Blueair air purifier technology: quiet and effective air filters

Reasons for choosing Blueair

    * Blueair filters remove the full range of pollutants from Beijing air
    * Third party tested and certified by US testing institute, 99.7% removal of 0.3 micron particles
    * Top performing air purifier in independent testing by the Consumer Reports organisation
    * Very quiet operation
    * Single 3-in-1 filter, simple to fit and replace
    * Unobtrusive air cleaners with Swedish engineering quality and design
    * Imported filters for top air cleaning quality, with machines made in China for competitive pricing
    * Replacement filters cost between 800RMB and 1600RMB for one year’s supply

How Blueair air purifiers work

More clean air at a faster rate

Most air cleaners work by physical trapping alone, forcing air through a mesh to trap pollution particles. This works well for large particles, but is inefficient for small particles. Blueair engineers developed a more efficient system for the smaller particles using a combination of physical and electrostatic trapping. Blue air cleaners have a pre-ionisation chamber before the main filter that gives pollution particles a small static charge. This makes them "sticky" so that they are attracted to Blueair's patented polypropylene HEPASilent filter and removed more efficiently than by conventional systems that rely on physical trapping. It's like catching fish with bait, rather than chasing them around with a net.

The result is that Blueair filters are particularly effective against the most dangerous pollutants. In testing carried out in the US they achieved 99.7% removal of 0.3 micron particles. This size corresponds to the pollutants that pose the biggest health risk, sometimes called "PM2.5" meaning particles of 2.5 microns or less, such as diesel exhaust particles and industrial pollutants. An important benefit of Blueair technology is that the HEPASilent filters pass air more easily than the filters of other manufacturers, which means that they clean the air in your room more quickly. The 503 model (for example) achieves 5 complete air changes per hour in a 54m2 room. Said another way, the air your breathe is filtered every 12 minutes.

With the high pollution levels we experience in Beijing this fast cleaning provides a high level of protection, enough to cope with fresh pollutants entering the home when doors are opened or air comes in from outside through leaky window fittings.

Quiet enough to let you sleep

The biggest in-use problem with most air cleaners with HEPA filters (that filter out the smallest particles) is that they are noisy. Personally I went through a variety of air cleaners here in China before trying Blueair: all of them were too noisy to sleep in the same room with the cleaner switched on, the worst sounded like jet engines just before take-off. Blueair cleaners are much quieter (quieter than your aircon for example). This is because air flows more freely through a HEPASilent filter, so the fan in a Blueair machine does not need to work as hard. This might seem a small point, but in practice it can make the difference between using an air cleaner at night and not using it, and so missing out on 8 hours+ benefit.

Our page on Blueair models gives decibel sound levels for all the air cleaners, but the best way to experience this is to come to the Torana Clean Air Center and judge for yourself.

Unique, progressive, 3-stage Filter

Blueair purifiers use a unique progressive filter design, with 3 filter grades combined into a single filter, trapping the full range of particle sizes from visible lint and fluff down to the smallest pollutants. The progressive design ensures that the final, sensitive HEPA filter is protected from coarse particles and is less prone to clogging than purifiers with simpler filter designs.

Simple filter changing

Some air cleaners that I have used in the past required up to 3 separate filters, which all need to be changed at different times. This meant that there was no way for me to know when to change the filters, unless I kept a detailed air cleaner diary (and I have better things to do with my time). The result was that the air cleaners usually gave substandard performance since at least one of the filters was out of date at any given time.

The Blueair models in contrast use only one 3-in1 filter block, which is replaced every 6 months. Changing it is as easy as swinging the door open, sliding the old filter out and sliding the new filter in. Takes about 30 seconds, and it is not hard to remember when to do it. Torana will also remind you and deliver the new filter on time.

Energy Efficient

Blueair purifiers were amongst the first air purifiers to earn the Energy Star, a program developed by the US Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Energy. All Blueair models meet or exceed Energy Star requirements and consume less energy than many comparable models.

Award Winning Swedish Design

The Blueair company won the prestigious Excellent Swedish Design Award for combining functionality with attractive, contemporary design. The 402 air purifier is part of the National Museums Permanent Exhibit in Stockholm.

Constructions standards of Blueair purifiers are exceptional: most air purifiers are made of plastic, but Blueair purifiers are made of powder-coated galvanised steel. This, combined with sound muffling technology makes them both durable and quiet.

No Ozone

Unlike some purifiers, Blueair cleaners do not produce ozone: tests show that ozone levels in output air are lower than input.

Reasonable prices

Blueair machines and filters are priced similarly in China to the US and Europe. The build and filter quality are the same as overseas because both are exactly the same as you would find in the US (for example). Replacement filters in particular are much cheaper than some other makes ... on a yearly basis around a third of the cost of some brands widely sold in Beijing.

Guaranteed Quality

Blueair purifiers are covered by a 5 year warranty on parts and labor.

Electricity Conversion, so you can use your Blueair air purifier in any country

Unlike many air purifiers bought in China, you can continue to use your Blueair air purifiers "back home" with a simple voltage conversion. Torana can convert units bought at our store to the voltage of the country you are moving to, for example to 100-120V for the USA. This option is available for models 403/503/603. Voltage conversion is much safer and more efficient than using an air purifier with a transformer.