Air Cleaner Review - Friedrich Electrostatic Air Cleaner
Read Friedrich home and room air cleaners ratings
by Mercia Tapping, President, AllergyBuyersClub.com
Since
the Friedrich air cleaner received an excellent independent rating
by the Association of American Home Appliance Manufacturers, a number
of people buy this machine and give us good reports on it. Putting
aside my own prejudices about anything that is not a true HEPA filtration
system, I decided to bring one of these air cleaners into our offices
for staff product training. This is what you should know about it.
INFO
LINKS
Air
Purifiers Overview - view all air purifiers
sold by AllergyBuyersClub.com
Air
Purifiers Comparison Chart - a comparison with pluses and minuses
of all the best air purifiers
PLUSES
* No doubt about it, this air cleaner is wonderfully easy to maintain.
Changing the pre-filter or odor filter is as simple as sliding a
new panel in and out of a slot.
* Gone is the expense of replacing hepa filters and pre-filters.
When electrostatic collector plates in the Friedrich are clogged
you can just put them in the dishwasher. The pre-filter can also
be vacuumed or washed in an all- purpose washing fluid and water.
* The Friedrich is very quiet indeed which is one of its biggest
strengths. Even on high speed, recommended for when smokers are
around, it is pretty quiet. On low speed you have a hard time hearing
it and for most home applications low speed is all you need.
* The Friedrich does have a carbon filter plate which is cheap and
easy to replace. It should be replaced frequently especially after
being around smoke.
MINUSES
* If you have an environment needing a lot of air cleaning, the
efficiency of the electrostatic cell will degrade pretty quickly
and you may need to give the electrostatic collector plates a weekly
bath.
* When the electrostatic plates need cleaning, the machine sounds
like a bug zapper going off. Even when it doesn't need cleaning
you will hear little zapping sounds periodically.
* One of our staff who is ultra sensitive really did not like this
machine. Either the Friedrich was out gassing, or there was some
small amount of ozone being generated [a by-product in all electrostatic
machines]. She complained of the smell and said she was getting
a headache.
* Although the Friedrich has a carbon filter, it does not have sufficient
carbon for major VOC or heavy odor removal. The plus is that the
carbon filter is cheap. The minus is you will need to replace it
often if you are relying on it for odor removal.
MY CONCLUSION
I think a lot people will like the Friedrich even if it does look
like an pet carrier. It is ultra quiet, easy to operate and cheap
to maintain. I do not see it as the machine for those with bad asthma,
really severe allergies or in environments where volatile organic
compounds (VOCs) are a problem. Smokers will love it, and so will
those people looking for a quiet machine. I can tell you that the
people who have bought them from us do not return them and order
more of them. Is it my favorite? No, that honor belongs to IQair
at the moment, but I cannot argue with why the Friedrich air cleaner
has its own fan club.
