Air conditioned environments have traditionally received a bad rap. But do they deserve it?
NOW the weather has warmed up, more and more people are choosing to live a huge part of their lives inside, whether it is at work or at home. The existence of air conditioning is the main reason why life indoors isn’t that bad, especially when you live nowhere near a beach.
But how much do you know about the quality of the air inside? How much should you know? And how much of it is old wives’ tales?
According to statistics, we drink 1.5 litres of water a day and breathe 22,000 times, the equivalent of 11,000 litres of air. If we are so concerned about the quality of the water that we drink, and we buy mineral, shouldn’t we also be more aware of the quality of air that we breathe?
A modern air-conditionined environment will not only provide cool air, but the filters built into all units improve the quality of the air that is being brought inside.
Manufacturers now pay increasing attention to providing an environment that is healthy in addition to cool. Air conditioners dehumidify the air and prevent mould. They can even reduce exposure to pollutants.
The way today’s houses and buildings are constructed to conserve energy (double glazing, no draughts etc.) has reduced the natural ventilation of fresh air, which can even lead to sick building syndrome. The benefits of no draughts and lower bills are, however, offset by the fact that air inside can be two to 10 times more polluted than that outside. Plus it is estimated that we spend 60 to 90 per cent of our time indoors. Humidity and pollutant levels also remain the same as the same air is circulating.
But where is all the pollution coming from? Dust produced within a building comes from skin and hair or is brought in from outside on our clothes and shoes. Mildew, fungus and moulds can also be brought in the same way. Gasses can be produced by dyes, paints, varnishes, adhesives and other harmful chemicals.
Contrary to making a room stuffy, air conditioning can actually work in our favour through ventilation, filters (which remove dust, pollen and smoke from the air) and humidity control.
Moving on from air conditioners, an even more effective alternative is the photocatalytic air purifiers which eliminate or deactivate 99.99 per cent of viruses and bacteria so that air blown out from the unit is always clean.
Compounds within the purification unit convert odours into carbon dioxide and water, at the same time removing bacteria and deactivating viruses. Even hard to decompose chemical pollutants are broken down. The most pervasive of smells is perhaps tobacco smoke and it proves to be no problem for this new technology, which removes 85 per cent of the smell.
This figure relates to the unit’s ability to remove the odour of five cigarettes in a one cubic metre space within one minute.
In addition to filtering out pollutants, purification units actually enhance the quality of the air by adding negative ions to it at such a quantity that even the furthest corners of the room receive them. Positive ions attract atmospheric pollutants and hold onto them. By filling a room with negative ions, which are abundant in natural places such as forests and waterfalls, it cancels out the effects of positive ions, cleaning the air and restoring a favourable ion balance.
The company behind this device is Daikin, a leading manufacturer of air conditioning systems for residential, commercial and industrial use. Daikin develops, manufactures and markets top of the range air purifiers, selling more than 300,000 units in Japan during 2004.
Daikin asked Paris-based allergist Dr Haddad to investigate the purifier. He commented: “The air purifier appeared to offer a simple and reliable method of acting upon the root causes of allergic crises.” He told participants to use the device over three months and come back with their comments. “The air purifier brings comfort to my respiratory passages and my sneezing has decreased,” said one participant. Another stated: “The air in my home has improved – I sleep better, my nose is less stuffy and my eyes less irritated.”
Closer to home, here in Cyprus, a user of the machine who found out about it though her paediatrician, has a story of her own: “My child has always had problems breathing and she suffers from seizures and asthma attacks, so I had to take a mask with me everywhere I went just in case. After I used the air purifier, from the very first nights there was a huge difference as the child only got a runny nose but has been great ever since.”
The device also has an impressive airflow and a four directional suction plus it is quiet as a mouse allowing the possibility of sleep while it’s still cleaning the air. Overall, the air purifier has provided people with an added feeling of well being and it contributes directly to a better quality of life.
l For you chance to win an air purifier, turn to page 69
