Portable Air Purifiers: Breathe Freely Even on the Go
A portable air purifier should be small in size, mini in weight and easy to be moved from room to room, place to place.
In this post, I'll share top 3 picks of best HEPA air purifiers, and share the main types of air purifiers, as well as other tips and tricks that do help you make the most out of air cleaners.
Table of Contents
#1. Top 3 Picks of Portable Air Purifiers
#2. Portable Air Purifier Main Types
#3. What to Know Before Your Purchase
#4. What Makes a Good Portable Air Cleaner
#5. What Portable Air Purifiers Can Do
#6. What Portable Air Purifiers Can't Do
#7. How to Make the Most out of Air Purifiers
#8. Other Ways to Help Improve Air Quality
#9. Where to Shop Your Portable Air Purifiers
#1. TOP 3 Picks of Portable Air Purifier Reviews
The below 3 portable air purifiers are ideal for your small rooms and ultra-lightweight, so it is easy for you to move and place on your home or office, and take it with you during your travel or business trip.
Pick 1: Purivortex Vortex Mini Portable Air Cleaner
This small air purifier is very lightweight, only 0.83 kg/1.6 lbs., just the same weight as a small pineapple.
It is a tabletop air cleaner that is ideal for your bedroom, office desk, workshop, or on the floor. You may take it with you when you go on your business trip in the airplane or train, and put this air cleaner in your hotel room for true cleaner.
Pick 2: Purivortex Vortex Mini 2 – World's First Lie-Down & Sit-Down Portable Air Purifier
This small HEAP air purifier is the most portable and versatile air cleaner in the market.
It comes with the unique bracket, as considered as a lifting handle, so that you can lie it down on your table for direct clean air. Meanwhile, you can easily move this gadget with the handle easily.
The unique design makes it the most pragmatic and useful air purifier in the market. Thus, it is just a breeze for you to move it anywhere.
If you are looking for the air purifier recommendation for your 1,100 sq. ft, under $100, $200 or $800, get one or multiple ones for all-corner coverage.
Pick 3: Purivortex Vortex 1 Portable HEPA Air Purifier
This portable air purifier with HEPA filter is designed for your small rooms, such as bedroom, workshop, office room, etc.
The stylish white design makes this portable room air purifier not just an air filtration system, but a modern and sleek décor for your home.
It is ultra effective to filter smoke, dust, pollen and other particles with the advanced H13 true HEPA filter. Hence, this portable air purification system device helps you relieve from allergy or asthma.
#2. Your 101 Knowledge Base: Portable Air Purifier Main Types
Generally speaking, the types of portable air purifiers are classified via the filters or the purification ways adopted by the air cleaners.
There are several popular air purifiers in the market know.
HEPA air purifiers: This type of air cleaners adopts HEPA filters, such as H11, H12, H13 filters. Portable air purifiers with true HEPA filter are able to block all airborne particles, like dust, pollen, smoker, both large and ultrafine particles (larger than 0.3 micrometers in diameter).
This type of portable air purifiers removes 99.9% to 99.99% of particles, offering true clean air. But, the HEPA filter cannot absorb smell or odors. It is used for blocking particles.
However, please note that those HEPA-like or HEPA-type air purifiers do not meet the standards of true HEPA purification. Hence, DO go for portable air purifiers with TRUE HEPA filters.
Activated-carbon air purifiers: These air purifiers use the activated-carbon filters to kill the unpleasant smell, odors, and gases.
Typically, many air purifiers use both HEPA filters and activated-carbon filters to remove particles and absorb odor-causing molecules in the air, which is helpful to turn dirty air into true clean air.
Electronic portable air purifiers: This category of air cleaners use electrostatic precipitator and ionizers to charge particles in the air, so that these particles stick to plates on the devices by a magnetic-like attraction. However, this type of air purifiers will produce ozone. Hence, this type of air cleaners is not recommended.
In conclusion, for the best air purification efficiency and environmental protection, always choose portable air purifiers with HEAP filters or activated-carbon filters.
#3. What to Know Before Your Purchase
There are several important points that you should keep in mind when you are about to purchase a portable air purifier.
Consider the below perspectives to make a smart purchase decision.
Cost of filter replacement: It is advised to change the filter every 6-12 months. Thus, please do check the filter price before your purchase.
Filter types: Select those air purifiers with true HEPA filters or activated-carbon filters, since these air purifiers will produce clean air without dust or particles.
CADR: Clean air delivery rate (CADR) measures how much an air purifier can filter, indicating the volume of filtered air an air cleaner delivers. Please choose the portable air purifier with the suitable CADR based on your room size.
Room size: Though higher CADR typically means better, it is not the golden rule that always select an air cleaner with huge CADR. For example, if your room is 10 m3, you don't need an air purifier with 100 m3 CADR, since it may increase your maintenance costs.
Hence, get one with the right CADR based on your room size.
Noise level: It may so annoying if the air purifier makes a loud sound, especially when you put it in your bedroom or home office.
The noise level varies based on the fan speed. Higher fan speed partners with louder noise. For your sweet dream, it is advised to choose a portable air purifier with less than 30 dB.
#4. What Makes a Good Portable Air Cleaner
What is the best portable air purifier?
What's a good desk/small true HEPA air purifier?
A good portable air purifier should come with the below MUST-HAVE features.
Compact size or easy-to-move design: A portable air purifier should be small and compact for ultra portability. Or, some bigger air purifiers should come with pragmatic handles or wheels for effortless moving.
True HEPA filter: The core of an air purifier is the HEPA filter. Only true HEPA filter can block ultrafine dust or particles, and provide you with true clean air.
Switchable fan speed: It is necessary for an air cleaner to have the tunable fan speed, so that you are able to adjust the fan speed based on your specific needs.
Different fan speeds produce different noise levels. Hence, adjustable fan speed offers flexible noise level adjustment, so you can control the level all by yourself.
Low noise level: The noise level produced by an air cleaner matters especially when you place it in your bedroom.
During your sleep, it is undoubtedly troublesome if the air purification system rings loud. Hence, a low-noise air purifier (less than 24 dB) during your sleep.
Switchable night light: The night light, especially the warm yellow color, like the Purivortex 201B Pro, makes your home cozy and comfortable.
The warm yellow night light, with 500-750 nm spectrum, stimulates the secretion of melatonin (a hormone primarily released by7 the pineal gland at night), putting you to good sleep.
Plug-in design: Air purifiers are engineered to run continuously for your 24/7 clean air need. Hence, an air cleaner is better when being plugged into an outlet for continuous power supply.
Those so-called rechargeable battery-powered air purifiers in the car, or for the stroller, and those necklace air purifiers, is not that efficient to convert the dirty air into clean air due to the limited power.
So, for the best air cleaning effectiveness, a plug-in air purifier would be the ONE you should go.
Timer: If you don't want to turn the air purifier 24/7, you can schedule how long your air purifier should keep turning on. That’s the reason why an air cleaner should come with a timer for more flexible
Ozone-free design: An air purifier should be clean, not just producing clean air, but also "clean" to the Earth.
Those old-fashion portable ozone generator air purifier (with UVC LED), will do harm to the Earth's ozone sphere, which leads to the greenhouse effect.
Hence, a good air purifier should be ozone-free, environmental and eco-friendly.
#5. What Portable Air Purifiers Can Do
An air purifier can filter the airborne particles and captures germs, dust, mites, pollen, smoke, pet dander, and other potentially harmful particles, while suppressing the mold spores with the HEPA filter.
Air cleaners with the activated-carbon filter also absorbs odors, smells, gases, VOCs, and other unpleasant smells.
Air purifiers help you relieve from asthma and allergy by filtering allergens and dust, so that you can breathe purified air freely. You can check this post for more portable air purifier effectiveness and benefits.
#6. What Portable Air Purifiers Can't Do
Currently, air purifiers can only remove the airborne particles – those floating particles. Dust, mites, pollens that have settled down on the ground cannot be caught by air purifiers in time. Hence, it is better to turn the air purifier on 24/7 in order to filtering out the dust and particles in time – before they stick to the ground.
#7. How to Make the Most out of Air Purifiers
You can maximize the effectiveness and performance of the air purifiers with below helpful and useful tips.
Put it in a "sealed" room (not completely dead sealed 😂): Close the door and the windows. Turn on the air purifier. A rather sealed space prevents most dust and particles from entering the room, so the air purifier can simply clean this specific room's air, able to maximize the air cleaning efficiency.
Place it wisely: Place the air cleaner in a room where you stay most frequently (if you just get one unit). If you have multiple air purifiers, place one for each room. Read this article for how many air purifiers you need for your home.
Besides, place the air purifier on your table or on the ground, and make sure there is no any other stuff blocking the air inlet or outlet. Otherwise, it may impact the efficiency of the air purifier. Leave enough room between the air purifier and the wall.
Adjust the speed: Turn the fan speed to the maximum level when you are in the room, and turn it to the minimum level when you are in the room to avoid the noise.
Change and clean the HEPA filter regularly: HEPA filter determines the filtration efficiency. For the best performance, it is advised to change the filter every 3-6 months.
Also, use a dry hairbrush or small vacuum to clean dust of the filter for good ventilation. If the HEPA filter is an activated-carbon type, dry the filter in the sun once per month.
Pay attention to the environment: Don't place the air purifier in a humid (such as bathroom) or high-temperature environment. It will impact the air purifier's effectiveness.
#8. Other Ways to Help Improve Air Quality
Besides air purifiers, there are other handy ways you can try to improve the indoor air quality.
Vacuum your home regularly: Do clean the sofa, carpet and floor with a vacuum cleaner since air purifiers cannot remove particles, dust, hair, pet dander, and other large particles that have settle down on the floor.
Improve the ventilation: Open your windows in good days, in order to change the indoor air. If you suffer from asthma or allergy, which prevents you from opening the window, turn on the air conditioner to facilitate the ventilation indoors.
No smoking indoors: To reduce the smoke, please stop smoking at home and don't burn candles at home.
Get an exhaust fan in your kitchen: An exhaust fan helps improve the ventilation inside your kitchen. Also get several exhaust fans for your laundry room and bathroom.
Try NOT to use chemicals: Minimize using the chemical-heavy cleaning products and don't keep paint, glues, insecticide in your daily living areas.
Buy indoor plants to freshen the air: Indoor plants, though not as effective as portable electronic air purifiers in air cleaning, can improve the air quality to some extent.
#9. Best Places to Shop Your Portable HEPA Air Purifiers
When you about to buy portable air purifiers in Philippines, Australia, Canada, Malaysia, Singapore, New Zealand (NZ), UK, US, Japan, Korea, Hong Kong, Kuwait, Qatar, Ireland, Dubai, etc., you can one on air purifier official online store, Amazon, Walmart, The Home Depot, etc.