Every year the air pollution levels in the United States of America are rising dramatically and there doesn’t seem to be a lot we can do as individuals to stop these levels from rising.

In our houses the air quality is said to be up to 100 times worse than the quality of the air outside!! With the air pollution levels in city areas being up amongst the highest in the world imagine how bad the air we breathe every day in our own homes in. This “poor air quality” in our homes can be caused by the build up of dust, mould spores, pet hair, smoke, bacteria and more. No wonder more and more Americans are suffering from respiratory problems such as asthma and allergy cases are increasing exponentially.

Many people think that the only people who need to invest in an air purifier are those with extremely serious cases of asthma or allergies but this is not true. If we don’t have something to help keep the levels of pollutants in our homes at a reasonable level guess what will do most of the “cleaning” for you. Your lungs. Imagine all those particles floating around that you breathe in every day being trapped in your lungs. Yuck!!

Air Purifiers, especially for those in inner city areas are becoming a necessity.

But, there are so many different types, which one is best?? Let’s run through the main types and their differences.

HEPA Filter Air Purifier – uses a fan and a cloth filter that traps pollutants that are 0.3microns or larger which means that pollutants are taken out of the air altogether however smaller particles like those in chemicals, gases or smoke are not trapped. This air purifier can also make more noise than most.

Ozone Air Purifier – This machine releases ozone, which is an oxidant that destroys certain bacteria, gases and chemicals. Unfortunately while ozone is very effective on these pollutants, once it reacts with them it can leave other pollutants behind as a result of this reaction and it does not destroy many other major allergens and chemicals.

Carbon Air Purifiers – the carbon filter in these machines is highly effective in trapping odors, gases and chemicals in tiny pores throughout the carbon. Unfortunately the carbon won’t trap most allergens however some carbon air purifiers combine with a HEPA filter increasing the effectiveness in the household.

Ionic Air Purifier – these filters release ions into the air, which causes particles to gain either a positive or negative charge. The machine also has collection plates with either a positive or negative charge to attract the charged particles (with the opposite charge) to them, trapping them. Charged particles will also be attracted to other particles with the opposite charge causing them to be too heavy to float in the air; therefore they drop to the floor. These machines are quiet and effective on tiny particles but don’t remove odors or kill germs.

UV Light Air Purifiers – UV light can sterilize germs, bacteria and mold if passed under it for sufficient time. This will stop them from growing and reproducing. Some people say that in UV air purifiers the time these pollutants are under the light is not long enough. If combined with a HEPA filter it can increase the effectiveness on disease causing microorganisms but it is still not effective on allergens, odors, gases or chemicals.

Purifying Hydroxyl Radicals – Hydroxyl radicals are created naturally on Earth when oxygen atoms combine with a hydrogen atom pulled from water vapor. They destroy mold, bacteria and virus pollutants faster and more effectively that ozone but still don’t work on other allergens. There is a machine that combines hydroxyl radicals, UV light and negative ions to create the most efficient air purifying system available. Unfortunately, at the moment it may only available from one manufacturer.