Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

So like many others in the Bay Area, we have been hit with unprecedented air levels during the Camp Fire disaster, and levels of particles in the air reached 263 on Friday which is “Hazardous” and all local schools were closed a few days ago. I had my 79-year old mother and a cousin with a 2-year old toddler coming to stay for the holidays, as well as two girls ages 9 and 11. We ended up telling the family with the toddler to stay clear of the area. My mom did fly in and we have masks we are wearing if we go outside. After researching for hours and hours and asking my friends for advice, I went ahead and purchased this air purifier. I have been using it for a few days now. It shipped 1-day from Amazon and I immediately put it to use. After an evening of use, my scratchy throat was better the next day. And the indoor air felt clean and refreshed. As if the window was opened. Here were my main considerations: • Size of Room • Effectiveness of Machine • Size and Look of Machine • Cost of Machine • Set up / Ease of Use • (Noise Level) SIZE OF ROOM: The first thing you need to identify is the actual size of the room you are trying to clear. My living room, dining room and kitchen are all in one open space so the cooking smells and airflow are an issue. Many of the air purifiers recommended only clear 300’ of space. My room is at least 700’ large. Ceiling height should also be a consideration. And ideally get one that handles a room much larger (within reason) so your purifier does not have to run on high the entire time. EFFECTIVENESS: I believe a dual filter system is the minimum for pure air cleaning. We already had the Dyson fan with HEPA filter. This is one level. Adding in an activated carbon filter for smells is another. One machine that was pricey (Molekule $799) has a third level of UV light to kill bacteria which is critical if you have mold. Maybe even if you have dogs. The UV light was overkill for my current needs and also more expensive so I opted for “no” this time around. Molecule also has 3, 6 or 9 month financing which was intriguing but they were out of same day delivery so I opted to go through Amazon. There are different filter consideration is based on air cleaning (HEPA), smell cleaning (CARBON), and bacteria/mold cleaning (UV / Ozone’s). There is an added consideration for pet dander. SIZE and LOOK: I almost bought the taller thinner machine that had customized fronts you could add — but it was too expensive to ship next day. So I did more research and decided on this model. It is LARGE. Like a small side table that unfortunately does not double as a side table because you need to keep the top clear. I personally like the way it looks and it was so easy to set up, plug in, and immediately went to work — it was a wonderful experience. It is clean looking, quality materials and the added lights and sounds really make it high end. COST: It was not cheap, but in the end was mid-level pricing compared to the other machines that cleared the same area. Over 1200 feet so I am covered. SET UP / EASE OF USE: I took this unit out of the box, took off the plastic wrap, and took the filters out of plastic bags one set on each side of the machine. Then I plugged it in and started working immediately. I loved the sound feedback when you push the buttons going up and down with the airspeed and also easy to set on auto. I also appreciate the fact that air is filtering from both sides of the unit. For this reason, when in use, It does need at least one and a half to 2 feet of open space on each side of the unit, so it does need to be pulled out when in heavy use. NOISE LEVEL: I did not really care about the noise level but it is quiet and on AUTO now and it feels cool and peaceful in the room. BONUS: The last reason I bought it is because it has an auto sensor that automatically kicks up the fan speed when there are more air particulates in the air. This is traditionally during cooking but in my case it was handy when doors would open and closed during this fire season. When I first plugged it in it was purple and took about 10 or 15 minutes to turn blue. This is after one week of no open doors or windows or airflow inside during the fires. I let my neighbor borrow it and it took about half an hour to clear his space which was read and then bright pink and purple and finally turned blue. I wondered if it just turned a different color when it was plugged in because when I brought it back into my unit it turned purple for about 15 minutes before turning blue again. Then, I made some popcorn in during the cooking of the popcorn the unit turned purple again and clean out the air for about half an hour. I found out after meeting the materials you can change the sensitivity level of the particular sensor, but now I believe it is accurate and helpful. I love having the color feedback to confirm the air is clear. I also bought a Levoit smaller fan for the bedroom at the same time and I have to say it does barely anything. And it feels cheap compared to the Conway. I am going to send it back. I am definitely keeping this Conway Airmega and highly recommend it to other people with the same considerations. I will continue to test the sensitivity level of the sensors and will post more updates if anything new arises.