在 “IQAir Atem Review – Is this portable air purifier effective?” 上有 5 条评论
you are not taking into consideration that the filtration goes down to .003 micron and not the .3 microns of standard HEPA filters. In my eyes, the ultrapure hyper HEPA filter blows extra clean air just around your immediate location. It is basically blowing ultra pure air and displacing the less purified air that around your face with super clean air. their so-called bubble effect that IQAir claims. I am very impressed with the air I breathe from the Atem. The air blown at me is really wonderful and does help with allergies is my case. I really love this unit and would recommend it to anyone who might have some breathing problems caused by mold, pets or allergies such as dust. Unless you do have this unit and test it to see how it helps with this ultra filtering, you can’t possibly judge things for other people. Sorry to disagree with your comparison above.
Hi Michael. Paddy here, I ran the tests on the IQAir Atem. It’s great to have your response and hear your feedback, and I’m glad you feel the IQAir is getting you clean air!
Your point about ‘Utrapure Hyper HEPA filter’ is a great one, and it’s a good example of how many companies use marketing jargon to convince us into thinking their ‘technology’ is better than the rest. It’s a very common misconception that HEPA filters can’t capture particles smaller than 0.3microns, but that’s actually not true! HEPA filters are great at capturing particles bigger and smaller than 0.3microns, with 0.3microns being the most difficult size to capture. In fact, HEPAs can capture almost 100% of 0.01 micron particles. Check out this fact sheet for graphs showing how HEPA filter effectiveness actually improves for even smaller particles: http://donaldsonaerospace-defense.com/library/files/documents/pdfs/042665.pdf
I’m not sure if you’re in China, but if you are and are willing to let us borrow your Atem, then we would love to test it. You’re right, the only way we can make a real assessment is to test a unit ourselves!
Hi and thanks for allowing my thoughts of the Atem. Unfortunately, I live in New York so sending you my unit would not be practical. Just two last thoughts.
When the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) virus was very prevalent in and around 2002 and 2003, a hundred and fifty Hospitals in China requested and used the Hyper Herpa filters that IQAir uses. it was the only filter that could on a routine basis filter these airborne viruses over extended periods of time. Secondly, there is very little leakage of air around IQAir purifiers filters including the Atem. 99% of the air goes through the filter versus 30% or less on most air purifiers thereby filtering ultra pure air very efficiently. As you can see I am an avid IQAir fan because of my personal use and help with the Healthpro plus and the Atem Again thanks for allowing my response
virus was widespread in China in 2002 and 2003, over 150 hospitals requested and used the IQAir Hyper Hepa filter because they all felt that on a constant basis the .003 micron filters were necessary. Secondly, with all the IQAir purifiers including the Atem, there is very little leakage of air around the filters, therefore, filtering 99% of the air and not the 30% as in most other air purifiers
That’s a really interesting report on the the 150 hospitals Michael! Do you have any evidence pointing to the fact that only the HyperHepa filters used in IQAir purifiers were able to filter out the viruses, and not the other types of filters? I’d love to see the data on that! Other than press releases on the announcement, I can’t find any hard data.
Having said that, you got me curious. I wanted to really get into the nitty gritty details of what the smallest particle size HEPA filters can capture. First of all I looked to one of Tom’s previous Quora posts where he cites tests done by Sweethome, testing down to 0.01 microns. The results were pretty clear – all the purifiers tested (BlueAir, IQAir, Coway, Sharp etc.) were all able to filter the 0.01 microns.
But that’s still not as small as the 0.003 micron particles IQ Air claims to filter. To look at even smaller particles, I turned to one of our blog posts on mask effectiveness (masks use essentially the same material as HEPA filters). A study was done on masks, testing down to 0.007 microns. What they found was that N99 rated masks were able to filter 99% of even the smallest particles (0.007 microns).
Then again, that is still larger than the 0.003 microns claimed by the IQAir. I did some Googling and came across this piece which claims that HEPAs can capture down to 0.001 microns. Now there’s no data or testing evidence in that post so we can’t be sure. In fact, various reports state we still can’t know what the smallest particle size HEPA filters can capture (it comes down to the natural forces at play and Brownian motion, and when things start transitioning from being particles to being gases).
You’re motivated me to see if we can get our hands on a particle counter that can measure down to 0.001 microns, to really test out these different claims. I hope we can have a definitive answer soon!
In 2003 Fighting the spread of SARS a viral disease known as Severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) spreads quickly in Asia.
IQAir® is sought out for its expertise in air cleaning technology. After weeks of testing and installation of trial systems, the Hong Kong Hospital Authority chooses IQAir systems to help stop the spread of SARS. IQAir provides systems to 150 hospitals and health care facilities in Hong Kong to help contain the virus.
Below is a longer discussion on the use of hyper HEPA filters in 2003 in Hong Kong
(https://www.iqair.com/newsroom/iqair-selected-provide-hong-kong-hospitals-new-tool-fight-against-sars-virus)
I don’t know too much about China but presently in this country many hospitals and medical facilities also use IQAir’s filters. Even some dental offices use IQAirs cleanroom filters for surgery. IQAir has some special FDA rating for their filters and machines
There is so much information on the IQAir products that you would be able to get with google searches You would easily see why I love the Air purifiers. Personally, I got interested in their product 2 years ago. I was in and out of a hospital three times in 2 months with respiratory distress from allergies with breathing problems. No one knew the exact cause but I decided to buy the Healthpro plus unit from IQAir after studying the pros and cons of all the popular air purifiers.. Non stood out more the IQAir so I purchased one even though it was one of the most expensive units.. All I can say is that after using this unit I never had to go back to the hospital for any problems. I feel it really worked. The ultrafine particles that filtered to .003 microns made a difference to me personally. Anyway, hope to continue your good work and let me know what your final thoughts will be.
you are not taking into consideration that the filtration goes down to .003 micron and not the .3 microns of standard HEPA filters. In my eyes, the ultrapure hyper HEPA filter blows extra clean air just around your immediate location. It is basically blowing ultra pure air and displacing the less purified air that around your face with super clean air. their so-called bubble effect that IQAir claims. I am very impressed with the air I breathe from the Atem. The air blown at me is really wonderful and does help with allergies is my case. I really love this unit and would recommend it to anyone who might have some breathing problems caused by mold, pets or allergies such as dust. Unless you do have this unit and test it to see how it helps with this ultra filtering, you can’t possibly judge things for other people. Sorry to disagree with your comparison above.
Hi Michael. Paddy here, I ran the tests on the IQAir Atem. It’s great to have your response and hear your feedback, and I’m glad you feel the IQAir is getting you clean air!
Your point about ‘Utrapure Hyper HEPA filter’ is a great one, and it’s a good example of how many companies use marketing jargon to convince us into thinking their ‘technology’ is better than the rest. It’s a very common misconception that HEPA filters can’t capture particles smaller than 0.3microns, but that’s actually not true! HEPA filters are great at capturing particles bigger and smaller than 0.3microns, with 0.3microns being the most difficult size to capture. In fact, HEPAs can capture almost 100% of 0.01 micron particles. Check out this fact sheet for graphs showing how HEPA filter effectiveness actually improves for even smaller particles: http://donaldsonaerospace-defense.com/library/files/documents/pdfs/042665.pdf
I’m not sure if you’re in China, but if you are and are willing to let us borrow your Atem, then we would love to test it. You’re right, the only way we can make a real assessment is to test a unit ourselves!
Hi and thanks for allowing my thoughts of the Atem. Unfortunately, I live in New York so sending you my unit would not be practical. Just two last thoughts.
When the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) virus was very prevalent in and around 2002 and 2003, a hundred and fifty Hospitals in China requested and used the Hyper Herpa filters that IQAir uses. it was the only filter that could on a routine basis filter these airborne viruses over extended periods of time. Secondly, there is very little leakage of air around IQAir purifiers filters including the Atem. 99% of the air goes through the filter versus 30% or less on most air purifiers thereby filtering ultra pure air very efficiently. As you can see I am an avid IQAir fan because of my personal use and help with the Healthpro plus and the Atem Again thanks for allowing my response
virus was widespread in China in 2002 and 2003, over 150 hospitals requested and used the IQAir Hyper Hepa filter because they all felt that on a constant basis the .003 micron filters were necessary. Secondly, with all the IQAir purifiers including the Atem, there is very little leakage of air around the filters, therefore, filtering 99% of the air and not the 30% as in most other air purifiers
That’s a really interesting report on the the 150 hospitals Michael! Do you have any evidence pointing to the fact that only the HyperHepa filters used in IQAir purifiers were able to filter out the viruses, and not the other types of filters? I’d love to see the data on that! Other than press releases on the announcement, I can’t find any hard data.
Having said that, you got me curious. I wanted to really get into the nitty gritty details of what the smallest particle size HEPA filters can capture. First of all I looked to one of Tom’s previous Quora posts where he cites tests done by Sweethome, testing down to 0.01 microns. The results were pretty clear – all the purifiers tested (BlueAir, IQAir, Coway, Sharp etc.) were all able to filter the 0.01 microns.
But that’s still not as small as the 0.003 micron particles IQ Air claims to filter. To look at even smaller particles, I turned to one of our blog posts on mask effectiveness (masks use essentially the same material as HEPA filters). A study was done on masks, testing down to 0.007 microns. What they found was that N99 rated masks were able to filter 99% of even the smallest particles (0.007 microns).
Then again, that is still larger than the 0.003 microns claimed by the IQAir. I did some Googling and came across this piece which claims that HEPAs can capture down to 0.001 microns. Now there’s no data or testing evidence in that post so we can’t be sure. In fact, various reports state we still can’t know what the smallest particle size HEPA filters can capture (it comes down to the natural forces at play and Brownian motion, and when things start transitioning from being particles to being gases).
You’re motivated me to see if we can get our hands on a particle counter that can measure down to 0.001 microns, to really test out these different claims. I hope we can have a definitive answer soon!
In 2003 Fighting the spread of SARS a viral disease known as Severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) spreads quickly in Asia.
IQAir® is sought out for its expertise in air cleaning technology. After weeks of testing and installation of trial systems, the Hong Kong Hospital Authority chooses IQAir systems to help stop the spread of SARS. IQAir provides systems to 150 hospitals and health care facilities in Hong Kong to help contain the virus.
Below is a longer discussion on the use of hyper HEPA filters in 2003 in Hong Kong
(https://www.iqair.com/newsroom/iqair-selected-provide-hong-kong-hospitals-new-tool-fight-against-sars-virus)
I don’t know too much about China but presently in this country many hospitals and medical facilities also use IQAir’s filters. Even some dental offices use IQAirs cleanroom filters for surgery. IQAir has some special FDA rating for their filters and machines
There is so much information on the IQAir products that you would be able to get with google searches You would easily see why I love the Air purifiers. Personally, I got interested in their product 2 years ago. I was in and out of a hospital three times in 2 months with respiratory distress from allergies with breathing problems. No one knew the exact cause but I decided to buy the Healthpro plus unit from IQAir after studying the pros and cons of all the popular air purifiers.. Non stood out more the IQAir so I purchased one even though it was one of the most expensive units.. All I can say is that after using this unit I never had to go back to the hospital for any problems. I feel it really worked. The ultrafine particles that filtered to .003 microns made a difference to me personally. Anyway, hope to continue your good work and let me know what your final thoughts will be.