Carbon Monoxide is a colorless, odorless, and fatal gas. Due to these properties, it is difficult to detect it immediately in our environment or identify its leak right away. A carbon monoxide leak in your home could be caused by multiple sources like non-vented fireplaces, kerosene heaters, gasoline-fueled appliances, generators, etc.
We use air purifiers in our homes to filter our air and improve its quality in our surroundings. But the question arises, can air purifiers help with carbon monoxide? If you're looking for a quick one-word answer, then the answer is no.
Air purifiers do not purify carbon monoxide from your air.
Let us discuss a couple of reasons why is that the case.
2 Reasons Why an Air Purifier Doesn't Help with Carbon Monoxide
Reason #1: Particle size smaller than the minimum detectable size:
The minimum size of particles required to be filtered out by most air purifiers is around 0.3 μm. The efficiency and quality of an air purifier depends on its ability to remove particles smaller and larger than 0.3 μm. Since the particle size of carbon monoxide is much smaller than the mentioned size, therefore, an air purifier can't eliminate it.
Reason #2: Air Purifiers are not designed to remove gas
The basic function of an air purifier is to remove contaminants and smoke from the air, making it cleaner for breathing. Since air is essentially a mixture of gases, it is nearly impossible for a mere air purifier to distinct it, let alone remove it.
Steps to take if carbon monoxide is detected in your home
We are listing down a few steps you should take immediately in case of an unfortunate carbon monoxide detection in your home:
- Cover your nose and mouth and vacate the premises of the leak immediately, make sure everyone has moved outdoors for fresh air
- Call the fire department or emergency services as soon as everyone is safely outside
- Call for medical help in case someone is nauseous or having trouble breathing
- Do not go back inside until the premises have been officially declared safe by the authorities
Conclusion
Air purifiers are a widely-used home device. They are great for purifying the air of its contaminants. An air purifier is especially helpful for people who have asthma and other allergies and removes contaminating particles and allergens to a remarkable efficiency of 99.9%.
However, air purifiers are not a reliable tool for either detection or elimination of carbon monoxide from the air. Carbon monoxide is lethally toxic, and many appliances in our homes can be prone to its leak. For safety from such accidents, it is advised to install carbon monoxide detector alarms in your home. In case the alarms go off, you are strongly urged to vacate the space and immediately contact the authorities.
