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Build a Do-It-Yourself Air Purifier for About $40

Michigan Medicine · 2.3M views · 2011-06-27 · 3:40

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Overview

A University of Michigan Medicine demonstration of building a cheap DIY air purifier from a box fan and a HEPA or high-MERV filter using hardware-store parts. It explains why this helps against dust, smoke and viruses and ties it to local air quality readings.

On Hacker News

HN people link it during wildfire smoke and air quality threads as a practical, cheap fix, though a few doubt how rigorously its effectiveness was shown.

Recommended by 5 HN people across 4 months · HN mentions 2012–2022

Topics

Home, DIY & practical skillsMedicine & infectious disease
Search by tags
air purifierhepa filterbox fanwildfire smokeair quality

What people said

polyfractal · 2012-01 · Strong recommendation

If you are worried about particulate, you can build one of these: [VIDEO] I built one for my room because my previous tenants had cats, which I'm allergic to. Even after steamcleaning our apartment I was chronically congested. Built one of those purifiers and a few days later most of my symptoms are gone. It's been about a month now and the filter is noticeably soiled.

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thomas · 2020-12 · Recommendation

Yeah, same thought. Something like the Coway air filter ( [LINK] ) regularly sells for under $200, and it is going to be much quieter than this option. It also has been tested fairly extensively from what I've seen, it's EnergyStar approved, etc, and it has a built in sensor. It doesn't look too bad either. But I understand the point, especially in times when you can't find a purifier. Also, good video on all this: [VIDEO]

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shard · 2020-09 · Recommendation

If this is because of high PM2.5 concentration (due to wildfires or otherwise), I suggest building a DIY air filter, such as the one in the video here: [VIDEO] When the Air Quality Index shot up to ~150 in my area (you want to keep it below 100, preferably below 50), I went to Home Depot and bought box fans and furnace filters and built my own. You can check the air quality in your area on this site: [LINK]

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Sources

Video by Michigan Medicine, played through YouTube.

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