Guys at http://aaaiiirrr.com/ are doing the same thing, but Open source.
I don't see anything on their website. Looks like a new install of wordpress.
That is true. I met guy on BarCamp in Shanghai. They are part of local hackerspace.
Smart Air
41–50 of 95 posts
Re: Smart Air
#42Earlier quoted context omitted.
I'm still trying to reconcile the $300 price tag of yours with the price tag of a carbon filter (5 on amazon) HEPA filter (70 on amazon) and box fan (30 on amazon). Is there really 200 dollars worth of plastic, assembly, marketing and IP in the the whispure? Or is there one important element I'm not accounting for (perhaps fan power, fan noise, some kind of PID, or sensors to check filter health)
There is not 200 bucks of anything in it. http://www.amazon.com/Shop-Fox-W1746-Fine-Filter/dp/B000QD7Y... is a good choice if you want a single large room done.
Hmm so I wonder if one should buy the carbon filters and tape it to the intake side. It's a cheap upgrade. A wire mesh in front of that might be good for the very large particles like hair or dust balls.
Re: Smart Air
#43This depresses me.
What about it depresses you?
The fact that people need air filters? Or something about the way these people are doing it?
I really like their website. They're open and honest about not being experts, and about how they do things, and how they want corrections and additional information. They sell you a kit if you want it, but they make no secret about it being really easy to do by yourself.
Re: Smart Air
#44This is a very neat idea, though I suspect they'll ultimately want a more powerful fan. Note that high quality air filters also have a carbon pre-filter that gets changed more often than the HEPA filter, and having one ought to make your HEPA filter last much longer, especially in somewhere like Bejing. They also play a part in controlling odors. This is what I'm currently using and love it to death. Note that the cu…
I'm still trying to reconcile the $300 price tag of yours with the price tag of a carbon filter (5 on amazon) HEPA filter (70 on amazon) and box fan (30 on amazon). Is there really 200 dollars worth of plastic, assembly, marketing and IP in the the whispure? Or is there one important element I'm not accounting for (perhaps fan power, fan noise, some kind of PID, or sensors to check filter health)
I have the same air filter and it works great. There wasn't anything by a reputable brand for less. So yes, there's a lot of valuable plastic and a quiet and reliable motor.
Re: Smart Air
#45Earlier quoted context omitted.
I'm still trying to reconcile the $300 price tag of yours with the price tag of a carbon filter (5 on amazon) HEPA filter (70 on amazon) and box fan (30 on amazon). Is there really 200 dollars worth of plastic, assembly, marketing and IP in the the whispure? Or is there one important element I'm not accounting for (perhaps fan power, fan noise, some kind of PID, or sensors to check filter health)
a quote from the movie with the mock history of dr kellogs: health is the easy way to a fool's wallet. that said I have 3 expensive of those filter at my home. not that one, 3 other different brands. The main factor for my purchases were silence. and ironically the only one that was silent is a discontinued sharp model that sold for $150. all the $300 models are awful. specially the blueAir one that focus all it's ma…
> health is the easy way to a fool's wallet
No it's not, especially with a preemptive health solution (solving a problem people don't feel they have).
Re: Smart Air
#46Earlier quoted context omitted.
I'm still trying to reconcile the $300 price tag of yours with the price tag of a carbon filter (5 on amazon) HEPA filter (70 on amazon) and box fan (30 on amazon). Is there really 200 dollars worth of plastic, assembly, marketing and IP in the the whispure? Or is there one important element I'm not accounting for (perhaps fan power, fan noise, some kind of PID, or sensors to check filter health)
a quote from the movie with the mock history of dr kellogs: health is the easy way to a fool's wallet. that said I have 3 expensive of those filter at my home. not that one, 3 other different brands. The main factor for my purchases were silence. and ironically the only one that was silent is a discontinued sharp model that sold for $150. all the $300 models are awful. specially the blueAir one that focus all it's ma…
How do the three compare on size? I suspect that the blueAir has the smallest fan and the Sharp has the largest fan.
Re: Smart Air
#47This depresses me.
What about it depresses you? The fact that people need air filters? Or something about the way these people are doing it? I really like their website. They're open and honest about not being experts, and about how they do things, and how they want corrections and additional information. They sell you a kit if you want it , but they make no secret about it being really easy to do by yourself.
It's a classic case of negative externalities caused by stupid human decisions and a complete disregard for the commons. People have been shitting in the commons so long in Beijing that the particulates in the air are crazy high. Everyone feels like this have to have a car instead of pushing hard for effective public transportation. Since everyone has to have a car, it hurts everyone on buses because the traffic is so bad the busses can't get anywhere on time anymore[0]. Then everyone has a building that is heated by coal, instead of making an effort to upgrade the buildings to some form of heat that isn't going to dump thousands to millions of pounds of particulates into the atmosphere.
Instead of solving the problem at the root, everyone takes an every man for himself approach to the problem like the one described by the OP. The government should provide some sort of tax incentive to every building willing to upgrade their heating to something cleaner and should tax the hell out of cars in the city and put that money towards public transportation
FWIW, I lived in Beijing back in 2005/2006 and had a solid smoker's cough after a year. It's truly disgusting how everyone is effectively poisoning each other there.
[0] Furthermore, the design of the onramps and offramps on the ring roads are such that they cause a cascading locking condition once the level of traffic hits a certain point. When the line to exit a ring road gets long enough, it blocks the on ramp. This causes locking to cascade through the whole city.
Re: Smart Air
#48Can't you just do this with a normal box fan and a hepa air filter you buy for 7usd at the market?
From the FAQ: You can! We have links on our Particle Counting blog. We're more committed to spreading the knowledge that HEPA filters are a cheap way to effectively combat air pollution than we are to making money, so we'd never discourage anyone from buying the same parts elsewhere. We just try to make the parts easier to get for people who don't want to scour Taobao for the cheapest filters. People have also emaile…
The irony is that running all of these filters is consuming electricity, which in turn means more coal-fired power plants and even dirtier air for everyone. Beijing should move to clean up the environment.
Re: Smart Air
#49Guys at http://aaaiiirrr.com/ are doing the same thing, but Open source.
How is the OP's article not open source? They tell you exactly how to make it using parts bought from a local hardware store.
Re: Smart Air
#50For someone living in a city with reasonably clean air and no smog problem, does filtering the air in their living space provide any long-term health benefits?
There is no "safe" threshold for particulate matter (PM) exposure. Our nose, mouth and throat are very inefficient at filtering particles less than 2.5 microns. As a consequence, a large proportion of these particles simply enter the respiratory tract (tracheobronchial and alveolar regions) relatively unimpeded.
Assessing indoor exposure to PM is challenging because it is highly dependent on location, the physical properties of the home, and human behaviour. Consequently, it can be difficult to clearly identify/quantify health benefits.
Even though you live in a reasonably clean city, you can still further reduce your exposure to indoor PM by changing your behaviour, filtering your air and using existing equipment in your home properly.
1) In non-smoking homes, the biggest indoor source of PM is cooking (especially frying and broiling). You can reduce your exposure by a) keeping your range hood in good working order (change filters), b) using the range hood every time your cook, c) opening a window while cooking and d)stepping away from the stove whenever possible.
2) There are multiple other sources products that can produce shocking amounts of PM through direct emission and secondary reactions involving ozone. I would describe these exposures as completely unnecessary and can be eliminated by simply not using the products in the first place: a) candles, b) incense, and c)air fresheners and cleaning products with lemon & pine scents.