After you’ve bought your brand new air purifier, the next question that should pop into your head should be, where is the best place to put an air purifier in your own home.
The logical answer here is: as close to the source of odors or whatever it is that’s bothering you as possible. Nonetheless, there are other factors that have a hand in making this decision, and we’ll discuss them throughout this article.
Factors That Go Into the Placement of an Air Purifier
Now, we’ll talk about the items that you need to diligently think about in order to make the most out of your air purifier and use it as efficiently as possible without damaging it over time.
Room Size
First of all, you must know the size of the room in which you plan to place your air purifier. That is because air purifiers come in specific capacities that relate to spaces they’re capable of cleaning.
Consequently, you must correlate these two numbers together, and our advice is to go at least 300 ft.² above the size of your room so that you’re on the safe side.
Also, this way, you’ll be able to move your air purifier around various spots and use it in different rooms without worrying about overworking it.
On the other side of the spectrum, if you go with a smaller unit, it’ll end up burning out as you’re overworking it continuously, when in reality, it’s not designed for this space, and it’ll never achieve the desired goal.
Airflow
Ventilation is the simplest way of purification. Nonetheless, as our planet ages, pollution has become one of the main aspects of our lives. Hence, the need for artificial air purifiers has risen.
So, in order to get the best of both worlds, what you can do is try and utilize your air purifier as a guard against all of the pollutants and spores that normally come in through your windows and doorways.
You can place it at your doorway; hence, it’ll purify all of the air coming in from the outside, disposing of all the incoming airborne particles. One thing that you ought to keep in mind, though, is that only heavy-duty air purifiers can do such a job.
If your air purifier is on the light side when it comes to workload, then opening the windows and doorways won’t be your best option, as the fresh air coming in will ruin the hard work of your purifier.
Type of Air Purifier
Nowadays, everything is portable, and everything has varieties, so that products are incredibly modified for certain situations.
Air purifiers aren’t exempt from this rule; hence, when you’re scouring the world wide web for an air purifier, you’ll find that some of them are meant to be portable, some are meant to be stationary, some are meant to be elevated, while others are intended to be placed on your desk.
So, before you decide on one, make sure that it can be used in a variety of different situations and has excellent coverage. Don’t buy a desk air purifier when you need an air purifier for your entire living room.
Certain Pollution Origins
All around your house, there are different origins for odors and pollution, and no one will know these sites better than you. It could be your basement suffering from mold infestations due to humidity and poor ventilation.
It can also be your kitchen due to the variety of orders from different foods and cooking sessions. It can even be your bathroom from frequent usage and humidity or your garage if that’s where you keep your pets.
As a result, it’s only logical to place your air purifier as near as possible to the origin of odor/pollution that irritates you the most. So, if you need to put it in your bathroom, so be it; nevertheless, we’ll touch on this point again as air purifiers and humidity do not mix pretty well.
However, you still can, if you wish to, place it in the intersection between your living room and your kitchen in order to attack orders from both places. Another thing that you can do is move it around so that every place in your home gets its fair share. This will certainly improve the indoor air quality and your overall health.
Elevation
Airflow isn’t exclusively horizontal; it moves vertically as well. The lighter air, which is warmer and less humid, moves up towards the ceiling, while colder, more humid air moves down towards the floor as it is heavier.
Consequently, we need to work on the vertical air as well as the horizontal. That is why elevating the air purifier 3-5 ft above the ground is the perfect way to go. That will help maintain full coverage over the space and reach the air that might not be circulating very well to go through the air purifier by itself.
Additionally, there are some air purifiers on the markets today that are designed to be mounted on walls. Those are incredibly efficient as they don’t only offer the full coverage that we’ve spoken about, but they also save us much-needed space when they’re not placed on the ground.
Plus, they’re much safer as you dodge the possibility of a kid, a pet, or even an adult knocking them over.
Personal Space for the Device
Just like a human being, an air purifier needs its own personal space. Hence, don’t try and put it in corners or nooks where it doesn’t reach enough air, as you’ll only end up overworking the device for nothing.
Try to center the unit as much as possible so that it has a clear pathway to all of the room with as few obstacles in its way as possible.
We know that it’s incredibly tempting to hide your air purifier behind a chair, a bookcase, a TV, or anything that might look more aesthetically pleasing than the appliance. Still, burning out your big-ticket device and not getting anything in return in terms of efficient work isn’t worth it.
Dehumidifier?
We have mentioned before that we’ll touch on the point of humidity vs. air purifier. What if the origin of the odors is a place where humidity levels have hit the roof, such as bathrooms, kitchens, and basements?
The answer is relatively simple; you need to bring humidity levels down as air purifiers and humidity don’t go well together. Bringing humidity levels down can be done through a multitude of methods such as installing exhaust fans, allowing natural airflow in, and last but certainly not least, purchasing and operating a dehumidifier.
As the name suggests, a dehumidifier extracts humidity from the air so that it’s dryer and lighter. At that point, the air purifier can intervene and do its thing without trouble.
Other Electronics
Just like any other electrical device that operates with different wavelengths, you shouldn’t be placing it near other devices that operate with the same or similar wavelengths.
If so, both devices might interfere with each other causing confusion, and maybe even some damage to the circuits.
Therefore, try to keep a generous safety margin between each device. This also ensures that they don’t act as obstacles in the pathways of each other.
Bedroom Warnings
Last but certainly not least, you must know that you spend around a third of your life asleep, and that’s why so many people place their air purifiers in their bedrooms in order to be more comfortable during the night.
That, of course, works great, especially for people with respiratory problems such as asthma and allergies, as they’ll be relieved of all the allergens, bacteria, dust, and mold spores that bring about fits of these ailments.
Nonetheless, there are some regulations that prevent you from being harmed by the air purifier, and the most important one is to keep the unit around 6-10 ft away from your face. That way, you aren’t continuously hit by drafts of air throughout the night. If that does happen, it’ll cause sore throats and attacks of sinusitis.
Final Thoughts
In the end, no one will know your house better than you. So, after you go through these aspects, you’ll know where is the best place to put an air purifier in your own space. Just don’t forget to start on the right foot and purchase an appliance that’s well suited for your own needs and lifestyle.
