Air purifiers - are they worth it?

[GypsyGirl]

@GypsyGirl -- I was watching a segment on "House Smarts" recently, and they mentioned spraying a mold control aerosol onto the furnace filter in the house to trap and kill mold spores. I've been meaning to buy a can of Concrobrium Aerosol Spray, as it's supposed to be non-toxic. A friend of mine who has a very sensitive system used it, and didn't have any problems. I think this product might work well on one of those inexpensive box fan filters if there was a concern the fan would stir up mold toxins.

Concrobrium Ingredients

I see Sodium Carbonate listed on the label. Is Concrobrium Mold Control just Sodium Carbonate (washing soda) and water?

No. Sodium Carbonate is the listed “active ingredient” on the Concrobium Mold Control label, but in fact there are two other ingredients in the solution which, when combined with the sodium carbonate and the water, result in this patented tri-salt polymer that eliminates and prevents mold. (Sodium Carbonate and water alone are not effective against mold.) The solution contains no bleach, ammonia or VOCs. Our Material Safety Data Sheet is posted on our website.

I've used the spray Concrobium without ill effects to clean surfaces when moving from a moldy house to a new not-moldy house. It's also meant to be a preventative if you don't wipe it off (useful if you have mold growing anywhere like walls or in bathroom). I'm afraid I don't follow how it would trap mold particles more effectively. If you're very mold reactive, the problem is not just killing mold, but pulling it out of the air - even dead mold is toxic to that subset of people, and mold particles are notoriously tiny. Then again, I'm hyper reactive, and the information I look for is to that ilk - even professional mold remediation gives some terrible advice about cleaning mold for those with severe reactions, so I've become cautious.

If you see further info about Concrobium "trapping" mold spores and that mechanism of action, please pass it on? At any given time, I'd love to be wrong because it'd open up more options!

But I'm derailing the OP's question... Concrobium doesn't do anything for general odor control and car pollution.

 

[katarina]

Mine makes a huge difference in my asthma. Just make sure you’re getting one that’s safe to use with asthma as many emit ozone and aren’t safe for asthma.