Acchooo! Aaa…achooo! Are you habituated to the sound of sneezing and coughing at your place? The endless sneezing of your spouse, kid, mom, dad or siblings probably makes you feel as if you are amidst of a jugalbandi where two ‘sneezicians’ are competing with each other. As you look through the glasses of your closed windows and find grey clouds you would without any doubt say that this sneezing symphony is due to change in the weather. Well, certainly it could be ‘one of the reasons’ but could there be another reason to it? Interestingly, one of the key factors responsible for all those sneezes, coughs, itchiness, irritation in your throat is surrounding you right now as you are reading this article. Yes! It’s nowhere else but your home. It may come as a surprise for many of you but it’s true.
If you reside in a busy city like Mumbai, Delhi where buildings are constructed at one hands-length from each other you will certainly make sure to close the doors and windows primarily to avoid any noise or outdoor pollution from entering the house and secondarily to avoid any invading of privacy. However your ‘act of concern’ to protect your kith and kin from outdoor pollution, noise etc. will surely reduce the noise outdoor pollutants and any invasion. However, it will also restrict any air flow which results in lack of ventilation and not just that it also lets the fumes from the stove, pet dander, dust and other air borne pollutants circulate constantly with the indoor air which probably your family is inhaling right now.
Indoor air pollution and improper ventilation could also lead to Sick Building Syndrome (SBS). It is a medical condition wherein people staying in a particular building complain of health issues like; respiratory problem, dry cough, tiredness etc. So, if your child is complaining about itchiness or any of your family member is complaining of constant headache, irritation in the nose, eyes or throat or is suffering from any respiratory issues it could be due to Sick Building Syndrome.
The wise way to control the indoor air pollution menace is by investing in an Air Purifier for your home. Certainly there are many questions running in your mind right now like, what is an Air Purifier and what does it exactly do? So here’s a gist of what exactly this device is and how it works.
An Air purifier is a device that comes with various filters and a fan. The air purifying device separates the pollutant particles present in the air also, eliminates odors and other toxic smokes circulating in the air inside your house or room and provides clean breathable air in your house. But do you really need one?
Here are two images that represent the outdoor and indoor Air Quality level for a specific area in Mumbai. While these are good indicators, to know the accurate indoor air quality of your home you need a VOC (Volatile Organic Compound) sensor.
Fig 1: The above image depicts the outdoor AQI recorded as 102 for Pimpleshawar Mandir, Dombivali, Thane district, Maharastra, which is unhealthy for people suffering with asthma, respiratory issues etc.
Image Courtesy: www.aqicn.org
Fig.3
The visuals in Fig.2 & Fig.3 are the varied indoor AQI value between 33 to 55 that was recorded with the help of external apps between 27th to 31st July at Pimpleshawar Mandir, Thane.
Wondering what is AQI? Here’s a gist on what exactly is it and what are the factors considered while calculating the AQI value. Developed by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Air Quality Index gives you a glimpse of how polluted or unpolluted is the air. It also highlights the different heath concerns depending on the level of pollution present in the air. There are 5 major criteria’s required to calculate the AQI of any place they are:
1)Suspended Particulate matter (Particulate matter (PM) is the totality of the harmful emissions of dust, smoke, pollen and other hazardous gases emitted by aerosol products etc.) Particulate matter is generally divided into two sizes: PM5 and PM 10. PM2.5 are miniscule particulate matters which are emitted from various sources like;
vehicles, cooking gas etc. These harmful particulates can easily enter the human body and cause serious respiratory infection. Whereas, PM10 also known as coarse particles are emitted through industrial waste, pollen, dust etc. High level of PM10 can cause irritation in eyes throat, discomfort while breathing and continuous sneezing
2) Ozone (O3)
3) Nitrogen dioxide (NO2)
4) Sulfur dioxide (SO2)
5) Carbon monoxide (CO)
The AQI is measured on the scale of 0-500 with the higher number indicating the high pollution in the air. For example: AQI of 40 is good quality air with little or no effect on your health. While 400 indicates hazardous and adverse effect on your health. Depending on the level of pollution these scales are divided under 6 different categories namely; Good, Moderate, Unhealthy for sensitive groups, Unhealthy, very unhealthy and Hazardous. Here’s a quick look at the tabular representation of the AQI ratings.
Although, on the basis of the AQI category chart you may conclude that a 55 & 33 indoor AQI indicates a comparatively protective AQI value than outdoor. However if neglected a moderate level of Indoor AQI can still cause health issues in the long run… hard to believe? A survey conducted by Artemis hospital revealed that approximately around 34% of the people suffer from airborne diseases with lung health being one of the prime concerns due to indoor air pollution. A study by WHO (World Health Organisations) stated that, around 3.8 million people die prematurely from illness like pneumonia, stroke, asthma and other chronic diseases due to indoor air pollution. Knowing how serious indoor pollution could be it’s time to look into important factors while deciding on an air purifier for your home.
Important Factor #1: Where to place the Air Purifier?
It is advisable to place the air purifier where you spend most of your time in the house or a room or place in the house. For instance, if there is a senior citizens in your house who are dealing with respiratory issues then you can place the air purifier in the bedroom or wherever he or she spends most of the time or if the gallery of your living room faces the road side you can place the device in that particular room. But, always make sure to place the device in an open space for maximum clean circulation as keeping it under a table or in between furniture’s could reduce its efficiency. Also, for quick and effective results it is wise to keep the windows and doors shut while operating the air purifier as the air exchange rate is the higher when it is placed in a closed room.
Important Factor #2: Are there types in Air Purifiers?
You may come across different types of air purifiers while shopping for one. That being said, it is advisable to opt for a portable air purifier. As it is not only cost effective but also, delivers an excellent job at absorbing maximum contamination from the air and can relatively provide clean air quality within the room. Weighing around 4 to 9 kgs this light weight device comes with caster wheels which allows you to carry it around anywhere. If you are prone to allergens and suffer from asthma an air purifier is highly recommended.
Important Factor #3: Types of Filters in an Air Purifier
A lot of the functionality of an air purifier is depended on the type of filter it comes with. Therefore, you need to decide what air quality concerns you want to tackle whether its dust, allergens, odor, smoke, germs, bacteria etc. As different filters types are used to destroy different aerial particles for instance; Ionic filter helps in reducing allergies from dust, smoke and pollen, whereas, Ultraviolet filter eliminates bacteria, viruses, molds, and yeasts that are present in the air.
While you may come across these types of filters and more when looking for an air purifier, there are some common types of air filters available in the market.
- HEPA (High-efficiency particulate air) filter with its fine mesh type of design structure HEPA filters manages to eradicate 99.97% of impurities present in the air.
- The second most commonly found filter is the activated carbon filters that remove unpleasant odor and other chemically infused vapors and gases from the air.
- Apart from this, there are other filters available too namely; Antibacterial and germicidal filter that is extremely useful to get rid of germs and bacteria which are not visible to the naked eye.
- Pre-filters: These nylon or foam filters help in keeping large particles at bay e.g. your pet hair. The best part of this filter is that it’s washable.
- Electrostatic precipitators and Charged Media filters that remove and filter microscopic particles.
Important Factor #4: Check for the Clean Air Delivery Rate (CADR):
CADR stands for Clean Air Delivery Rate. Introduced by Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers (AHAM) CADR is recognized as a standard performance rating metric in the industry. This rating helps you gauge the performance of air purifying device within a specified room. CADR rating focuses on three type of common airborne pollutants: Tobacco smoke, dust and pollen and is denoted in the set of three for instances: 300/205/200. Here 300 means tobacco smoke, 205 means dust and 200 means pollen.
A standard room size of 1008 cubic feet is suggested by AHAM to help you determine if the air purifier is suitable for your room or house. This standard room size is calculated with the specific tobacco smoke rating since, it is the smallest particulate. To help you understand better let’s take an example from the above value mentioned for tobacco smoke rating i.e. 300. That would be: 300 x 1.8 = 540 sq.ft. That means, an air purifier with 300m3/hr is suitable for a room or a house of 540 sq.ft.
The structure and size of rooms and houses may vary. Therefore, here’s a CADR chart that represents the CADR score of the particular room size to help you pick the right air purifier for your room.
Although the CADR rating affects the overall pricing of an air purifier it definitely holds secondary value when considering a healthy living of your loved ones. After all, Health is Wealth.
Important factor #5: Know the Air Changes per Hour (ACH):
You may get confused between two or more air purifiers. In such a scenario always look for the air change per hour (ACH) of the air purifier. ACH determines how many times in an hour will the air purifier clean the impurities present in the air in that particular room. For example; 5 ACH rating means the air will be cleaned 5 times in an hour whereas, a 4 ACH means the area of your home four times in an hour.
If you want to find out the right ACH for your room you can easily do so by calculating the CADR rating of an air purifier with the room size (you need to measure the room size in cubic feet). Here’s a step by step explanation for the same.
For example: If the room’s height is 10 feet, length is 11 feet and breadth is 13 feet.
You need measure the above values of the room in terms of cubic feet i.e. (length x breadth x height)
11 (l) x 13 (b) x 10 (h) = 1430 ft3/min (this is the cubic feet value of that particular room)
Further, you need to convert the CADR value of an air purifier from cubic hours to cubic minutes. Here, we have taken the CADR value as 300 m3/hr (from the above example under CADR). In order to convert the cubic meter per hour (m3/hr) into cubic feet per minute (ft3/min) you first need to know that the value of 1 cubic meter is 35.3147 cubic feet and the value of 1 hours is 60 minutes. Hence, in order to derive the value of one cubic feet per minute we need to divide the value of 1 cubic meter (converted into cubic feet) by 60 minutes.
i.e. 35.1347/60 = 0.588 ft3/min (that is the derived value of 1 cubic meter per hour that is converted into cubic feet per minutes)
Now, as we derived the value of 1 CADR in the unit of measurement of ft3/min, we need to convert 300 m3/hr into ft3/min. For this we need to multiply the given CADR in m3/hr by 0.588 ft3/min.
i.e. CADR = 300 x 0.588 = 176.4 CFM (cubic feet per minute)
We then need to calculate the Air changed in an hour. To calculate this we need to multiply the CADR in CFM value by 60 minutes.
i.e. Air changed in an hour = 176.4 x 60 = 10,584
Finally, the ACH (Air changed in an hour) of a room = Air changed in an hour / Room Size
i.e. 10584/1430 = 7.40 ACH
Important Factor # 6: Sound Check
Most air purifiers come with internal fans that aid in circulating fresh, filtered and clean air. These fans tend to emit noise up to certain decibels. These sound levels are measured in decibels (dB). Usually manufacturers do mention the decibels under product specification. Hence, it is important for you to consider the noise level you are comfortable with. You could probably choose air purifiers with noise level as low as 20 dB wherein you will not even realize that it’s there. Or go in for an air purifier with noise level as high as 70 dB. Here’s is a decibel chart to give you quick sneak into the noise level range.
| 20 dB | 30 dB | 40 dB | 50 dB | 60 dB | 70 dB |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ticking of a watch | Sound of a whisper | Humming sound of the refrigerator | Sound of rainfall | Sound of a normal conversation | Sound of Vacuum Cleaner, Washing machine |
Important Factor #7: How to Maintain an Air Purifier
It is important to ensure timely maintenance of your air purifier in order for it to function effectively. Here are some simple guidelines to help you keep your air purifier running smoothly. But before you read further remember to unplug the air purifier.
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Make sure to always keep the area around the air purifier clean this allows the air purifier to extract the unseen allergens, dust, pollens and other pollutants with ease.
- Dust build up would affect the performance efficiency of an air purifier. Therefore, examine the panels for any dust build up and if found you can easily clean it with any dusting cloth or a vacuum cleaner.
- Clogged filter hampers the purification processor in an air purifier. If your air purifier comes with filter replacement indicator always make sure to replace the filter with a new one when the indicator signals to replace it. On the other hand if your air purifier does not have that feature it is wise that you follow a regular maintenance schedule to clean the air filters.
- It is advisable to clean the pre-filters on a regular basis as this will increase the lifespan of the filters. But each time you wash the pre-filter make sure to place it back only when it is completely dry.
Follow these tips and your air purifier will run seamlessly to safeguard your family from indoor pollutants.
Coming back to those sneezes, has the frequent visit to the doc and trying homemade remedies left you exasperated? Then why not invest in an Air purifier? It will not only keep the air in your home clean but also help to put an end to the sneezing competition at home.
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