Just the way we've come to depend on water filters to provide us clean water, air purifiers today are an urban necessity. In the last one year, Breathe Easy alone has sold more than 2200 air purifiers. But does it make sense to buy an air purifier? What's the point of breathing clean air for eight hours and then going outdoors where I am breathing unclean air once again?
I am asked this question almost every day. My answer is always the same. Is it better for a smoker, who can't quit, to smoke two or ten cigarettes a day? I don't have to answer that question for you.
Cover of How To Grow Fresh Air by Kamal Meattle and Barun Aggarwal
Giving your lungs even eight to ten hours of much-needed clean air makes them stronger and better equipped to bear the onslaught of air pollution when you step outdoors. In fact, I would go one step further to say that in a developing country like ours, where growth is of prime importance, where the aspirations of a billion people are to be met with more jobs, better cars and homes every year, air pollution is an evil that will persist for a while and an air purifier becomes a necessity.
The fact is that every home in an Indian metro should have an air purifier. Here are the four we recommend:
1. IQAir Health Pro 250 and Health Pro 150: These Swiss-made machines are the best in the industry. The Health Pro 250 is the highest selling model in the world. IQAir is also an educational partner with the American Lung Association.The filters used in these machines are far superior to any other existing air purifier, with the depth/ size of the filters being ten times more than most other purifiers on the market. IQAir machines are also capable of removing some of the smallest particulates of 0.003 mm in size.
Price: They cost between Rs 95,000 and Rs 1,20,000. Even though they are expensive machines, our research at Breathe Easy shows us they provide the best air purifying services a machine can offer and we consider them value for money.
2. Austin Air Healthmate Plus and Austin Air Allergy Machine: The US-manufactured Austin Air is a powerful air purifier with excellent quality filters that come with active carbon to remove gases and odours from the air. This is a great product for people who suffer from asthma, weak lungs and allergies.
Price: They cost between Rs 80,000 and Rs 1,00,000.
3. SHARP FU-A80E-W: This is a great budget option for people who want to get started on an air purifier and are not ready to spend too much.These Japanese economical machines do a reasonable job of removing PM 2.5, but are not as effective with the ultra-fine particles.
Price: They cost between Rs 20,000 and Rs 35,000.
4. Smart Air: The brainchild of Thomas Talhelm from the Chicago Booth School of Business, Smart Air is a do-it-yourself (DIY ) purifier. Smart Air uses the simplest yet most effective technology available. It's a basic contraption - a table fan with a high efficiency particulate arrester or a HEPA filter Velcroed on to it. Believe it or not, it actually arrests some PMs and gaseous pollutants and doesn't emit any chemicals into the air! Air does leak around the sides, but at the given price, something is better than nothing.
Price: If your budget is modest and you still want clean air at home, this smart air purifier can be yours for as little as Rs 3500.
Kamal Meattle and Barun Aggarwal are two of the country's top experts on battling air pollution. Their book, 'How To Grow Fresh Air', based on Meattle's viral TED talk, can be pre-ordered here.
Disclaimer: The opinions expressed within this article are the personal opinions of the author. The facts and opinions appearing in the article do not reflect the views of NDTV and NDTV does not assume any responsibility or liability for the same.