All Posts Archives - Page 39 of 50 -

Should a Window Air Conditioner Be Tilted? 11- AC Queries

Should a Window Air Conditioner be Tilted?

Not all window air conditioners are designed to be tilted backwards to drain the condensation from them. On many newer units you will find the drain hole located to the left side centered rather than positioned to drip out the rear.

The best policy is to check the user manual to find out for sure if you have a window air conditioner that requires tilting or not.

If your window AC requires tilting per the manual it should be tilted slightly backwards 3 to 5° to provide a runoff for the condensation that is created while the AC is running.

If the window AC is not tilted, the water will eventually puddle up and fling back into the room.

Worse, if the unit is tilted the wrong way, the water created by the condensation will flow back into your room and potentially ruin your window sill, drywall, wallpaper, and floor or carpet.

You can keep any damage that water from your window AC could cause at Bay by simply tilting your air conditioner slightly backwards so that the water runs through the drain hole outside of the house.

Window AC Not Dripping Water

If you have a window AC not dripping water, the problem is most likely a clogged drain hole.

Since the outside of the air conditioner is exposed to the elements, it is not a surprise that debris can get into the casing of your window air conditioner and clog your drain hole up.

Sediment forming from the minerals in the condensation can also build up to the point that you eventually have a stopped up drain hole.

1You should be able to access the drainage hole from the bottom of the window AC and use a screwdriver to press into the hole and clear it out as a temporary fix.

I say temporary because you are more than likely not be able to clean it out too well from the bottom.

2.Window AC units are meant to be able to withstand rain so with that in mind, using the power washer on your garden hose to spray out the inside of the AC from the rear is also a method you can use to clean out the debris from the inside of the air conditioner.

3.If neither one of those fixes work, then you’ll probably need to resign yourself to pulling the window AC out of the window and taking it apart so that you can access the area that is clogged up from the inside.

Will Rain Damage a Window Air Conditioner?

Window air conditioners are built to withstand the elements, including rain. A typical rainstorm will not damage a window AC. But of the air conditioner is exposed to a hurricane type rain situation where the rain is blowing sideways, then the electronics of the window AC will have more of a chance of getting wet.

If that’s the case, then the best policy is to let it thoroughly dry before turning it on.

Normal rainfall should not have an effect whatsoever on your window AC unit.

Do Window AC’s Have Filters?

A window AC has a washable filter located directly on the face of the inside portion of the air conditioner.

It can be easily accessed usually by pulling open front panel. In some window air conditioners, the filter is inserted into a slot. Pull tabs are usually put into place to be able to pull out the filter easily in order to clean it.

Window Air Conditioner Not Blowing Hard

When your window air conditioner is not blowing hard, the first place to look for a solution is the filter. If the filter gets too dirty, you will have limited air flow.

Limited air flow will also lead to the coils freezing over, decreasing your airflow even further.

Make sure that any grills on either the sides or the rear is completely free and not up against something or else have something draped over them like clothing for instance.

Check the rear grill to make sure that it is not covered in gunk. If so, wash it with some hot water and soap.W

Can a Window Air Conditioner Cool an Entire House?

Window Air conditioners are not made to cool off an entire house. A large 10,000 BTU window AC is good about 350 to 400 square feet. Which is only about half of a very small house.
Running 2 to 3 smaller AC window units will provide better coverage than trying to get the same coverage out of one big large BTU AC.

Do Window Air Conditioners Pull Air From Outside?

Window air conditioners work by pulling room air through the front grill that is located behind the vent.

But many window AC’s have a damper lever that when opened allows a small amount of outside air to come in to a room through the air conditioner as a means of letting in some fresh air.

The ideal is that sometimes since the window is being taken up by the air conditioner that there is no way to let any fresh air inside. That’s why that vent exist at all.

But the conditioned cold air coming from the window AC there’s not originate outdoors. It is the room air being circulated through the air conditioner.

Do Window Air Conditioners Need Freon?

Window air conditioners come pre-loaded with refrigerant for freon and or a closed system. The freon or refrigerant in a window AC that has never experienced any damage should never run out.

Adding refrigerant or freon to a window air conditioner is not a normal part of maintenance and if it does deplete, then you know you have a leak.

Can Window Air Conditioners Be Recharged?

If you find that your window air conditioner has completely leaked the refrigerant out and is no longer getting cool whatsoever than it is possible to buy a kit to refill the refrigerant.

But the probability of the refrigerant leaking back out is pretty high since the AC unit is meant to be a closed system that does not require refilling at any time.

In other words, the only reason you would need to add refrigerant to your window AC is if you have a leak caused probably by some sort of damageW

Does a Window Air Conditioner Dehumidify?

Window air conditioners like all refrigerated air conditioners dehumidify as they cool the temperature. And many come with a dry mode that allows you to use your window AC as a dehumidifier without having to use the AC function.

The reason is, refrigerated air conditioners pull warm air across cooling coils that cause the moisture to separate from the air. The moisture called condensation is then routed outside through a drainage hole.

Can Window Air Conditioners Cause Carbon Monoxide Poisoning?

No. Window air conditioners cannot cause carbon monoxide poisoning because Carbon monoxide is an invisible gas found in fumes. that are produced by burning fuel.

Window air conditioners do not burn any fuel whatsoever and cannot cause carbon monoxide poisoning for that reason.

Thermostat flashing “Cool On”-Honeywell Troubleshooting

1. Honeywell Thermostat flashing cool on

The “Cool on” message on a Honeywell thermostat is also known as “delay mode”. It often flashes in the form of a blinking snowflake or as the word “wait’ as well.

It’s a courtesy message to let you know that the AC will delay in coming on for approximately 5 minutes in order to protect your unit from short cycling which can cause damage.

Honeywell thermostat says waiting for equipment

The waiting for equipment message on a Honeywell thermostat is to let you know that there will be a short delay before the AC powers on to prevent short cycling.

Honeywell thermostat says temporary

Whenever your Honeywell thermostat says temporary or temporary hold, it means that the temperature has been temporarily adjusted until the next scheduled change.

The “permanent hold” message indicates that the temperature is set at its permanent scheduled setting.

Honeywell thermostat says recovery

Recovery is a thermostat mode that indicates your air conditioner has turned back on after it has shut down because of a scheduled “off” period. The recovery mode message is nothing to worry about, it is simply a courtesy to let you know your AC has restarted in order to begin reaching the next scheduled temperature.

Honeywell thermostat says aux heat on

The Aux heat message on a Honeywell thermostat is to let you know that auxiliary heat has turned on in addition to your compressor as a supplement to get your temperature up.

It is a feature put in place to help your heat maintain temperature when the outdoor temperature is extra cold.

Honeywell thermostat “Return” blinking

The word “Return” flashing on a Honeywell thermostat simply means that the thermostat is returning to the preset schedule that it has been programmed for.

Honeywell thermostat says low battery with new batteries

According to Honeywell, if you are still getting a low battery message or the word Lol appears on screen even after you have replaced the batteries,
Then take the batteries out and replace them in the opposite , completely backwards position.
Leave the batteries in the thermostat backwards for about 30 seconds.
Take them back out and put them in the right way.

The message should be gone.

If that doesn’t work, there’s responsibility that the batteries are not good. Retry with new batteries.

Honeywell thermostat says ” leave”

Leave is the message on the Honeywell thermostat is the setting that you put your thermostat on when you are going to be away.
In other words, you’re going to be leaving for a while so you leave your thermostat on a lower or higher number based on the season so that it is not running at full capacity the entire time you’re gone.
Or it could be that it’s just sick of your face.

Honeywell thermostat blinking heat on

Heat on is the message on a Honeywell thermostat that is letting you know that there will be about a 5-minute delay before the heat comes on after the thermostat has been set.

The reason for this is to protect the equipment from short cycling and doing damage to the compressor.

This is the same message that appears when the AC comes on, except when the AC comes on the message will read “Cool on” or show a symbol of a snowflake.

Either way, there is nothing to worry about. It is simply a courtesy to let you know that there is a small delay between setting your thermostat and it coming on.

Honeywell thermostat is blank with no display

If your Honeywell thermostat is blank, the most likely issue is that the batteries have died. If you’re thermostat does not have batteries, then you have probably thrown a breaker.
Simple fix. Check the breaker first. If it is not tripped, then switch out the batteries.

Honeywell thermostat reading wrong temperature.

The temperature sensor on a Honeywell thermostat is the most likely culprit win the thermostat is reading the wrong temperature.

Dust inside of the thermostat can accumulate on the sensor and cause it to gauge the temperature accurately. Popping the thermostat open and blowing out the dust with a can of keyboard air may solve the problem.

Another issue that can cause a Honeywell thermostat to read the wrong temperature is that it is not level.
Check to see if the thermostat has been knocked out of place and is sitting crooked.
If it is, simply level it back out and the thermostat should be reading the right temperature again.

3. Another scenario that can cause your Honeywell thermostat to read the wrong temperature is its placement inside of your home. If it is not centered correctly inside of the area then it will not read the whole room accurately and could be affected by hot or cold spots in the room.

Honeywell thermostat not turning on

A Honeywell thermostat not turning on is usually a case of not getting power. If the batteries are completely dead, the thermostat will not turn on.
Also if the breaker is tripped, the thermostat will not be able to get power either.
A blank display, buttons not working, thermostat just not coming on, are all indicators that you need to check the battery or check and see if the breaker is tripped.

If the display is on but the thermostat is still not adjusting the temperature, then more than likely you have a dirty or malfunctioning sensor. Taking the thermostat apart and blowing out the dust can clear the sensor off and get the thermostat to working again. Or else replacing the thermostat is a little easier job than disassembling one.

Can You Leave a Window Air Conditioner on 24/7?

It’s that time again. The heat and the humidity have shown their ugly face once more.
You hate to do it, but it’s almost too unbearable to go without the AC. But how much is too much?
Does a window air conditioner have a limit for the amount of summertime abuse it can take?

How long can you leave a window air conditioner running? 24/7?

Technically you can leave a window air conditioner running all day and all night if you want and it will not hurt the AC or cause it to overheat in any way.
But you may want to remember that a large Window AC can use up to 1400 watts. Which will cause a substantial rise on your energy bill.
Window air conditioners cool extremely fast so if your bot going to be in a room for awhile, the best money is on switching it off when your out.

How long do window air conditioners last?

There is no reason that a window air conditioner will not last you 10 to 15 years as long as it is maintained properly. Even running it 24/7 all Summer long.

But even though it will not do any damage to the window AC itself, running a window AC 24/7 will reflect substantially on your energy bill.

FRIGIDAIRE Smart Window Air Conditioner

Wi-Fi ready connected room air conditioner with Frigidaire Smart App for mobile operation

2017 Energy Star: 12.0 Energy Efficiency Ratio (EER)
10,000 BTUs cools up to a 450 square foot room with 3 pints per hour dehumidification

How many watts does the window AC use?

You can expect a 10,000 BTU window AC to use 830 watts. Which translates to about $120 a day if you were to run it for 12 hours a day in Texas. And Texas is by no means the most expensive state.
That’s a pretty shocking estimate. Even a window air conditioner that consumes 450 Watts would run you around \$65 for a 12 hour day. Still pretty shocking.

Most window air conditioners are made to cool down a room very quickly so unless the room that it is being used in is occupied 24/7, there is really no need to keep a window AC unit running non stop.

Granted, there are times that you want the AC running for a little while before you get home from work or school or if it’s too hot to sleep and you want to keep the AC on till you get to sleep. But you don’t need it on all night

Welcome to the modern world.

Window air conditioners now come Wi-Fi enabled.

Smart window ACs come with their own app that you can use to schedule when your AC is on, or turn the AC on or off from a remote location. You can also change the settings to increase or decrease the temperature.

This is a big advantage when you are shopping for a new window AC.

What are the benefits of Wi-Fi smart window air conditioners?

1. Energy savings

The ability to schedule your AC to run only according to your daily schedule means using your AC less and having more control over the amount of energy that is used. The smart app will also give you a detailed read of your usage to allow you to schedule even smarter.

2. Convenience

Smart window air conditioners control the temperature and only give or take as much as you need by monitoring and controlling the unit according to your indoor climate.

The app gives you complete voice command to switch your AC modes with ease also.

3. Maintenance and Notifications

Through the use of the smart app, you can keep track of every part of your air conditioner. This includes being notified when it’s time to change your filter or if any individual component goes out. It will also let you know if your AC is not draining properly.

Smart thermostats have been a thing for quite a while now and offer the luxury of being able to schedule your heat and air so that you use less energy.

Now you can get the same control with a window air conditioner.

Yeah sounds great. But I’m not really in the market for a new window AC. The one I got works perfectly fine. After all, these things last for 10 plus years if you treat them right, right?

If you already have a window AC that you’re perfectly content with and it’s not in the market for a new one, yet you would love to have the smart features that you can find on the newest window air conditioners,

The easy solution is a smart plug.

The truth is if you have a hub like Alexa, you can turn any device that you plug in to an outlet into a smart device with scheduling capabilities and remote operation.

Though there are obviously some features you’re not going to get with a smart plug over a fully integrated Wi-Fi smart window AC,

The capacity to schedule the plug so that it only comes on during the times that you have indicated is a big part of the equation that will take you a long way even if it doesn’t give you regular updates an alert you when you need to clean your filter.

Smart Plug-Gosund WiFi Outlet Mini Socket

Voice Control — Smart plug works with Alexa and Google Home but No Hub Required.

Summary

Even though running a window air conditioner all day and all night will not hurt the air conditioner or cause it the overheat, it will have a big impact on your energy bill.

Window air conditioners use a lot of Watts. Which will add up to a hefty Energy bill if not kept in check.

That’s why even though it’s fine to run a window AC 24/7, it is not suggested.

Scheduling your AC to run only when you need it is the best way to keep your energy bill in check.

But it is not the easiest thing to do, since there are times when you want the AC to run but you do not have access to be able to turn it on.

The newest kid on the block, the Wi-Fi smart window air conditioner has all the answers when it comes to being able to schedule your AC to come on and turn off when you want it to and also the ability to turn on and off by the use of built-in sensors.

A smart app gives you the ability to schedule your window AC, monitor the temperature, control it remotely, and even notifies you when you need to clean out the filter.

But if you are not in the market for a new window AC but you still want the capabilities of scheduling it, smart plugs can give you access and the ability to control when anything that is plugged into them is on or off.

A smart plug maybe the cheap way out, but sometimes expensive is just expensive.

Can You Use Fragrance Oils in Diffuser? (a Loaded Question)

If you’ve been down the diffuser and potpourri aisle at the local Walmart or dollar store lately, you know the huge selection of different types of scents available not only in essential oils, but also candles, air fresheners, reeds, and warming fragrance oils.

Not only is there a huge selection, it’s all basically combined together with the fragrance oils sitting right next to the essential oils and the essential oil reeds.

And it is not exactly clear on which oils go with which devices.

Or if you can combine different oils with different devices.

And some devices seem to do the exact same thing, which only compounds the confusion.

In this article, we will try to clear up the confusion and also make the confusion worse by throwing in some grey areas where these scents and devices can overlap.

The device is a diffuser. Specifically the water diffuser.

Technically, the only thing you want to use with a diffuser is essential oils. Diffusers are specifically made to work with aromatherapy essential oils. Diffusers are designed to get the best possible results out of aromatherapy oils.

That’s the official black and white answer.

But can you use a diffuser with anything else other than essential oils?

Warning, This is a grey area and if you decide to add anything to the diffuser other than what is listed in the packaging, you could very well break the warranty.

Again, that’s the official black and white answer.

What can you put in a diffuser besides essential oils?

1.Non Healthy
The main issue with adding any other product besides essential oils to a diffuser is that they do not have the aroma therapeutic healing properties that essential oils do. Not only do they not, they are more likely to have chemicals that aren’t necessarily made for breathing.

2.Too Oily
The second main issue with adding other products different than essential oils to a diffuser is the texture of the oil.

Even though the term “essential oil” makes it sound like essential oils would have a baby oil type consistency, the truth is, it has more of a watery consistency that allows it to dissipate in water.

Other products like warming oil actually have an oil consistency that doesn’t allow it to dissipate in water and stays separated when mixed with water.

This is not necessarily a deal killer but the likelihood of clogging the diffuser as much higher than using a scent that is water based.

Intelligent Aromatherapy

Smart WiFi Wireless Essential Oil Aromatherapy 400ml Ultrasonic Diffuser & Humidifier with Alexa & Google Home Phone App & Voice Control – Create Schedules – LED & Timer Settings

Can you use fragrance oils in a diffuser?

Fragrance oil is another term for warming oil. Fragrance warming oils have a oily texture that doesn’t mix with water. If you put fragrance oil in a diffuser, you will definitely get an aromatic result because fragrance oil is very strong and tends to make anything it comes in contact with smell strongly.

But the texture of fragrance oil will definitely clog up your diffuser faster than using essential oils.

And unlike essential oils, fragrance oils are made to add a aroma to the air and will do nothing to add any type of therapeutic benefit to the air.

Fragrance oil vs Essential Oil in Diffuser

Fragrance oils are made to be used in oil warmers. Oil warmers are Glade plug-in type devices.
They have an oily consistency that does not mix well in water.
Though you can get a fragrant result by putting fragrance warming oils in a diffuser, the likelihood of clogging the diffuser up as much higher because of the residue left behind by the fragrance oil.
Fragrance oils compared to essential oils are strictly meant to add a scent to the air and carry no therapeutic benefits.

Essential oils are made from plants and are specifically used for their medicinal and antibacterial properties.

Essential oils compared to fragrance oils have a watery texture that completely dissipates when added to the water in a diffuser and does not run risk of clogging up a diffuser.

What can you put in a diffuser besides oil?

You can put any product that can dissipate in water into a diffuser. The term essential oil is a misnomer because essential oils actually have a watery consistency and will mix with the water in a diffuser without adding any risk of stopping it up.

Can you put a vanilla extract into a diffuser?

Vanilla extract can be used in a diffuser because it has a watery consistency and will mix well with the water in the diffuser.
But vanilla extraction not be mistaken for vanilla essential oil. Vanilla extract in a diffuser will add a sweet vanilla scent to the air but it will not do anything to help you health-wise.

Vanilla essential oils on the other hand are well known to fight fever and other infections as well as help reduce inflammation.

Given that vanilla extract can be quite pricey on its own, the choice between vanilla extract and vanilla essential oil should be pretty simple.

Vanilla essential oils are made to go into a diffuser and offer a much more benefit than using vanilla extract in a diffuser.

Can you put perfume in a diffuser?

You can put perfume in a diffuser because Perfume usually has a watery consistency that will easily mix into the water of a diffuser.
It also does not have anything in it that will leave a residue and cause any stoppages in the diffuser.

It is not advised to put any type of perfume that has an oily texture in a diffuser because of the residue that can be left behind and eventually stop up the diffuser.

Perfume is strictly a fragrance and will not add any benefit or therapeutic value to the air that you breathe.

Levoair Smart WiFi Essential Oil Diffuser

Ultrasonic Aroma Diffuser with alarm clock, temperature, weather, week display, timer ,schedule,
Customize multiple alarm clocks with your smart phone to arranging your daily life.

Summary

What can you add to a diffuser? If you’re using a humidifier type diffuser that you put the sense directly into the water, you can get away with putting about any type of scent that will dissipate in water.

If you add fragrance oil to a diffuser, you run the risk of clogging up your diffuser because fragrance oil compared to essential oils actually has an oily consistency that does not mix with water.

You may be able to get a fragrant result out of putting fragrance oils in a diffuser, but you run the risk of needing a new diffuser before too long.

Perfumes and products like a vanilla extract can be used in a diffuser easily because they do mix well with water and do not leave a residue behind.

But they are only beneficial for adding a sent to the air and will not do anything for you therapeutically.

Can you get away with putting different types of oils in a diffuser?

Obviously you can, but the truth is, you get a much better result if you just keep a diffuser to use with essential oils and not venture outside of the box.

These products are all pretty inexpensive and it’s rare that you need to put anything into a diffuser because you’re in a pinch.

Evaporative Cooler – Benefits and Drawbacks of Water Cooling

Evaporative coolers go by several different names.

They are also called air coolers, swamp coolers, desert coolers, personal coolers, and ventless air conditioners.

What is an Evaporative Air Cooler?

An evaporative cooler is a type of air conditioner that uses water to absorb heat and a fan to blow the water cooled air into a room. It does not generate any heat that needs to be exhausted like that on a standard AC unit.

What is Evaporative Cooling?

Evaporative cooling is a method of cooling down the air in a room by blowing air with a fan through a water soaked pad.

The air is made cooler because of the capacity of the water to absorb the heat and bring down the temperature of the air.

Evaporative cooling is basically a simulation of air blowing over a body of water similar to the natural process of air cooling off as it blows over a lake or an ocean. Only done mechanically in your home.

There are more components to an evaporative cooler obviously, but that is the basic premise.

How does an Evaporative Cooler work?

An evaporative cooler works through a simple relationship between a fan motor, a pump, and a rigid pad media too soak with water.

Through a 3 -step process, an evaporative cooler works by:

Pumping water through the use of a water pump onto a rigid pad media to soak the pads through with water.
Blowing a fan through the water soaked pad media into a room
Air is pulled through the room by opening a window on the opposite side of the house or room.

The combination of a fan moving air through a water soaked pad reduces the temperature of the air around 20%

Who can Benefit from an Evaporative Cooler?

1.Rooms with No Windows

Anyone who needs an air conditioner but does not have a way to exhaust the heat generated by the standard window AC or portable AC through a window.

Personal or portable evaporative coolers can be an excellent alternative to window air conditioners or portable air conditioners because they do not need a way to exhaust the heat from them.

Conventional Air conditioners use a refrigeration method that absorbs heat and expels it either through the rear of the air conditioner or with a hose that has to be ducted out of a window.

Portable evaporative coolers do not require any type of heat exhaust, which means they do not have to be near a window. Which makes them actually portable compared to a portable AC that needs a window to exhaust the heat from.

2. Garages

Garages in most cases or not outfitted with the ductwork necessary for the HVAC (central heat and air) to cool off the garage.
A portable evaporative swamp cooler is a great choice to cool down a garage. Not only can you put it anywhere you want in the garage, there is usually outdoor access to a faucet nearby.

3.Apartments

If you’re living in an apartment that doesn’t have adequate cooling throughout the whole apartment or one that does not allow you to use a window for a air conditioner,

A portable air cooler can be used as a way to cool down the apartment or as a supplement in the areas of the apartment that do not get cool.

4.Office Spaces

Mini air coolers have become very popular as a desktop solution to keep your personal space cool while you work at your desk.

5. Environmentally Conscious Persons

Unlike refrigerated ACS that can emit dangerous chemicals into the air because of the refrigerant that is used to absorb the heat,

Air coolers do not require anything besides a water hookup and a fan motor. There is nothing potentially dangerous or any chemicals that can be released from an air cooler.

6. Energy Saving

Unlike refrigerated air conditioning that can account for up to 5% tire Energy bill, swamp coolers require very little energy and you can expect your bill to be in the range of running a fan.

Disadvantages of an Air Cooler

1. Limited Cooling

Evaporative coolers are limited and how much and how accurate they can cool a room.
The settings on a swamp cooler are limited to high, med, and low to control the fan speed and a switch to turn the water pump on.

There isn’t a thermostat to dial in a set temperature that you want the room to cool off to.

2. Do Not Work Well in Humid Climates.

Air coolers require dry air in order to get the best use out of them. Once the humidity reaches above 20 percent outside, it is just as effective to run a fan alone than to use a swamp cooler.

At that point, using a swamp cooler is only adding humidity upon humidity which will make the room feel sticky and “swampy”. Thus the name “swamp cooler”.

Unfortunately there are regions that are humid all year long and can’t really benefit from an evaporative cooler at all.

3. Don’t Cool Enough.

There was a time when swamp coolers ruled the world. People were used to warmer temperatures consistently. But now since Central heating and Air has come to the forefront, people are used to cooler temperatures coming from their air conditioner. And for a lot of people, evaporative cooling is just not cool enough anymore.

4. Maintenance

Though not as much of an issue with large desert coolers that are designed to have the water ran directly to the machine,

When it comes to portable air coolers, they have to be filled with water in order to operate. That typically means carrying a bucket of water to the machine or running a garden hose from a faucet to the machine.

Water pad media must be kept fresh also in order to hold water.

5. Bacteria

Evaporative coolers have the potential of standing water built into the design.

Since air coolers require water as part of the cooling process, they must be emptied anytime they are not in use to avoid the growth of bacteria.

Legionnaires disease is a deadly disease that has been traced back to bacteria growing in standing water primarily in commercial swamp coolers that had not been maintenance.

Standing water is also a nesting place for mosquitoes.

5. Water Consumption

Though a great deal was made out of savings of you electricity by using a evaporative cooler of a refrigerated unit, little is mentioned about the amount of water that is used in an evaporative cooler.

For a portable air cooler, the amount of water used does is work mentioning. But for outdoor desert coolers, you will basically be using the same amount of water as you would to water the yard everyday.

6. Noisy

Noise is always going to be an issue with evaporative cooling. The combination of a fan and a water pump create double the noise of just a fan. The water has its own sound compared to slurping or washing. Noisy nonetheless.

Summary

There was a time when evaporative cooling was the main form of air conditioning. It was much more common for someone to have a swamp cooler hanging out their window than to have the luxury of refrigerated central heat and air.

Though there are still certain areas that rely heavily on evaporative coolers, refrigerated air has become much more prevalent.

But does that mean that there is no place for evaporative cooling?

Not at all. There are many circumstances were air coolers make more sense than refrigerated coolers.

For instance there are many people who need a way to cool down a room or area who do not have access to any type of window to exhaust the heat of a standard refrigerated air unit.

This makes evaporative coolers a much more convenient way of cooling off multiple tops of rooms including garages, shops, apartments, etc.

The fact that air coolers are much cheaper to run and do not have any negative effect on the environment by the emissions of any type of chemicals is also a big plus and a central reason why some people choose evaporative cooling over refrigerated air.

But there are a drawbacks to air coolers too.

For one you can’t use an air cooler when the humidity is too high. But not only leaves out a huge amount of people who live in regions that are extra humid, it also excludes getting a very good result out of a evaporative cooler in the hot humid months of Summer when you need an AC the most.

Another drawback evaporative coolers have is the potential of standing water. Anytime and air cooler is not in use, it requires emptying the water so that there is no risk of developing mold and bacteria in the machine.

Legionnaires disease is a serious condition that can be traced back to origin, coming from commercial rooftop air coolers there were never maintenance and water allowed to stand and facilitate bacteria.

Stagnant water also invites mosquitoes to lay eggs in the water and become another issue that is absolutely not welcomed especially when you’re already dealing with humidity.

Can You Put Essential Oils in a Humidifier? (Hint-Yes You Can)

Aromatherapy and Essential oils have for quite some time been the buzzword in the alternative healing world. The rediscovery of the benefits and the medicinal properties of essential oils has led to great popularity and widespread search for the perfect way to get the best use out of the oils.

A humidifier would seem to be the easiest way to distribute the oils given that it already has all the components that make up a essential oil diffuser.

But that has led to some surprising information when it comes to humidifiers.

Can you put essential oils in a humidifier?

You can absolutely put essential oils in a humidifier provided it’s the right type of humidifier. Many humidifiers come equipped with an essential oil tray. Choosing a humidifier that is essential oil ready is a easy choice when you are in the market for a humidifier and a diffuser.

But what if you already have a humidifier?

When can you not use essential oils in a humidifier?

Not all humidifiers are made to be used with essential oils.
Though most and more the popular brands like Levoit and TaoTronics have begun to include the aromatherapy tray as a basic accessory, most of the humidifiers you see in the vitamin department of Walmart or Dollar store are basic low cost water misters that use cheap plastic.

1. Cheap Plastics

Humidifiers seem to be the perfect solution for not only humidifying your room but being able to get the benefits of the essential oils at the same time. But unfortunately with some types of humidifiers, that is just not the case.

The plastic that the basic humidifier without a essential oil tray is not made to withstand the corrosive oils that are put in essential oil scents.

You will find if you put essential oils in the basic big box store humidifier, that the plastic inside of the humidifier will begin to crack and eventually crack open.

Granted, even though these humidifiers maybe made cheaply, they or also not very expensive.

2. Clogging

Putting oil into a humidifier is asking for your humidifier to eventually clog up. Even though most essential oil may seem to have a watery texture, they are still mixed with a carrier oil even if lightly so.

Eventually, if the plastic doesn’t crack open, you will have to deal with your nozzle getting clogged.

Oil and water do not mix.

3. Warm mist humidifiers

Essential oils are not meant to be boiled and heating them will diminish their healing effects.
Warm mist vaporizers heat the water to a boiling point.
You might think because the water gets so hot that the likelihood of clogging would not be an issue when adding oil to the water. That’s a Good point.
But it doesn’t negate the fact that heating the essential oils can reduce the benefits of using them in the first place.
Warm mist vaporizers like the Vicks vaporizer actually have a tray to put the Vicks ointment.

4. Timer limitations

Essential oils are not meant to be breathed in continuously. In fact, 15 minutes is about to limit that you want to diffuse an essential oil.

Most humidifiers do not come with built-in timers, and if they do, then there is a good chance that they already have a proper aromatherapy tray included with them.

The basic cool mist humidifier is a “just add water” and turn it on till the water runs out type of humidifier.

And that is what it is made for, to humidify the room.

Once you add essential oils to the mix, then you have to set a limit on how long you’re going to use the humidifier or else risk overdoing it with the essential oils.

Which reduces the amount of time that you’re using the humidifier to do the job it was made for, which is add humidity to the air.

A vicious circle.

5. Climate

The need for aromatherapy without the need of a humidifier.

Humidifiers are seasonal. And for most people, they’re only useful for about half of the year. Why is that? The climate.

There are certain times of the year when adding more humidity to your air is not only not needed, will make you feel uncomfortable to say the least.

Even If you could use a humidifier to disperse essential oils without it having any negative effect so ever on the humidifier,

You would still be limited by the fact that humidifiers are not needed all year and you cannot use the humidifier without it humidifying.

Conclusion

The Best policy is just to get the right humidifier that is made to be combined with the diffuser or to buy a humidifier and a diffuser separately.

I lean towards the latter.

Why?

Diffusers are very small and they are made to disperse essential oils correctly.

They’re much more mobile than a humidifier because of their size, and there are different types of diffusers that do not require adding water at all.

Not only that, the price of a diffuser without all the bells and whistles is about 10 bucks and it will properly diffuse my essential oils, which do cost a lot, without over doing it or wasting them.

Lagunamoon Premium Essential Oils Set 20 Pcs

Determined to go ahead?

This would be the part of the article where I tell you that the only way to get a humidifier to work with essential oils is to buy the property humidifier that has the essential oil trade built in.

And these are your three choices…$$$ ChaChing

But the truth is, there are many ways to get humidifiers to work for you more than just to add moisture to the air.

There are also more ways to use essential oils with humidifiers other than to drop them right into the water.

1. Cotton Ball

Put the essential oil on a cotton ball and place it over the misting nozzle at the top of the humidifier.
Put the cotton ball directly on the nozzle, then add a couple of drops of essential oil to the cotton. Turn the humidifier on, and reap the benefits.

The reason you should put the cotton on the nozzle first is that the smell of essential oils is very potent if you get it on your hands, it tends to stay with you for a long while.

Also, it’s way better to start small with the amount essential oil you use, cuz a little goes a long way with essential oils. And you can always add an extra drop or two if you need.

2. Who needs a store-bought humidifier?

In my house growing up, grandma just put a pot of water on the furnace or on the stove and added eucalyptus to it. Easy peasy. Let the water simmer to it needs to be refilled, then start over.

3. Lemon peels

Adding lemon peels to your humidifier water
will create a fresh fragrance to your home and also have an effect on your demeanor. Lemon is also a great all natural residue remover.

Summary

Can you use essential oils in a humidifier? The answer is yes. There are many humidifiers that are essential oil ready and contain everything needed to operate as both a humidifier and a diffuser.

But there are also a ton of cheaply made humidifiers that will crack because of the corrosive nature of essential oils.

So if you want the convenience of using a humidifier with essential oils then be sure that the humidifier you purchase is built for it.

And remember just because you can doesn’t mean you should.

Humidifiers are typically appliances that only get a lot of use in the winter months. Essential oils are presumably something that you want to be able to use all year long.

In the long run, it is probably, in my opinion is that it is better just to purchase a separate diffuser. Not only is it made for the job, it isn’t climate dependent.

And the bottom line is, diffusers are one of the cheapest appliances you can purchase.
It’s the essential oils themselves, that get you in the wallet.

Can I Run My Swamp Cooler All Day?(Evaporative AC Hacks)

Living in the Southwest my entire life, one of the most common sites in the neighborhood was the big blocky swamp coolers hanging off the side of nearly every house on the block.

Of course this was more like 25 years ago and these days, swamp coolers are a lot less popular, which in a lot of regards is a much better.

But the good ol evaporative swamp cooler has a lot of advantages if you know how to get the best out of one.

Can I run my swamp cooler all day?

One of the best ways to get a swamp cooler to cool the house is to turn it on in the morning when the air is cool and let it run the entire day.

Provided you have the proper hookups in place to be able to run the water all day to keep the pads wet.

The reason I make that distinction is that evaporative coolers have become popular as standalone portable units and some are quite small.

If you have the type that you have to fill with a bucket, then running it all day may be too difficult to keep up with.

But regardless, if you can, starting a swamp cooler in the morning will cool the air nicely and give you a much better head start to keeping the house cool during the afternoon heat.

Hessaire MC18M Portable Evaporative Cooler – Gray, 1300 CFM, Cools 500 Square Feet

How to make a swamp cooler colder?

One of the easiest ways to make a swamp cooler feel colder is to take a garden hose and spray down the pads real well. Or if it’s an indoor evaporative cooler, saturate the pads using a bucket of water.
This will add an extra bit of kick to the swamp cooler when the sun gets high.

This is a technique I remember real well doing as a kid. It seems like I was constantly being told to go outside and spray down the air conditioner when the afternoon heat hit.

How to use an air cooler with ice?

Lift out one padded side of the swamp cooler.

Add ice or bottles of iced water into the water basin.
Put the padded side back on by inserting it at the top and bringing it in at the bottom

Putting ice in the water tank of a evaporative cooler is a method of getting a cooler temperature out of a swamp cooler.

If you have plenty of ice, then dumping a bag of ice into the water will make the air coming from your cooler much colder for a little while.

And though you can add ice directly to the water, you will probably find that it melts faster than you want to keep at it.

One one way of making the ice last longer is to freeze water bottles (full of water of course) and put those into the water instead of adding the ice directly to the water.

How many bottles do you need? According to the size of your swamp cooler, anywhere from 3 to 6 bottles of Frozen water.

The point is to cool the water off. Not to replace the water with ice. If you completely replace the water with ice, the swamp cooler will not be able to run at all.

Many a lot of the popular brands of portable ventless air coolers come with plastic ice packs that eliminates the need for a DIY method like putting bottles of Frozen water in your swamp cooler

Air cooler not cooling?

If your air cooler is not cooling, There is only a handful of things that you can check to diagnose the problem.

1. Are the pads getting wet?

If the pump is running, but you don’t feel cool air coming from the cooler, there’s good chance that you’re you’ve got to stoppage somewhere or a disconnection.

Take the pad walls off of the machine and make sure that all the water hoses are hooked up correctly and that there is water flowing through them well.

2. Is there proper air flow in the room?

In order to get good air flow from a swamp cooler, you need have a window or door open on the opposite side of the house. If there is not a window or door open then the air coming from the machine does not have anything to pull it through the house.

Vice versa, if you have too many doors or windows open then the air coming from the cooler will just end up getting pulled out of the house and too much outdoor air will be allowed inside.

3. Do evaporative coolers work in high humidity?

If you’re evaporative cooler is not cooling and you’ve determined that you have proper water and air flow, you may just have a problem with the humidity being too high to tell that the air cooler is making much of a difference.

Unfortunately swamp coolers get their name because of the swampy feeling that you get when you add humidity on top of humidity.

When the humidity is already high, trying to cool off a room by adding more humidity only compounds the problem and can make you feel even hotter.

Can you use an evaporative cooler with a dehumidifier?

Using a dehumidifier to reduce the moisture in the air with an evaporative cooler seems like it would be a good idea, right?

Doesn’t it make sense that if you could reduce the humidity with a dehumidifier, then all you would be left with is cool air?

But there is a couple of problems with that theory that don’t exactly pan out.

1. Dehumidifiers exhaust heat.

Dehumidifiers expel heat from the rear similar to what you have probably experienced by walking behind a window air conditioner.
Placing of the humidifier in the room to reduce humidity but not only reduce the amount of cool humidity that you are getting from the air cooler, it would also add the additional heat that it is exhausting in the process.

2. Dehumidifiers are expensive.

If you were going to purchase a dehumidifier to work with an evaporative cooler, you might as well purchase a window air conditioner or a portable air conditioner. Both the window ac and a portable air conditioner will dehumidify as they cool and most of the time they come with dry mode which will operate as a dehumidifier separately.

What Should You Look For in a Small Window AC? (3 Favorites)

Small window air conditioners generally cover right around 150 square feet for 5000 BTUs. 250 square feet for 6,000 BTUs.

BTUs which stands for British Thermal Units can be a confusing metric to base your AC needs off of.

Most people are unfamiliar with what BTUs actually are.

That’s okay, so am I.

An easier way to figure out what size AC you actually need is to base it off the square footage. Which is generally labeled on the box near the same area where the BTUs are listed.

The formula for square footage is length x width.
In simpler terms, if you have a room that is 10 ft going one way and 12 ft going the other way, you multiply 10×12 to find that you have 120 square feet of space.

Using the same formula, you can find out how many BTUs you need by simply multiplying the square footage by 25.

Sq ft x 25 = BTUs.

But to be fair that is a rough estimate and doesn’t take into account variables like high ceilings, hot climates, and rooms that are directly in the Sun.

If any of those variables applies to you, then you should probably consider stepping it up to the next size.

What should you look for in a window AC?

1. Sq. feet covered
Getting the right AC to match your square footage is important. Air conditioning is not like a race car engine that works better when it has more power. Two large of an air conditioner can actually make the room extra humid. Not to mention the extra energy required to run a larger air conditioner.

2. Physical Size
It’s important to match the physical size of a window AC to the actual window it’s going in. Though with a small window air conditioner, it will not usually be the case, it is possible to get a AC unit that is just too large for your window.

3. Watts/ energy usage
The amount of watts an AC uses will impact the amount of money you spend to run the unit every month. It’s a good idea to check the wattage to find a unit that is relatively low.

Beyond this small list, it is really just bells and whistles.

Some of the extras you can expect to find in a Window AC are:

1. Dehumidifier

Humidity on its own can make a room feel hot without the actual temperature being that high. A dehumidifier or dry mode as it is usually called, will reduce the humidity in the room without using the refrigerator function to cool.

2. Auto shut off

Auto shut off on a window AC is an excellent feature because it will turn the AC off once the desired temperature is reached.

3. Remote control

A remote control with your window AC is one of the best features you can look for when shopping for an AC. Can you imagine any other item that has made life easier than a remote control?

This list of small window air conditioners is comprised of units that use 5,000 and 6,000 BTUs or cover 150 to 250 sq. ft.

Della 6000 BTU

15.26 x 13.45 x 19.04″

6000 BTUs
690 w
250 square feet

The Della small window AC is a great air conditioner that covers 250 square feet handily. It comes featured with full on dehumidifier, auto shut off, 3 speeds, and the obligatory remote control.

Cons

Heavy- 53 lbs
Available in White only
690 w- Expect to use more energy

LG Energy Star Rated 6000 BTU

19.56″ x19.38″ x12.38″
6000 BTUs

480 w
Covers 260 square feet

The LG 6000 BTU window air conditioner comes with everything you need. It is a very quiet AC that comes equipped with dry mode for dehumidification and a remote control.

Built-in timer allows you to set the duration that you want the air conditioner to run.

Indicators let you choose between cool, energy, fan only, and dry mode.

It also has a indicator light to let you know when it’s time to clean the filter.

Low wattage means a lower energy bill with this unit also.

Cons – oversized.

MIDEA MAW05M1BWT

Need something a little smaller? Back to the basics?

MIDEA offers a 5000 BTU window air conditioner with mechanical controls. 7 temperature settings and two fan settings.

This is a entry level low priced AC set to be released in April 2021.

15.98 by 13.19×12.05 in

Covers 150 square feet
450 w
5,000 British thermal units (BTUs)

Washable filter
Easy installation- minimal modification needed

Cons

No bells and whistles.

TOSOT 10000 BTU

Need something a little bigger?

TOSOT offers a 10,000 BTU window air conditioner that covers 450 square feet

21.4×22.8×15.8 in
115 w
Covers 450 square feet

10,000 BTU

The TOSOT 10000 BTU has a sleek modern look with a digital readout. It also does not have the standard grill on the front side of the AC that is typical for nearly all other window air conditioners.

Smart remote control uses sensor technology to monitor the temperature of the air and adjust the air conditioner strength.

Sleep mode- adjust the temperature throughout the night to give you the best comfort. throughout the night

Modes include fan, sleep, timer, swing, and I feel

Very low wattage for a window AC. Energy saver.

Energy STAR certified

Review stating that it is the best AC they’ve ever had.

BTU – Air Conditioning Lingo Confusion

Have you ever shopped for a window air conditioner or a portable ac and realized that there is certain language right on the outside of the box that supposedly tells you everything you need to know about the AC?

But the problem is no one seems to know what that language means?

The specific term I’m talking about is BTU.

What are Air Conditioning BTU’s?

BTU stands for British thermal unit. It is the amount of energy needed to heat or cool 1 lb. of water 1° f at sea level.

That tells me everything I need to know. Not.

The funny thing is, never in my life have I ever known what a BTU is. And I’ve never met anyone that did either.

Seems like an odd way to label an air conditioner when not too many people really seem to know what it is.

But if you’re shopping for a new AC, it’s a term you better become familiar with pretty quickly.

Room Size	Square Footage	How Many BTUs?	How Many Watts Used Per Hr
10 x 15	150	5000 BTU	1465 w
12 x 12	144	5000 BTU	1465 w
14 x 14	200	6000 BTU	1758 w
12 x15	180	6000 BTU	1758 w
20 x 20	400	8000 BTU	2344 w
18 x 25	450	10000 BTU	2930 w
20 x 25	500	10000 BTU	2930 w
25 x 30	750	15000 BTU	4396 w
30 x 30	900	18000 BTU	5275 w
30 x 35	1000	25000 BTU Range	7326 w
35 x 40	1400	35000 BTU Range	10250 w
38 x 40	1500	37500BTU Range	10990 w
40 x 45	1800	45000 BTU Range	13188 w
45 x 50	2250	55000 BTU Range	16118 w
50 x 50	2500	62500 BTU Range	18316 w

Let’s get down to the nitty gritty.

How many BTUs do I need? What size air conditioner do I need?

The quickest way to give you a ballpark figure of how many BTUs you need is to use a simple formula.

Square footage (length times width) x 25

This is a rough figure based on a square room with average 8 ft ceilings and one or two windows that are not directly in the Sun.

If the area you are looking to cool off has higher ceilings, increase the amount by 10%.

Likewise if the room is the direct path of the sun, increase the amount 10% again.

Another factor to consider is the kitchen.

Are you trying to cool off the kitchen or is the kitchen in the vicinity that is adding heat into the area you’re trying to cool off?

If that’s the case then increase the amount of BTUs by 4,000 to combat the extra heat given off by the stove and other cooking equipment.

If you’re dealing with the Arizona Sun or any other high heat climate, tackle on another 10 to 12% of BTUs.

Don’t overdo it.

Bigger is not better when it comes to air conditioners

You might think that if your room requires 5000 BTU then getting an AC that has 8,000 BTU could only add more power and do a way better job.

Not so.

That might be hard fact to accept for those of us who want bigger and better,

But putting too big of an air conditioner into too small of a square footage will cause humidity to build up in your room.

Humidity is not the result you were going for, presumably.

Humidity makes the room feel hotter than the temperature actually is.

Too large of an AC in too small of a space will not allow for the condensation in the unit to properly displace, which will cause it to evaporate and come back into the room as humidity.

A large AC and a small room will also cycle on and off much faster and use much more energy.

The same ratio can happen with an AC that is too small and a large room except for the AC will continually run without turning off and use much more energy.

What are BTUs in Watts?

How many watts an air conditioner is going to use is also a big variable when it comes to shopping for an AC.

1 BTU is worth .293071 watts per hour

Energy cost from running the AC is one of the biggest energy hogs you will have in your house hands down.

Energy saving is a must during the summer. Running the AC day and night will put your electric bill through the roof.
So finding some ways to keep cool rather than the AC is always a smart thing to do.

A few tips to keep cool in summer

1. Bump your thermostat up

Most of us want the kind of cool air you get when you walk into a hotel lobby or a department store in our house.
But the reality is the comfort comes with a hefty price tag.
Simply learning to keep the thermostat a little higher and being comfortable in a little warmer space will have dramatic results on your energy bill. By just going from 72° to 75 on your thermostat, you could see a surprising change in the amount of your bill.

2. Ceiling fans

Ceiling fans, well technically do nothing to change the actual temperature, they do pull heat away from you so that you actually feel cooler in hot weather. Ceiling fans are much less expensive to run than the air conditioner also.

3. Shade

Shade can come in the form of plants, shutters, curtains, etc.

Shading your windows can have a great effect on the amount of heat that comes into your room.

Summing it up

Choosing an AC with the proper BTUs for the size room that you want to cool is a must.

But how many people do you know that really know what a BTU is or what they’re supposed to do with that term?

BTU stands for British thermal unit.
If you’re in the HVAC industry or deal with heating and air very much then it is a term or an acronym that you are probably very familiar with and no how to use properly,

But for the rest of us, there is an easier way to determine how many BTUs you are going to need when purchasing an AC.

An easy formula is to take the square footage of a room and multiply by 25.
W x L x 25
And since we all know that rooms come in all different kinds of sizes, we simply add in 10% if the ceilings are higher or if it’s a particularly warm room that sits in the Sun.

It’s also important to know that when it comes to purchasing an AC, more BTUs does not equate to a cooler room.

Two large of an AC will cycle on and off too quickly and will not displace the condensation quickly enough which will cause your room to be extra humid.

An AC should help reduce humidity, definitely not add to it.

You should also be aware that the more BTUs and air conditioner has, the more watts it’s going to consume, and the higher the energy bill is going to be to run the unit.

Best Mid Size HEPA air purifier?

Best midsize HEPA air purifier?

If you’ve done any looking around for an air purifier, even just a little bit, you’ve probably figured out that almost every air purifier you can purchase uses the same type of technology to clean the air.

Pre-filter- HEPA filter- carbon filter
A pre-filter for larger debris.

A carbon filter for odors and gases.
And a true HEPA filter for all the other contaminants in the air.

Sure there are some variables and little things that the different companies do to make their air cleaners different, but in the end, they’re basically the same.

So how do you know what to look for when everything is basically the same thing?

When it comes to HEPA air purifiers,
The main things you want to look for are:

Replacement filter cost and the amount of filters you’ll need to replace per year
How many square footage can you get out of one air purifier

That the air purifier uses actual HEPA filters and not the HEPA like filters.

Beyond this small list, everything else is truly bells and whistles.

Most air purifier brands these days are coming out with smart sensors to measure air quality and auto adjust the air purifier.

This is a great feature. But absolutely not necessary other than for convenience sake.

Other purifiers have 360° filters. Again, a great future but just a variance on the same thing.

So here we have tried to compile a list of excellent med room size HEPA air purifiers that we absolutely believe would be a benefit to you without costing you too much upfront or on the back end with filters.

Honeywell HPA 300

Sq ft covered 465
Technology- true HEPA and carbon filters

Filter cost-Hepa $18.62 replace once a year
Carbon filter three pack $21.68 replace once every 3 months.

Honeywell is a trustworthy brand and this air purifier comes with a 5- year warranty.

The price of replacement filters is quite reasonable considering the true HEPA only requires changing once a year.

Effectiveness- filters the air of a 450 ft room 5 times every hour. Comes with a turbo setting to filter the room faster.

Pros-

Endorsed by doctors.
Trusted brand.
5 year warranty.

HEPA Filter only needs replaced once a year.

Con’s

The Carbon filter serves as the pre-filter.

The style of the machine is pretty dull. The look of it makes easy to mistake it for your paper shredder.

Thoughts-

Honeywell HPA is your basic true HEPA air purifier with a carbon filter.

The odd thing about this air purifier is that the carbon filter is used as the pre filter.

Activated carbon is very porous and binds gases to the inside of its pore walls. Having the activated carbon filter serve as a pre-filter will quickly block the area of the carbon and make it inefficient.

You can easily see that keeping the carbon filter vacuumed off would lengthen the lifespan of the filter considerably in this case.

Bissell air400 professional

The Bissell air 400 is comparable to Honeywell’s HPA 300. It is a very nice air purifier.

Sq Ft. It covers 400 square feet
Replacement filter cost –Pre filter and HEPA filter combo $24.99 Suggested replacement every 6 months.

Carbon filter $25.99- Also replaced every 6 months.

The primary difference between the Bissell air 400 and the Honeywell HPA 300 is the addition of a air quality sensor that monitors the air and adjust the speed of the fan to accommodate the amount of air purification you need.

Pros

Honeycomb design on the carbon filter helps adsorb odors and gases better.
Smart sensor with automatic adjustment allows for the unit to be set and left.
Very well reviewed on Amazon.

Cons

Filters are more expensive and the HEPA filter requires twice as many replacements per year.
The Initial price of the air purifier is also more expensive.

Style- This air purifier also could be mistaken for your paper shredder.

A nice air purifier that uses the standard three stage filter system. Pre filter- carbon filter-HEPA filter.

The main difference between this HEPA midsize air purifier and it’s competitors is that it has a smart sensor that adjust the fan speed to match the air quality.

Winix 5500-2

This is my favorite midsize HEPA air purifier.
Style wise, maybe your paper shredder just needs a boyfriend.
But performance wise it has something you’re not going to find with most med to large size room air purifiers.

That something is Plasma Wave.
Plasma Wave is a type of ionizer that emits both positive and negative ions.

It is effective at not only reducing or trapping germs and viruses, it actually destroys the membrane and leaves them inactive.

Yeah but don’t ionizers create ozone?

Winix plasma wave does not create a harmful amount of ozone. It is well within the federal limit.

Plus Plasma Wave is only one function on the Winix 5500-2 and it can be turned off and used only when you need it.

Winix plasma wave also employees the standard true HEPA and carbon combo.

The carbon filter uses pellets. A technique that is becoming very popular in the air purification industry.

Pros

Air Quality indicator that shows you through a series of lights how bad or how good your air quality actually is.
Dual smart sensors that monitor your air quality and adjust the speed of the fans to the amount of air purification needed.

Cons

Though the air purifier itself is not the most expensive, filter prices for this air purifier are a little higher.
Filter prices run $59.63 for the carbon filter and $39 for the HEPA. Replace HEPA every 6 months. Carbon every three.
Style wise. Black and boxy. Not too much chance of it adding to the decor of your room.

Levoit Core 300

Levoit is one of the most popular hepa purifier brands available. And they didn’t get there by not providing excellence.

The Levoit Core 300 is a smaller room air purifier that only covers about 250 ft.

The reason we have decided to include the Levoit Core 300 here is that it comes with a price that makes it possible to buy two outstanding air purifiers the cover 500 square feet combined for the price of another air purifier that only covers 400.

Price is only the first reason.

Secondly.

When it comes to cleaning the air in your house, it is much more effective to play small air purifiers around the house rather than try to get all the air in the house or large room through one big air purifier.

This little air purifier gives you the chance to do just that.

There is a couple of downsides to employing too small air purifiers in a large room compared to one:

The price of filters is not that much cheaper for one air purifier and it’s going to take twice as many because you have twice as many air purifiers now. $30 for the original. $36 for what they call their pet version. They recommend changing it every 6 months.

Warning: The sound the air purifier makes is going to be louder because now there is two air purifiers making the same sound.

But if air quality is the central reason you are purchasing an air purifier, the Levoit core 300 is a excellent choice.

It uses the HEPA 13 filter combined with the carbon filter in a 360° design that pulls and cleans air from all sides.

Pros

Super nice small air purifier that will fit into the decor of any living room.
Uses the HEPA 13 360° filter that can filter particulates even smaller than the true HEPA.

The initial cost is very low.

Cons

Filters are pricey and require changing every 6 months. And of course, you’ll use twice as many if you run two small air purifiers in the place of one large air cleaner.

Also the filter is a combination filter that combines the HEPA, Carbon filter and pre-filter in one.-Sounds awesome, but it also means that you cannot just buy the Hepa without getting the carbon.
And there’s no doing any type of DIY cleaning on the HEPA filter because you would end up tearing up the carbon filter.