I’d like to start this article out with a little story. Years ago, I was sitting in a loft in Pagosa Springs, Colorado enjoying my morning coffee and reading Trout Bum by John Gierach when the odor of freshly-cooked trout began to waft across my nose! “What in the world?” I said to myself. “Who is cooking fish at 8 o’clock in the morning?!?”

As it turns out, a couple of my buddies, with whom I had been spending the week fly fishing, had gotten up well before dawn and hit the stream. After a successful hour or so on the stream, they decided between the two of them that they would surprise the rest of the group with a breakfast of trout and eggs! Yeah, I know, sounds pretty gross! Now, I love fresh fish as much as anyone, but the shock to my olfactory senses was just about at its limit! For the rest of the day, our quaint cabin reeked of fish!

Now, my little story was intended to put a little smile on your face, but the truth is, we’ve all been there. You’ve cooked fish or something that lingers even after the meal is over, or accidentally forgot something on the stove and filled your home or apartment with smoke. You’ve visited a friend's home and are overwhelmed by pet odors. You see, our noses can often become desensitized to everyday odors. We can’t smell them but our guests and friends can!

And if you’re in the market for a home air purification system, chances are that other concerns are a higher priority than my little story: getting rid of a stench ASAP. This is just one reason to look for a large room air purifier system to improve your indoor air quality.

Coverage is key when choosing the best air purifiers for large rooms. And if you're looking into home air filtration for large rooms, you’re looking for devices that will handle not only the scenario above but also environmental factors, such as viruses, allergies, dust mites, pollen, allergens, pet dander, bacteria, mold spores, and other airborne particles. Let’s talk more about purifiers.

Specifications for Air Purification

The best large-room air purifiers should contain the following:

• A high enough clean air delivery rate (CADR) to handle the size of the area to be treated: This is most commonly measured in square feet (sq ft). Always compare the CADR rating of your unit.
• A good companion to CADR in air changes per hour (ACH): This rating lets you know how many times per hour the total air in the room is circulated through the purifier.
• A true high-efficiency particulate absorbing filter (HEPA filter): The H13 and H14 HEPA filters are the two highest-rated HEPA filters and are considered medical-grade. The most common units on the market contain H13 HEPA filters. HEPA filtration traps particles as small as 0.3 microns in size.
• An activated carbon filter: Carbon filtration removes what are called volatile organic compounds (VOCs). VOCs are the primary cause of odors.
• A low noise level: How loud is the unit? Noise is measured in decibels (dB); the lower the number, the quieter the unit. If noise is a concern, you’ll want to find a unit that has the lowest dB rating possible.

Most Recommended Large Room Air Purifiers

Now, let's take a look at the most recommended air purifiers for large rooms and break down the various features of each! You’ll notice that many of them have four-stage or higher filtration systems, which effectively remove at least 99.95% of particles as small as 0.1 microns, including allergens, such as pollen, dust, pet dander, and smoke. I’ll also add a brief summary of my personal thoughts on each unit (ie., best application, ease of use, etc.).

1. Fellowes AeraMax Pro AM4S PC Air Purifier

• Four-stage H13 True HEPA Filtration
• Contains an anti-microbial treatment that prevents the growth of any airborne contaminants that become trapped by filters
• Auto mode filtration with EnviroSmart Technology that constantly monitors real-time air quality, automatically adjusts to clean the air, and automatically adjusts fan speed to conserve energy and keep operating costs down
• Five-year warranty

What Space It’s Best For: The Fellowes AeraMax is a great unit for large rooms and commercial applications. Whether you’ve got a large open floor plan or a garage or shop, this unit covers all bases.

2. Rabbit Air A3

• Equipped with a six-stage filtration system that covers up to 1070 sq. ft.
• HEPA filtration that utilizes a BioGS HEPA filter
• Plug and Play technology with Wi-fi connectivity and smartphone app via Bluetooth
• Five-year warranty

What Space It’s Best For: The Rabbit Air A3 is a sleek and attractive unit. You’re able to choose between several artistic faceplates that allow you to integrate the unit into the room in such a way that it appears as a piece of art rather than a mechanical device. It is a great choice if you want a purifier that checks all your boxes yet is highly unobtrusive!

3. Austin Air Systems HealthMate Plus

• Equipped with true medical-grade four-stage HEPA filtration
• 360-degree air intake
• Three-speed centrifugal fan
• Easily portable from room to room on included casters

What Space It’s Best For: The Austin Air System HealthMate Plus’s best feature is its mobility. It is powerful enough to handle large rooms with the added ability to move to various locations. This is great for someone on a budget who wants to purify the air in the main living area by day and roll the unit into the bedroom area at night. Of course, that’s providing that both areas are on the same level and no stairs are involved.

4. Molekule Air Pro

• PECO process filtration system with a nano catalyst-coated filter that reacts to light, destroying pollutants that are captured and leaving behind clean, pure air
• 360-degree intake
• Senses chemicals, humidity, and CO2 and automatically protects you and your family
• Great for spaces up to 1000 sq. ft.
• Features Bluetooth connectivity to your smartphone

What Space It’s Best For: The Air Pro by Molekule has a sleek design and cutting-edge technology. Without going into too much technical detail, the PECO system uses free radical technology, developed by research scientists over 25 years ago to destroy cancer cells. This technology is now used by the Air Pro to destroy mold, bacteria, and chemicals. The Air Pro unit is great for both home and office.

The Wrap-Up

To wrap things up, I hope that I was able to help you make an informed purchase when it comes to the most recommended air purifiers for large rooms. The best choice for you will come down to the size of your space, how automated and feature-extensive you want it to be, and what lies in your budget.

If you need more assistance in narrowing down your options, feel free to reach out to me or any other Filtration & Air Quality Expert here at Curated. Until next time, I hope that you can breathe easy! Cheers!