Covid at home can be the cause of serious health problems. Air purifiers are an essential tool to help reduce the risk of Covid-19 at home.
Several studies have shown that wearing a mask properly while consistently practicing good social distancing can significantly reduce the spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19) through droplet transmission.But concerns about possible transmission through aerosol droplets got many people looking into air purifiers as an additional aid for combatting the virus. But how do the various types of air purifiers work? Are any of them actually effective against COVID-19? And should you get one for your home?
Do air purifiers help with Covid-19?
The coronavirus particle size is at the lower end of a HEPA filter’s optimal range, which means HEPA filters will not be 100% effective at removing it, although a HEPA system constantly running can help removing a big amount of viruses. Some of the main aspects that are important to consider when it comes to air purifiers for Covid, are:
- Filtration effectiveness (what’s the smallest particles it can capture?)
- UV-light deactivation (is there any UV-light to deactivate viruses?)
- Filter material (is the material of the filter aiding in destroying the virus?)
Should you use an air purifier for Covid?
Your own home is generally the safest place you can be during the COVID-19 pandemic. So, the average person probably doesn’t necessarily need an air purifier to avoid Covid. This is especially true if you’re socializing only with members of your own family, wearing a mask whenever you go out, and following good social distancing practices.But if someone in your household has COVID-19 or needs to quarantine until they can be sure they don’t have it, it might make sense to have an air purifier in their room with the door closed, to help protect anyone in the house from possible exposure.It’s also something to consider if someone in your household is at extremely high risk by being asthmatic or allergic.
What to look for in an air purifier for Covid
Think about the size of the area you need to cover. Air purifiers are most effective in smaller rooms with all the doors and windows shut. So, spaces with an open floor plan are going to be much more difficult to manage. You also might have to upsize a little if you have very tall ceilings. As a general tip, try to get enough air purification to cover 10% more of the actual area you want.For instance, if you want to cover 600 sq. ft. you should get air purifiers to cover at least 650-660 sq. ft. in order to maintain effectiveness.
Other tips to improve air quality at home for Covid
If temperature, humidity, ozone, and additional allergens are not a concern in your house, you can:
- Increase air circulation (open windows or use fans)
- Use box or floor fans strategically (position one so that it “pushes” indoor air out one window and another one so that it “pulls” fresh outdoor air inside from a different window)
- Set the fan on the HVAC system to run continuously, even if it doesn’t always cool or heat the air
- Upgrade to a modern, higher-quality air purifier
- Replace the filter more frequently. The typical lifespan of a 1”-thick home air filter is 90 days. Or consider upgrading to a system with a reusable, washable filter.
Keep in mind that unless you have someone with an active COVID-19 infection in your home, you’re not going to have any source of the coronavirus to reduce or filter out using any of these methods. So, you’ll just be improving the air quality inside your home which is still a huge benefit.
Covid-19 effects on our health
Almost two and a half years ago, the first positive tests for Covid-19 infected patients started rising in the United States, Europe and the rest of the World in a matter of a few days. The first patients were people who had recently arrived from or had contacts with Wuhan, in China, where the world’s first case of Covid-19 had been confirmed a month earlier.
From January 2020 to late March 2022, there have been over 78 million confirmed cases of Covid-19 in the United States alone. In the same period, there have been over 1 million deaths (within 28 days of a positive Covid-19 test). Successive waves of infection – driven by new mutations and changes in public behavior have been tempered by attempts from the governments of containment and suppression.
This has led to the formation of the now familiar “spikes” or “waves” of infection, hospitalization and death rate in every chart.Crucially, and most notably in the recent Omicron wave of the infection, we no longer see hospitalizations and deaths reaching the same heights as infection cases. This is largely thanks to the biggest vaccination effort in the World’s history.
By the end of January 2022, around 4% of the people who recovered from Covid were living with self-reported symptoms of long Covid (ONS, 2022). Almost half (45%) of these people had been experiencing symptoms for at least a year after the first (suspected) infection. And around two-thirds (65%) said that their condition negatively affected their day-to-day lives.
There is still much to learn about the long-lasting effects of Covid. A better understanding of its vast range of symptoms will certainly help a great deal healthcare professionals in dealing with the most severe cases.
Recent findings show – for instance – that double-vaccinated Covid-19 patients are 50% less likely to develop long-term symptoms of Covid, compared with the unvaccinated. This is encouraging, and adds to the impetus to get people vaccinated.
Effects of Covid-19 on Mental Health
In the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, global levels of anxiety and depression increased by a massive 25%, according to a statement released by the World Health Organization (WHO). The brief also emphasizes who has been most affected and summarizes the effect of the pandemic on the availability of mental health services and how this has changed during the pandemic.
Concerns about potential increases in mental health conditions had already prompted 90% of countries surveyed to include mental health and psychosocial support in their COVID-19 response plans, as of March 2020, however – almost three years later – major gaps and concerns still remain.
One major explanation for the increase is the extraordinary stress caused by the social isolation resulting from the pandemic. Linked to this were numerous constraints on people’s ability to work, seek support from loved ones, and engage in their communities in the most basic forms.
Loneliness, fear of infection, suffering and death for oneself and for loved ones, grief and financial worries have also all been cited as strong stressing factors leading to anxiety and depression. Among health workers, another very common cause of stress has been exhaustion, which has been a major trigger for suicidal thinking.
6 ultimate tips to reduce the risk of Covid-19 at home
The best way to reduce your chance of exposure to the Covid-19 virus at home is to keep it from entering your home to begin with.
- Always wear masks when outdoors, and put them to wash or replace them once you’re home.
- Wash your hands and face regularly with detergent.
- Keep windows open and fans running to increase airflow.
- Keep indoor humidity low. If possible, keep indoor humidity between 30% and 50% relative humidity.
How to remove Covid-19 from your home
- Use air purifiers with high quality air filters and UV-light virus deactivation.
- Keep rooms isolated and clean them one at a time for maximum efficiency.
- Consider hiring a professional disinfection crew.
A conclusive note
As the third anniversary from the Pandemic declaration of emergency approaches, a key lesson the world has learned is the importance of investing in indoor air quality.If you want to reduce the risk of Covid-19 spreading within you home, you should consider using specialized, high quality air purifiers to protect your family’s health.Modern advancements in air purification technology allowed us to develop KORU Air focusing on maintaining an extremely high air purification effectiveness, while limiting our impact on the planet and on customer’s pockets with a permanent and washable filter perfect to capture even up to 99% of virus and bacteria.