5 Best Living Room Air Purifiers For COVID
By Becky Dotson
12 min read
We’ve updated this guide to include recent information related to COVID-19 and the Omicron variant. Please refer to the CDC’s website for the most current COVID-19 data and recommendations.
In the age of a pandemic, everyone’s looking for ways to stay as safe as possible, especially if you share a home with someone who is at a high-risk for contracting COVID-19. Because COVID-19 and its numerous variants, including the highly transmissible Omicron variant, are spread through the air, experts recommend air purifiers as additional protection to help combat the virus. In fact, the World Health Organization (WHO) recommends air purifiers with a High Efficiency Particulate (HEPA) filter rating of at least H13 to effectively remove harmful airborne pollutants.
When looking for an air purifier, find one that fits your space. If the space you plan to put it in has a larger square footage area than the air purifier covers, it won’t work as effectively. It would also help if you included your ceiling height in your calculations. For example, if your ceiling height is 50 percent taller than the average nine-foot height in homes, be sure to choose an air purifier that can effectively clean that square coverage. In addition, your air purifier should be able to clean the air multiple times per hour. While recent research suggests six air exchanges per hour, AirPurifiers.com recommends a unit that can circulate the air two to three times per hour. As a result, you can run your unit at a slower and tranquil fan speed. If your living room is exceptionally large, consider running two air purifiers to effectively purify your air.
Moreover, make sure the one you choose has a Clean Air Delivery Rate (CADR) of 240 or better. The CADR indicates how often the air in your home is being purified. Most air purifiers with a high CADR clean the air more often than others with a lower rate. And be sure it has the ability to pull germs, bacteria, and viruses out of the air. You’ll be able to find that information out on the package and air purifier description.
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It’s also important to choose an air purifier that has a HEPA 13 filter. While HEPA filters eliminate up to 99.97 percent of airborne particles 0.3 microns, a HEPA 13 filter is even better. How so? These filters were designed to capture 99.99 percent of airborne contaminants as small as 0.1 micron. This means that a HEPA 13 filter captures and eliminates even the smallest harmful airborne particles that a HEPA or True HEPA filter cannot.
Best Living Room Air Purifier for COVID
2nd Best Living Room Air Purifier for COVID
IQAirBetter Living Room Air Purifier for COVID
Good Living Room Air Purifier for COVID
2nd Good Living Room Air Purifier for COVID
Pros
Cons
- Dimensions: 13 x 20 x 26 inches
- Weight: 31 pounds
- Cleans air every 30 minutes
- True HEPA filter
- 1,300 square feet room coverage
Pros
Cons
- Covers up to 1,125 square feet
- Dimensions: 32.25 x 17.83 x 15.38 inches
- Weight: 50 pounds
- Triple-Seal Technology
- HyperHEPA filter
Pros
Cons
- Dimensions: 13 x 20 x 26 inches
- Weight: 31 pounds
- HepaSilent technology
- Dual protection filters
- 698 square feet room coverage
Pros
Cons
- Coverage Area: Up to 1500 Sq Ft
- Dimensions: 14.5 x 14.5 x 23
- Weight: 45 lbs
Pros
Cons
- Covers up to 1,560 square feet
- Dimensions: 14.8 x 22.91 x 14.8 inches
- Weight: 25 pounds
- Smart and energy efficient
- Five fan speeds
Air Purifiers and COVID-19
If someone in your home has contracted the virus, the purifier will work best in the room with the infected person. Keep the door closed, the purifier no more than three feet from them, and let it run continuously. Please don’t put the machine behind anything that can obstruct it, like curtains or furniture, and safely clean it regularly.
Unless you stay home all the time and never have anyone visit, there is no way to 100% prevent yourself or your family from being exposed to COVID-19 and Delta Variant. But there are ways to reduce your risk and slow down the spread. Air Purifiers help clear the air in homes, office spaces, and even schools by pulling the virus particles out of the air. HEPA filters used in purifiers pull in the droplets, kill them and keep them from spreading. The more often an air purifier cleans the air, the more effective it is. Our recommendations are great picks that fit any size space, and budget.
