Products |
LEVOIT Core 300 Air Purifier
By
Published: Aug 31, 2021
Category:
Health
I wrote about the Levoit Air purifier in January of 2021. If you can remember what our lives were like then, you’ll understand why many of you bought one. Some of you thanked me (see below).
In July 2021, with COVID spiking again, I updated this piece because Wirecutter — the New York Times-owned site that reviews products — compared air purifiers. The Wirecutter review has been updated. Its current favorite: the Coway AP-1512HH Air Purifier. The price may give you pause: $201. [To buy the Coway from Amazon, click here.]
At half the price of the Coway, Wirecutter is still strong on the Levoit:
Our pick among small-space purifiers, the Levoit Core 300, is a true-HEPA machine, and has a CADR of 135, which means it’s effective in rooms up to 200 square feet… It was impressive in our tests, reducing particulates by more than 97% on its high setting in 30 minutes in a 135-square-foot New York City office. On medium, it reduced them by more than 92%. It’s attractive and compact, measuring just 14½ inches tall and 8½ inches in diameter, and its display-shutoff feature means it won’t interrupt sleep with bright lights. At around $100 to purchase, it’s also the cheapest up front of all our picks.
I’m republishing it again, because fires are burning in Canada and smoke blew South. New York had the worst air quality in the world this week. My most sensitive friend was dizzy. The streets were empty. When I went out, I masked up.
Today is a good day to republish The Washington Post piece about the science of air purifiers in a season of fires:
Air pollution, particularly from wildfires, can cause a host of issues — including asthma, cardiovascular events, cognitive impairment and cancer. The last — according to John Balmes, a physician and member of the California Air Resources Board — is due to the chemical compounds that make up wildfire smoke. “Some of the same PAHs [polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons] that are carcinogenic in tobacco smoke are found in biomass smoke,” Balmes says. “It’s like tobacco smoke but without the nicotine.”
A recent study found that communities affected by wildfires have worse covid-19 outcomes —– in terms of number of cases and resulting deaths. And kids are especially susceptible to smoke “because they take in more air relative to their size and get a higher dose of whatever pollutant is in the air,” says Stephanie Holm, an environmental pediatrician in San Francisco.
And, finally — and how jolly is this!!! — The Daily Beast reports that “air pollution is a significant risk factor for developing dementia in old age….Improved air quality over several years is associated with a reduced risk of dementia in elderly women.”
The tech of the Levoit Air Purifie is impressive: 3-stage filtration that traps 99.97% of fine particles 0.3 microns in size, including pollen, dust mites, mold spores, pet dander and smoke. It is almost completely silent. In sleep mode, you don’t know it’s on. An Amazon reviewer: “My boyfriend said it was the first time in his life he didn’t wake up with a stuffy nose.” [To buy it from Amazon, click here. It’s strongly recommended that you change the filter every 6 to 8 months. To buy a replacement filter from Amazon, click here. For a filter that works better for pet allergies, click here.]
Two things to know:
– Before you use it, open it and remove the plastic wrapping on the filter.
– If the least bit of noise bothers you, set it on the sleep icon.
READER REVIEWS
READER #1: “I ordered the air purifier immediately. I need two in every room, what with a dusty husband, two borderline collies, a wood stove, fireplace, and some other guy’s cat.”
READER 1 (a few days later): “This air filter is the BOMB! Hub slept from 10:30-6:00 w/o snoring. Praise be to Baby Jesus. I’m getting one more, for now.”
READER #2: “It has a low, almost subliminal hum that creates REM sleep, which has been an infrequent visitor in my life for years. Now I have dreams, and sometimes remember them.”
READER #3: “No dust kitties!”
READER #4: “My sinuses are clear. My allergies require much less meds.”
READER #5: “I smoke. My wife doesn’t. This used to be an issue..”
Looking ahead, here’s what to expect from this summer’s weather. And here’s how to consider this device: in a dangerously dirty world, a breath of clean air.
