Natural Air Purifiers

If you live in suburbia, near a busy street, or experience seasons you don't want to feel in your living room, opening your doors and windows to let out bad smells and let in fresh scents may not always be an option. I'm very much against opening the doors and windows when it's 5 degrees below zero outside.

Of course, you don't want to live in a home permeated with the smells of steamed cauliflower, old shoes, and rubber cement, either. An air purifier may be just what you need.

Airing out your house will stir up the odors in your home a bit and take some of the minor ones out, especially on a breezy day. But airing out the house won't get rid of odor caused by cigarettes, bacteria, molds, or dirt.

Even worse, the breeze may actually enflame allergies. In addition, opening windows does not purifier the air or kill harmful bacteria and viruses. Close the windows and you're likely right back where you started in no time. To accomplish these feats, you will need to purchase an air purifier.

Many homeowners already use low-tech air purifiers. But, if you are not, you need to get started. Low-tech air purifiers have been shown to do a great job in purifying the air in both offices and homes. Even better - it's simple!

All you need to do is change the air filters in your air conditioning and heating system once a month. Don't forget, or they will lose their effectiveness as they become clogged. Changing the filters will help cut the allergens, dander, and dust in your home in half. As an added bonus, this type of air purifying system is silent and it costs very little, about $20 every three months.

While this is better than kicking up pollutants with an outside breeze, your HVAC system isn't really an air purifier - especially if you live with odors. Do you have a cat box inside, or a baby that needs to have his diapers changed? If so, you should consider getting a more advanced type of air purifier in order to really improve the air you breathe.

Ionizing air purifiers are good systems for smoke filled rooms or for those with odor problems, which are the two main reasons most people run to the window to push it open.

Ionizing air purifier systems like the Ionic Breeze air purifier perform in an interesting way. They send out negatively charged particles, which combine with the positively charged particles in the air. These positively charged particles include smoke and odor. When the particles combine, they become too heavy to remain in the air. As a result, they are drawn to the collection plate within the air purifier. Then, all you need to do is wipe them away with a clean cloth. It really is that simple! Simple, but not cheap. This particular system costs about $300.

Consumer Reports, however, has found that these air purifiers do not really work against removing dust particles and allergens, so it may not be the best choice for you if that is what you are looking for.

Low-ozone air purifiers work by oxidizing pollutants. They then leave behind breathable oxygen and purified air. Opening your windows doesn't purify the air. As we said it can stir up allergens and other pollutants, making them more irritating to your respiratory system.

One word of caution, however, low ozone air purifiers do emit ozone. While the levels of ozone emitted by these air purifiers are considered to be safe, it is important to monitor the levels to ensure they are not dangerous.

The most complex air purifier systems are based on ultra-violet light (UV) technology. UV air purifiers will kill bacteria and viruses they come in contact with, so they're ideal for bathroom and garbage odors. This is the only air purifier system that actually kills rather than filters or masks these bacteria. That's why they're the choice in most hospitals. Since you don't always know the source of the odor in your home, opening your windows may not be enough to truly get rid of the problem because opening the windows does not kill viruses and bacteria.

In fact, you could actually create an environment that helps these germs grow when you open up your window! UV air purifiers are obviously a much better choice.