If you’re considering buying a new air purifier for your home amid rising pollution, don’t rush. To avoid wasting thousands of rupees, be sure to know these three things.
As the festive season begins and a mild chill sets in, the air in cities once again becomes toxic. A blanket of smog appears in Delhi-NCR and surrounding major cities in the morning, and the AQI continues to rise. We can’t control the outside air, but to ensure that the elderly and children don’t experience breathing problems indoors, people are increasingly purchasing air purifiers.
People often order air purifiers after seeing good discounts in online sales. But an air purifier isn’t a typical fan that you simply plug in and the job is done. If you buy the wrong machine without proper information, spending thousands of rupees won’t reduce room pollution. Therefore, it’s important to understand these three important things before making a purchase.
True HEPA filter and multi-layer filtration
The true strength of any air purifier is its filter. Many cheap purifiers on the market are sold labeled HEPA-Type or HEPA-Like, which you should steer clear of. Always choose an air purifier with a True HEPA filter, at least H13 or H14 grade. This filter has the power to block up to 99.97 percent of extremely fine and dangerous PM 2.5 particles, dust, pollen, and bacteria.
Additionally, ensure the machine has at least three layers of filtration. The top layer should be a pre-filter that traps hair and coarse dust. An activated carbon filter in the middle is also crucial, as a HEPA filter traps only dust, but the carbon filter absorbs kitchen smoke, paint odors, cigarette odors, and toxic gases. Without this, the air will not be completely clean.
Check CADR according to the size of the room
The second biggest mistake people make is purchasing a small-sized air purifier for a large room or hall. Just as a small AC can’t cool a large room, a small-capacity purifier can’t clean the air in a large room. To understand this, you should definitely check the CADR (Clean Air Delivery Rate) printed on the box.
This number indicates how many cubic meters of air the machine can clean and expel in an hour. The higher the CADR of any purifier, the faster it will filter toxic air from the room. If your bedroom is 200 to 300 square feet, buy a machine with a CADR rating of at least 300 to 350.
Check these things along with the price
People often happily bring home an inexpensive air purifier for 6,000 to 7,000 rupees. But the real shock comes the next season. The filter in an air purifier isn’t permanent; it needs to be replaced every 6 to 12 months, depending on the pollution level. Often, replacement filters for inexpensive machines cost 3,000 to 4,000 rupees or are simply not available in the market.
In such a situation, if the filter is not available, the entire machine becomes useless. Therefore, before purchasing, be sure to search online to see how much a new filter for that model costs and whether it is easily available. Additionally, the purifier needs to run overnight in the bedroom, so check its noise level and sleep mode.
