Air Sterilizer Machine Buying Guide

What makes a fine air sterilizer machine fit for killing airborne diseases? This guide will tell you exactly which model, size, and price should you consider.

What is an Air Sterilizer Machine?

Commercial UV Air Sterilizer machines filters purify and sterilize air to become safely breathable. The sterilization process is a big plus as most commercial air purifiers don’t have this feature. Hence, air sterilizers are often used commercially for areas frequently visited by people like healthcare facilities and restaurants.

UV Sterilizer for HVAC Systems with HEPA filters supplements in killing bacteria, viruses, spores and molds up to 0.3 microns at 99.97% efficiency. In addition, units with activated carbon air filter machines remove bad odors, formaldehyde, smoke, and organic matters.

Portable vs Whole House Air Sterilizer

There are 2 types of designs for air sterilizers: portable and whole house air sterilizer system. This is important to distinguish so you can choose which has a better design for your home or facility.

Portable air sterilizers

Portable air sterilizers are those that can be moved and placed in a room without necessary screw and bolt installations. It is very convenient and more affordable.

Whole house air sterilizer in an HVAC system

Whole house air sterilizer systems are attached to HVAC systems to readily filter air before recirculating the clean air. It requires professional installation and is usually more expensive. But if you prefer your whole facility to have purified air without buying individual units for each room, then a UV Sterilizer Air Duct system can be a viable option.

Difference Between a Commercial Air Purifier & Air Sterilizer Machine

Air Sterilizers sterilize air by inactivating harmful microorganisms through Ultraviolet Rays
An HVAC UV sterilizer model can supplement your ventilation system to kill bacteria from the air before circulating it in the room.
Air sterilizers often cost more than commercial air purifiers

How Does an Air Sterilizer Work?

Using a variety of high-performance filters, the air sterilizer machine works by passing polluted air, purifying it and delivering it fresh and breathable. There are 2 ways of how it works depending on the type of machine you choose:

Ozone generation + UV sterilizer
Mechanical filtration + UV sterilizer

Ozone Air Sterilizer

This uses multi-stage, high-performance filters such as plasma sterilization to filter bacteria, plus releases negative ions to clean the air.

Mechanical Filter Air Sterilizer

This uses H13 HEPA filters and several other filters such as nylon pre-filter, activated carbon filter, etc and sterilizes the air by killing viruses through UVC lamps.

Air Sterilizer Filters

Now that you know the types of air sterilizers and how they work, let’s see how each type of filter they use affect the air cleaning process.

Air sterilizers have more high grade filter types than your typical air purifier. For example, the HA40 air disinfection sterilizer composes of the following filters to trap 99.9% (instead of just 99.97%) of pollens, dust, and viruses and smogs and odors.

Nylon Mesh Pre-filter

Nylon is a strong, hydrophilic (water-loving), solvent-resistance used as a pre-filter to capture large pollutants. This layer is usually made of a washable and durable material to pre-capture large contaminants which may hurt the secondary HEPA filter .

This captures animal dander, dust, pollens, and many more.

H13 Medical-Grade HEPA Filter

The next filter layer is the H13 HEPA filter, which is a special type of HEPA used in medical settings for its robustness. While standard HEPA filters used in air purifiers can trap 0.3microns of allergens at 95% efficiency, the H13 traps up to 0.21 microns at 99.97%. This means that it can virtually trap all contaminants in the air.

Activated Carbon Filter

The activated carbon is a highly absorbent filter that is effective in capturing odors, smoke, smogs and volatile organic compounds (VOCs). It means whenever an air sterilizer has this filter, you can make sure it’s able to capture unwanted smells and secondhand smoke in the room.

Photocatalyst Filter

The photocatalyst filter is made from titanium apatite which destroys organic pollutants like fumes, VOCs and organic matter. According to data, PCO photocatalyst is highly effective against destroying Coronavirus.

UVC Lamp

HEPA filters, by themselves, cannot be able to destroy microbial activities. The addition of ultraviolet lamps into the air sterilizer kills the viruses on the filters.

The Features of Air Sterilizer Machine

Other things to look at when choosing an UV sanitizer air purifier is as follows:

noise level
Power consumption
Manufacturer
Warranty

Noise Level

One of the most common features to look at is the air sterilizer’s noise level. Air sterilizers are generally quiet, but its sound level increases as you increase its fan level.

Most air sterilizers have 2 to 5 fan modes you can adjust manually or automatically. These fan modes are Silent, Low, Medium, High, Turbo . If you run in auto, the fan will adjust automatically according to the cleanliness of the air in your room.

Air sterilizers are usually in the range of 20 to 60 decibels , a little close to your fridge’s hum. If that bothers you, you can always switch it to “Silent Mode” or “Night Mode” before you sleep at night. Or you can choose a negative ion air purifier as it doesn’t use mechanical filters, which means no running fan and more silent.

One thing that can help the air sterilizer to run less frequently in turbo mode is to size it correctly for the room. If you buy a small air cleaning machine for your large room, naturally, this will always run in turbo mode, producing more noise .

Power Consumption

Air sterilizers are designed to run 24/7. For this reason, they are designed to consume less energy to reflect less on your electrical bills. Most Home UV Air Sterilizers range from 40 to 200 watts of power. With an Energy Star rating, you can even ensure more energy saved per month.

So you’d want to pick a machine which can run the whole day like your fridge, but has minimal change on your monthly electric cost. You can also save more energy if you opt to run it at lower speeds whenever you’re not home . For facilities, you can opt for a smart commercial air sanitizer machine with auto mode to automatically regulate its fan speed settings according to the air quality.

Warranty

Look at the warranty before you make a purchase. This is to ensure you’re not going into trouble in the future, such as procurement of replacement parts, etc.

Things to Know Before Buying an Air Sterilizer Machine

Before buying an air purifier sterilizer , you need to consider:

Room size
Ventilation improvements
Special requirements to consider
Budget, or how many units and how much are you willing to cash out

To sort things out, have a clear perspective on what you need. First is to measure the room where you’re placing the air cleaner UV sterilizer . Next is to know the exact purpose. Is it just for the house, or you need it in a commercial area, such as in an office, clinic, smoking area or hospital?

Pick the right Air Sterilizer Machine for different room sizes

Pick the right Air Sterilizer Machine for different room sizes

To choose an optimal air sterilizer machine for your room or application, you should first know the required ACH, CADR and size of your room.

Room Area

The room size is the area of the room where you would place the air sterilizer machine. You need to know the size of the room. Check out your room’s floor plan or you can manually measure it.

CADR Rating

Next is to find out the Clean Air Delivery Rate (CADR). The CADR is how fast the air sterilizer can clean the volume of air in the room. It is often expressed in CFM or cubic feet per minute. You would need to know the CADR rating before you can choose a suitable air cleaning system.

The simplest way to get the CADR is through AHAM’s ( Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers ) recommendation.

Upon getting your room measurement in sq. feet, divide it by a fixed value of 1.55 . This applies to rooms with a ceiling height of 8 ft.

So for example you have a 200 sq. ft room, you need to divide this by 1.55. By doing so, you’ll get 129.03 CFM . Next is to consider the ACH you need to get the exact air sterilizer machine you need.

ACH Rating

ACH is the Air Changes per Hour, which is the number of times the volume of air is purified in the room in one hour. This number should be based on the type of room or the application of the room.

Below are recommended ACH values for each room type.

As you may have noticed, the more critical the activities, the higher ACH is recommended.

Residential spaces usually have an ACH 4 or above. This means that the air sterilizer machine should purify the air in the room 4 times per hour.

Tips on how to choose the Right Air Sterilizer

Now let’s combine these two principles to get the right air sterilizer. To do this, simply multiply the CADR by the ACH you need depending on the type of room.

For example, you want an air sanitizing machine for a patient room in a medical setting. From the table above, an ACH of 6 is recommended for this application. Then we follow this formula:

Air Sterilizer Suitable CADR = (Room size in sq. feet / 1.55) x ACH needed

formula for cadr to choose suitable air sterilizer

We multiply 129.03 CFM x 6 = 774.19 CFM or 780 CFM

This just means that if you want to buy an UV air sanitizer machine that’s fit for a 200 square feet patient room, you need to choose a machine that has a CADR of 780 CFM. This also means that at a CADR of 780 CFM, the air sterilizer can clean the room’s air 6 times per hour or every 10 minutes.

Know Why We Need An Air Cleaner Machine for Home, Hospitals, and Restaurants

Hospital

Air Purifier for home

People spending time at home the whole day take over 20,000 breaths per day which can make indoor air stale and more polluted. If you’re currently dwelling more in the house due to today’s WFH circumstances, it is best to stay there with fresh, clean air to breathe.

Thus a portable air sterilizer is a great way to keep your indoor air purified, especially if your house is frequently inhabited.

Air Purifier for hospital Rooms

Hospital rooms and isolation facilities need something more powerful than air purifiers. In which case, ultraviolet air sterilizer is more practical to use for full-blown clean air cleaning and circulation. The best places to put these machines are in areas where people interact the most .

High risk areas can be:
Near infectious patients,
Patient rooms
Aerosol-generating sites or AGP rooms
Hospital rooms
Surgery rooms

Air Purifier for Restaurants

If you own a restaurant, you definitely need to take extra precautions to ensure the safety of your customers from coronavirus. This is where people take off their face masks when eating, hence, aside from the 6-foot distance between tables, you can put an air sterilizer in the room.

Doing so not only significantly reduces air pollutants from circulating the room, but also prevents the spread of viruses from one person to another.

Air Purifier for Gyms

As these facilities are where recreational activities are held, they are often filled with stale air, airborne particles and chemicals such as carbon dioxide and formaldehyde. Hence, workout facilities, spas and gyms need commercial air sterilizer machines to reduce these contaminants especially if they are not well-ventilated.

Shockingly, the EPA tells us that the air pollution concentration is higher indoors than outdoors. The CDC backs this up telling us that Covid-19 viruses are spread much more in people indoors than outdoors. Hence the need for an air cleaning machine for homes or indoor establishments.

You see, an Air Sterilizer Machine does more than just clean indoor air. Think of it as an upgraded air purification system. An Air Cleaner UV Sterilizer doesn’t only trap dirt, bacteria and viruses. It also sterilizes the air to kill these microorganisms. With these augmented features for a machine that rigorously cleans air , it doesn’t come cheap.

Hence, if you want to maximize what you pay for, get the right machine. Check its specifications to cover the air requirements of your room.

Sidenote: As an experienced air sterilizer supplier , HisoAir begs to differ when it comes to affordability. We manufacture industry-grade air sterilizer machines for hospitals, homes and restaurants. Featuring quality-tested air cleaning technology, we offer our clients superb OEM/ODM services. Contact us for a quick quotation!

Know your need on buying an air sterilizer machine

if Suffering from Allergies

Air purifier sterilizers can be used as “allergy machines” which can help if you’re experiencing allergies inside your house. air sterilizers can also be a solution for healthcare facilities housing patients to get rid of allergies.

HEPA air sterilizers lower the concentration of particles and dust mites in your indoor air.
PECO filter air sterilizers help reduce allergic symptoms
Air sanitizer machines bring therapeutic effects for people suffering from asthma through dust mites.

If Suffering from Asthma

While there’s no actual cure for asthma, there are small things you can do to prevent triggering it. Constant cleaning of dusty surfaces and getting rid of pet danders make a difference for asthma sufferers.

According to a study, air sterilizers and purifiers help children suffering from asthma . Air sterilizer machines are more than capable of removing small particles which help in reducing asthma symptoms. Not only does its HEPA filter trap dust, but also sanitize indoor air.

To get the best results, air purifiers with washable filters should have their filters washed constantly and replaced every 2 to 3 months. This is to help asthma sufferers inhale cleaner air.

If due to Dust Problems

Air Dust Filter Machines equipped with True HEPA are also highly efficient in removing tons of dust , especially if you’re breathing urban air. HEPA filters are 99.97% effective in removing the tiniest particles up to 0.3 microns. And dust is usually in the range of 2.5 to 10 microns, which means it can be easily trapped in the filter.

If due to mold or mildew problems

If you’re experiencing intense mold problems, especially if you live or dwell somewhere that’s highly humid. The World Health Organization (WHO) points out through a number of studies that mold can also trigger respiratory symptoms and asthma.

The best way to deal with mold problems is by manually cleaning it. However, to prevent any further growth, you can use an air purifier for mold reduction. Air purifiers can also reduce that musty smell that’s usually associated with molds.

If you live in a humid region, portable air sterilizers can be used to capture dust and clean the air from spores that cause molds.

If Getting Rid of Pet Danders

Although pet hair is not an air cleaning equipment’s major thing, it can help get rid of pet hairs IF they are still floating in the air. Vacuuming pet hairs attached to your sofa or bed is a more viable solution.

However, having an air sterilizer machine is not only solving the pet hair problem at home or if you own a pet shop/salon. Pet odors can smell foul and air cleaners can help get rid of it through its activated carbon filter.

Also, if pets go outside, it may bring back pollutants into your home. So the best air purifier for pets are those which can remove pet odors, danders and allergens they bring home through their paws.

Thriving in a Smoke-Filled Environment

In a 2016 study , air disinfection machines are found to be great at removing smoke and allergens. The activated carbon filter helps get rid of the smoke and other awful odors from pollution outside. That’s why air cleaners are also often called ‘smoke catcher machines’ or ‘smoke removal machines’.

Preventing Covid-19 Spread

Here’s where a UVC Air Sterilizer works best if you want supplementary ways in your Coronavirus prevention strategies. Aside from physical distancing, wearing face masks , hand hygiene , and vaccination, improving indoor air quality and ventilation are proven to reduce the spread of the disease .

As mentioned earlier, air purifiers with uv sterilizer not only traps viruses but also kills them with ultraviolet rays . The UV light inactivates the virus by unfolding its protein layer, making it vulnerable to the environment and thus killing it.

Identify the differences between air sterilizers

Plasma Air Disinfection Machine

This works with the air ionization process to deactivate pathogens and viruses from the indoor air. The reaction between negative and positively charged ions destroys the virus’ cell membrane, deactivating it.

There is mounting evidence of how plasma air disinfection machines are able to clean the air and reduce the infectious spread of COVID-19 in hospitals.

Plasma Air Disinfection Machines can either be a stand-alone machine or installed in your HVAC system.

Ultraviolet Air Sterilizer

UV air sterilizers use ultraviolet light (UV-C) to inactivate and kill pathogens such as molds. They are usually bought as freestanding machines but can also be installed in commercial HVAC units.

Ultraviolet air disinfection units are also equipped with a True HEPA filter to effectively trap 99.97% of contaminants up to the size of 0.3 microns.

Q&A on Air Sterilizer Machine

Is an Air Sterilizer Machine Worth it?

If you’re one of the top high risk establishments, yes, we highly recommend an air cleaning system or air sterilizer machine. Not only does it protect your clients/customers from airborne contaminants from prolonged exposure, but also add further protection for your staff from getting Covid-19 sickness.

Best Way to Use an Air Sterilizer

The best way to use an air sterilizer machine is for rooms with people suffering from allergies, asthma or dust. At the same time, if you want to reduce the viral contamination of Covid-19, considering a high performance HEPA air sterilizer can help at large.

Where to Buy Air Sterilization Machines

If you’re looking for a medical-grade air purifier for virus mitigation, it is important to consider the manufacturer’s reputation. We have written the top air purifier brands which are:

IQAir
Rabbit Air
Blueair air purifier
GermGuardian
Levoit air purifiers
etc

Wrapping Up

There are a lot of major considerations you need to think about before buying an air sterilizer machine. These machines don’t come cheap in the first place, so putting your money on a unit that’s not suitable for your application is a waste of cash.

Considerations include the features you should look at, the different types available, and the sizes you should look into. If you’re wondering where to buy an air sterilizer machine for a hospital, commercial use or home, look no further. HisoAir is a certified supplier of high-performance air sterilizing units available in different sizes and options. Contact us for a quick quotation!