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Air Cleaner Comparison
AirFree Air Sterilizer
Good air sanitizer, but costly (over $270), XJ-2000 is only $48! May take up to 30
days to achieve total success. Claims to destroy 99.99% of organisms that reach
the machine. That's the "fine print", one machine doesn't have enough power to
cleanse large living areas, several machines may be needed.
Allerair Hepa Air Purifier
Very good air cleaner, works well on airborne particles & gases, when purchased
with it's optional gas absorption media. Price $499 plus customs, filters are expensive.
Amaricare Model 6500, 8500,10000 Whole House Air Purifiers
Very good machines if you have $1000 - $1500 to spend!
Austin Air
Austin Air Cleaners are costly, averaging $399 plus $34 S&H for their best selling
model. Some customers have complained of a plastic odor and/or rubber smell
being emitted from the machine. We are not sure if it is caused by their plastic fan
or by their rubber gaskets or their hepa-filter housing. Also like other air cleaners of
this type the replacement filters are very costly and need constant replacing.
Bemis Hepa Air Purifiers
Small, portable, $199, doesn't do a good job on airborne odors or gases. Acceptable for pollen, dust & allergen removal in a small room or office.
Blueair Air Purifiers
Decent machine, $375- $550, filter not hepa rated, expensive replacement filters.
Care 2000 Hepa Air Purifier
Very efficient machine, better than most hepa's on the market. Ultraviolet light
used for killing mold. Ultraviolet lamps cost about $18, yet many manufacturers
increase the price of their units by an additional $100 - $150 just for adding it!
Friedrich C90A Air Purifiers
Expensive $499, noisy, mimimal gas elimination due to it's rather small carbon filter.
Fresh Air Machine
This machine sells for $143 on the Internet and it is actually a NeoTec XJ-2000 renamed & packaged in a different box!
Hepa Filters
The truth being said, we haven't found any air cleaning devices that utilizing hepa filtration media
(hepa filters) that didn't produce a plastic odor. Multiple chemical
sensitivity patients (MCS) please choose your air cleaners carefully.
Holmes Air Cleaners
Some of their smaller models seem to be barely able to pull air through their
multi-stage filters.
Honeywell Air Cleaners
We have personally tested several of Honeywell's portable air cleaners. Some
emit a "plastic odor, plastic smell" when turned on. Again our room actually reeked of plastic. Possible the plastic smell is originating from the
plastic fan or possibly the hepa-filter housing.
Hunter Air Purifiers
This air cleaner is marketed as economical. Yet it costs about $269, and is not even
certified hepa!
IQ Air
Reputable manufacturer, but VERY VERY costly. Most models start around
$700 & up. Their replacement filters are very costly also. And need to be replaced frequently. When machine is on "high" you can barely hear your television!
Ionic Breeze Quadra
Very Costly, and can really only clean one large room. XJ-2000 is very economical
you can purchase SIX of them for less than the price of ONE Ionic Breeze! Great
machine but way overpriced. By the way, Sharper Image tried to sue RadioShack
over their Environizer and isn't doing so well in the lawsuit!
Alpine Air
Purifiers
This machine seems to function satisfactory, cleansing the air thoroughly. The
two negatives we discovered were price (costly), and we have received owner comments that it's glass collector plate is thin, fragile & possibly easy to break.
Try the Nature's Air instead.
Ozone Generators (extra caution required)
Air Cleaning machines that produce high levels of ozone may be hazardous to
your health. EPA recommended level of <50 ppb is acceptable, practically all of
the ozone generators on the market produce too much ozone! The elevated levels
produce a byproduct called nitrogen oxides (lung irritant). Many ozone generator
users report that they smell a bleach smell in their homes, this means there is too
much ozone in the air. High ozone levels can cause dizziness, nausea, headaches, etc.
Manufacturers that claim their machine can clean your whole house are selling these types of ozone generators! Ozone can get "trapped" and concentrate heavily in
certain areas thus reaching unhealthy levels. NeoTec XJ2000 produces < 20 ppb which is well within the safe, acceptable levels set by the EPA.
RadioShack - Honeywell Environizer
This machine looks & works similar to the Ionic Breeze. The fan emits a very strong plastic odor, plastic smell. Our test room developed a very strong plastic smell after just a few minutes of use!
We welcome comments pro & con for any of the machines listed here,
if we missed one that you may own, we would love to hear from you!
Word of Caution:
Many of these manufactures such as Honeywell, Austin Air, etc. seem to
use a multi-stage filter with a carbon (activated charcoal), or
carbon/zeolite mixed filter being the last stage. This could lead to carbon particles being
expelled into the air by the blower motor or fan. Some IQ Air Cleaners utilize a
post-filter to limit this to a minimum. DON'T be fooled by the fantastic specs that
these manufacturers mention in their ads. Example: Even though the Hepa filters
on these machines have a particular rating doesn't guarantee that the air exiting
the machine will be 99.99% clean, because many of these machines are not totally airtight, many have leakage.
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