HEPA air purifiers
are those that cause air to pass through a
specially-designed filter called HEPA,
which stands for High Efficiency Particulate Air.
These
HEPA air purifiers are designed to remove 99.97% of all
pollutants that are 0.3 microns or larger. For
reference, 1 micron is 1/100th the width of
a human hair!
HEPA filtration technology was
developed by the US Atomic Energy Commission to filter
our radioactive "dust" and materials from the air.
They have been proven to be very effective at removing
dust, pollen, mold, dust mites, bacteria, and other
allergens. Another benefit to HEPA air purifiers
is that once the particles are "captured", they are not
released again back into the air.
HEPA air filters look like most other air filters
you've seen, many have a pleated media, separators, wet
laid filter medium, edge seal, a sealant and are
contained in a rigid frame. By their nature, HEPA
air purifiers do not lose their efficiency over time.
Although, they do have the potential of becoming clogged
and blocking airflow.
If you are considering purchasing an air purifier
that uses HEPA technology, make sure the unit has a
prefilter. A prefilter filters out larger
particles (1 micron and larger) before they reach the
HEPA filter. This extends the life of the HEPA air
purifier, which can be expensive. Most HEPA
filters will last 2-5 years.
HEPA air purifier drawbacks
Like any air cleaner technology, HEPA air purifiers
do have their drawbacks, although they are minor.
First, HEPA filters cannot capture pollutants that are
smaller than 0.3 microns. Things like viruses,
odors, and gas molecules are not effectively treated.
Also, because air must pass through the filter, it can
be difficult to clean a very large room with a HEPA
filter.
Conclusion
Overall, HEPA air purifiers are very effective at
what they are designed to do; which is to clean your
air. These types of purifiers have become very
popular and are being used increasingly in hospitals and
sensitive-equipment manufacturing plants. Many
experts in the field of air purification prefer HEPA
technology over all others.
To see which of the top 10 air purifiers utilize HEPA
technology, check out our
review
page.
