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Dyson air purifier outperformed by cheap DIY box fan filter in Marketplace test

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Re: Dyson air purifier outperformed by cheap DIY box fan filter in Marketplace test

#321

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The fan also sucks compared to something like a Vornado. "Buffeting" of air is not a practical issue when using a fan - you want a fan that can create a lot of air flow. The Dyson fan comes across form first then making up reasons to explain the form retroactively. It feels like an interesting look is the goal rather than something that's actually better. Am I wrong about this? Do people that have the fan like it? Is…

We bought a Dyson fan when we had very small children that liked to stick their fingers into moving fan blades. It works really well for that purpose.

We have two cheap, basic standing fans with the standard wire guard around them.

At various ages we wondered if the kids could put their fingers in and touch the blades, and so prompted them to (while the fans were off, of course).

At no point could the kids' fingers get to the blades. Either their fingers were too short, or, eventually, too fat.

Re: Dyson air purifier outperformed by cheap DIY box fan filter in Marketplace test

#322
post #312

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think the filter is rotated the wrong way in your diagram? It looks like they use a normal pleated filter.

You're right about the orientation. I've fixed the diagram. But they don't just use 1 filter, they use a series of them, like you can see at this timestamp of this video: https://youtu.be/8f6Ih09uaDw?t=401

Oh, I see. That's a weird hack to get more surface areas instead of just using a deeper filter. All the pictures I could find were systems like this that do just use deeper pleats: https://images.allergybuyersclub.com/img/IQ-AP-HP-airflow.jp...

Re: Dyson air purifier outperformed by cheap DIY box fan filter in Marketplace test

#323
post #81

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> and served for almost 10 years before being passed on Wait what, is ten years supposed to be a good lifetime for vacuum cleaners?

My mom still uses her Hoover from the early 70s. It's mostly metal and the bags for it are still readily available at the store. A Dyson would probably clean better, but she's not going to upgrade until her old one breaks, which may be never. That said, it hasn't been completely care free. My parents have had to replace the belts several times, but those parts that are easily available and very cheap. The light bulb…

I wonder how much that Hoover cost brand new (adjusted for inflation, of course).

I've always had the narrative in my head that appliances have become flimsy and have shorter lives because people tend to buy whatever is the lowest price. A race to the bottom on prices means a drop in quality.

Re: Dyson air purifier outperformed by cheap DIY box fan filter in Marketplace test

#324
post #317

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They’d probably only do it once. It builds character, similar to == in JS or PHP.

Says no one who has ever raised kids.

Plenty of people raise their kids this way. When I see parents laugh when their kids fall down instead of panic, I smile. And the best part? The kids smile too, because they're actually looking to their parents for how to react.

I'd rather raise daredevils than anxious wrecks. My best friend has a kid who's always climbing on stuff, falling down, getting hurt. That kid is going to grow up to be awesome.

Re: Dyson air purifier outperformed by cheap DIY box fan filter in Marketplace test

#325

Earlier quoted context omitted.

AMA from a vacuum technician: https://old.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/7gmsoe/iama_reddits_o... IIRC he recommends Miele vacuums.

I am sort of worried that a lot of internet sentiments go back to just one person. I also have a vaguely negative impression of Dyson, and realized it came from that same Reddit thread. It feels like every internet community just recycles information from previous threads and only rarely gets input from reality. FWIW, I have a Dyson wireless handheld vacuum. It's pretty good, but I can't way if it's worth the price.

It's not only that thread that is giving Dyson a bad name. They've been selling overhyped, over-marketed products for years. I've heard the same from multiple sources. As multiple commenters have said here, they're like Bose in that aspect. They're not bad as such, but there are much better products out there that are not heavily marketed.

Re: Dyson air purifier outperformed by cheap DIY box fan filter in Marketplace test

#326
post #190

I've spent many hours navigating the air purifier market and it is one of the most opaque and customer-unfriendly ones I have ever seen. Beyond the advice given in the article, it's also important to check what the filter exactly is. Some filters are washable, but it often means that they are not as thorough as HEPA filters, which is a big deal if your goal is to avoid the dreaded PM2.5 that are as far as I can tell…

Yes I agree. There are a lot of non or low performing units out there that are hyped up by marketing and dubious claims. My startup [1] does air quality measurements primarily for schools and we very often come across schools that wasted a lot of money purchasing non performing units. The best is really to get a PM2.5 meter and compare the performance of different units. [1] https://www.airgradient.com/schools/

Between a lot of nonsense I've read today, I suddenly read a comment from someone who devotes energy to making air in schools cleaner.

Very refreshing. Good luck with your startup.

Re: Dyson air purifier outperformed by cheap DIY box fan filter in Marketplace test

#327

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I rounded up to be generous.

1. I concluded that's what you did, but found it a bit annoying. 100x15/16=93.75 . I find it unnecessarily confusing (as the parent commenter probably did) to round it to 93, when the correct rounding is 94. 2. The article says "15x more", so the right math would be 100x16/17=94.12 .

This is exactly the kind of pedantry I was trying to avoid by rounding.

Fan X moves "15x more" air than fan Y. For every 1 unit of air fan X moves, Y will move 1x15 = 15 units. In the time it takes fan Y to move 100 units of air, fan X will move 100*(1/15) units, or 6 2/3rds units. 6.666... rounds to 7.

Re: Dyson air purifier outperformed by cheap DIY box fan filter in Marketplace test

#328
I am surprised that so few people discuss the centralized, presumably less-wasteful, less-cluttered alternative that is a furnace-adjacent air bypass + filter (particularly relevant for those of us with access to our own fans/furnaces).

The idea, as I understand it, is that a furnace can be modified by an HVAC specialist to send a portion of the air through a low-flow bypass duct containing a HEPA filter (or some other high-MERV-rating filter). This highly filtered air is, of course, combined with the less-clean air that passes through the low-MERV (standard) furnace filter before being delivered to ducts/rooms. This enables filtering of air for the entire living space without the need for an air purifier (a large plastic box containing future e-waste) in each room where clean air is desired. One obvious shortcoming of such a system is that in-duct/in-room sources of particulates (including concentrated bursts of particles from things like cooking) might be harder to combat. I don't know whether such a system can reduce particulates to levels commonly reached with in-room purifiers.

Thoughts/adecdata on such setups?

Re: Dyson air purifier outperformed by cheap DIY box fan filter in Marketplace test

#329
post #264

Some of the best air filtering systems (and also among the most expensive) are systems like the IQAir [1], which are essentially boxes with a fan at one end and a series of filters arranged in an alternating diagonal pattern: Note: / and \ are each separate filters Filter box ___ | \ | Inflow --> / --> Outflow | \ | | / | ‾‾‾ This maximizes the filtration while reducing the static pressure, since the filtration is di…

I think the filter is rotated the wrong way in your diagram? It looks like they use a normal pleated filter.

I believe that's 6 filters in a chamber, not a zoomed in view of a single filter.

Re: Dyson air purifier outperformed by cheap DIY box fan filter in Marketplace test

#330

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The nonsensical Dyson canister vacuums are the ones that amaze me. Dyson competes based on premium coolness, so just consider at its primary coolness competitor: Miele. Across the board, Miele canisters are lighter, more powerful, cleaner, and much more effective than their Dyson cost equivalents. They have a far lower failure rate and last much longer. Bagless canisters have so many negatives compared to bagged vacu…

Do you have any more info to back this? I am honestly curious- I bought a Dyson Animal about 12 years ago now, and its still going strong, and is the best vacuum I have ever used. Not having to keep bags around is nice too. Our usecase is relatively light- we have area rugs mostly, but its still head and shoulders above the previous vacuum we had, and any of the ones my parents had growing up.

how do you dump your cannister? i empty mine after every use and it always releases dust into the air. bagged seems much better as it just keeps the dust inside.
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