 Best Value Purifier |
| Review Date: March 5, 2007 |
| Reviewer: Richard Wong, Ewing, NJ United States |
In this review, I will first summarize the major points and focus the details afterward. This way you can stop reading when you get the level of details you need. The definitions of "HEPA" and "CADR" are placed at the end of this review. Please vote for this review if you like it :) I appreciate it.
**Kimmer (another reviewer) has kindly uploaded a wonderful youtube video to demonstrate the noise level, title: "Honeywell Enviracare 50250 air purifier". Since your computer speaker will affect the demonstrated noise level, make sure you gauge the noise to Kimmer's voice.**
Pros: Powerful, inexpensive, permanent HEPA filter, easy to maintain, 360 degree air intake and output, portable, accessible replacement parts, good support from Kaz, a 5 year limited warranty.
Cons: Noisy, high power consumption, not stylish.
Previously I owned the Honeywell HFD-130 Germicidal Tower HEPA Air Purifier with Permanent IFD Filter, but due to its ozone emission and my respiratory problem, I returned it back to HomeDepot. I got fully refunded and bought this Honeywell 50250N on the same day and loved it. I have a mild allergy. I sneeze and experience itchy eyes when I am outdoor, but stop when I am at home (where my purifier is). I recommend two important points when shopping for a purifier: (1) always examines the CADR number. It is a decent performance indicator, (2) always buys an air purifier adequate for your need. A 100 sq ft purifier will not work for a 1000 sq ft living space.
Honeywell 50250N is a true HEPA filter purifier with a 250 CADR, which translates into a recommended 375 square feet usage space. Currently, this purifier is being sold at ~$160. It has been quoted as the only purifier <$200 that can clean air effectively by Consumer Reports, Consumer Search, Air-purifier America. For most HEPA purifiers, the filter replacement is the highest up-keeping cost and is ~$100 annually. 50250N has a permanent Lifetime HEPA filter which can save a lot of money. The purifier has an activated carbon prefilter which protects the HEPA filter and absorbs traces level of volatile molecules, sources for odors. The prefilter is recommended to be replaced every 3 months for optimal odor removal. If odor removal is not needed, then the prefilter does not need to be replaced regularly. This purifier has a 360 degree air intake and air exhaust, making it effective at circulating air. The unit weighs in 20.1 pounds and all parts are large and sturdy. Replacement parts are relatively easy to find. I have seen them at my local Target, Home Depot, Walmart and Sears from time to time.
The unit vibrates slightly at its lowest fan speed and air "pulses" out of the unit. Kaz consumer service was very helpful in explaining this. The small vibration is due to slow air buildup across HEPA filter. The vibration is considered as a normal feature and does not affect its performance. I did my own test to prove this, and you can too: take your HEPA filter out of the unit and run it, and the purifier should stop wobbling. This proves the vibration is due to air buildup, not an imbalance fan.
The unit has two major shortcomings. It is noisy at the highest fan speed, and noticeable at the lowest fan speed. For those who wonder if you can tolerate the noise, it is not a machine cranking noise. It is a high air flow sound. If you have any doubt, you can always buy this unit from a respected local store, so that you can return it easily. The purifier also has a high power consumption of 170/120/50 watts at the three fan speeds. This purifier is not stylish.
Is Honeywell 50250N the best purifier? Absolutely not! IQ Air purifiers are considered the very best, but their cheapest model is $700 and many are above $1000. Honeywell 50250N is one of the most effective purifiers in its prize range: <$200. In comparison, we will look at Whirlpool AP450 which is rated as number 1 by Consumer Reports, and Ionic Breeze Quadra which has a very large market. Whirlpool AP450 has a ~330 CADR rating and costs $250. This yields a nice ratio of 1.3 CADR/$, which means you get 1.3 CADR capability for every dollar spent. Honeywell 50250N has an even better ratio of 1.6 CADR/$. The two purifiers are also competitive in term of the operation cost. AP450 is energy star certified using only 105 W, whereas 50250N has a permanent HEPA filter. In the case both purifiers run at full speed continuously (24/7) and the electricity cost is $0.1 per kWh (average in USA), the annual electricity costs will be $92 and $150 for AP450 and 50250N, respectively. The AP450 saves an annual $60 in electricity, but costs an annual $90 for HEPA filter replacement. Of course, AP450 is more powerful, so when considering the cleaning power per annual cost, they are almost the same. On the other hand, Ionic Breeze is a disappointment. It has an estimated 10-20 CADR and it costs over $300 -- a ridiculous 0.03-0.07 CADR/$ ratio. It was the worst purifier tested independently by Consumer Reports and Air-Purifier-America. Moreover, ionic breeze produces a high level of ozone, which Consumer Reports has issued health warnings. You can easily find the related news on the web.
(Honeywell 50250N has the Lifetime HEPA filter, but Honeywell 50250 does not. I ordered my second Honeywell from BeachCamera through Amazon, but the one arrived is the 50250 version. I called and BeachCamera admitted it does not have 50250N. I finally got my refund, but it was a hassle.)
A spotlight review here claims Sharp Plasmacluster FP-N60CX is a better purifier. I disagree. FP-N60CX has a 210 CADR and is sold at ~$350 - less powerful and more expansive. The review justifies this expense by stating that the FP-N60CX needs one carbon filter replacement in 5 years and consequently saves $200 in 5 years. This is a math error. The carbon filter replacement for Honeywell 50250N costs $200 in 5 year, but FP-N60CX also needs replacement at the end of 5 years at $80. This is a $120 difference in 5 years. The 5 years replacement is also the best case scenario, as it may need to be replaced as early as in 2 years which results in no cost advantage. According to its operation manual (available online), the FP-N60CX carbon filter needs to be cleaned every 2 months using a 6-steps cleaning process: (1) vacuum clean (2) soak in detergent mixture for 30 minute (3) scrub with a toothbrush (4) rinse with clean water (5) remove excess water with a big towel for 1-2 days (6) hang up and air dry for another 1-2 days. In one year, this may result up to a month-worth downtime. Let's summarize this: $120 saving for cleaning the carbon filter 30 times in 5 years. You save $4 for each cleaning. Since each cleaning can take an hour, this equates $4 per hour of labor. You cannot even pay an illegal immigrant to do this! I also want to reiterate that Honeywell 50250N has a permanent HEPA filter, which can be regenerated by vacuum cleaning. It takes 3 minutes to do and need to be done twice a year. Considering the typical HEPA replacement costs $100 annually, each filter cleaning saves $50. That is $50 for 3 minutes of your time, or $1000 for an hour. This is a real saving. The "plasmacluster" feature is somewhat of a gimmick. Major hospitals, national, pharmaceutical and computer research labs use HEPA for air purification.
One last point about vacuum cleaning the Lifetime HEPA filter: a HEPA grade cleaner is recommended to regenerate the HEPA filter. Otherwise, the particles on the Lifetime HEPA will be dispersed back into the air during vacuuming. If you are suffering from a serious allergy or asthma, then you should consider owning a HEPA vacuum cleaner to begin with. Alternatively, you can vacuum the filter outside of your home so the fine particles are dispersed outside, such as your patio. Yes, and if you are really funny, you can secretly do this at your ex-girlfriend's room. I am kidding!
Definitions:
HEPA (high efficiency particulate air) is a filter grade strictly defined by US Department of Energy, in which the filter can remove >99.97% of airborne particles that is 0.3 micrometer. The removal success rate is usually equal or higher for larger particles and for slightly smaller particles (down to ~0.01 micro), but performance drops drastically for much smaller particles. HEPA can effectively trap pollens, fine dust and smoke particles -- the major causes of allergy. "HEPA-type" and "HEPA-like" purifiers fall short of this requirement, and there is no strict guideline for their exact definitions. Historically, HEPA was a top-secret technology developed to filter radioactive aerosol, part of the Manhattan Project. HEPA is not designed to remove odors and VOC (volatile organic chemicals), since they are much smaller than the effective range of a HEPA filter.
CADR (clean air delivery rate) is certified by the AHAM (Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers). CADR is expressed in units of cubic feet volume per minute. The suggested floor space is usually calculated based on a 8 foot ceiling and a 5 air change setting. For example, Honeywell 50250N produces 250 cubic feet of clean air per minute or 15000 cu ft per hour. Divides 15000 cu ft by a 8 ft ceiling and by a 5 air change equates to a recommended floor space of 375 sq ft. A shortcut is to multiple the CADR number by 1.5: e.g. 250 CADR X 1.5 = 375 sq ft. Although the recommended floor space value is easier to relate to, there is no legal guideline for the calculation. Neoair's most powerful purifier, Neoair Plus, has a suggested 600 sq ft floor space, much larger than that of Honeywell 50250N. In reality, Neoair Plus has a CADR <200, meaning it is a less powerful purifier. It turns out Neoair uses a 2.5 air change per hour for the floor space calculation. Another company, Alen, uses a 2 air change per hour for their calculations. Consequently, it is more reliable to compare air purifiers based on their CADR values.
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Great for cigarette smoke,pollen,pet hair,pollen you name it.
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| Review Date: October 10, 2006 |
| Reviewer: Lillith, New York, NY |
| Let me start off by saying that I suffer from being allergic to cigarette smoke and my husband and I live in an enclosed apartment complex. This is made worse by the fact that the front door doesn't seal up against the frame and smoke from the hallway leaks into our apartment with other odors and smells. Now let me add that that my husband suffers from severe allergy's and takes medicine daily for his condition. Did I mention that we have two cats and a pug. Life was miserable in our 2 bedroom 2 bath apartment, till this little puppy showed up. It's just like the picture describes it, like a barrel, the nice feature on it is the Intellicheck, this little feature tells you when to change the filters and it's quite easy the pre filters just lay on the hepa filter and are held in place by two pieces of Velcro. They do need to be changed about ever two months though, this may be more then normal because of our pets. But since we got the first one for the living room we added one more to the bedroom. Now you walk down our hallway gagging on the scent and odors but as soon as you open our door you are greeted by the clean smelling air and the sound of the filter cleaning it. Okay it is a little loud but don't let that discourage you. Wait till you get it home and turn it on full blast. It is a little noisy but when you go up to it, you can feel it sucking in the air from all around the unit. Then the freshly cleaned air gets pushed up through the top of the unit in a circle around the unit. It really does clean the square footage it claims to. Now I no longer complain about the smoke in our apartment and my husband also enjoys less sinus and nasal pressure. We did our homework on this one and read all about the Honeywell 50250. Before we decided to buy ours and were glad that we did. |
no more cat allergens
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| Review Date: February 23, 2007 |
| Reviewer: Kirk, |
Pro: very good ratings from Consumer Reports
Con: to read the reviews here, it's loud
But it's not what I imagined. It's "loud" setting is about as loud as a bathroom fan, and it can easily be set to "low" at night to make it just white-noise.
What matters: my wife didn't need her asthma inhaler after the first day, so I'm very happy with this. |
Fantastic product & value at an affordable price
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| Review Date: February 15, 2006 |
| Reviewer: N. Tsang, New York, NY |
| After slaving for MONTHS of researching the best air cleaner at an afforable price. I had purchased the Honeywell 50250. It is an excellent machine and at such an afforable price. It is comparable to the $400-500 models. At first I was a little taken back by the size but was amazed at how well it cleaned the air. It is really easy to install and change filters - I can do it with one hand. Also filters are very inexpensive and only need to be changed every 3 months or so depending on your environment. The size is misconceiving beause it very light weight and has the easy handle on top (another plus). I travel from room to room, I can hold my baby in one hand and the air cleaner in another. It also has 3 different levels (for example at night I have it on the lowest level called sleep mode). And most important the sealed Hepa Lifetime filter so no need for expensive replacements. Also has 360 airflow which comes out from the top of the machine, it doesn't blow dirt or dust from the floor up into the air. And filter monitors called intelli-check, which lights up when a filter needs to be changed (no guess work or lookign at a calendar). Also 99.97% germ reduction and 5 year warranty. I also want to tell everyone that this machine is approved by the National Allergy. |
Works, it makes noise, but that's how you move lots of air!
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| Review Date: September 6, 2006 |
| Reviewer: An amazon user, |
This unit is amazing for yanking dust and such out of the air and making it go away. I'm not inclined to complain about the noise it makes, because the only way this thing can live up to its claim of being able to recirculate the air in a large room 6 times per hour is to move a *lot* of air, over a *large* space, and do it *fast*. Outside of a ceiling fan (which is a lot bigger) there is simply no other way to do it than with a blower that you're going to hear.
One reviewer said it sounded like a floor blower (or something like that). Well, it blows at an upward diagonal, but in terms of air volume it may come close. It has to, to get the whole room to circulate back to the unit and get sucked in. Want your room's air cleaned for *real*? Grab one of these. I used a Honeywell 13500 for over 10 years before it finally died and the 50250 took its place. No regrets. |
Great for Allergies, and dust control
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| Review Date: June 24, 2007 |
| Reviewer: -- Peggy, Greenbelt, MD |
Allergies: Several years ago, my sister and her husband came to visit me (and my two cats) for an extended stay. My brother-in-law was allergic to the cats, and was using his asthma inhaler many times per day (miserable). So, for the house I purchased two large Honeywell units for the downstairs, and smaller units for the bedrooms.
After turning these on, he didn't use his inhaler for the rest of the visit!
Dust: Usually, when a sunbeam streamed into my kitchen window, you could see the uncountable dust motes, dancing in the air. Once I turned these units on I noticed that the individual dust motes could be counted easily, one...two....threee... maybe as many as a dozen.
Noise: Yes, they are noisy, however, if you aren't home during the day, you can run them on high, and turn them down (or off) when you are in the room. I find the benefit greatly outweighs the noise (and I HATE noise). |
Watch my video review on youtube...
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| Review Date: January 15, 2009 |
| Reviewer: Kimmer, |
| The positive reviews speak for themselves for this air purifier. It is highly rated by Consumer Reports and has many good reviews on Amazon.com. I thought I would address the "supposed" negatives people mentioned in other reviews, regarding the noise level and the led light on the unit. I recorded a video on youtube (too long to upload here), that will let you hear and see these "issues" for yourself to make your own decision (just do a search for "Honeywell Enviracare 50250 air purifier" and you should find it). To me, these aren't issues at all. I was shocked that it made a difference in my allergies after the very first night of use. I can actually breathe out of my nose while sleeping now, without having to use one of those breathe right strips. Worth every penny! |
I LIKE IT A LOT but there are SOME ISSUES
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| Review Date: March 7, 2008 |
| Reviewer: Dude, Easy St. CA |
| Picked it up a few weeks ago from a Home Depot. I did end up paying probably $15 more for it than if I had bought it online. That is the way I wanted it because if it didn't work well I could easily return it with no hassle and maybe pick up another one. So I have 90 days to check it out. I purchased it for my basement rec room that is 16'x30' with an 8' ceiling. So I am looking at 480 sq feet. I think the purifier is rated for 340 sq feet... So I consider that close enough. I live in the southwest where it is dusty all the time. I also have a 16 year old cat that needs a good spanking. After two weeks of using the purifier I LIKE IT A LOT. It filters the room fast and leaves you with a really clean smelling room. When I come down the stairs and turn the corner to the rec room you can smell and feel the difference right away. So up to now (two weeks) everything is great. NOW FOR THE ISSUES: My purifier does indeed wobble at low and slighly at the mid range settings. The purifier is sitting on carpet so the amount of vibration that you see is extremely small. I think it may be more of a visual problem than a real mechanical problem. If it was sitting on a wood floor it might bug me but if I liked it I would put it on a rug or get some felt or rubber pads to put under the feet. The way it is now for me is just fine. I also wonder if you could put a small piece of duct tape on one of the blades to try to offset the wobble. You can do this sort of thing with ceiling fans and it seems to work... Just a thought. The second issue is indeed the NOISE. I have read all the reviews and some people are saying that it isn't loud. To these people I say you need to go to an ear doctor (LOL). It is loud on the high setting (Trust Me). However the way I look at the noise is, That's fine with me because I know it is really pushing the air through the filter and that's what I wanted in the first place. I think very few people could stand to listen to it on the high speed setting for more than a few hours. The medium speed is just barely acceptable and I could probably get used to it if I had to. The low speed, to me, is very acceptable. How you intend to use this purifier is a big factor in whether you should buy it or not. The way I use it is like this: I bought a $5 mechanical plugin timer which has the ability to set two settings per day. I have the filter set to HIGH and the timer is set to start at 11AM-2PM (3 hours on high) and then it shuts off and starts again at 3AM-6AM (3 hours on high). The rest of the day the filter is not running. We have no bad physical conditions where we need to run it 24/7 so the six hours that we run it keeps everything fresh. Unless you need it running 24 hours a day there should be a schedule that you can come up with where the noise is really never an issue. This purifier is really cheap to operate when comparing to the more expensive makes and models - And especially if you never have to change the Hepa filter (My purifier says on box that you don't have to change it) but I will probably change it once a year or so. So, in conclusion, this Honeywell is a great purifier if you can work around the sound issue. I think the vibration issue is more a problem in your head than an actual mechanical problem. I do realize that my two weeks of operation is not a great test but if anything goes haywire I will be sure to let you guys know. Also consider buying it somewhere where you can return it if you don't like it.... Worth paying a few extra bucks I would think. Hope this helps. |
Quick Review
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| Review Date: July 19, 2007 |
| Reviewer: Dankoni, |
| I will spare you a long review, as there are PLENTY of good reviews for this fine air purifier already. I will simply be leaving my opinions on the negative reviews I had read before ordering. The blue light is NOT so bright that it is a problem at night. It is a bit on the loud side, but not so loud that it is an issue (especially on the sleep setting). It arrived in its factory seal with a new carbon pre-filter and had not been returned previously. It does not rock or make strange noises due to an off balance fan. It does a great job cleaning the air and our smoke problems are now gone. We have a cat and a guinea pig... pet hair does not seem to be a problem whatsoever. For the money, I can definitely say that it is a great deal and a quality machine. If you want to spend $600-$700, I'm sure you can get a better one. For this price, I defy you to find a better product. Lifetime HEPA filter that you can vacuum clean? Awesome. |
Glad I listened to the good reviews
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| Review Date: October 20, 2007 |
| Reviewer: Manda Rae, |
| I read through hundreds of reviews for dozens of air purifiers I could afford. I kept coming back to this one and finally went with my gut and bought it. I am so glad I did! This arrived yesterday but I got home later and didn't open it. Well, I live with indoor smokers, and having fallen asleep on the couch, I woke up coughing uncontrollably at 6am. I couldn't just go back to sleep, so I decided to install the thing right then. EASY. Opened it up, wrapped the extra carbon filter around the HEPA filter, put it back together and turned the thing on. Yeah, it's a bit loud on the high setting as people warned about, but not nearly as bad as I was expecting. It sounds like a normal fan does on high. On the sleep mode (lowest setting) I didn't even notice it after a couple minutes. It's actually kind of soothing. BUT the most important thing, I immediately noticed a difference in air quality. My cough has subsided and I feel I can breathe much more easily. The thing has been on for an hour and I feel amazing. If you can afford it (and not something way more expensive) definitely invest in this purifier. Especially if you live in an apartment in a city with poor air circulation/quality, have allergies, and/or live with smokers/smoke. |
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