![]() Without fans, he explains, they can’t collect airborne particles from more than a few feet away. “This is a windmill that I’ve been tilting at for a number of years.”Īccording to Sublett, the devices don’t effectively remove dust, dander and other irritants from a room. “We generally don’t recommend them,” he says. James Sublett, a clinical professor at the University of Louisville a fellow at the American College of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology and co-chair of the 2007 ACAAI Healthy Indoor Environment conference. The bottom line: Ionic air purifiers have undeniable appeal, but there’s a problem: They don’t really improve air quality, says Dr. According to the site, “ozone is one of the purest and most powerful oxidants and germicides known.” The claims: According to the Sharper Image website, the Ionic Breeze is “proven effective at reducing airborne allergens and irritants - with no fan, no motor and no noise.” The Heaven Fresh website says that its purifiers can provide relief from “asthma, bronchitis, hay fever and other respiratory diseases.” Heaven Fresh also claims that the ozone emitted by its machines helps clean the air. An online company called Heaven Fresh sells the table-top XJ-2000 ionic air purifier for about $50. You can buy a 28-inch Ionic Pro Turbo Air Purifier from Wal-Mart for $180. The Sharper Image also sells a 13-inch unit for $150. If you buy one for $400, the second costs $200. ![]() One current offering, the Ionic Breeze GP, stands more than 2 feet tall and as an added feature comes equipped with a UV light to help kill airborne germs. The well-known and heavily advertised Ionic Breeze line is one of the cornerstone products of the Sharper Image, the high-end gadget store. Ionic purifiers are sold at drugstores, at department stores and via the Internet. (Ionic purifiers shouldn’t be confused with ozone generators that are marketed as “air cleaners.” By design, these devices can release 50 to 200 milligrams of ozone per hour.) A 2006 study by researchers at UC Davis found that one popular brand, the Ionic Breeze Quadra, released about 2.2 milligrams of ozone per hour, or about as much as a constantly running photocopier. There’s another thing that separates ionic air purifiers from other technologies: To varying degrees, all ionic air purifiers release ozone, a potential pollutant. And, as ads are quick to point out, the devices generally don’t have any motors or moving parts, and there are no filters to replace. (In many cases, they also become attracted to other charged surfaces such as walls, table tops and TV screens.)Įxcept for a few models that use fans to help suck in the charged particles, most ionic air purifiers work silently. ![]() The airborne particles pick up the negative charge and become strongly attracted to positively charged collection plates inside the machine. Instead of relying on fans to move air through filters, the machines release a steady stream of negatively charged ions that electrify the bits of dust, dander or other flotsam. ![]() If you’ve ever shopped for an air cleaner - or if you’ve ever idly flipped through a SkyMall catalog - you’ve undoubtedly seen ads for ionic air purifiers, devices that take an unusual approach to clearing the air. Though some consumers are simply trying to bring a little extra freshness into their lives, many others hope that their investment will help relieve their asthma or allergies. Americans spend hundreds of millions of dollars on furnace filters and air cleaners each year. ![]() The product: Dust, cigarette smoke, pollen and pet dander: With so many irritants floating around our homes and work places, clean air is a hot commodity. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |