Contents
- How Do Air Purifiers Work?
- Why Does the Air Feel Dry With an Air Purifier?
- What Should I Do if My Air is Too Dry?
- FAQs
- Should I leave the air purifier on all day?
- Is there a downside to air purifiers?
- How do I know if I need an air purifier?
- Do air purifiers help with humidity?
- Can an air purifier give you a dry throat?
- Can you use an air purifier and a humidifier at the same time?
- Final Thoughts
Air purifiers are becoming increasingly popular as important household appliances to improve indoor air quality. These devices remove harmful contaminants from the air such as smoke, pet dander, pollen, and allergens thus alleviating many health problems. But do air purifiers dry out the air?
The short answer is: No, air purifiers do not dry out the air. Their purpose is not to remove moisture from the air.
Keep reading this post to find out more about this. You’ll also get to learn why you feel like your air purifier is drying out the air and what you can do about it.
How Do Air Purifiers Work?
An air purifier is a device used in homes, offices, and other places or other workspaces whose primary function is to eliminate harmful contaminants from the air. These airborne particles include toxins, dust, pollen, pet dander, gases, mold spores, and much more.
An air purifier usually consists of a fan and filter. The fan pulls air into the device and as the air passes through the filter, harmful contaminants in the air are captured and eliminated. As a result, clean and purified air is pushed back into the surroundings.
Air purification goes through several stages such as
- pre-filtration where larger particles are trapped
- activated carbon filtration in which unwanted odors and VOCs are removed
- and finally, HEPA filtration where small pollutants such as bacteria, viruses, mold, and smoke are eliminated from the air.
Thus, air purifiers only purify your indoor air. These devices are not designed to capture moisture from the air. To remove moisture from the air, specific devices are used that are called dehumidifiers. Dehumidifiers are electrical appliances that capture excess humidity from the air thus creating ideal humidity levels in the indoor environment.
Why Does the Air Feel Dry With an Air Purifier?
You might feel like the air is dry when you run your humidifier. This could be caused by a number of reasons:
Your Air Purifier Circulates Air Too Fast
Usually, warm air tends to feel more humid as it has the capacity to hold more moisture. On the other hand, cold air feels drier as it retains less moisture. So, when you run the air purifier, its fan circulates air into the room which makes the air cooler that feels dry.
To solve this problem, you can do the following things:
- Reduce your air purifier’s fan speed
- Change the outlet position of your device so that the air doesn’t blow directly on your skin
The Air Purifier is Too Large
Another reason that makes you feel the air is getting dry is that the air purifier is too big for your room. Therefore, make sure to pick an air purifier that has the appropriate size according to the space where you want to place your appliance.
Air Conditioning and Heating
It is possible to feel dry air if you use an air conditioner in your room because air conditioners remove moisture from the room to decrease the temperature. Moreover, furnaces and heaters can also dry out your indoor air.
What Should I Do if My Air is Too Dry?
According to the EPA, indoor humidity levels should be between 30% and 50%. If the air in your home feels dry, you can use a digital hygrometer to check the relative humidity. If the moisture level is too low, it can lead to various health problems such as dry skin, chapped lips, itchy eyes, and congestion.
You can follow these ways to help get rid of dry air and low humidity levels in your home:
Use a Humidifier
Using a humidifier is an excellent option to balance humidity when the air in your home feels too dry. This appliance releases moisture into the atmosphere in the form of water vapors or mist. Make sure to use your humidifier only when needed as excessive moisture may lead to mold formation.
Read more about mold formation caused by humidifiers here.
Reduce the Fan Speed
If your air purifier is set at a higher speed, it will circulate air in your home at a faster rate which makes the air feel drier. Therefore, adjust the device’s fan speed to a lower setting to eliminate this issue.
Keep Yourself Hydrated
Consume more water if you feel the effects of dry air such as dryness of the nasal passages. You can also apply moisturizers if your skin becomes too dry.
Keep Indoor Houseplants
Keeping houseplants is an affordable option to refresh your indoor air. These can serve as humidifying plants because they increase humidity in the air through a process called evapotranspiration, thereby relieving dry air symptoms.
Seal Your Home
It is possible that during the winter months, cold air gets into your home through the cracks of doors or windows and makes the air feel dry. Therefore, check for any gaps to avoid cold air from the outside leaking into your room.
Recommended Reading:
- Air Purifier Vs. Humidifier: Which one is better for allergies?
- The 5 different types of air purifiers and how they work
FAQs
Should I leave the air purifier on all day?
Is there a downside to air purifiers?
How do I know if I need an air purifier?
You might need an air purifier if you observe the following signs:
Allergy symptoms such as stuffy nose, itchy eyes, sneezing or coughing
– Bad odors in your home
– The air feels stuffy and stale
– Asthma flare-ups
– Dust on your furniture
– If you snore loudly
Do air purifiers help with humidity?
Thus an air purifier doesn’t remove or add moisture to the air. It has no effect on the air humidity levels.
Can an air purifier give you a dry throat?
Can you use an air purifier and a humidifier at the same time?
For more information, read: can you use an air purifier and humidifier together?
Final Thoughts
An air purifier has nothing to do with the humidity levels of the atmosphere. It doesn’t add or remove moisture from the air. However, if your air purifier is set at a high setting or is too large for your room, it can make the air feel dry. Using an air conditioner or a heater also makes the air drier.
Fortunately, you can resolve the issue of dry air by following the above-mentioned methods. Moreover, using a humidifier will be the best option to relieve symptoms caused by dry air.
Richard is a retired HVAC specialist and air quality enthusiast! With decades of experience in the field, this author has seen it all when it comes to air-related issues and knows just what it takes to keep your surroundings clean and healthy.