Before the spread of the novel coronavirus now known as COVID-19 changed life as we know it, the air in my home was pretty pure. We had four air purifiers running at all times, in fact: two upstairs where we sleep, one on the main floor, and one in the basement playroom. Excessive? Perhaps, but we don’t get colds that often and the dusting goes super-fast.
As it became clear just how seriously wide-spread and likely long-lasting this pandemic might be, I realized that the one place in the house almost assuredly not benefitting from those many air purifiers was the space I spend more time than any other room: my office. Rather than sneaking the Blueair out of the living room or the Alen out of the playroom, I decided I might as well get my own new unit. The good news is my office is only about 10-feet by 12-feet, so I didn’t need all that large of an air purifier, which is why I went with the IQAir Atem Desk Personal Air Purifier.
This air purifier is about as large as a frisbee in diameter and just under four inches thick. It sits upright on a stand and can be tucked on top of your desk, under it (as is mine), on a bookshelf, night stand, and so on. It’s operated by gentle taps on the side and can trap particles down to 0.003 microns.
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Getting an air purifier to help keep you safe from this and other viruses is a great idea, but it’s hardly the only reason to consider one. Indoor air quality – which the pros shorthand as IAQ – is often much worse than the air outside. And poor IAQ is a serious issue. According to the EPA, it can lead to: “Irritation of the eyes, nose, and throat, headaches, dizziness, and fatigue” and that “soon after exposure to some indoor air pollutants, symptoms of some diseases such as asthma may show up, be aggravated or worsened.”
The good news is that, also according to EPA: “Sometimes the treatment is simply eliminating the person's exposure to the source of the pollution, if it can be identified.” Indoor air quality is affected by everything from cooking to cleaning and grooming products to smoke to chemicals off-gassing from new carpets.
You might not be able to eliminate every source of indoor pollutants, but you do have a way to keep your workspace or bedroom cleaner and safer with an Atem air purifier that’s small enough for just about any space. Even your car. Yeah, they make an adapter for that.
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