Quiet air filters is an already solved problem technically. You just need enough filter area that the pressure drop is low, so that you can use quiet low-pressure PC fans to move the air. CleanAirKits is already good, but if the market were big enough cared enough, rather than CleanAirKits charging >$200 for a box with holes in it and fans, you would get a purifier from IKEA for $120 which is sturdy and 3db quieter due to better sound design.
IKEA already sells air purifiers; their models just have a very low flow rate. There are several companies selling various kinds of air purifiers, including multiples ones with proprietary filters.
What all this says to me is, the problem isn’t just the overall market size.
Yeah that’s right, I should have said market for good air filters. My understanding of the problem is that most customers don’t know to insist on high CADR at low noise levels, and therefore filter area is low. A secondary problem is that HEPA filters are optimized for single-pass efficiency rather than airflow, but they sell better than 70-90% efficient MERV filters.
The physics does work though. At a given airflow level, pressure and noise go as roughly the −1.5 power of filter area. What IKEA should be producing instead of the FÖRNUFTIG and STARKVIND is one of three good designs for high CADR:
a fiberboard box like the CleanAirKits End Table 7 which has holes for pre-installed fans and can accept at least 6 square feet of MERV 13 furnace filters or maybe EPA 11.
a box like the AirFanta 3Pro, ideally that looks nicer somehow.
a wall-mounted design with furnace filters in a V shape, like this DIY project.
I made a shortform and google slides presentation about this and might make it a longform if there is enough interest or I get more information.
Quiet air filters is an already solved problem technically. You just need enough filter area that the pressure drop is low, so that you can use quiet low-pressure PC fans to move the air. CleanAirKits is already good, but if the market
were big enoughcared enough, rather than CleanAirKits charging >$200 for a box with holes in it and fans, you would get a purifier from IKEA for $120 which is sturdy and 3db quieter due to better sound design.IKEA already sells air purifiers; their models just have a very low flow rate. There are several companies selling various kinds of air purifiers, including multiples ones with proprietary filters.
What all this says to me is, the problem isn’t just the overall market size.
Yeah that’s right, I should have said market for good air filters. My understanding of the problem is that most customers don’t know to insist on high CADR at low noise levels, and therefore filter area is low. A secondary problem is that HEPA filters are optimized for single-pass efficiency rather than airflow, but they sell better than 70-90% efficient MERV filters.
The physics does work though. At a given airflow level, pressure and noise go as roughly the −1.5 power of filter area. What IKEA should be producing instead of the FÖRNUFTIG and STARKVIND is one of three good designs for high CADR:
a fiberboard box like the CleanAirKits End Table 7 which has holes for pre-installed fans and can accept at least 6 square feet of MERV 13 furnace filters or maybe EPA 11.
a box like the AirFanta 3Pro, ideally that looks nicer somehow.
a wall-mounted design with furnace filters in a V shape, like this DIY project.
I made a shortform and google slides presentation about this and might make it a longform if there is enough interest or I get more information.
That slides presentation presents me with a “you need access” screen. Is it OK to be public?
Fixed.