How Effective Are Air Purifiers Really? We Find Out

How Effective Are Air Purifiers Really? We Find Out

How effective are air purifiers?

Air quality plunged to emergency levels in the capital. The city's air quality slumped to the "severe" category and has not improved much in the last few days.

So as air pollution continues to haunt our health, air purifiers and pollution masks seem like the best friends we desperately need by our sides. But how effective are these air purifiers really, how many do you need in your house and do they really protect us from this toxic air?

To clear all doubts and answer all our questions, I decided to speak to an expert.

Also Read: Is Air Pollution Making You Sick? 4 Questions Answered 

How Effective is an Air Purifier?

Anupam Mathur, Sales Director, Honeywell explains that there are a lot of myths in the market about what an air purifier actually does.

Anupam Mathur, Sales Director, Honeywell A high quality air-purifier arrests larger particles, stops the PM 2.5, and gives fresh air immediately.

How Can Air in Large Spaces Be Cleaned?

Can something be inserted into air conditioners in offices that can clean the air?

Anupam MathurFor big spaces like offices, I suggest ‘electronic air cleaning’ which can be installed into any of the air-handling units (AHU). It is more cost efficient than buying air-purifiers for every room. 

He adds that adding filters to air-conditioners, however, can obstruct not just the air but the process of air-conditioning itself.

How Effective Are N95 Masks?

Mathur labels the N95 masks as the ‘gold standard on PM 2.5’. The particle filter built into them prevents basic pollutants and PM 2.5 to pass through, ensuring inhalation of cleaner air.

Also Read: FitQuiz: How Does Pollution Affect You? How to Protect Yourself?

What Steps Can Be Taken To Reduce Pollution?

Anupam MathurAir pollution caused by vehicles, construction, diwali firecrackers and crop-burning, needs to be attacked in a structured and singular manner. Even then, changes on the ground will only be seen in the next three or four years. In the short term, the pollution is not going away. 

Will Installing Filters in ACs Help?

Anupam MathurNot many people own hot and cold air conditioners in India so installing a filter will work in summers but not in winters. And the moment you put anything that obstructs the flow of air, then the air conditioning also drops down. 

Final Verdict?

And as for air purifiers, my Air Quality Monitor questions their impact when they are kept at even a little distance away from the air purifiers. They lure you with a false sense of security.

But with the paucity of options available, they might be here to stay.

Also Read: Air Pollution Harms Every Part of The Body, Finds A Global Review