Air purifier

[bonnie]

I am starting to get a little concerned with the amount of too dust I inhale. I mean, it's not like I can measure it or anything(haha). I have allergy problems anyway, and I'm sure the dust doesn't much help. Can anyone recommend a good one that won't cost an arm and my left big toe?

[00andy]

Bonnie, we have a few that we've picked up at Home Depot made by Lasko. They've held up pretty well (servos broke in the bottom of one so it no longer oscillates) and they suck a LOT of dust and dander out of the air. Realistically, the one in our aviary should probably be cleaned every day. After one week, the black foam pre-filter is off-white!

Oh, and I know some people who are big fans of the ionizing variety (i.e. Sharper Image or Oreck Air Machine). I understand they work quite well but the Honeywell purifier we have that combines a fan power with ionization crackles all the time as little bits of bird dander hit the ionizer! Just something to think about.

[Larry, Baby and Me]

Ionizers WILL damage your lungs!!!

Just do a google and you will find the United States Federal EPA Government website that documents this.

[Larry, Baby and Me]

Here is some info...

Here is the truth... When inhaled, ozone can damage the lungs...
http://www.epa.gov/iaq/pubs/ozonegen.html

And here is some truth woven with LIES...
http://www.consumersearch.com/www/house_and_home/air-purifiers/review.html

Oreck and ones like them are SCAM artists and should be hung.

I recommend air purifiers that have 2 to 3 stage filtering systems, exchange a lot of air, quiet, and parts are easily found. I do not care for the permanant filters that you never have to replace... It just makes sense that the dirt has to go somewhere when captured and I would rather take the old filter out and trash it... replacing it with a clean new one.

The filters I recommend are --- Hunter and Austin.

Oh by the way... If any one believes what is written in or said by "Consumer Reports" should think twice.

And that's them apples.

[Patty, Linus and Co.]

I actually have a Sharper image purifier. I know about the ozone thing. They actually have a class action suit against them at the moment for misrepresenting the levels of ozone they emit. Problem is, it works well. This is a subject I have brought up in the past on another board. Hunter and Austin...I'm going to check that out right now. Thanks Larry.

Patty

[Patty, Linus and Co.]

Larry which models do you have? I just googled the two, the prices seem pretty reasonable...

[Larry, Baby and Me]

I chose the Hunter because Lowe's carries them. I can get my filters locally which is a big help.

Here is one similar to mine, but mine does not have the ionizer. With this model you can trun off the ionizer. It also has the permanant filter which is not my choice, but some like those types of filters

http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=productDetail&productId=140387-79-30547&lpage=none

This is the Hunter model I have...

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B000PGEVP4/themussou02221449-20

It does not have the ionizer (which you will never use) and it has disposable filters. Disposible filters just make sense to me. When they get dirty - just take those nasty things and throw them in the trash and put in a new clean fresh one. A model with a permanant filter that you must take out and wash is not my idea of clean.

Ours is in the bedroom where we sleep. If you can only afford one filter - that would be the best place to put it. You should also clean and/or replace your heating/cooling filters at least once a month.

Oh by the way... ours runs 24/7 - it is never turned off... just turned to low during the day.

I hope this helps.

[Evelyn]

Larry -

I just read a review on air filters in Consumer's Reports. They said there are two kinds--one that emits ozone which they say don't buy. There are also two sizes--one portable and one whole-house. They recommend the whole-house if you want to buy one, but generally say they aren't really worth money. They recommend instead vacuuming often, cutting down on heavy drapes and carpets, and opening the windows whenever you can. They also said don't believe claims that the air purifiers will remove all bacterial and viruses from the air--they won't.

Now, take back what you said about Consumer Reports. :)

Evelyn

[Larry, Baby and Me]

Now, take back what you said about Consumer Reports. :)Evelyn

Hey girl --- a little story here on my end about Consumer Reports...

When I was growing up, my family would not buy one single thing without first consulting Consumer Reports, so when I grew up I did as well - for years. And then I gained in-depth knowledge in PC computers and the like. So - I consulted the holy ones and discovered they were way off base when it came to computer recommendations. So - as most of you know - I did further research on several other products the holy ones gave "reviews" on. And I found them to come up short and off base with most of their "reviews". Do a search within the holy ones' reviews on "Home Lead Test Kits" and then get the straight scoop from Consumer Affairs. That is only one example of the holy ones slipped halo.

Nope - I won't take it back.... :bowdown:

[Larry, Baby and Me]

Oh by the way... In one of my first classes in college I learned that the Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval was a scam.... At that time - any company with $25 bucks could buy the rights to use the GHS seal on their product advertising. They did no testing of any sort. Got some bucks - you can get the seal.

Good Houskeeping is a magazine --- and they are in business to sell magazines... So much for faith.

[Evelyn]

Nope - I won't take it back.... :bowdown:[/quote]


But do you disagree with what they said about air purifiers as reflected in my post about what they said :confused:

Evelyn

[bonnie]

Thanks for all the info everyone! Larry, one of the first things I looked at yesterday was a consumer report to see what was 'recommended'. Haha. Glad to have you guys!

[Larry, Baby and Me]

But do you disagree with what they said about air purifiers as reflected in my post about what they said :confused: Evelyn

I don't agree or disagree with those people any more. I don't put any stock in what they have to say. They "sell" their rag. That's my point of view.

Others might find them helpful - but to me - I have learned they are not the holy grail.

[FoxersArtist]

Larry,
Thanks for the great articles. I knew that air purifiers with ionizing features were not good for the birds (the one we have is in the bedroom). I thought they were dangerous perhaps because they are so much more sensitve than us. It's very interesting to read about how harmful they can be to people as well. I love this board because you learn new things every day. Thanks so much.
-Anna

[Evelyn]

[quote=Larry, Baby and Me;3362]I don't agree or disagree with those people any more. I don't put any stock in what they have to say. "



:umm: I'll have to see how I can use that in a legal argument--it's a good way to sidestep answering a question.

:confused: Since Consumer Reports doesn't allow any advertising, how do they make money? The cost of the magazine is very reasonable, and magazines make most of their money from ads and not from selling the magazines.

:susp: Why would CR deliberately print falsehoods? Do you believe the magazine gets paid to give certain products favorable ratings?

http://www.happybirdy.com/mainforum_happybirdy_com/images/icons/icon5.gif Why would Consumer Associates be any more accurate than Consumer Reports?

Evelyn (love those smilies) :luvv:

[Larry, Baby and Me]

Anna - I am glad you found that helpful. Our U.S. gov is very slow in doing their job "protecting" us from harmful products --- remember Love Canal???

To add to the story - our oldest daughter is chronic severe asthmatic - she is now 38 and she started having major attacks at the age of 2. She was in and out of hospitals most of her life. She was close to death many times. We did everything humanly possible to keep her alive - from heavy medications (steroids), special diets, physical therapy, stripping her bedroom of everything that could collect dust including carpets, drapes and furniture. The doctors (pulminary specialists) of the time also recommended air purifiers. And guess what they recommended - yep - you guessed it... the ones with static electric collectors and ionizers.

Those are the WORST kind of purifiers ever put on the market. The static electric part - pulls in air and charges the air paritcles with a negative charge. Then the air passes over positively charged plates which supposidly attracts and collects the dust particles. The problem is -- not all the negative particles are trapped on those plates - but are blown back out into the air... and STICKING to every thing in the room, including walls and floor. Go to the EPA site and do a search there.

Here is an example of a most dangerous one to stay away from - the Sharper Image Ionic Breese - It has both an ionizer and an electrostatic precipitator.

http://www.sharperimage.com/us/en/catalog/productview/sku__SI724GRY

We Americans have been - I will have to say it - brainwashed into believing marketing hype. Does Billy Mays and Kaboom sound familiar? We believe without question those that sell us pain and suffering.

I also fall into the brainwashed category. I bought a Ford Pinto - and I bought a NON-TOXIC CAGE MADE IN CHINA that turned out to be so toxic that my trash people aren't allowed to haul it away to the dump.

To end my story - we did buy 2 large air purifiers that the doctor recommended... and our daughter got worse.

Oh yeah - Consumer Reports rated the Packard Bell computers the best on the market. In reality - they were the biggest piece of junk ever and those people ripped off millions of Americans (with the help of Consumer Reports) before they went belly-up!!!

And that's them apples.

[Larry, Baby and Me]

I'll have to see how I can use that in a legal argument--it's a good way to sidestep answering a question.

Hey Evelyn... Or should I say - to the best of my knowledge - I don't remember. Our politicians do it all the time.

Do I believe CR deliberately prints falsehoods... nope - I believe they are incompetent. They can not possibly have all the experts on staff with in-depth knowledge of every product they "review". So - they do not do reviews or analysis - but they GUESS. That's my guess - is thems good words???

I was referring to Consumer Affairs... another incompetent bunch that takes decades to do a day's work.

[00andy]

:confused: Since Consumer Reports doesn't allow any advertising, how do they make money? The cost of the magazine is very reasonable, and magazines make most of their money from ads and not from selling the magazines.

:susp: Why would CR deliberately print falsehoods? Do you believe the magazine gets paid to give certain products favorable ratings?

http://www.happybirdy.com/mainforum_happybirdy_com/images/icons/icon5.gif Why would Consumer Associates be any more accurate than Consumer Reports?


Good questions...it looks like the courts (going all the way up to SCOTUS) side with Consumers Union (the group that publishes Consumer Reports) with the exception of Isuzu Motors Ltd. v. Consumers Union of U.S., Inc. (66 F. Supp.2d 1117, 1120 (C.D. Cal. 1999)) in which the court found that CU had made numerous false statements. However, the court also found that the statements hadn't done any damage to Isuzu and no damages were awarded.

So I guess what I take from this is that they do lie - just in a way that's hard to prove as libel. I'm of the opinion that no organization, despite their claims of unbiasedness, can remain unbiased over time. Also, they can't lie all the time or it would become obvious that they were. So maybe they only represent a companies interest 10% of the time and 90% of the time they tell the truth. Who knows?

Now, the question as to how they make money...you'd think that if they're getting paid off by companies for favorable reviews that it would have been leaked by now. There's always some self-righteous crusader inside a company who finds out and decides to talk to the press. So, I don't know. Sounds like a worthwhile research project...

[EasySpirit]

I have had my austin air for 10 years now and it has run continuously. Time to order a couple of more. I want the larger one for the large room. Then the pet one for next to the too cages. The old one will go in my bedroom.

Don't sleep where your bird is kept as in deep sleep you will more than likely take in dust.

Easy

[Larry, Baby and Me]

Ya can't get a better recommendation than that... thanks so much Easy.;)

[birdscomefirst]

I also use a Hunter that I got at Home Depot. The thing is great. It is economical to run and it does a 30 by 18 room with no problems:-)

[Larry, Baby and Me]

Good to know - ours has been running for over a year non-stop. It is very quiet - even on high and it exchanges the air very well.

[birdscomefirst]

Mine is going on 5 years old and if you keep the filters clean, it will do a good job for a long time. I vacuum the filters off and change them completely every 6 to 9 months or so.

[FoxersArtist]

Larry,
I'm going to make you pick the next purifier we get. ;) Thanks again for the info...oh and just so you know...every time gabe sticks a plastic toy into his mouth I have a sense of panic welling up inside of me. I would love to know what you know about PVC...specifically the harder plastics. I read an interesting article on PVC in a magazine at the dr office the other day. I tore the article out and took it home with me...just so i could send it to you. LOL.
-Anna

[Larry, Baby and Me]

I have a sense of panic welling up inside of me. I would love to know what you know about PVC...specifically the harder plastics. I read an interesting article on PVC in a magazine at the dr office the other day. I tore the article out and took it home with me...just so i could send it to you. LOL.-Anna

Anna girl... What is the gist - reader's digest version of the article?

In the light of Jen's Reggie and PVC/Copper... I will compile all my PVC notes and post in a new thread later on today. ALL plastics - or I should say MOST plastics are PVC and are poison.

[FoxersArtist]

Larry,
The first part of the article addressed what has obviously been in the news recently - about high levels of lead in childrens toys made in china but how even as this has been in the news recently, it has been an issue for many, many years. Then the article moved on to discuss toxic chemicals in plastics such as BPA and phthalates which are proven endocrine disrupters (they can mimic or block hormones that regulate the body, especially in the tissues of small children.) And we wonder why so many people in our society has hormone problems (specifically Thyroid, which can cause obeseity). BPA is found in everything from Dental fillings, to canned foods, to soda, to plastic used to make baby bottles (plastic #7).

The article went on to suggest that if one wants to avoid these toxins, they should check the ingredients in their cosmetics (everything from shampoo to face washes, to hair sprays), buy all natural disinfectants to clean your home, buy organic foods, and use only water run through a carbon filter. They also suggested drinking beverages out of glass cups rather than using plastics.

The article then further ellaborated on the dangers of plastic stating that "lead is in hard plastic toys that do not even have paint." They suggested going to www.healthytoys.org (http://www.healthytoys.org) (a site launched by the Ecology Center in Ann Arbor, MI to find out if the toys you offer your child are safe. In a section titled Plastics 101 the writer mentions that the safest long lasting plastics are number 2,4, & 5. The most dangerous plastics are numbers 3,6, & 7. Sometimes these numbers are marked on the bottom of the plastic product.

That was the gist of the article.
-Anna