Your Air Purifier Options: Ionic Breeze, Ozone, HEPA And Others

Sharper Image has certainly made it's place in the air purifier consumer market with the Ionic Breeze. The consumer market. That's you and me, the ones who are sick and tired (mainly sick) of the dust and odors and are worried about the safety of the air in our homes. Ionizers, ozone, HEPA. The alphabet soup of air purifying can be confusing. Let's take a look at some of what all this means.

The ionic breeze air purifier is a controversial product on the market today. These devices work on the idea that pollution particles in the air tend to have a positive electric charge. If you add negative ions, or negatively charged chemical particles, to the air it is reasoned, the positive particles will be attracted to the ions, and they will bond. Remember opposites attract. This process will effectively remove the positively charged pollutants from the air. Sometimes an ionic air purifier also produces ozone.

Ozone, in and of itself, has no ability to control dust or particles in the air. In fact, in high concentrations, it is a poison. It has become a familiar word because of all the talk about how we are destroying the earth's ozone layer..

The ozone layer is a layer of the earth's atmosphere that protects us from the ultra-violet rays of the sun. Ozone is helpful up there, but it can be harmful down here. However, it does have the ability to kill mold and to neutralize odors, something like bleach. This is why an ionic air purifier sometimes generates it.

Some health experts believe that the reason you feel refreshed after a rainstorm or when standing beside a waterfall is because the air in these places is filled with negative ions. An ionic air purifier is designed to produce the same effect. Ozone is thought to be one reason the air smells good when it is filled with ionic particles, so ozone generation is sometimes part of the package when an air purifier is designed.

Ozone has been used in hospitals for killing germs, and, according to some reports, there has never been a human death attributed to ozone use. However, some more conservative scholars warn against its use. They feel a HEPA air purifier is a better choice than an ozone generating ionic air purifier.

HEPA stands for High Efficiency Particulate Air and refers to a type of air purifier that works by filtration. Many vacuum cleaners contain HEPA filters for dust control. These help to clean the air when vacuuming. Air conditioners and dehumidifiers can also help control allergens and particles in the air.

An air purifier is often recommended for people who suffer from allergies or asthma. In fact, for these people it can be a lifesaver. One thing to remember, however, is that a good ionic air purifier can be pretty expensive, as can one of the HEPA varieties. A cheap air purifier probably will not control dust very well, so you should do your homework when choosing one. A high quality HEPA air purifier might set you back $400 or more.

A good measure to take whatever air purifier you choose is to practice dust control the old fashioned way with good doormats. Much of the dust in homes comes in on people's feet. It's also important to keep cigarette smoke out of the home if you have people who suffer from asthma in the family.

Of course if you live in a dusty area like we do (the panhandle of Texas, affectionately known as the Dust Bowl), it's important to keep doors and windows closed as well. But more often than not, that's simply not enough. And that's when you need to really consider an air purifier.