Air Purifiers For Dust and Other Allergens

The right air cleaner can help keep your home smelling fresh and eliminate the pathogens that cause illness in family members. Just make sure the machine you choose is rated for your room size and that it uses a HEPA filter to remove dust particles.

Mechanical filters like pleated HEPA or flat ones are the best for trapping dust particles. They can also be electrostatically charged to increase their “stickiness” for catching debris.

Boosts Immune System

Airborne irritants like dust, mold spores, pet dander, bacteria, viruses and volatile organic chemicals (VOCs) damage the lungs and weaken your immune system. By removing these allergens from your home, an air purifier can reduce symptoms like itchy eyes and a runny nose, helping you feel more healthy overall.

When selecting an air purifier for your home, it is important to look for one that has advanced filtration technology. Unlike basic mechanical filters, which are either pleated like HEPA or flat and can trap only small particles, some advanced models have electrostatic charges that make them “stick” to airborne pollutants. These models also have higher CADR ratings, meaning they can filter the air more quickly for a given room size.

The Levoit Core 300S is a great example of an affordable advanced air purifier. It features an H13 True HEPA filter and Levoit’s VortexAir technology, which can eliminate allergens from the air, including dust, for less than $150. The unit also includes a fine mesh pre-filter and a high-efficiency Activated Carbon filter to tackle VOCs, unpleasant odors and chemical fumes.

Another great option for allergy sufferers is the Coway Airmega AP-1512HH, which is capable of eliminating most allergens in rooms up to 361 square feet. Its sleek design is both modern and timeless, so it will fit well with any décor. Its advanced filtration technology includes an Activated Carbon filter to remove noxious odors and a Germicidal UV bulb to kill germs.

Other types of advanced filters include ionizers, which can give particles in the air an electrical charge, causing them to clump together or seek out positively charged molecules. These ions are then attracted to collector plates on the air purifier, where they’re captured and removed from the air. While these technologies have their place, they’re not as effective as a good old-fashioned mechanical filter.

If you’re an allergy sufferer, it’s also wise to choose a model that’s certified asthma and allergy friendly by an independent testing organization. These models have passed specific tests for smoke, dust and pollen, the three most common air pollutants. Those that have received the seal of approval are guaranteed to provide effective allergy and asthma relief.

Eliminates Allergies

If you suffer from seasonal allergies, an air purifier may help alleviate your symptoms. However, some people who use an air purifier notice their allergies are actually worsened, especially if the unit uses an electrostatic or ionic filter that produces ozone during the filtration process. Air pollution from these units can be harmful to those with breathing illnesses like asthma and snore.

If your allergy problems are triggered by dust mites or the proteins they leave behind, you should find an air purifier that has a HEPA filter. Allergists agree that the HEPA filter is air purifiers for dust the gold standard for reducing allergens. They also recommend that you look for a model with a CADR rating specific to the size of your room, as this will ensure you’re getting the most effective unit possible.

The models in Honeywell’s Allergen Plus series are among the most popular for eliminating dust. They feature a pre-filter to capture large particles, carbon to reduce VOCs and odors from smoke and cooking, and the HEPA filter to pick up any remaining dust. The series is relatively inexpensive and comes in a variety of sizes to accommodate most rooms.

Aside from dust, air purifiers can remove many types of indoor air pollutants. One common problem is mold, which can cause a host of health issues including wheezing, coughing, fatigue and headaches. Air purifiers that contain a mold-specific filter or PECO technology (Photo Electrochemical Oxidation) can help with this issue by destroying organic material, which composes about 40% of indoor air.

Some other pollutants that can trigger allergic reactions include tobacco and paint fumes. While air purifiers can remove some of these, it’s best to avoid them if you have respiratory illness. Instead, you can hire a professional to perform a thorough mold inspection of your home and take steps to correct any water damage that’s present, as these issues may contribute to mold growth. This can help prevent mold from growing and spreading, which can also exacerbate allergies and asthma symptoms. The same goes for other types of volatile organic compounds, such as formaldehyde and acetone, which can be found in cleaning products or household paints.

Eliminates Smells

Air purifiers can eliminate lingering bad smells, such as pungent cooking odors and musty mold scents. In addition, they can remove unpleasant odors caused by tobacco smoke and pet dander.

If you suffer from allergies, asthma, or other respiratory conditions and want to make sure that the air in your home is as clean as possible, you should consider investing in one of these devices. They can also be a good addition to a workshop in order to keep harmful contaminants from clogging the air you breathe while working on an item.

Most of the best air purifiers for dust use mechanical filtration to remove pollutants from the air. They usually consist of a filter and a fan that sucks in and circulates air over the filters. As the air passes over the filters, it encounters pollutants that stick to them or are trapped within the filter fibers. The cleaner air is then pushed back out into the living space.

A good air purifier for dust should be able to remove particles as small as 2.5 microns, which is roughly the size of a human hair. These tiny particles include a wide variety of allergens, such as pollen, pet dander, and dust mite droppings. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, these particles can trigger allergic reactions and make people cough, sneeze, or wheeze.

Many of the best air purifiers for dust feature HEPA filters, which are capable of capturing most allergens. Look for units with a high clean air delivery rate (CADR) that matches the size of your room. A good rule of thumb is to choose a device that is rated for at least 200 square feet larger than the room you plan on using it in. This ensures that the filter won’t get overloaded with debris, which can cause it to clog and reduce its performance.

If you’re ready to start improving the quality of your indoor air, MNT has put together a list of 9 of the best options on the market today. Each of these devices boasts an impressive set of future-proof features that will help you tackle your dust problem once and for all. We’ve selected items for a wide range of room sizes and budgets, so you should be able to find a model that will work perfectly in your home.

Reduces the Risk of Airborne Diseases

Dust can contain spores of bacteria, viruses and other microbes that can trigger allergy symptoms. Air purifiers with HEPA filters can help keep these germs at bay. This is especially important if you have elderly people, children or anyone with a weakened immune system living in your home.

While it’s true that you can’t entirely eliminate dust from your home, the right kind of air purifier can drastically reduce its presence. That’s because it will filter out the dust particles that get trapped in your carpets and other surfaces as well as the ones floating in the air. This can make a huge difference to those who suffer from allergy-causing dust mites, which are one of the leading causes of indoor allergies.

The best air purifiers for dust feature mechanical filtration systems that suck in the air and then trap pollutants on filters or other components. A few key features to look for include a prefilter to catch larger gunk, a HEPA filter to capture airborne allergens and an activated carbon filter that will remove odors from the air.

You’ll also want to consider how big an area the machine will cover, and whether it has smart air purifiers for dust functionality, such as a timer or a sleep mode. This will determine how often you’ll need to replace the filter and how much energy it will use.

Some brands produce electrostatic air cleaners, such as ionizing models, that use an electric charge to trap particles on metal plates. While these units may work to some extent, they can also produce harmful ozone, which is an asthma irritant. Air purifiers with HEPA filters, on the other hand, will trap these particles without releasing any dangerous gases or particles.

Although a quality air purifier will significantly cut down on dust in your home, it is not a substitute for a regular cleaning routine. If you want to truly eliminate dust, you’ll need a good vacuuming and wiping down of your furniture every once in a while. That said, introducing an air purifier to your home can make your routine much easier and more effective.