Do Air Purifers Provide Allergy Relief? It Depends on What Allergy!

My Search For Allergy and Asthma Relief and treatment has taken me down many paths, air purifiers being one of them.

I’ve owned over 73 air purifiers since 1974. I became a Health Practitioner in 1982 because of my interest in relieving, and in some cases eliminating, allergies and asthma naturally.

Starting when I was 12 years old I’ve owned: Ozone air purifiers, Ionic air purifiers, Zeolite bags, HEPA air purifiers, UV light, Catalytic plate air purifiers, water air purifiers, etc..

Brand names I have owned – EcoQuest, Oreck, Oreck XL’s , Alpine Air, Hunter, Panasonic, Austin, IQair, SunAir, and about 42 other “non-name” Chinese brands. (I avoided Sharper Image because I knew Ionic alone won’t cut it.)

So let’s just say I have seen it all in my 30+ years of Air Purifiers.

(Last year alone Austin, IQAIR, and Oreck all called me to distribute their air purifier. I said no. I couldn’t justify the fact that some only have 2-3 technologies, or the $800 some of them want for a HEPA air purifier)

Getting The Right Type To Relieve Your Allergies

When people ask me:

“What is the best kind of air purifier to relieve allergies?

My answer is:

“It depends on what TYPE of allergies you have?

For pollen, and animal allergies (dander) – HEPA and a good pre-filter are a must.
For mold and mildew – UV light, Negative Ions and Tio2 are a must.
For dust – HEPA
For environmental sensitivities – Active carbon
For pollution (cars and trucks) – Electristatic, Ion, and HEPA

But the best way is to find the type which eliminated the primary allergen and then try and get as many of the other methods of cleaning the air as possible. The reason – each type of purification has strengths and weaknesses, yet the more types you have the more your immune system can relieve you of allergic responses.

WHAT TO AVOID IN AN ALLERGY AIR PURIFIER

Expensive HEPA Replacement Filters
Once you purchase an air purifier you’ll be stuck paying whatever the manufacturer wants to charge for their HEPA filter. (like my $100 inkjet printer – every little ink replacement cartridge is $28!) So ask for HEPA filter prices first. Every 6-12 months you’ll change filters. Anything over $40 is too much.

Avoid” No Replacement Filter” Air Purifiers
Once you’ve seen a dirty HEPA filter (HEPA’s are a cloth-like filter which grabs and holds dust and pollution) you realize those without filters aren’t holding dust or pollen – YOUR LUNGS ARE! Especially the Oreck is guilty of this fact plus they contradict themselves on their website. You have to replace charcoal filters, and witout HEPA they perform poorly on pollen

So get an air purifier that has affordable replacements. HEPA is critical if you have allergies.

Most Air Purifiers Don’t circulate enough air
I called Oreck about the new $700 tower (says it covers 1100 square feet). “How Many Times Does It Change The Air In The Room Per Hour?” (ie; how many times it will change all the air in that room). They didn’t know. The answer: “One per hour”. That’s poor.

So make sure to ask for 3-5 “Changes Per Hour” per Square footage.

Choosing The Right Technology For Your Allergy
Here are some suggestions to match the basic technologies to your allergy:
#1 HEPA, Pre-filter, Neg/Ion, Plasma Grid = Helpful for allergies and asthma, some odors
#2 Carbon, Charcoal, = for odors, smoke, animal smells, chemical sensitivity, VCO’s, and immune system
#3 UV, TiO2, Plasma Grid, Ceramic = To fight colds, flu, viruses, pathogens, mold and mildew allergies

Pollen and Dust Sensors: A cool new technology from Japan that detects pollen and dust. A big help with allergy relief by continuously adjusting the purifier to the rooms dirt and pollen level. Also saves electricity and guesswork.

CONCLUSION: Look for an air purifier that has HEPA, and 4 or more additional technologies such as UV and ion. Keep away from overpriced, underperforming infomercial brand. You can still find all of this for under $300 (and don’t pay more). Make sure the replacement filters are reasonably priced. Check out my ALLERGY AND AIR PURIFIER REVIEW VIDEOS AT THE LINK BELOW