As the temperatures drop and we start outgoings more time indoors, the quality of our indoor air becomes more and more vital to our health and well-being.
While there is little you can do to disturb the quality of the air outdoors, there is a lot you can do to advance indoor air quality (IAQ) at home. If you have a forced-air system in your home, there are many altered modifications you can make to your existing HVAC system to advance the quality of the air you breathe.
If you’re curious about air scrubbers for your home, you’ve come to the right place.
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What Is An Air Scrubber?
Plainly speaking, an air scrubber is a negative air machine (negative pressure) that filters out dust. It’s perfect for all projects that include particulates (dust, smoke, mold mediation, etc.).
Top air scrubbers have a two-stage filtration. Here’s how an air scrubber works:
- A big fan creates an airflow; it sucks in dust-full air and vents out dust-free air.
- 1st stage: Pre-filtercaptures dust larger particles.
- 2nd stage: The HEPA filtercaptures 99.97% of the small particlesdown to 0.3 microns.
Here’s why the 2-stage filtration is used:
1st stage prefilters (that are cheap) are there to protect the 2nd stage HEPA filter (that’s expensive).
Dri-Eaz F284 Defend Air HEPA 500 (Overall Best Air Scrubber for HVAC)
Dri-Eaz F284 is the top-of-the-line no-nonsense air scrubber. Most contractors who have used numerous negative pressure machines endorse this HEPA 500 anti-dust machine, principally because it’s so dependable. It will work for dust, mold invasion, sewage work, and any kind of construction project.
The provisions are impressive. Dri-Eaz F284 3 Amps motor will generate 500 CFM maximal airflow; it can operate in areas up to 938 sq. ft. That is a much larger coverage area than similar scrubbers.
The heart of the machine is the top-quality F321 HEPA 500 filters. Independent testing has shown the Dri-Eaz F284 filter to be highly-efficient. It can easily trap more than 99.97% of the smallest dust particles.
For large particles, you get F270, F271, F415 pre-filters, and an optional activated carbon F397 filter for odor removal.
You can install the HEPA filter and pre-filters yourself. Customize them according to the job:
- Dust removal, air filtration: Use both pre-filters (F270 and F271), and HEPA 500 filter (F321)
- Odor control (fumes from paint, varnish): Use activated carbon filter (F397), DOP pre-filter (F415), and HEPA 500 filter cartridge (F321)
- Sensitive jobs: Use both 2nd stage pre-filters (F271 and F415 filter), followed by Dri-Eaz F284 HEPA filter.
All in all, the Dri-Eaz F284 is the quintessential air scrubber recommended by contractors. It may cost a bit over $1,000, but this is a long-term investment and a powerful moneymaker for any kind of rough job.
BlueDri BD-AS-550-BL negative machine is quite remarkable. It offers amazing specifications such as 500 CFM maximal airflow with only 2.5 Amps of power. But the No. 1 reason why it’s so popular is because of the price:
High-specs BlueDri BD-AS-550-BL costs less than $800. That’s significantly less than most air scrubbers.
It's Air Shield 550 filtration system can cover up to 550 sq ft. It is based on 2-stage filtration, with an option to include an activated carbon filter (for odor removal, it has to be bought separately).
There is a whole range of features BlueDri BD-AS-550-BL offers, such as:
- Hour meter display.
- GFCI port (you can connect up to 4 2.5 amp units for a total amperage of 10 amps).
- Variable speed control.
- HEPA filter light indicator.
To sum it up, BlueDri BD-AS-550-BL is a very popular air scrubber for commercial use precisely because it has great specs for a great price. Price-performance is just amazing.
ALORAIR Clean Shield HEPA 550 (Best Cheap Air Scrubber for Mold for Less Than $500)
ALORAIR Clean Shield is one of the more adaptable air scrubbers. The best fit for mold mediation. This is primarily because of its higher-than-average 550 CFM max. Airflow and a solid amalgamation of pre-filters and HEPA 550 filters.
This Clean Shield filtration system is, in addition to mold mediation, ideal for:
- Any kind of home repair.
- Construction sites.
- Sewage remediation.
- Restoration after fire or water damage.
To use the ALORAIR air scrubber for bigger mold plague, you can easily stack 3 Clean Shield HEPA 550 units together. Mutual, they will generate marvelous 1650 CFM airflow; perfect for filtering out mold and mold spores as fast as possible.
That’s only possible because the supplementary outlet can run up to 9 amps. Each unit draws 2.8 amps; combined, the amperage is 8.4 amps. That’s less than the allowed 9 amp maximum.
Here’s the best part:
1 ALORAIR CleanShield HEPA 550 costs less than $500. That’s an unbelievable price. Contractors usually buy 3 units and hook them together to get that almighty 1650 CFM airflow. And all of that for less than $1,500.
