Smoke Eliminator – How to Find the Best Smoke Eliminator

The smoke purifier, also known as a home smoke eater or a Smoke Eeter, is an air cleaning device that effectively removes cigar and cigarette smoke. The key is a specialist carbon filter that absorbs odours.

Specialist smoke air purifiers like the Blueair MS18 feature a washable pre-filter to enhance its efficiency. It also has twin robust centrifugal fans that operate quietly, ensuring a restful sleep.

Activated Carbon Filter

Activated carbon filters work by trapping gases and odors, making them one of the most useful smoke purifier features. As air flows through the filter, the carbon particles adsorb gas molecules that come into contact with them, sticking to them due to chemical bonds. Odors also adsorb, neutralizing them, leaving the air fresher and safer. Typically made from a charcoal-like material derived from coconut shells, coal, wood, or peat, activated carbon has a highly porous structure with an extensive surface area. This allows for a high level of adsorption, which is why these filters are so effective at filtering gas pollutants.

Compared to other types of filtration media, activated carbon has undergone special processing to make it better at trapping gas molecules. This is done by injecting it with hot air or carbon dioxide steam, creating a grid of tiny pores throughout the entire structure. This vastly increases the carbon’s surface area and ability to trap gas particles, with a single gram of activated carbon having the same surface area as a football field.

This material is commonly used as part of a multi-layer filter system, often paired with HEPA filters to provide a comprehensive smoke-removal solution. Some manufacturers also embed the material directly into other synthetic filtration media, like in a pleated True HEPA filter. Activated carbon filters are available in three primary forms: 1) Fibre Activated Carbon Filters (FAC) are thin fibrous filters containing fiber-bonded carbon. 2) Granular Activated Carbon Filters (GAC) are cartridge filters that contain loose carbon in pellet form. 3) Powdered Activated Carbon Filters (PAC) are a finely ground, dust-like version that lasts much longer than GAC.

HEPA Filter

The most effective smoke purifiers are those with a HEPA filter. You can walk into most High Street stores and purchase what appears to be a HEPA air purifier, but these typically only remove larger particles such as dust and pet dander which are harmless to us (but still annoying). The best Hepa filters on the market can actually trap extremely small particles down to 0.3 microns.

These microscopic airborne particles are called allergens and can include pollen, mould spores, dust and even viruses and bacteria. If they are smoke purifier inhaled they can be absorbed deep into the lungs and cause irritation or damage to our respiratory systems. The best HEPA air cleaners can effectively trap allergens and other microorganisms.

There are a number of different ways that HEPA air filters capture airborne pollutants including direct impaction, sieving and diffusion. When at higher air speeds, large particles slam directly into the filter fibres and stick to them. At lower air speeds, smaller particles move randomly in the airflow (Brownian motion) and can hit and stick to the filter fibres as they pass by.

Hepa filters can’t however catch odour which is not a particle but a complex mix of gases, liquids and solids. For this reason, most Hepa smoke purifiers are paired with carbon filter that can adsorb these smelly contaminants from the air as it passes through the filter.

Electrostatic Filter

As its name suggests, this filter uses electrostatic forces to remove particles from the air. Specifically, it contains an initial row of vertical wires that charges particles as they pass through it. Then, as they pass the collector section of the filter, those particles are pulled toward flat plates that have an opposite charge and stick to them. The resulting clean air (minus the pollutants) is released back into the room.

While electrostatic precipitators work well in industrial settings, smoke purifier manufacturer they’re not a good choice for homes because they produce ozone, which is harmful at ground level and can aggravate asthma and damage the lungs. Fortunately, there are other filters that can offer similar benefits without producing this dangerous byproduct.

One option is to choose a mechanical pleated filter, which uses both the electrostatic and mechanical elements of filtration to target particulate matter. These filters are also inexpensive and take up less space than HEPA filters.

Another option is a wet electrostatic precipitator, or WESP, which uses liquid droplets to remove chemicals and other contaminants from the air. These devices are especially useful for removing oil, grease, smoke, and other pollutants from factories and other industrial spaces.

These heavy-duty, non-disposable filters are reusable and washable. They feature a mesh design and rugged aluminum frame that prevents corrosion and rust. They are rated at MERV 8 and can be washed up to every 30 days, which is more than enough time for them to remove microscopic pathogens, dust mites, and other allergens.

Optimal Ventilation

Activated carbon adsorption is important to remove gaseous pollutants that can trigger asthma and other respiratory conditions. Look for a filter that has a substantial amount of adsorption capacity, ideally measured in kilograms or pounds. Many cheaper units found on the High Street contain just a token gesture of carbon, usually no more than a lightweight piece of sponge impregnated with a little bit of the stuff, to allow them to claim they remove smoke and odours. Specialist units can contain around a kilo or more of genuine activated carbon.

Finally, ensure that the filtration system is adequately sized to cover the space you need it for. The Clean Air Delivery Rate (CADR) number on the AHAM label provides this information; match it to the size of the room you need it for. The larger the CADR, the faster it will clean the room.

The ability to direct airflow to or from the “clean” space and the less-clean space is also an important consideration. This reduces transmission risk by lowering the concentration of infectious aerosols in the less-clean space.