A customer called the other day and told me they had two friends recommend ozone generators to them. She lives in Texas and has mold issues. One recommended our 10-gram “Large Room” unit. Another had bought a Mica plate ozone air purifier / HEPA filter on Amazon and liked/recommended that unit. I gave her the “skinny” on those types of machines just as I’ll give you now via this post.
Twenty-five years ago, when I was an Airpura rep, has a showroom in Las Vegas, NV, and performed indoor air quality tests (as well as sold kits and machines online). I knew about the Alpine and EcoQuest mica plate ozone air purifiers. They were sold via MLM channels and were way overpriced (Some over $1000). The reasons I didn’t recommend them to my clients? For one, they don’t cause a significant or even noticeable reduction in air particulates. (The HEPA feature) No tabletop air purifier does! They don’t move enough air (CFM too low). I had sensitive air testing equipment and could test for high particulates 3 feet from the machine. The only clean air was found 2 inches from the air outlet. (Same issue in all tabletop air cleaners) The Airpura machines I sold sucked air in from 360 degrees and moved a lot of air. On high, they’re noisy, but they work! But the best way to remove dead skin and dust from your indoor air is to run your HVAC system fan in the “ON” position 24/y and employ a MERV 11 furnace filter. They’re sold on eBay for about $6 a piece (12-pack around $72). So forget HEPA. Go with MERV 11, and you air handler that recycles all the air in your home twice an hour!
Now on to the ozone feature. Ozone, at small concentrations, such as those created (around 400 mg/h tops, even though they advertise “up to 3500 sq ft”), will freshen the air but not kill mold or provide beneficial “ozone shock treatments” in unoccupied spaces. These machines are ozone air purifiers, not ozone generators. The 3″ x 3″ stainless steel portion of their Mica plate creates nanoparticle-free ozone (unlike the ceramic plate units sold on Amazon; a health hazard), which is a good thing. And they will give the air a nice, fresh smell of ozone. But since the ozone accumulates near the ground level. The concentration may harm your pets’ lungs. And if you use it in your bedroom at night. It may harm your lungs. That’s why we only suggest ozone shock treatments in unoccupied rooms followed by our airing out protocol.
Both Alpine and EcoQuest went belly up years ago as the litigation from hospital visits from their customers stacked up over time.
Our 10g quartz tubes produce 10g of pure, nanoparticle-free ozone per hour using our protocol that feeds them a constant supply of fresh air. They create 10-20ppm ozone concentrations that kill molds, viruses, bacteria, and pathogens. Those concentrations even kill small insects (used by green pesticide companies). They are ONLY used in UNOCCUPIED AREAS (no lungs present). That’s why they’re so effective at keeping critters from setting up shop in your attic or basement crawl spaces. Bats, rats, mice, etc can’t handle the ozone and have to leave the area promptly, as breathing will become difficult in an ultra-high ozone environment. The ozone concentrations, even with 400 milligrams per hour, can elevate the ozone concentration to 3-5 ppm in an hour within a bedroom. And breathing those concentrations for a few hours can and will harm your lungs. So our verdict on ozone air purifiers? Take a hard pass!
So there you have it. Apples and oranges.