Best Air Purifiers for Mold, Mildew, Viruses, Fungus & Spores

Are you searching for the best air purifier for mold, mildew, viruses, fungus, and spores?

But not sure which one to buy?

If so, you’ve landed on the right page.

In this guide, we’ll show you how to get the best air purifier for mold removal so you can prevent the reproduction of microbes and pathogens in your home.

As you’ll discover below, the best mold air purifier comes in two types.

And you have to pay special attention to the types of air filtering technologies it uses in order to get one that works well against mold, mildew, viruses, fungus, and spores.

Best Air Purifiers for Mold Comparison Chart

Here’s a chart showing the comparison between the top three best air purifiers for mold and mildew.

We’ll go more in depth about each one later in this guide but this gives you a sense of what’s available and an easy way to quickly compare them.

Image	Air Purifier Details	Price
	Trusens Air Purifier Best filter-based air purifier for mold with multiple sizes to choose from Includes a True HEPA, filter, Activated Carbon filter and UV Light Covers 250-750 square feet	Check Price
	SilverOnyx Air Purifier Top filter-based air purifier for large rooms at the cheapest price Includes a True HEPA, filter, Activated Carbon filter, UV Light and Ionizer Covers 500 square feet	Check Price
	Airfree Air Purifier 100% filterless design that incinerates all mold spores that pass through it Includes Thermodynmic heating Covers 180-650 square feet	Check Price

Best Types of Air Purifiers for Mold and Viruses

When it comes to air purifiers, there are many different types and technologies available to clean the air.

And each top rated air purifier is designed to combat certain issues inside the home.

For example, one air purifier may be excellent at removing odors, but not so good at reducing mold and mildew.

Another may be a superior mold air purifier, but poor at eliminating dust.

So, to help you find the best mold air purifier possible, we’ve outlined everything you need to know and look for in a high-quality device.

When you’re shopping for an air purifier for mold removal, you have two options:

1. Filter-based air purifier
2. Thermodynamic air purifier

A filter-based air purifier is the cheapest type to buy and very efficient at removing mold spores.

However, it does come with yearly maintenance fees to replace the filters (about $50-100 depending on the size of the unit).

A thermodynamic air purifier, on the other hand, is more expensive to buy upfront but costs you nothing to maintain because it doesn’t use filters.

This device generates heat to kill mold spores.

Next, we’ll explain exactly how each of these types of mold air purifiers works and what features to look for in a good unit.

Filter-Based Air Purifiers

Filter-based air purifiers are the standard type of air purifier you’ll come across today.

And they come in a wide variety that uses many different technologies to clean the air.

What this means is that not all filter-based air purifiers are designed to get rid of mold and mildew.

If you want to buy a filter-based air purifier, you’ll want one that has all of the features listed below to ensure that your home stays free of harmful mold spores.

• True HEPA Filter — This filter is essential because it’s the only one that’s certified to capture particles as small as 0.3 microns, which includes mold spores. Watch out for air purifiers that use lower-grade HEPA filters that go by the names, “HEPA-like”, “HEPA-type”, or just simply “HEPA” as they’re inferior to a True HEPA filter.
• Activated Carbon Filter — This filter is necessary to get rid of musty mold odors. A HEPA filter cannot trap those particles because they’re made up of gaseous vapors. Without this filter, you may get rid of the floating mold spores but the smells left behind by mold and mildew will still exist.
• Ultraviolet Light — This is also a crucial element because it’s the only technology that can actually kill mold spores. As air passes through the air purifier, the ultraviolet light breaks up the DNA structure of mold, bacteria, and viruses, which stops their reproduction and renders them harmless.

Thermodynamic Air Purifiers

Thermodynamic air purifiers use a completely different method that filter-based air purifiers to remove mold and mildew from your home.

Instead of trapping particles inside filters and killing mold spores with an ultraviolet light, a thermodynamic air purifier uses heat alone to incinerate microorganisms.

A thermodynamic air purifier destroys every airborne particle that comes through its path, including microorganisms, mold spores, allergens, dust, and more by vaporizing them at 400° Fahrenheit.

The major advantages to owning a thermodynamic air purifier include:

• Zero
  maintenance or filters to replace
• Completely
  silent
• Have
  the lowest
  energy consumption
• Vaporizes
  every harmful particle that flows through the system

Which Type of Air Purifier for Mold and Viruses Should You Buy?

Now that you know
how each type of air purifier works to eliminate mold and mildew, you
might be wondering which type should you buy.

The truth is that both versions of air purifiers do an excellent job of combating mold.

However, here are some questions you can answer that will help guide you to the best purchase.

If you answer yes to any of these questions, then a filter-based mold air purifier is right for you:

• Do you want to spend the least amount of money today on an air purifier?
• Are you o.k. with keeping up with filter changes?
• Do you need to see the collected contaminants that have been stripped from your home so you know that the air purifier is actually working?
• Do you want a machine that you can play with and control and includes features like scheduling, shutoff timers, sleep modes, fan speeds, etc?

If you answer yes to any of these questions, then a thermodynamic mold air purifier is right for you:

• Is the upfront cost not a concern?
• Do you want a maintenance-free machine?
• Does fan noise bother you, even at low speeds?
• Can you trust that the air purifier is working even if you don’t see a dirty filter?
• Do you want a device that you never have to touch?

Hopefully, after reading through those questions, you have a better idea of which type of air purifier you prefer.

Next, we’ll show
you what the best air purifiers for mold are for every size room so
you can find the perfect machine for your needs.

Additional Information on Mold and Air Purifiers

What are Mold and Mildew?

Molds are fungi and mildew is a type of mold.

Mold can be black or green and often results in a large infestation inside the home. Breathing in mold spores can be harmful to your health if it’s not controlled.

Mildew is a surface fungus that is often a grey or white patch on the surface of a moist area. Mildew also produces spores but they’re not as harmful as other strains of mold.

Mold Allergy Symptoms

The symptoms for mold allergies vary from person to person and the severity of health issues can range from mild to severe.

If you have a consistent problem with mold in your home, then you’ll likely experience the below symptoms all year round.

However, if mold only pops up at certain times of year indoors, these symptoms may be intermittent.

• Sneezing
• Runny
  or stuffy nose
• Watery
  eyes
• Cough
• Postnasal
  drip
• Itchy
  eyes, nose or
  throat
• Dry,
  scaly skin

If you suspect that you have a mold allergy, the best thing you can do is get an allergy test by a physician to confirm your suspicions.

If you do have mold allergies, then you’ll likely be told to find the source of the mold and mildew inside your home and clean it up in addition to running an air purifier to slow down the growth of these microbes.

While nasal corticosteroids and decongestant medications are available to help reduce your allergies to mold, the best course of action is to eliminate the spores from the air around you.

Otherwise, you’re just treating the symptoms and not the core source of the problem.

Mold and Mildew Prevention Tips

Using an air purifier in your home is a great first step to cutting down on
your exposure to toxic mold and mildew.

But, there are additional things you should also do to keep these microbes
at bay.

By following these tips, you can dramatically lower the mold spore count inside your home so that it stops being a threat to your health.

• Fix any water leaks. Mold and mildew need moisture to grow and any source of water that’s leaking in your home can give these microbes the damp environment they need to thrive.
• Make sure that every room is well ventilated. Mold and mildew thrive in areas without free-flowing air.
• Use a dehumidifier in rooms with high humidity. Mold and mildew need relative humidity above 50% to live. By using a dehumidifier to lower the RH levels to below 50%, you can stop these microbes from formulating.
• Regulate the temperature. Most mold and mildew need a temperature of 70 degrees Fahrenheit to multiply. By keeping room temperatures below that level, you can stop mold from spreading indoors.
• Keep every surface dry. This includes walls, floors, and ceilings in every room. Pay closer attention to bathrooms and basements where water and moisture often collect the most.

Common Types of Household Mold

• Alternaria — Located in dark, damp areas like the under the sink and in the shower.
• Aspergillus — Incredibly common on surfaces through the home. Causes severe reactions such as respiratory infections, allergic responses, and inflamed lungs.
• Aureobasidium — Grows on wooden furniture, painted walls, and wallpaper. A spotty substance that’s pink and black.
• Chaetomium — Found on drywall that’s had water damage. Causes a musty odor.
• Cladosporium — Can grow in both cool and warm areas inside the home, and is found most often in carpeting, wood floorboards, cabinets, and old fabrics.
• Fusarium — Grows in colder, wetter areas. Thrives inside carpeting and related fabrics.
• Penicillium — Very common indoors. Found on ceilings, inside insulation, on furniture, inside carpeting, and more. Spreads quickly indoors and causes strong allergic reactions.
• Stachybotrys Chartarum — More commonly known as “black mold” that releases toxic compounds called mycotoxins. Found in damp areas and causes a number of respiratory issues and allergic reactions.
• Serpula Lacrymans — Grows inside on wooden surfaces and causes rot.
• Trichoderma — Like black mold, this too produces mycotoxins and grows in damp areas.
• Ulocladium — Mostly found in areas that have experienced severe water damage from flooding.

Ultraviolet lights are air purifier technology that actually kills microbes and pathogens.

They do this by disrupting the DNA structure of the molecules as they pass through the air purifier machine.

What About the Other Air Purification Technologies That Exist?

These days, air purifiers come with a variety of features and rarely ever include just one type of air purification technology.

The exception to this is thermodynamic air purifiers which only use heat to kill off mold and mildew.

Therefore, it’s good for you to know what the other most common types of air cleaning technologies are so you can ensure you don’t end up buying the wrong machine.

The best air purifier for mold includes the features we outlined at the top of this guide, but here are some other common technologies you may come across:

• Ionizers — These machines send out charged ions into the air to latch onto mold spores. This bond causes the particles to fall out of the air and land on surround surfaces. An ionizer does nothing to destroy mold spores, it just removes them from the air temporarily.
• PECO — This short for Photo Electrochemical Oxidation and it oxidizes organic matter like mold. PECO filters are a major competitor against True HEPA filters because PECO actually destroys particles instead of just trapping them like a HEPA filter does. The only problem with PECO is that it’s a patented technology and only one air purifier company uses it. Plus, it’s expensive.
• PCO — This is short for Photocatalytic Oxidation and it’s the non-patented version of PECO. It works well against mold but produces a trace amount of ozone (0.01 – 0.04 ppm). It’s also more expensive than standard filter-based air purifiers.

What’s the Difference Between a Mold Air Purifier and Dehumidifier?

Air purifiers are the only type of machine that can extract mold from the air and kill the spores that pass through the machine.

A dehumidifier removes moisture from the air. With less water vapor in the air, mold has a harder time growing inside a room.

An air purifier doesn’t deal with moisture. Instead, it draws air into the filters, removes the airborne spores and releases clean air back into the room.

A dehumidifier sucks water out of the air and collects it in a bucket.

Both an air purifier and dehumidifier can work hand in hand together to keep mold, mildew, viruses, fungus, and spores under control since they deliver different results.

Mold Removal is a Constant Process

It’s easy to clean up smaller, visible areas of mold with household cleaners.

However, most mold is not visible because it’s in hidden places.

And, when those places are disrupted or the mold wants to multiply, the spores become airborne and begin to cause problems for people.

That’s why mold removal can be a constant process. You may never know exactly where the mold is coming from.

So, continuously running a mold air purifier is an excellent way to keep the air around you clean and free of mold, mildew, viruses, fungus, and spores that are invisible.