NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — Wildfires are in the news more often, with tens of thousands burning millions of acres yearly.
Even if you don’t live near an active fire, there’s a good chance you can see and feel the effects of smoke and dust pollution both outside and inside your home.
“An air purifier is a good first line of defense inside of your home when combating smoke caused by wildfires,” said Consumer Reports' Tanya Christian.
Tanya Christian covers indoor air quality for Consumer Reports. She works with testers to rate the effectiveness of dozens of air purifiers.
In its labs, Consumer Reports injects contaminants like smoke and dust into a controlled chamber to see how well an air purifier reduces the number of particles in the air. The faster an air purifier can remove those particles, the better the score.
This Blueair air purifier was one of the best in Consumer Reports' tests for removing dust, pollen, and smoke from larger rooms. Consumer Reports says, for maximum effectiveness you should keep the fabric pre-filter off.
For less money, this Honeywell is also great at removing dust, pollen, and smoke particles—but only on its highest speed setting. But an air purifier isn’t the only way you can protect yourself.
“So, air purifiers really work best when you’re using them with other methods that help improve your indoor air quality,” Christian added.
Here’s how to maximize the effectiveness of an air purifier. Close and seal windows and doors with weather stripping or even masking tape if that’s all you have on hand. Spend most of your time in a room with few or no windows, and avoid rooms with vents to the outside.
Finally, if you’re dealing with an active wildfire or lots of smoke pollution, Consumer Reports says you should keep your air purifier running 24/7 and change the filter as soon as the indicator light comes on.
Do you have more information about this story? You can email me at jennifer.kraus@newschannel5.com.
Fostering Hope provides Christmas for kids in foster care. I'm delighted to see Fostering Hope expand this year to expand their reach to now include kids in Foster care in metro AND foster kids in East TN hard hit by Helene.
-Bree Smith
