I am just wondering if anyone can advise or has any experience with issues we are having with the IQ air multigas purifier.
We have a number of the Airthings air monitors and they are recording quite high VOCs in the majority of rooms. All other measurements are generally good. We made the decision to invest in the IQ gas purifier as a result as my son has health issues (big decision as these purifiers are expensive). However when we run the purifier - the vocs spike like crazy pretty much straight away.
We’ve tried the trouble-shooting advised (new filters should be run for 48 hours to offgas) but we are still having the same issue. I’m uncomfortable running this filter now as it seems to be making the problem worse. Anyone experience this with VOC purifiers?
Sorry one last question - we’ve been ventilating to the extreme - windows open all day and night (kids complaining of the cold!) but again we are seeing very little shift in the numbers. The monitors seems to be sensitive to VOC change as they will increase quickly with people in the room, or other obvious VOC source.
I’m starting to get so anxious as not sure how else to resolve this issue so any advise at all would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you for joining the forum and great question!
I actually had a long email conversation with another reader recently about the Airthings monitors and the VOC readings they produce. After about a months’ worth of emails, we concluded that the VOC readings from the monitors were extremely hard to interpret and had limited usefulness. This likely isn’t an issue just with Airthings, however, as VOCs in general are very challenging to monitor. Please see the below thread if you’re curious:
Therefore, it’s very hard to know exactly where the issue may lie here. Is the purifier not performing well? Is the monitor not reporting correctly? Or something else entirely. I don’t mean to worry you further, but I think a good first step would be to get a professional VOC test. The fact that the levels don’t drop when you open the windows surprises me, and this is why I would suggest doing such a test.
I’m not sure which country you’re based in, but in most countries you can find places that send you a test kit. You can then leave these around your house for a week or longer, and send them back. They will then be tested for dangerous VOCs and other gasses, and you will get far more useable results (and also know exactly which VOCs are present).
If you can let me know where you are (just the country is okay!) I can have a look online and see if there are any good options. I also hope something like this might help prevent any anxiety you may be having from the monitor readings. The other reader I was having a conversation with was in the same boat, and the professional test kit provided a lot of peace of mind.
I believe some of them are relatively inexpensive, too!
Thank you so much Ethan for your detailed response - it is greatly appreciated. We live in Ireland and I monitor the outside air quality which is generally good.
But yes the VOCs in the house are my biggest concern and your explanation has helped me understand better some of the limitations but as you say it’s the trend and limited reduction in levels that concern me. I think your suggestion as to get a sample and send off is the best option so we can get some confirmation on what exactly we are breathing.
I will do some googling as to companies in Ireland that might provide this - not sure we have much options! So if you know of any that would be super. Your site is so informative and helpful. Thank you so much again.
You’re most welcome! I wish I could be of more help.
Ah, unfortunately I’m not very familiar with what is available in Ireland. However, I’m certain there are some services and I will have a look online tomorrow.
The other reader that I mentioned previously was in the U.S., and the company sent them a test kit via post that they could ‘deploy’ for a set time (I believe it was either one week or one month) in every room they wanted to test. At the end of this period, they sent the samples back and they were analysed at a lab for specific VOCs and other gasses. The service was quite comprehensive and relatively affordable. Most importantly, the professional testing removed a lot of anxiety they had due to very concerning readings from multiple Airthings monitors around the house.
While I’m a big fan of air quality monitors generally (as you can tell from my website!), the more I encounter VOCs and VOC sensors, the less confident I am in them. I think they’re generally good indicators of issues, but situations such as yours have led me to begin recommending professional testing more often.
When it comes to other pollutants like PM, radon and CO2 (although the latter is not really considered a pollutant), I think air quality monitors are fantastic. I just wish we had a good VOC option at an affordable price!
Hi Ethan, sorry I’m back looking for more advice. We found someone to do an air quality sample in one room of the house - we treated for vocs, mould and separate test for formaldehyde. The total vocs and mould came back relatively low but we got a shock to find the separate formaldehyde test values were in the elevated range - goes for low, moderate, elevated and high. We are obviously really concerned about this and can’t determine potential source. No furniture other than bed in the room. Although we have the Airthings monitor for voc - I’m considering trying to get an additional one that will measure formaldehyde both to try and confirm the result and also measure all the rooms in the house. I know we spoke about vocs monitors not being very accurate - do the ones that measure for formaldehyde any better? Or would you have any recommendations - this model is getting relatively good reviews - Temtop Air Quality Monitor LKC1000S+ 2nd. Thanks again I know I can’t expect you to know everything! but if you did insights or advice whether formaldehyde sensors would be in any way accurate that would be much appreciated again! Thanks so much.
No problem at all! I’m glad to hear that you got a test done. While the results may not be ideal, it’s good to know the truth!
I am currently on vacation, but I am happy to look a bit more into formaldehyde sensors when I get back. I’m sure there are some studies out there on the accuracy of different units. However, in the meantime I stumbled across this article and I think you may find it interesting: Why Formaldehyde Detectors Are Not as Effective at Formaldehyde (HCHO) Testing as You Think – Smart Air. There are three parts to the series, and I think the other parts (linked at the bottom) may also be useful.
Once I have a chance to do some more research I will let you know!
Thank you so much Ethan for replying on your holidays - you are so good. I’ll read through that article and whenever you’re home and have a chance any of your feedback would be greatly appreciated. I hope you have a wonderful holiday and thanks so much again. Clare
I’ve had a bit more time to look into this and it looks like some consumer-level sensors do a decent job of monitoring formaldehyde levels. For example, here is the conclusion of a study looking into the Sensirion SFA30 (full study here: Laboratory Performance Evaluation of a Low-Cost Electrochemical Formaldehyde Sensor - PMC). Unfortunately, I couldn’t find too many other studies on low cost devices (at least, not ones that named the tested devices).
Unfortunately, even the better low-cost sensors have quite large error margins and LOD (level of detection), meaning they aren’t ideal at low concentrations. With that said, a good sensor like the SFA30 should at least give you some insight into the formaldehyde concentration.
Unfortunately, it’s very hard to find which monitors actually use this sensor… It seems to be in a few air purifiers, but I haven’t found a monitor that uses it yet. It appears to be even tougher to find academic research on monitors themselves (such as the Temtop device). I find this very odd, as for other pollutants (like radon), this kind of information is generally quite easy to find.
I will keep looking into this as I’m curious now! If I come across anything, I will let you know.
Thank you so much for this Ethan - this is so helpful in helping me navigate the confusing world of sensors and monitors! So I’ll keep all of this in mind when having a look. Thanks so much again.
