Debunking Myths Of An Air Purifier
Filtering Out Misconceptions
The quality of the air we breathe in has increasingly been part of the social discourse over the past few years, whether it’s talked about in the context of air pollution and climate change or good ventilation in the context of COVID-19.
Many people have turned to Air Purifiers as a way of combating some of these issues within their own home or work space, while others have been sceptical that such a device could truly make a difference.
So we’ve decided to clear up some of these misconceptions and myths in order to better explain just how Air Purifiers actually work, and how to get the best use out of one.
6 Myths About Air Purifiers
Myth #1: A Single Air Purifier Can Cover Your Whole House
One persistent myth about Air Purifiers is that a single unit is powerful enough to filter the air throughout your entire home - this isn’t true.
An Air Purifier is only effective when it is able to regularly cycle air throughout the room an average of 4 times per hour (or one complete cycle every 15 minutes). This figure is referred to as ACH (Air Changes per Hour): when purchasing an Air Purifier look for those that advertise an ACH of at least 4, and avoid products that don’t advertise an ACH at all.
The ACH is mostly dependent on the size of the room available - a smaller room will allow for more air changes per hour through the unit, while larger rooms will naturally take longer to cycle air through and have a lower ACH. You can find out more about calculating these figures for your room size here, but a good guide is to have one Vornado Air Circulator per 20sqm of space.
Keep your room size in mind before deciding how many units you might need for a space, or if you think your current Air Purifier isn’t working as effectively as you’d like.
Myth #2: An Air Purifier Replaces Other Cleaning Methods
Air Purifiers are designed to clean the air throughout a particular space.
Vornado’s Air Purifiers have a dual filtration system which allows them to effectively remove small particles such as pollen, bacteria and dust from the air - eliminating 99.97% of airborne particles down to 0.3 microns in size.
This makes for a pretty powerful system, but it doesn’t mean that you no longer need to perform other cleaning duties within that area. Ensuring you are regularly dusting, sweeping and cleaning surfaces throughout the room means you’re eliminating as many particles as possible before they become airborne, and need to be filtered through the Air Purifier. In turn, this means you’re not reducing the useful lifespan of the filters inside the unit, or clogging them up unnecessarily.
Myth #3: You Don’t Need An Air Purifier If You Have An Air Conditioner
As Air Purifiers create a flow of fresh air, most people think that this is interchangeable with what an air conditioner does. The truth is, an air conditioner and an Air Purifier are not interchangeable, and perform different functions.
Firstly, an air conditioner doesn’t clean the air, it simply creates a continuous output of air based on the temperature that is set by the user in order to heat or cool the room. An Air Purifier does not seek to change the temperature in the room, nor does it need to continuously create a flow of air - rather, it recycles the same airflow through the unit to remove air pollutants, also making it quite energy efficient.
Myth #4: All Air Purifiers Are The Same
Not all Air Purifiers are created equal.
Depending on the size or design of the unit, each one can vary in regards to the number (and hence effectiveness) of filters inside, Air Changes per Hour, size of the room it’s recommended for, and availability of other useful features such as speed control.
The adage “you get what you pay for” is applicable here, with cheaper options on the market often offering very basic filtration, and sometimes not easily advertising necessary metrics such as ACH and filtration rates that you need to know prior to purchasing.
Myth #5: Air Purifiers Don’t Need Maintenance
Air Purifiers are powerful products and simple to use, but to get the best results it’s best to perform some simple maintenance over time.
Ensuring that you’re cleaning your Air Purifier on a semi-regular basis and changing the filters within the necessary timeframes will keep your unit running in tip-top shape for a long while. If you think your Air Purifier is a bit more sluggish than usual, these are the things to look at first, but Vornado also offers a 5 Year Warranty for extra peace of mind.
Myth #6: An Air Purifier Is Only Useful During Allergy Seasons
Since Air Purifiers are so effective at reducing up to 99.97% of airborne particles (down to 0.3 microns in size), they’re perfect for those suffering from asthma or seasonal allergies. As a result, Autumn and Spring are naturally going to be seasons where using an Air Purifier is a no-brainer, but Air Purifiers are actually very useful all year round.
Firstly, having clean, fresh air is something that benefits our health and wellbeing at all times. Secondly, even though you’re likely to have the air conditioner or heater running in summer and winter respectively, running these non-stop within a closed room can cause the air to become stale and stuffy, a problem an Air Purifier can solve for you. Adding to this is the fact that Air Purifiers can also remove odours from the air, meaning this one product can provide you with year long comfort no matter what the weather is like outside.
We hope that clearing up any confusion or misconceptions around Air Purifiers has put your mind at ease, and given you a greater appreciation for just how powerful and useful these appliances are for your home and health.
Invest in a Vornado Air Purifier today, and breathe easy knowing you’ve made the right choice.