What is the Best Air Purifier to Remove Tobacco Smoke?
Cris Stanford asked:
When asked, “What is the best air purifier to remove tobacco smoke?” I have to say, “There’s not a simple answer.”
Effectively removing tobacco smoke, allergens and odors mainly depends on the type of air purifier you purchase, how powerful it is and even where you put it in your home or work place.
But, what is the best air purifier to remove tobacco smoke is an excellent question. Besides the unpleasant odor, second hand tobacco smoke can cause serious allergy and respiratory problems. It’s comprised of over 4,000 chemicals, with around 40 known carcinogens. Anything you can do to cut down on the detrimental health statistics is a good idea.
There are around half a dozen varieties of air purifiers in a variety of sizes and shapes. The two main types of systems are mechanical air purifiers such as high efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filters and electrostatic filtration systems, such as an ionic purifier. They each have their own advantages and disadvantages and some are more effective than others at removing tobacco smoke.
Activated carbon filters and ozone generator air purifiers are the most effective systems available for removing tobacco smoke odor. However, neither is particularly effective at reducing the airborne allergens and toxins.
An activated carbon filter involves charcoal treated with oxygen, which opens up million of tiny pores that greatly increase the filter pad surface area. The activated carbon air purifier filter then works like a sponge to remove the smell of tobacco smoke and soak up harmful toxic gases. Although charcoal air filters need to be changed regularly, filters are generally not very expensive.
Many of the activated carbon air purifiers are combined with HEPA technology. This is good, because they’re 99.9 percent effective at eliminating airborne allergens down to three tenths of a micron. To illustrate how small 0.3 microns is, consider that there are over 600 microns in this period.
Ozone air purifiers are also effective at removing tobacco odor, but they’re not very effective at removing smoke allergens and toxins. Plus, these air purifiers are controversial. Many experts believe ozone generators are harmful to human health.
Since ozone is the main toxic chemical found in smog, California has even issued a warning against ozone generators, stating, “People should avoid using indoor air cleaning devices that produce ozone.” Just like tobacco smoke, long term exposure to ozone can cause irritation to the eyes, nose and throat, as well as respiratory problems and even permanent lung damage.
Most marketers for ozone generators will tell you there’s no need to worry. They say you can use a low setting and you don’t need to run the device all day. But that doesn’t really eliminate the problem. And you don’t want to just add more pollutants to the tobacco smoke.
So, what is the best air purifier to remove tobacco smoke? Once you take everything into consideration, a good HEPA air purifier combined with an activated charcoal filter would be best. With this type of air purifier, you can effectively remove the odor and reduce airborne allergens and toxins from tobacco smoke with only positive benefits to your health.
When asked, “What is the best air purifier to remove tobacco smoke?” I have to say, “There’s not a simple answer.”
Effectively removing tobacco smoke, allergens and odors mainly depends on the type of air purifier you purchase, how powerful it is and even where you put it in your home or work place.
But, what is the best air purifier to remove tobacco smoke is an excellent question. Besides the unpleasant odor, second hand tobacco smoke can cause serious allergy and respiratory problems. It’s comprised of over 4,000 chemicals, with around 40 known carcinogens. Anything you can do to cut down on the detrimental health statistics is a good idea.
There are around half a dozen varieties of air purifiers in a variety of sizes and shapes. The two main types of systems are mechanical air purifiers such as high efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filters and electrostatic filtration systems, such as an ionic purifier. They each have their own advantages and disadvantages and some are more effective than others at removing tobacco smoke.
Activated carbon filters and ozone generator air purifiers are the most effective systems available for removing tobacco smoke odor. However, neither is particularly effective at reducing the airborne allergens and toxins.
An activated carbon filter involves charcoal treated with oxygen, which opens up million of tiny pores that greatly increase the filter pad surface area. The activated carbon air purifier filter then works like a sponge to remove the smell of tobacco smoke and soak up harmful toxic gases. Although charcoal air filters need to be changed regularly, filters are generally not very expensive.
Many of the activated carbon air purifiers are combined with HEPA technology. This is good, because they’re 99.9 percent effective at eliminating airborne allergens down to three tenths of a micron. To illustrate how small 0.3 microns is, consider that there are over 600 microns in this period.
Ozone air purifiers are also effective at removing tobacco odor, but they’re not very effective at removing smoke allergens and toxins. Plus, these air purifiers are controversial. Many experts believe ozone generators are harmful to human health.
Since ozone is the main toxic chemical found in smog, California has even issued a warning against ozone generators, stating, “People should avoid using indoor air cleaning devices that produce ozone.” Just like tobacco smoke, long term exposure to ozone can cause irritation to the eyes, nose and throat, as well as respiratory problems and even permanent lung damage.
Most marketers for ozone generators will tell you there’s no need to worry. They say you can use a low setting and you don’t need to run the device all day. But that doesn’t really eliminate the problem. And you don’t want to just add more pollutants to the tobacco smoke.
So, what is the best air purifier to remove tobacco smoke? Once you take everything into consideration, a good HEPA air purifier combined with an activated charcoal filter would be best. With this type of air purifier, you can effectively remove the odor and reduce airborne allergens and toxins from tobacco smoke with only positive benefits to your health.
