Whole House Air Purifiers
Whole house air purifiers are a bit of a mystery to the average consumer. The idea of having one area purifier that can affect the entire home is very appealing, but in practice the idea is flawed. In a world full of convenience, there are some things that just can not get to be but so convenient.
The main flaw with the theory behind these products is that they attach to the HVAC system and are built to suck up as much of the air as possible and pass it through the filter and through the ducts and into your home. This does clean up a part of the airborne particles and dust that can come into your house through your air conditioning or heating system, but it does not protect from the dust that is dormant inside your air ducts, nor does it pull any harmful particles from inside your home. On top of that, your power bills will rise because part of the air being pushed from your HVAC is wasted in the filtering process.
This is a negative way to look at it, but in fact whole house air purifiers do not cover the entirety of your home. They merely grab what they can that is coming out of your HVAC, which does not stop the harmful particles in your air ducts from getting transferred as they will just blow through your vents along with the air.
If you read the above and wonder about electrostatic whole house air purifiers, you might be surprised to know that they are not really any better. They also can not pull the harmful particles and allergens from your home, only directly from your heating and air conditioning system. They are better about pulling some of the dust from your home's air ducts, but not enough to really make a difference.
The above has been negative, but the reality is that while they do not really clean your whole home they are effective against incoming agents from outside. If you live in a very high pollutant area they are a good investment, but only if you take the time to clean your air ducts before you have the unit installed. Otherwise it will be nowhere near as effective.
If you do not live in an area that is heavily polluted, you just might be better off purchasing individual purifiers for your most used rooms. That way you know you are getting truly pure air. Whole house air purifiers certainly have their uses, but they are not for everybody and they are not miracle machines. If you keep your windows open often, dirty air will get in and will not be removed with a house-wide purifying system, but if you are more worried about pollutants than anything else they are a sound investment.