden Pure, IQAir etc. Hmmm...) and the price.

If you have any personal experience with any of these or others I would love to hear it.

These are listed in descending order of room size sq ft.

BLUEAIR $490 (COUGH COUGH)
Model Number: 510B
Dust CADR: 377
Tobacco Smoke CADR: 388
Pollen CADR: 378
Room Size (SQ FT): 620
Meets Ozone Limits: Yes

BLUEAIR $500 (COUGH COUGH) can get factory refurbished one for $400
Model Number: 501
Dust CADR: 377
Tobacco Smoke CADR: 388
Pollen CADR: 378
Room Size (SQ FT): 620
Meets Ozone Limits: Yes

HUNTER $269 (has about the same CR rating as Kenmore except costs way more to run annually) so its CR#3
Model Number: 30547
Dust CADR: 330
Tobacco Smoke CADR: 329
Pollen CADR: 330
Room Size (SQ FT): 510
Meets Ozone Limits: N/A
Permanent filter never needs replacing. Permanent / Carbon Prefilter (?I might question this?)
Programmable control with remote
5 Year Limited Warranty
Programmable digital LCD controls
Color: Khaki

Friedrich $422 CR #1 of the Electrostatic type purifiers
Model Number: C-90B
Dust CADR: 384
Tobacco Smoke CADR: 326
Pollen CADR: 421
Room Size (SQ FT): 506
Meets Ozone Limits: Yes

WHIRPOOL $255 consumer reports #1
Model Number: AP51030L0
Dust CADR: 330
Tobacco Smoke CADR: 330
Pollen CADR: 288
Room Size (SQ FT): 510
Meets Ozone Limits: N/A

KENMORE $300 consumer reports #2
Model Number: 83202
Dust CADR: 335
Tobacco Smoke CADR: 335
Pollen CADR: 290
Room Size (SQ FT): 500
Meets Ozone Limits: N/A

HONEYWELL $250 ON SALE FOR $150 ($100 off)
Model Number: 50311
Dust CADR: 300
Tobacco Smoke CADR: 300
Pollen CADR: 300
Room Size (SQ FT): 465

HOLMES $200 on sale for $130 ($70)
Model Number: HAP675RC
Dust CADR: 300
Tobacco Smoke CADR: 300
Pollen CADR: 300
Room Size (SQ FT): 460
Meets Ozone Limits: N/A

Then there are these so I am really in a tizzy as to what to do.

Performance Test Results - Large Room Air Purifiers
Recommendations: Air Purifiers America highly recommend the IQAir, Alen or

BlueAir air purifiers as these units remove over 98% of all air borne particles such as pollen, mold, dander and dust. Air Purifiers America does not recommend the Friedrich C-90, Ionic Breeze or Oreck XL air cleaners as these units generate ozone which is harmful to the body according to laboratory research conducted by California DHS' Indoor Air Quality Program.

CLAIMS sound GOOD:
The air purification technology in the EdenPURE™ is that used by the federal government to purify air in the Space Shuttle and the International Space Station.

Oreck Air Cleaners Use the same technology as that found on U.S. Navy submarines.
 
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#2 ·
IQAir Beats Them All Out!

Hey All,

Air purifiers really have been an issue of confusion for many years from a performance and quality standpoint. Every company pretty much touts that theirs is the best. A prime example is the Ionic Breeze. That machine sold millions and millions of units and it turns out that it was utterly useless. In fact Sharper Image, the primary pusher of those, has not only gone bankrupt but they also lost a $50,000,000 class action lawsuit brought on by the hundreds of thousands of people that bought that junk.

I have done a great deal of research on the subject of air purifiers. After a lot of reading and also a tremendous amount of testing, all my research kept point to IQAir. I firmly believe that they by far are the most exceptional manufacturer of air purifiers. They are German engineered and Swiss made. Their machines truly produce zero particles. In other words, what comes out is 100% fresh, clean air and nothing else.
Anyone who really wants the best of the best has to look into their product line. I bought the HealthPro Plus model which contains 3 filters including 5 pounds of activated carbon.
Highly recommended.
 
#9 ·
A prime example is the Ionic Breeze. That machine sold millions and millions of units and it turns out that it was utterly useless. In fact Sharper Image, the primary pusher of those, has not only gone bankrupt but they also lost a $50,000,000 class action lawsuit brought on by the hundreds of thousands of people that bought that junk.
My Mother was one of those people that bought an IONic Breeze many years ago. She still uses it and cleaned it every week. The fins are always full of crap, so we always assumed it worked.

What are you saying that it doesn't do? And where does she get some of this $50million?
 
#3 ·
May I install my 2 cents worth. I own two (2) Hunter Brand room type air purifiers. One of the units has the electronic grid that I think is supposed to somehow make the air cleaner (tells you how much I have used it). These units were bought at Lowes in my hometown. My problem>after about three(3) years Lowes discontinued selling the Hunter units. Now, where do I buy replacement filters? The closest place I could find was something like "Service Merchandise" in Tallahassee, FL., but they went out of business within that next year. So- -I called Hunter and convinced them to sell me the filters if I would buy six (6) of each size at a time. The filters will last me two monts easily, Hunter may not like this but I do. These are quite expensive but, the units are good and the cost of replacing them was high also. Thes units do help keep the dust down in our house. My advise>look into a unit that you believe you will be able to find filters and/or parts for over the next few years. Thanks, David
 
#5 ·
You definitely get what you paid for, but after a few hundred dollars you start to hit a point of diminishing returns. Something for like $100 won't be as good as something that is maybe $300, but the difference between a 300 purifier and a 500 one would be less than the difference between the 100 and 300. That being said if consumer reports has a cheaper one by a couple hundred than some of the others I would go with that. Why spend more unless you really need something a more pricey model has?
 
#6 ·
Best Air Purifier

You have done your research! Of those you listed, I like BlueAir Purifiers the best. I don't have one, but my cousin does and when she was pregnant and her home was full of toxic fumes and dust from their remodel project, she had the purifier running in the bedroom and the air was dust and odor free. It was amazing. Also, they are energy star rated and won't cost as much to run. The other brands you listed do not have as high quality HEPA filters and air processing, which is why they are cheapter. The best cheap one is the Honeywell 50250.
 
#8 · (Edited)
#10 ·
Myself and my wife recently purchased a brand new home in a new build development where most of the house's are still being built around us. Not only is the noise of the construction work annoying, but the dust in the air in and around
our neighbourhood causes my asthma to flare up at a worrying rate. And this was worsened further when there would be a storm in the area, even with all the windows sealed tight, the general quality of the air around us was seriously reduced. So out of desperation and alot of research we decided to invest in the AQAir Health Pro Plus purifier. Yes its an expensive (and large) piece of equipment, but its done absolute wonders for our home and general quality of life.

Several months later, even with the construction work now over, there was still the large storms to consider, blowing dust and other random junk particles around the area, but now we have the purifier this isnt even a concern. I have a blog up at http://www.healthproplus.net
 
#11 · (Edited)
To purchase the most appropriate air purifier for one's personal needs, it is important to know what is causing the allergic reaction. Is it a reaction to particles in the air, such as pollen or dust, or is it a reaction to gasses or airborne chemicals? Different air purifiers address different causes.

I had to explore the many kinds of air purifiers when our son moved into an apartment in Los Angeles where he was affected by the residue left by the air conditioner, exhaust fumes and particles that came in when the windows were open, and also by the off-gassing of chemicals from a new micro-suede couch. The Air Wellness Power5 solved all his problems. I started a website to address this because i have met so many people with similar challenges: www.airpurifiercritic.com.
 
#15 ·
Air Purifiers - Most people get teh wrong type of filter.

As a technician a lot of people ask me about air purifiers and the best one is really the one that fit's the room size and problem you have. Some are good for dust,and many aren't, while others are good at dust - yet bad at mold.
The following site was helpful to me - with videos about which filters do what and independent (objective) reviews and lots of info.

http://www.top-air-purifier-reviews.org/
 
#17 ·
Honeywell has long been known for creating quality products for the house, and the air purifier you have cited is no exception.

The Hunter model is wonderful if you care about performance and not style. It gets the job done and it does it well. If you’re looking for something a little bit more heavy duty, then this is obviously not the one for you.

You can read more about it in my room air purifier reviews blog, where I have reviewed in detail both the cited models and may help you make an informed decision. Good luck with choosing the air purifiers that works for you!
 
#18 ·
Honeywell has long been known for creating quality products for the house, and the air purifier you have cited is no exception.

The Hunter model is wonderful if you care about performance and not style. It gets the job done and it does it well. If you’re looking for something a little bit more heavy duty, then this is obviously not the one for you.

You can read more about it in my room air purifier reviews blog, where I have reviewed in detail both the cited models and may help you make an informed decision. Good luck with choosing the air purifiers that works for you!
I agree with you the Honeywell has many famous air cleaner, but I do not feel well when comes to hunter. I ever had a Hunter 30027 (I am not sure whether it was this model), It wouldn work after only 9 months, which made me crazy about this brand
 
#19 ·
I am trying to decide which room air purifier is best to buy.

Right now I just have the (CADR) Clean Air Delivery Ratings (as certified by AHAM -which didn't even show Oreck, Eden Pure, IQAir etc. Hmmm...) and the price.

If you have any personal experience with any of these or others I would love to hear it.

These are listed in descending order of room size sq ft.

BLUEAIR $490 (COUGH COUGH)
Model Number: 510B
Dust CADR: 377
Tobacco Smoke CADR: 388
Pollen CADR: 378
Room Size (SQ FT): 620
Meets Ozone Limits: Yes

BLUEAIR $500 (COUGH COUGH) can get factory refurbished one for $400
Model Number: 501
Dust CADR: 377
Tobacco Smoke CADR: 388
Pollen CADR: 378
Room Size (SQ FT): 620
Meets Ozone Limits: Yes

HUNTER $269 (has about the same CR rating as Kenmore except costs way more to run annually) so its CR#3
Model Number: 30547
Dust CADR: 330
Tobacco Smoke CADR: 329
Pollen CADR: 330
Room Size (SQ FT): 510
Meets Ozone Limits: N/A
Permanent filter never needs replacing. Permanent / Carbon Prefilter (?I might question this?)
Programmable control with remote
5 Year Limited Warranty
Programmable digital LCD controls
Color: Khaki

Friedrich $422 CR #1 of the Electrostatic type purifiers
Model Number: C-90B
Dust CADR: 384
Tobacco Smoke CADR: 326
Pollen CADR: 421
Room Size (SQ FT): 506
Meets Ozone Limits: Yes

WHIRPOOL $255 consumer reports #1
Model Number: AP51030L0
Dust CADR: 330
Tobacco Smoke CADR: 330
Pollen CADR: 288
Room Size (SQ FT): 510
Meets Ozone Limits: N/A

KENMORE $300 consumer reports #2
Model Number: 83202
Dust CADR: 335
Tobacco Smoke CADR: 335
Pollen CADR: 290
Room Size (SQ FT): 500
Meets Ozone Limits: N/A

HONEYWELL $250 ON SALE FOR $150 ($100 off)
Model Number: 50311
Dust CADR: 300
Tobacco Smoke CADR: 300
Pollen CADR: 300
Room Size (SQ FT): 465

HOLMES $200 on sale for $130 ($70)
Model Number: HAP675RC
Dust CADR: 300
Tobacco Smoke CADR: 300
Pollen CADR: 300
Room Size (SQ FT): 460
Meets Ozone Limits: N/A

Then there are these so I am really in a tizzy as to what to do.

Performance Test Results - Large Room Air Purifiers
Recommendations: Air Purifiers America highly recommend the IQAir, Alen or

BlueAir air purifiers as these units remove over 98% of all air borne particles such as pollen, mold, dander and dust. Air Purifiers America does not recommend the Friedrich C-90, Ionic Breeze or Oreck XL air cleaners as these units generate ozone which is harmful to the body according to laboratory research conducted by California DHS' Indoor Air Quality Program.

CLAIMS sound GOOD:
The air purification technology in the EdenPURE™ is that used by the federal government to purify air in the Space Shuttle and the International Space Station.

Oreck Air Cleaners Use the same technology as that found on U.S. Navy submarines.
Personally I like the Winix 4 stage. It covers a large area but so big to make it hard to move from room to room
 
#22 ·
Best air cleaner for WHAT????
Seriously loaded question, with out a answer. Some cleaners are good for this and others good for that. If you had asked best cleaner for dust, or pet dander, the answers could have been relevant.
I have worked in places where the air filters were down to 5 microns, and over $500 bucks a filter. The biggest thing I learned in PROTOCOL Classes was the closer to the floor the dirtier the room. Protocol Classes in this instance are when I was doing a clean room building for Motorola. As the building got tighter we would have to sit through another 4 hour class explaining what we could do and not do in the clean rooms. I asked in the beginning why they did not let us finish the construction before they made it so hard to work? Never go a good answer. Shower come to work, shower again, put on bunny suit, work, shower and then put on my clothes. They had guards at the entry to the parking lot, smoking or smoking products in your car, you were turned away. End of employment.
 
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