STACK #207 Jan 2022

FAIR AIR continued

LIFE TECH FEATURE

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Five facts about hay fever 1. Hay fever’s medical name is allergic rhinitis. 2. Hay fever generally starts when you’re a child, and around half of all sufferer’s report that symptoms ease as they get older. For around 20 per cent of sufferers, the symptoms will disappear completely. 3. Hay fever is a generic term for all pollen, but pollen actually falls into three main groups: tree pollen, weed pollen and grass pollen. 4. According to the World Health Organisation, between 10 and 30 per cent of the world’s population suffers from hay fever. 5. In data collected between 2017-18, the ACT had the highest rate of hay fever in Australia at 29 per cent. The Northern Territory had the lowest at 14 per cent. (Source AIHW.)

CADR? What’s that about?

How to work out your room area Working out the room area is surprisingly easy. The formula is length x width = area. So if a room is four metres long and three metres wide, the total area is 12m2.

The Clean Air Delivery Rate, or CADR, is an industry standard measure for how efficient an air purifier is based the size of a room and the amount of clean air produced by the minute. When units are initially tested, the results are converted to cubic metres per hour. The three pollutants that are used in the testing process are dust, smoke, and pollen. So essentially, the higher the CADR rating, the better the air purifier will perform. Room rules Before you choose an air purifier, the first step is to establish the size of the room it will be used in and cross reference that with the unit’s performance specs. Just as a unit that is underpowered for a larger room will not perform properly, one that is too overpowered for a smaller space will just clock up the power bill. The good news is that most models will openly display coverage rates in metreage. All you need to do is establish the floor area at home and correlate the measurement with the unit’s coverage. If you have rooms that adjoin and you want to use the air purifier, you’ll need to calculate the overall floor area. As a rule of thumb, it’s better to buy an air purifier that will cope with a slightly larger area than the one you’re buying for.

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Image: Alfred Kenneally

night. An oscillating air purifier is a good option for covering more room area. Sensors built into the unit can relay information about the air quality to the user. The technology can also assess the air quality during operation and adjust accordingly. A remote control can be the art of convenience, but many air purifiers can now connect to the home Wi-Fi network. This provides a full suite of control options through your smart device. Some models even offer voice control, so all your need to do is call out across the room to bring it online. Final thoughts Every air purifier will offer something different, so it’s important to establish exactly what you want to use it for. Will it be against the pollutants in your home? If you need to use it at night, does it have a quiet mode? Are you buying a model that will cover the room where you intend to out it? Do your homework to ensure you’re getting exactly what you need. The right air purifier can make quite the difference.

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Feature rich Air purifiers come with an array of different features depending on the price, and it can be hard to cut through the noise to determine which one to buy. We’ve already covered the essential basics but there are some other features that can improve the user experience. As we’ve already mentioned, some units will prompt you when a filter requires replacing or cleaning – this digital reminder is a good idea for busy households. An air purifier with variable speed settings will enable flexibility in filtering the air. A higher setting is ideal for cleaning a room quickly, while a lower fan setting would be a better option for running in a bedroom at

34 JANUARY 2022

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