If you follow the Air Purifier First reviews website, you’ve probably already noticed that one of the factors when evaluating an air purifier is electricity consumption.
Although power consumption is an essential factor and definitely comes into the final rating of an air purifier, don’t let this put you off because air purifiers generally use little energy. You probably have devices that use twice as much or even more power than a regular air purifier in your house.
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So far, I have tested many different air purifiers, but the most exciting thing is that I have not yet come across a device with a power greater than 100W. The average power capacity of air purifiers is around 50W, while several devices are on the market with a power of 10W or less. I have also had the opportunity to test a few air purifiers that consume much less than 10W. These air purifiers usually connect via USB to a computer or phone charger or are used in the car and have not proved very efficient. Usually, the more powerful the air purifier is, the higher the airflow, so under 10W power is maybe too little to create a decent airflow.
For example, the average air purifier uses 2-3 times less electricity than a refrigerator or even 30 times less electricity than the average air conditioner. I would advise everyone to always make sure that the air purifier has the Energy Star label, as devices with this certification are energy efficient. If you were to use an average air purifier with, say, 50 watts, at maximum speed, 24 hours a day, your electricity bill would increase by $3-4 per month. That’s not a significant expense, wouldn’t you agree?
In the following paragraphs, I will talk about how much electricity an air purifier uses and how to choose and adjust your air purifier’s power consumption.
How Much Electricity Does an Air Purifier Use?
The main question that arises is how much electricity one air purifier needs. We first need to know how electricity consumption is calculated to answer this question. Only then we can say how much electricity an air purifier consumes.
The formula for calculating electricity consumption is simple and is as follows: (Wattage X kWh cost X time (hours)) = (Wattage X kWh cost X time (hours)) / 1000
However, to make the calculation easier, I will give you an example below to calculate the power consumption of a random air purifier. Assume that the average price of electricity is $0.12 (which is approximately the price in most US states).
How Much Electricity Does an Air Purifier Need?
To better describe how much electricity an air purifier consumes and how much it will cost you to use it, I will take as an example a device that has a 50W engine.
The fact that the machine has a 50W engine means that this is its maximum power and that this is how much it consumes at maximum speed. So the air purifier uses different amounts of electricity at different speeds. For example, we take our air purifier as having three speeds and consuming 10W at the first speed, 25W at the second speed, and 50W at the third speed.
First, we will calculate how much the machine consumes when running at third speed for a whole day. So 50W X 24 hours = 1200 W. Then we need to convert the watts into a measurement of electricity: 1200 watts / 1000 = 1.2 kilowatts. This means that the device consumes 1.2 kilowatts of electricity in one day. Next, we multiply the daily consumption of 1.2 kWh x 30 days = we get a consumption of 36 kWh per month. Since we have assumed that the price of a kilowatt hour in the USA is about $0.12, then we multiply the total consumption by the cost of electricity: 36 kWh x $0.12 = about $4.3, which means that if our device is working at maximum speed for a month, 24 hours a day, it will cost us about $4.3.
Let’s leave this device running at the second speed (25W) under the same conditions. It uses about $2.16 of electricity. While our example device at the first speed (10W) uses about $0.85 under the same conditions.
It is important to remember that you will not always be using the air purifier at maximum speed, which means that an air purifier of average power (50W) should never consume more than $4 of electricity per month. Furthermore, the device from the example will consume, on average, in my estimation and with some optimal use, much less than $2 per month. I hope I have explained well and that you understand how the consumption is calculated and how much electricity one air purifier uses. If you have any questions, please leave a comment in the comment box below, and I will answer them as soon as possible.
Factors Affecting Air Purifiers’ Energy Consumption?
There are a few factors that affect electricity consumption. For example, I recommend that everyone regularly maintains and cleans the filters, especially the pre-filters. This way, you retain optimum power consumption and the device’s efficiency.
In addition, you should be careful when choosing which air purifier is recommended according to the size of the room you intend to use it in, as if you buy an air purifier that is too large for a small room, it can easily cause unnecessary electricity consumption. Not only that, but it can cause the filter to wear out faster than usual, which is an even higher cost.
Additional electricity consumers are also the add-ons that air purifiers come with, such as UV-C filtration. To be honest, UV-C light is not a big electricity consumer most of the time, but if you really want to save on consumption, then it is important to take this into account.
For example, I recently tried an air purifier that doesn’t consume much energy in the initial edition, which only has a HEPA filter, but if you buy a carbon filter and install it in the machine, it will consume a few more watts, and then the price is not the same as you might have initially calculated.
FAQ
Does the air purifier use a lot of electricity?
No, it doesn’t. Air purifiers are usually up to 100W, which means they don’t use a lot of electricity.
Does pre-filter cleaning save electricity?
Yes, it does. The reason is that when the airflow is clogged by dirt, the machine uses more energy. A dirty air purifier has lower airflow, thus “forcing” the engine to use more watts to increase airflow.
Does using the auto mode save energy?
It certainly does. Devices that have an automatic mode are much more energy efficient than manual devices because the air purifier from automatic mode adjusts the mode according to the air quality in the room, which means that if the air quality in the room is good, the device will reduce the speed to the lowest level and thus saving electricity.
Final Verdict
In summary, air purifiers do not need much energy. I do not think that power consumption should be a deciding factor when buying a device. However, my advice is to buy an Energy Star certified air purifier.
In addition, I would recommend cleaning the pre-filter regularly, changing the filter periodically, and following all the tips I mentioned earlier, as this will reduce your electricity consumption and increase the efficiency of the device.
If you have any questions or confusion on this topic, please leave a comment in the comments box below. I will gratefully answer all of them and help you make the right decision when choosing an air purifier.
