Hacker News Reader

Comment by tpkj | Hacker News Reader

Earlier this summer I researched air purifiers because of a large painting project that was going to take place in my residence. I am super-sensitive to smells and the like, and I was not going to mess around with this purchase. I ended up choosing the EnviroKlenz mobile air unit.

There are no two ways about it: the unit is expensive. However, it does not resort to using carbon, which can end up releasing pollutants, and I was told the product gets used in clean up operations by the government.

I would not call the purchase a perfect panacea, but I believe it helped, and do not regret it.

https://enviroklenz.com/remove-toxic-paint-fumes-fast/

https://enviroklenz.com/large-wildfires-in-washington-oregon...

The SweetHome (part of the NYT Company!) did not review EnviroKlenz, and I believe that is because of the whole Amazon affiliate aspect to the SweetHome.

(I'd be curious if others here have used EnviroKlenz.)

View on HN

it does not resort to using carbon, which can end up releasing pollutants

Sounds like misinterpreted marketing FUD.

Also, correct me if I'm wrong but fundamentally HEPA is about removing tiny particles whereas other approaches catch larger particles, and organic fires mostly release larger particles. HEPA filters for your house are extreme overkill, it's like living in a medical lab.

So would a box fan + furnace filter in the window work for the large smoke particles? DIY wood worker people make rigs like for dust in their garages.

I've done that and it does work as a filter in general.

The first thing to note is that furnace filters are not HEPA filters. The second thing to note is that HEPA filters don't filter out the same things as activated charcoal (from what I understand).

Box fans don't work especially well with the backpressure. You'll get vastly less air flow. I think the dust-catching products I've seen like http://www.leevalley.com/us/Wood/page.aspx?p=65482&cat=1,424... are a lot less restrictive than a couple furnace filters across the front of the fan.

I am in no way, shape, manner or form affiliated with EnviroKlenz! That out of the way, here's a blurb from their article:

"Activated carbon filters will remove chemical gasses. They work by adsorption, a process by which the toxic gasses are attracted to and stick to the carbon But there are problems with carbon filters. Since activated carbon simply collects toxic gasses and stores them, when the carbon becomes full of gasses, the gasses can release back into the air."

That is what I was referring to in terms of carbon not being a cure-all.

Marketing FUD - nothing is a cure-all! No filter lasts forever! If you don't maintain a filtration system it will always fail! Common failure modes are reduced throughput and reduced efficacy. Carbon is cheap and effective for many requirements, which is why it is so commonly deployed.

Plants might be a cheaper option

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NASA_Clean_Air_Study

That's for long term air quality though. The speed at which they remove pollutants is much lower than a filter.

What pollutants does activated carbon release?

Thanks for the information. About how often do you have to replace the filter in that unit?

Reply on news.ycombinator.com