23 out of 23 people found this review helpful.
Sucks the fur up
Date of Review: Jul 25, 2004
The Bottom Line: I highly recommend this product to pet owners looking to reduce fur in their home. It also helps reduce airborne allergens like pollen.
I purchased this about two months ago, after reading about it on Consumerreports.org and reading the reviews on here as well and I am very happy with this purchase. It is currently in my bedroom and I would like to get one for every room.
The dimensions of the unit are:
Width 17.75"
Height 22"
Depth 11"
The cord is 6'.
It has three settings, low, medium and high. It has a carbon pre-filter and a HEPA filter. It says the carbon prefilters should be changed every 3 months and the HEPA filter once a year. However, it also has indicator lights for each filter that are supposed to go on when the filters need changing.
I have three cats and both me and my husband have long hair. I have noticed a significant decrease in the amount of fur/hair "dust bunnies" rolling around the floor in my bedroom. Now they mostly form in hidden areas...like the corner behind the door. I used to see them randomly rolling around the floor a few times a week. I did pick them up and threw them out when I saw them...but I don't have to do this very often anymore.
After two weeks I looked at the charcoal filter and it was covered with fur. I have decided that I will use a lint brush on the charcoal filter every two weeks to maximize it's life.
It sounds like a window fan on high but my husband and I actually enjoy the white noise because it tunes out the cats playing in the wee hours of the night so it actually helps us sleep better.
We do leave it on low during the day when we are both home because if, for example, one of us is in the bedroom and the other in another room (my apartment isn't very big) and we want to say something to the other, we cannot be heard over it if it's on high. Otherwise, it's always on high.
It is barely audible on the low setting.
I should also add, I purchased this during the worst pollen season I can ever remember. I had the worst case of hay fever. I was totally congested...I sounded like I had something more serious than hay fever (I did go to the doctor to make sure). It was the pollen that motivated me to buy it...it's ability to suck up fur was a very pleasant surprise and has become the main reason I love it so much.
I hated the idea of keeping my windows closed when the weather was nice because I like fresh air, and I'm always reading that indoor air is often more polluted than outdoor air.
After it arrived, I closed all the windows and let it run. My symptoms did improve substantially within a few days...as long as I didn't go outside often until pollen season passed.
During the first week I had it, I noticed the air in the room seemed "fresher". Not a specific smell or anything, just a feeling I got when I breathed. Although, now that I'm used to it I don't really notice...but I think I would notice if I stopped using it.
I am very happy with it's performance.
