The other day, someone on Quora asked whether ionizer air purifiers work and actually purify the air. This is an important question because ionizers are all over the place. Ionizer air purifiers are often marketed with a variety of names. And all that for far cheaper than regular purifiers and even cheaper than building your own purifier. Those negative ions in the air cause the particles to stick to surfaces, like my bed, the wall, and the floor:. A summary of scientific tests of air purifiers found that most air ionizers have no noticeable effect on particulate levels p.
Their conclusion is that most ionizers are too weak to have an effect. Studies do show an effect if they use very strong ionizers--much stronger than most ionizers on the market p. The problem is, when you put that many ions into the air, it produces ozone.
Ionizers have been shown to increase dangerous small particulate levels by over 8x. But in reality most of the particles have already stuck to the nearest surface in the room and very few actually make it all the way back to the Ioniser. Is an Ioniser an effective form of air purification then?
In a word, no. Ultimately an Ioniser air filter does not remove any of the offending particles from the room, it simply deposits them onto a nearby surface. If you are seriously looking to improve the air quality in your home then you should be looking to remove the offending allergens and dust particles as opposed to just moving them around. The logical choice would be either a good quality Hepa Filter or possibly even an Air Steriliser.
If not an Ioniser, then what should I be looking for? Well, depending upon what you want to remove from the air, your first thought should probably be a good quality Hepa Air Purifier.
An internal fan pulls room air over the filter. Particles are then captured within the filter's many layers and pleats. Once that process finishes, clean air is recirculated in the room. In contrast, air ionizers exploit the chemical properties of ions to remove particles and microbes from the air. Ionizers create negative ions using electricity and discharge them into the air. The negative ions attach to positively charged particles in the room to create a dense particle that is heavy enough to fall to the floor.
The negative ions used by ionizers can stop the growth of viruses , while the ozone produced by the interaction of negative ions and other particles can kill bacteria, fungi, and mold. However, the EPA says air ionizers are relatively ineffective at removing larger particles like dust and pollen, and they are more suited to removing smaller particles such as tobacco smoke and smog, which measure between 0.
Air purifiers and ionizers use different technology to cleanse the air. While air purifiers remove particles from circulation by trapping them, ionizers simply make them heavy enough to fall to the ground meaning they still need to be cleaned up, and they can easily be disturbed and reintroduced into the air.
Air purifiers also work on a wider range of particles such as large allergens like dust and pollen as well as smaller ones such as pet dander, bacteria, and viruses. This means they are helpful for those suffering from pet allergies, hay fever, and asthma. If you need more, we have a full feature on air purifiers and allergies.
As they remove a much narrower range of particles, air ionizers may not be as good at eliminating the triggers of allergies and asthma. The negative ions associated with ionizers have been identified to positively affect psychological health, productivity, and overall well-being and could help those with seasonal affective disorder SAD.
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