Do you ever think about the quality of air you breathe in your home or work environment? Most people think about the quality of the food they eat and the water they drink, but not so often the quality of air they breathe and how it can affect their health. The air we breathe enters our bodies, just as our food and water does, and affects every aspect of our lives. It determines the health of our lungs as well as other organs, so it definitely deserves lots of special attention!
Our indoor air is DIRTY! Usually 2-5 times, but sometimes as much 100 times dirtier than outdoor air. Toxins in indoor air come from all that surrounds us… building materials, wall paint, flooring, furniture, pets, dust, heating sources, cleaning chemicals, personal care products, etc. Mold, radon, and of course, smoke are just a few other common examples of indoor air pollutants.
My concerns over indoor air quality started years ago. It’s why I fell in love with houseplants. It’s also why I chose natural hardwood flooring when updating our home, low VOC paints for our walls, GREENGUARD Gold certified nursery furniture, and an organic mattress, among other healthier choices for our home. I try to be very conscious about the pollutants I bring into my home, but there’s just not a viable way of avoiding them entirely.
Despite my long standing concerns over indoor air quality, it was only recently that I actually made the jump to get an air purifier. I’ve known for a long time that I wanted a great one, but it was only after having children that it became paramount, especially with home renovations going on.
The day I decided it was time to invest in an air purifier, I began shopping around on Amazon. I began reading specs and reviews, and that led me straight down a rabbit hole. Turns out, all air purifiers are NOT created equal.
Not all air purifiers are created equal. Things to consider when choosing an indoor air purifier:
- While most air purifiers work good at removing particles in the air like dust, pollen, pet dander, etc., the ability of most to remove gases and VOCs is limited. Purifiers that filter gases and VOCs have a huge advantage for your health.
- There are several different kinds of air purifiers, each using different technologies as a means of cleaning the air. Some examples of these different technologies include basic filters, HEPA filters, carbon filters, ion or ozone generators, and uv light filters. Most air purifiers on the market today use a combination of different technologies.
- Size matters. You want to consider the square footage of the space you want to filter. Some air purifiers are large enough to only purify a small room of air, while others are large enough to cover an entire floor. The CADR (clean air delivery rate) will tell you how good the machine is at cleaning the air in a particular room size. The larger the CADR, the faster the machine is at cleaning the air of large room.
What I was looking for in an air purifier.
When I first began researching air purifiers, I had no intention of putting so much time into it… I figured I would probably end up with an “Amazon Choice” product. After reading reviews, I became wary most air purifiers. I read that some gave off an electrical burning smell. Those were certainly out. Some produced high levels of EMF (while it’s true that all electrical appliances produce some level of EMF, some, especially wifi enabled appliances, produce more). Some emitted ozone. I became concerned that choosing the wrong air purifier could actually make my indoor air worse-off. So, I put in a lot of reading.
After research, I knew there were some key factors I wanted in my air purifier:
- I wanted one with a HEPA filtration.
- One that could filter out not only the particles in the air, but gases and VOCs as well.
- One that was NOT wifi enabled.
- One with an enclosed system, so that ALL of the air entering the purifier passes through the filter.
- One with a high CADR rating (clean air delivery rate), large enough to filter our open floor plan living room/kitchen.
- Easy enough to move around from room to room.
- Not too noisy.
Why I Chose AirDoctor
Somewhere in my research, I came across the AirDoctor air purifier. I realized it met or exceeded all of the points I was looking for in an air purifier, and it became a top contender on my list. When I learned that some of my favorite trusty sources in the health and wellness field recommend it, people like Dr. Mark Hyman, Katie Wells of wellnessmama.com, Deepak Chopra, and David Wolfe, it sparked my interest even more. I looked into the reasons for their recommendation, and it was settled… this was the air purifier I wanted in my home.
Here’s what I found makes the AirDoctor such a great choice:
- Its UltraHEPA™ filter is 100 times more effective at filtering the air than ordinary HEPA filters, with the ability to capture some of the most dangerous ultra fine particles as small as .003 microns in size.
- Combined with the UltraHEPA™ filter is the dual action Carbon/Gas Trap/VOC Filter, which works to remove dangerous ozone, gas and volatile organic compounds like formaldehyde.
- It’s a 100% sealed enclosed system, which means that 100% of the air entering the machine gets filtered… nothing bypasses the filtration.
- It has an auto-mode feature, which detects the air quality and adjusts to the correct filtration level all on its own. I’ve been loving this feature, especially when cooking, because it automatically kicks up to high power to take care of the cooking fumes, smoke and smells. It also has a light display to let you know the air quality at any given time (see image below).
- It’s rated for large living spaces, powerful enough to filter all of the air in a 2400 sq. ft. room once every hour! In a 900 sq. ft. room, the AirDoctor circulates the air 3x per hour.
- The AirDoctor weighs approx. 18 pounds and has handle grips, so it’s very easy to move around from room to room (I frequently cycle it around the house from our living room to bedrooms).
- It is Energy Star certified.
- It’s very quiet.
I’ve been using the AirDoctor for about 3 months now, and so far, I’ve been loving it. It’s a major relief for me knowing that the air my children breathe in our home is clean, from not only dust and other floating particles, but from VOCs and other harmful gases. Also, though not tested against Coronavirus, it gives me piece of mind knowing that AirDoctor claims to capture 99.99% of a range of viruses and bacteria.
With two kids in diapers, it certainly can get a little stinky around our home, and the AirDoctor has helped very well to take out the stink.
I’m looking forward to using it throughout the winter months, when we spend a lot more time sealed up inside. Also, we use a wood stove to help heat our home, so it tends to get very dusty (and occasionally smokey) around here.
I’m really excited to partner with AirDoctor to offer my readers and followers a $300 discount off this amazing air purifier. Shop now and save $300 off the AirDoctor professional quality air purifier.
*Some of the links above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services that I believe will add value to my readers.
Sources:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4587002/
https://www.airdoctorpro.com/faqs.html