How big of an air purifier do I need? Answering this important question is crucial if you do not want to end up with an air purifier that is too big or too small.
An air purifier that is too small just won’t do the job. It cannot maintain satisfactory air quality since its capacity is too small. An air purifier that is too big is just a waste of money. Not only is it more expensive to purchase, it will also incur more electricity costs. The extra unnecessary capacity represents a waste.
Also See: Best Large Room Air Purifier
Choosing an Air Purifier of the Right Size
You must first carefully consider where you will be installing the air purifier. You should also know how much indoor space it will be handling. Is it for a single room or multiple rooms?
After determining the indoor space for which you need an air purifier, you should know how much area the air purifier will cover. That is, you should measure the square footage that the air purifier will service. You should measure this area in square feet.
Measuring the area of a small room is very simple. Just measure the lengths of the two sides using a measuring tape. Multiply them to find out the square footage.
Measuring the total area for multiple rooms will need a little more math. Simply repeat the procedure mentioned above for every room separately. You will get their respective areas in square feet. Add up all of these areas to find out the total area. This is your answer.
Match Air Purifier Capacity with Square Footage
Air purifiers are rated to service a certain maximum area for satisfactory air quality. You can find this maximum area on the specification sheet for the air purifier.
This simple step will allow you to get an air purifier that is just the right size. The capacity of the air purifier that you choose with this method will be optimal since this is the maximum area that the unit is designed to service.
It is not necessary to get an exact match. The maximum square footage rating of the unit should be equal or just slightly greater than the area of the space for which you need an air purifier. For instance, if your room is 150 square feet, then it is alright to choose an air purifier that has a rating of 200 square feet.
Pro Tip
If you have a big area to cover, then it may be better to get a few smaller units instead of one huge unit. Of course, the sum of the maximum square footage ratings of these units should equal the area of your home.
For instance, if you have a two-level home where each level is 1500 square feet, then you should get two air purifiers with a rating of 1500 square feet. This is better than a single air purifier rated for 3,000 square feet.
