The Sexy Six; Keeping Your Home’s Air Clean

Nothing that kills the moment more than stinky air smell. No one wants to be sitting on the couch, leaning in for an after-date kiss and then being subjected to the stink of your neighbour’s garbage, or the idling taxi outside your window. Sure, that SoHo loft might have been worth the arm and a leg you pay in rent but its convenient location might be filling your pristinely clean home with exhaust fumes and carbon monoxide, yuck! How about that vintage farmhouse out of the city? Chances are you have a factory close by sending particulates into the air and right through your open window.

Ladies, we curl our eyelashes, we trim our bangs, and we make sure to take precise care of our beautiful selves. But do we ever consider the air we breath to be a part of our regime? Now is the time to read through our Sexy Six purifiers and invest in not only a new appliance (I know you love new appliances) but also our health. Airborne radicals don’t just effect our breathing, did you know they can cause wrinkles? No thanks. Dry air is also a perfect condition for split ends, and cracked hands and feet, which definitely don’t mesh with those new sandals.

So, what sort of nasties are commonplace in our atmosphere?

The popular and most widely known would be car exhaust; it’s the hazy smog you see hovering over the horizon that’s often called “bad” ozone. The lesser known evils include chemical fertilizers, pesticides, and even VOC’s (volatile organic compounds) like cleaners, solvents, and even paint. Gross, right?

Do yourself a favor and get an air purifier – pronto. Your skin, hair, and nails will all breathe a sigh of relief with the clean and calm this invaluable machine will bring. Namaste!

Don’t worry there’s still a way to keep your air zen no matter your budget or your space. Air purifiers do exactly what their name states, they purify the air in your home or office by filtering out the particles we can’t see leaving clean, fresh air. Many also add moisture to the air they produce, which is an added bonus for glowing skin and shining healthy hair.

Overwhelmed?

Picking an air purifier can be as easy or as difficult as picking the perfect throw cushions to go with your couch. With a little guidance you’ll find your perfect, cleansing companion. Here is Urbanette’s “Top Six Air Purifiers” to help you breathe easy.

Viktor Air Purifier by Stadler

If you can get past the $400 price tag, the Viktor Air Purifier is a beautifully square shaped art form that just happens to clean your room. Suitable for smaller spaces like bedrooms, bathrooms, and smaller living rooms this show piece comes in black or white. The Viktor’s $30 filters are made from activated carbon and leave the air smelling fresh and clean, without even opening a window.

It runs on five different modes; from silent mode to a heavy duty, slightly noisy power mode. Its silent night mode complete with dimmable LED’s is perfect for the bedroom.

RabbitAir MinusA2 SPA-780A

Priced at about $500, the RabbitAir has a huge room capacity and can be used for a single floor in a small apartment, townhouse, or family house. Confidently backed by a five year warranty this machine holds true to its 4.5 star rating on Amazon.com.

The filtration contains an impressive six stages of purification and deodorization that tackles mold, outside toxins, pet dander, outside allergens, and smoke and exhaust. The filters come priced at $85, have a lifespan of at least one year and are available in several varieties, including odor, pet, allergy, and toxin filters. It is next to silent and fairly light-weight.

This wide but narrow unit comes in a range of colors and designs to nicely compliment any room. In fact, their “artist series” places paintings by a range of artists onto the front of the unit, turning it into quite the showpiece.

LightAir Air Purifier

Priced reasonably at $260 to $350, the LightAir purifiers are completely silent and take a whole new approach to cleaning your air. This sleek tower purifier uses “static” and ionizes the airborne particles without the use of a filter. 99.4% effective, this machine is completely silent and is energy efficient. Its vertical design comes in silver or bronze, and three sizes: floor, table or hanging.

These units are made for small or medium-sized rooms, but be careful what it’s next to! Even though it’s void of filters it does require some cleaning here and there. With a good rinse of the inner capsule it should be good to go. If you forget about the cleaning a black film does form after some time behind the unit affecting walls, or furniture. If you can deal with the messy leftovers of this appliance at its great price, it is a deal for any room of the house. It does shine a blue light to let you know it’s working, which might not be so bedtime friendly. It is, however, by far the sexiest air cleaner with the most innovative design that we’ve ever seen.

BlueAir 503 Hepasilent Air Purifier

Everything has a top of line product right? Air purifiers are no different. With its full steel construction, this $660 air purifier is nothing short of luxury. Fit for large or small rooms, the BlueAir has undetectable three speeds that run silently. It has a worry-free ten year warranty that, with its five star rating, you might not even need.

It can handle up to five air changes per hour and works well with dust, pollen, dander, and smoke. Its thin white frame will fit any nook or cranny. For it’s only $80 for a pack of three replacement filters that are recyclable, and microbe resistant. The downside is they have to be replaced every six months to keep up with its 99.97% effectiveness. A favorite among consumers, this appliance is raved about for its longevity, looks, and fresh performance.

Oransi V Hepa Max Filter

Priced at $480, this Oransi air purifier is great for larger single rooms such as the living room or bedroom. It does look more like an appliance, but it’s rated one of the quietest purifiers on the market. Its Hepa filters are 98% effective against all airborne particulates and contain activated carbon for removing orders effectively.

The four individual filters needed are priced at $82 for the pack and have a twelve month lifespan. This appliance is quiet, efficient and the only downside seems to be its looks. The Oransi’s nighttime function shuts down all lights, making it sleep friendly for those who need total dark. Keep DIY in mind with this one, its shape may be not so pretty but that doesn’t mean that it can’t be beautiful with a little touch of spray-paint!

Fellowes DX95 air cleaner

Priced at $340, the Fellowes air purifier is easier on the wallet than most others, while keeping up with the pricier machines. It traps up to 99.7% of all airborne particles, including pollen, house dust mite allergen, and cat and dog allergens. For those who have other things on the brain, the filter change indicator lets you know when to change the $30 antimicrobial HEPA filter, eliminating the guesswork (which should be about once per year). The filters are protected from developing mildew, fungi, and bacteria with an antimicrobial treatment.

On high speed, the vent (at the top of the machine), can double as a fan and can be easily directed to blow anywhere from sideways to straight up. Suitable for a large living room or medium sized office space, the unique AeraSmart Sensor monitors your air quality for you and auto-adjusts the fan speed to keep up with your air (or you can choose to keep it on high).

The only downside is that it’s not the prettiest machine in the bunch and could be easily described as…clunky. But, in our minds, that’s made up for by the fact that the filters are less than $30.

Other things to consider…

There you have it, the top six picks of current air purifiers on the market, when looking to purchase a new machine be sure to check the warranty and compare prices. Take in account of where you live, is it dirty like in a large urban neighbourhood? Or is it relatively clean with a few cars here and there? Always keep an eye out for price drops, you never know who’s having a sale… who am I kidding of course you do!

Be sure to measure your space and picture what type of look you’re going for. Do you mind a little noise? Do you need it to be big or small? Are you a stickler for color or shape? You always want to be satisfied with a purchase this big so research can pay off big time! Read reviews like we’ve done here, and check the reviews from people who’ve used it on sites like Amazon.com.

And you can always supplement with air-cleaning plants. Below are some great ones (but, if you have pets, make sure to check if they’re toxic, as many plants are poisonous to cats and dogs).

And remember: you’ve only got one body, and one set of lungs, so take good care of them!