Air Cleaners

[DQTimnehs]

I know there have been many discussions about these and I get the feeling that Austin Air and RabbitAir are considered the best.

I was considering the RabbitAir that mounts on the wall to save floor space which is limited in the bird room.
Rabbit Air MinusA2 (model SPA-700A covers 700 sq. ft.) Ultra-Quiet Air Purifier - Stylish, Efficient and Energy Star® Certified, Includes Wall Mount, White, Pet Allergy: Amazon.ca: Home & Kitchen

The thing that's a turn off is the price of the filters.
Rabbit Air MinusA2 filter replacement kit [Pet]: Amazon.ca: Home & Kitchen
So this looks like 4 filters but I assume they all go in together or that they are just showing what's inside 1 filter. So it's really just 1 replacement for over $100?

So I was leaning towards this Honeywell model with a permanent Hepa filter:
Honeywell Permanent True Hepa Round Air Purifier With Germ Reduction: Amazon.ca: Home & Kitchen

but then see that people that bought it bought these "pre-filters":
Honeywell Activated Carbon Prefilter: Amazon.ca: Home & Kitchen .

So are they just pretending it doesn't need filter changes by calling them "pre-filters"? I understand there is another permanent plastic filter inside that is good for several years but it's kind of misleading.

Then there's the Austin that is, at least, on wheels:
Austin Air Air Purifier (Pet Machine HM410, Sandstone): Amazon.ca: Home & Kitchen
but replacement filters are $350 up so no go.

Comments if you have experience with one or more of the RabbitAir wall mount and/or the Honeywell Permanent Hepa?

 

[sunnysmom]

I will be very curious to see what everyone says because I need to buy one too.

 

[danadear]

I have the Austin pet filter. It works very well and I have four dusty birds in the room. I haven’t had it that long. It says filters last five years but obviously not for bird owners. Someone here said two years. I’ve tried various cheaper brands including a Honeywell and they are a joke compared to this one.

Oh I’m sorry. I just realized you ruled out the Austin.

 

[DQTimnehs]

I have the Austin pet filter. It works very well and I have four dusty birds in the room. I haven’t had it that long. It says filters last five years but obviously not for bird owners. Someone here said two years. I’ve tried various cheaper brands including a Honeywell and they are a joke compared to this one.

Oh I’m sorry. I just realized you ruled out the Austin.

Well I guess if it's good for 2 years that's not as bad but the filter prices go up to and over the price of the whole machine!

 

[lotus15]

The Wirecutter just did a great in depth review of several air purifiers on the market. They address the Austin (and agreed that it's tops, but pricey) and the Rabbit (which they did not recommend). Unfortunately they didn't look at the Honeywell, but have several recommendations and also take into consideration the price of new filters. Definitely recommend giving it a read! They do really fantastic reviews of household appliances generally. The Best Air Purifier: Reviews by Wirecutter | A New York Times Company

 

[DQTimnehs]

The Wirecutter just did a great in depth review of several air purifiers on the market. They address the Austin (and agreed that it's tops, but pricey) and the Rabbit (which they did not recommend). Unfortunately they didn't look at the Honeywell, but have several recommendations and also take into consideration the price of new filters. Definitely recommend giving it a read! They do really fantastic reviews of household appliances generally. The Best Air Purifier: Reviews by Wirecutter | A New York Times Company

Great, thanks! Will read that!

 

[Ribbit21]

I had a similar honeywell. It worked well enough. I think the version I had needed the main filter replaced every 1-2 years. I found the filters very affordable (I bought off-brand ones). For the honeywell pre-filters they seemed to catch the large stuff, so feathers and thick feather dust. I would replace those every other month and in-between vacuum the prefilter twice a month. Again, the off-brand filters were very affordable.

Personally, I really can't justify the cost of the Austin or RabbitAir replacement filters. It's a lot easier for me to come up with a few bucks for the honeywell filters. Just a personal preference for me.

 

[DQTimnehs]

I had a similar honeywell. It worked well enough. I think the version I had needed the main filter replaced every 1-2 years. I found the filters very affordable (I bought off-brand ones). For the honeywell pre-filters they seemed to catch the large stuff, so feathers and thick feather dust. I would replace those every other month and in-between vacuum the prefilter twice a month. Again, the off-brand filters were very affordable.

Personally, I really can't justify the cost of the Austin or RabbitAir replacement filters. It's a lot easier for me to come up with a few bucks for the honeywell filters. Just a personal preference for me.

Yes, it certainly seems like a big financial commitment, especially knowing we will have to replace them much more frequently than average.

 

[danadear]

Well I guess if it's good for 2 years that's not as bad but the filter prices go up to and over the price of the whole machine!

Looks like it's about $270, definitely high but worth it to me. My Honeywell lasted less than six months before it died and it didn't do a third of the job. Filters for it were sbout$30 and had to be replaced often.

 

[Hjarta5]

Judith from the FB group, Parrot Posse, has been posting how Austin will be increasing its price at the end of this month. I know its not on your potentials, but wanted to throw that out there in case anyone else was thinking about it.

 

[finchly]

I feel like I posted this already?

I believe this one is my Honeywell. We've had two of them about 3 years and they are doing great. The prefilter catches bigger particles (feathers!) and the second filter is covered in dust when we vacuum it. Which used to be daily but now we're slackers, so every 2 or 3 days. The prefilter you linked to has carbon, which will also help remove odors.

I have been vacuuming and washing the filters; I don't see any need to replace.

 

[Macawnutz]

I have 5 of the minus A2 Rabbits. I just love them and they are well worth the price of replacement filters! You change them once a year, less if you vaccum the prefilter often. So quiet even on high, the Honeywell are unbelievably loud. The rabbits take care of themselves. Change air flow if the air is dirty, senses odor and changes speeds, goes into sleep mode at night.

Ask away on questions. I can't say enough good things

 

[DQTimnehs]

The Wirecutter just did a great in depth review of several air purifiers on the market. They address the Austin (and agreed that it's tops, but pricey) and the Rabbit (which they did not recommend). Unfortunately they didn't look at the Honeywell, but have several recommendations and also take into consideration the price of new filters. Definitely recommend giving it a read! They do really fantastic reviews of household appliances generally. The Best Air Purifier: Reviews by Wirecutter | A New York Times Company

After reading this I think I’m going with their top pick - Coway Mighty. Never heard of the company but the research was in depth over 4 years and it’s available on Amazon at a very reasonable price. I don’t think it wall mounts but I can put it on the rolling plastic cabinet by Tiki’s cage which is who needs it most.

 

[lotus15]

After reading this I think I’m going with their top pick - Coway Mighty. Never heard of the company but the research was in depth over 4 years and it’s available on Amazon at a very reasonable price. I don’t think it wall mounts but I can put it on the rolling plastic cabinet by Tiki’s cage which is who needs it most.

I hadn't heard of it before either, but the Wirecutter's reviews are really solid. I've purchased several items they recommend and haven't been disappointed.

 

[DQTimnehs]

I hadn't heard of it before either, but the Wirecutter's reviews are really solid. I've purchased several items they recommend and haven't been disappointed.

Sounds good, thanks so much for posting the link!

 

[sunnysmom]

Sounds good, thanks so much for posting the link!

Since you did the hard work for me, I think I'm going to follow your lead and get one too. Thanks!

 

[DQTimnehs]

Since you did the hard work for me, I think I'm going to follow your lead and get one too. Thanks!

Did you end up getting one, Michelle?

I got the Coway and have it in the birds' room between Darwin's and Tiki's cages. It was a bit bigger and heavier than I thought so bought a small wooden bedside table to put it on, replacing the plastic rolling drawer thing I had, which I thought wouldn't be sturdy or large enough to hold it. It seems to work well and I like the Auto setting. It stays on low (1) most of the time but occasionally ramps up for several seconds to 2 when it detects dirt in the air. I've only had it going for a couple of weeks so haven't cleaned the filter(s) yet.

There's a cool breeze from it, especially when it goes up to medium, so I turn it off when I put the birds to bed at night and turn it back on in the morning.

Overall I'm happy with it. I'm not sure how much cleaner the air is but I will update once I clean the filter to see how much it picked up.

 

[Sarahmoluccan]

I was going back and forth between Austin Air and Rabbit Air. Ultimately I when went with an Austin Air. I liked that you don't have to replace the filter less that often that Rabbit Air.

But the main reason I choose Austin Air over than Rabbit Air was availability in Canada. I didn't want to import them from the USA. I found two online dealers in Canada that offer free shipping. At the time I was looking I could find no dealers for Rabbit Air in Canada. I think Amazon has both of them but they didn't have the replace filters at the time. I'll have check Amazon out again and see what they are doing now. At time the prices were really jacked up too, way more than the other dealers.

 

[Sarahmoluccan]

So I did a quick search and could find Rabbit Air purifiers but finding the replacement filters was difficult. Mainly Amazon had them. And they were for the bigger minus air purifier. I didn't see any for the small bios one.

From what I could tell Austin Air has a better presence in Canada and it's probably easier to find replacement filters. Rabbit Air will ship to Canada. I'm a little weary of them being available through Amazon. When I was searching a little over a year ago and they weren't consistently on Amazon. If you are leaning towards Rabbit Air you might ask about availability thur Amazon or if they're are other dealers that sell both the air purifier and replacement filters in Canada. Austin Air now provides a list of dealers near you Austin Air Canada

I don't know which one is better, my guess they are probably close to being equally good. I'm really like my Austin Air but I like how you can hang the Rabbit Air minus on the wall. If I was in the market to be buy another I'll might try a Rabbit Air if I could be resured that finding replacement filters wouldn't be a problem.