Are you a smoker or is there someone who smokes in your household? One of your very most important questions would probably be “how do I get this smoke out of my home?” This is because you understand the health effects of smoke.
Air purifiers cannot completely remove smoke from air. Only a few amounts of smoke are removed from air and not completely too.
Smoke is not just about the odour, it contains lots of toxic chemicals that are injurious to health, including second hand smoke. Lots of studies have shown that exposure to smoke results in an elevated rate of cancer, asthma, and other respiratory problems.
In this post, you will learn more about how to use air purifiers to work for smoke.
Do Air Purifiers Work For Smoke?
Yes, air purifiers work for smoke but only a few kinds of smoke. Smoke contains tiny particles that cannot be easily removed by an air purifier.
Can Air Purifiers Remove Smoke Smell?
Yes, some air purifiers do not only purify the air of smoke but also removes the smell. One major concern about purifying the air of smoke is that the particles may be removed but the smell would linger.
There are however specially designed air purifiers that include a carbon filter so as to eliminate the smell of smoke.Furthermore, not all smoke smells can be removed completely.
For example the smell from tobacco smoke would stick to everything including wall paints, floors, furnitures, and carpets and the best way to get rid of this kind of odor most times is by rejuvenating the whole room.
What Air Purifier Removes Smoke?
Usually, a High-Efficiency Particulate Air (HEPA) filter will remove most smoke particles efficiently to an acceptable degree, although not completely because it cannot remove the tiniest particles.
However, the High-Efficiency Particulate Air (HEPA) Filter cannot filter wide ranges of smoke. Usually, the best option for a wide range or outdoor smoke is a PECO filter.
How To Choose An Air Purifier For Smoke
When choosing an air purifier for smoke, you should consider a lot of features such as the high efficiency particulate air filter, high rate of airflow, carbon filter, and exchange rate of air.
Smoke comprises particles and gases that all differ in types and sizes. This makes it almost impossible for just any air purifier to remove these particles completely. There are some key points you have to consider before choosing an air purifier that aims at removing smoke from air.
Although most air purifier commercials claim that their product is best for dust, molds, pollens, bacteria, viruses, odors, spores, and even smoke, these claims are not all completely true. This is because the particulate matter of gases differ in sizes and not all filter traps of air purifiers are designed to eliminate them equally.
We need to understand how smoke is formed and why it seems different from other air contaminants.
Smoke is formed when substances undergo burning. In the process of burning, gases become released into the atmosphere in either solid particles or liquid form. Smoke is made up of gaseous pollutants which limits the ability of an air purifier to trap the contaminants.
Here is a comprehensive step-by-step guide that will aid you in choosing an air purifier that can efficiently remove smoke from the air completely.
High-Efficiency Particulate Air Filter
The first thing you should be on the lookout for when purchasing an air purifier for smoke is the primary filter. Ensure you select an air purifier for smoke that makes use of the HEPA filter as it’s primary method of filtration. HEPA means High-Efficiency Particulate Air. This filter can trap even very tiny particles that are as small as 0.3 microns up to ninety-nine percent.
The standard MERV rating the HEPA uses is about sixteen or even higher. Some air purifiers make use of HEPA-like filters instead of HEPA itself. These kinds of filters are however not recommended for smoke. So ensure you search carefully before making any selection.
High Rate Of Airflow
Several air purifiers available on the market make use of a standard HEPA filter but not all have a standard rate of airflow that can efficiently eliminate smoke. When choosing an air purifier for smoke, you need to consider the Clean Air Delivery rate as it is a very crucial factor for an air purifier.
This is one major standard of measurement that defines the performance of an air purifier designed to remove smoke. To do this efficiently, the clean air delivery rate needs to be high. A high clean air delivery rate will remove smoke better and faster and give your room excellent coverage.
Exchange Rate Of Air
This is another important point to consider before you purchase an air purifier for smoke. The exchange rate of air of any purifier lets you know how many times per hour the purifier can clean up the entire air in an enclosed area. The higher the exchange rate of air is, the faster you have access to clean air.
Since smoke contains lots of highly concentrated particles and gases, it is advisable to look for an air purifier for smoke that has a high exchange rate for air.
Carbon Filter
To efficiently and effectively remove smoke from an enclosed area, you will be needing an air purifier for smoke that has a thick layer of activated carbon filter. An ideal HEPA filter is good for trapping solid and liquid particles but unfortunately unable to trap odor and gases.
The activated carbon present in the purifier has a distinct ability to absorb gas and other compounds that might emit odor. The thicker the surface of the carbon filter is, the thicker the efficiency.
Ensure you purchase only air purifiers for smoke that make use of large numbers of activated carbon pellets in their filter. This is paramount if you effectively need to remove smoke.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is An Air Purifier Different From An Air Cleaner?
No. An air purifier is not different from an air cleaner. The main goal of an air purifier is to clean air. You can also refer to an air purifier as an air cleaner or air cleanser.
How Large Should An Air Purifier Be?
What matters the most is the capacity. Usually, a small wall-mounted air purifier would do for an enclosed area.
While determining what air purifier size you need, you should measure the room dimension in sq feet, required CFM, and where the device will be placed.
However, large air purifiers are recommended for huge rooms such as an office board or lounge.
Do I Need To Clean An Air Purifier?
Yes. One way to maintain an air purifier is by cleaning, especially if you use a water air purifier.
This is because an air purifier can accommodate mold, bacteria, and germs if you do not clean the purifier and remove the stored water once a day. Besides, this can reduce its air-cleansing capacity with the filters getting clogged.
In addition to refilling the tanks, you need to clean the filter every 2-4 weeks with a vacuum machine or warm water.
Is It Safe To Use Air Purifiers?
Yes. Generally, air purifiers cleanse the air by getting rid of air pollutants, germs, pollens, dust, and other contaminants and make it healthier for us. They do not affect the humidity level or room temperature but only aim to improve overall air quality. Besides, these devices are no threat to children or pets.
So, it is safe to use air purifiers indoors.
Which Air Purifiers Are Harmful?
Any intentional ozone emitting air purifier is harmful to human health. Effects of ozone can be hazardous. Ozone causes catarrh, lung issues, and other respiratory problems that make you uncomfortable.
Moreover, federal agencies in the US do not approve of using ozone generators in confined spaces.
Besides, ozone takes months to break down and react with other chemicals in the air and often leaves harmful byproducts. These byproducts can be as bad or even worse than ozone itself.
In Essence
Air purifiers work for smoke but only to a certain extent. This is because some smoke particles are very tiny and so cannot be filtered by air purifiers. it does not eliminate odor, an HEPA filter is best for purifying air from smoke particulates.
