Air Purifier?

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Jess5

Active Member
Joined
Sep 25, 2020
Messages
32
Location
Reno Nevada
Hello,
I’m thinking of buying an air purifier for my pet room but I’ve heard that some of them are unsafe for rats. Does anyone here have any brand recommendations?
I’d like it to be pretty affordable ($100, give or take) and it doesn’t have to be large. It would just be for a medium sized bedroom with the door closed 24/7.
If you have any more suggestions that would be great! I mostly want it to help with some of the odor from my cages and to make the air healthier for them.
Thanks! :)
 
If your cages are emitting a lot of odor perhaps you should consider switching bedding, or consider spot-cleaning after they relieve themselves (a black light flashlight can help you see where they urinate). I stay on top of that religiously and the cage never smells.

However regarding a purifier- I would seriously recommend constructing your own rather than buying one.

I use a 6" carbon filter with a variable speed 6" inline fan. I also built a filter box to hold furnace filters that sits on top of the fan so the carbon filter does not get clogged up with dust. It is very simple- just a cardboard box with 12"x12" furnace filters taped to it, sealed air tight, and a 6" hole cut in the other side, so it sits snugly over the fan. I have one cheap pre-prefilter furnace filter (MPR 300) and one expensive top-of-the-line furnace filter (MPR 1500 or higher). I considered going full HEPA for the second prefilter but decided this was sufficient.

https://www.amazon.com/VIVOHOME-Inline-Control-Australia-Charcoal/dp/B07XD75T6H
Depending on the size of the room a 4" may suffice

https://www.amazon.com/Filtrete-Healthy-Allergen-Reduction-Furnace/dp/B005GZ90QY/
This is the 1500 level- there are better ones available but this should be enough. They also sell these singly at home depot or even walmart sometimes.

Then you can get whatever the cheapest thing is you can find for the first prefilter.

Some people may run the carbon filter by itself but that's a mistake because it will quickly clog up with dust and shorten its lifespan considerably.

The way it should look, with the air moving from left to right is: Cheap filter > Expensive filter > Fan > Carbon Filter

If you decide to go with a prebuilt "air purifier", you will probably waste a lot of money on filters over the life of the unit. The small carbon filter models do not last long. One thing about furnace filters- they pretty much cost the same regardless of what size you buy. If you have the room to make your prefilter box larger, you can use larger filters that require less frequent changes. A 12x24 costs nearly the same as a 12x12. And by having two prefilters, you extend the life of the expensive one by changing the cheap one out first and more frequently.

The only downside to this is the noise level- but getting a variable speed fan will allow you to have it on low speed which helps a lot.
 
Hi there,

I think an air purifier for the odour of your rats is not the real solution to the problem.

This would not solve the problem - just the symptoms of the problem. It is much better to make sure that you clean the cages more often as this ensures better health and odour. After all, you do not want to end up with them mixing food and pee and poop in the bottom of their cage - something that they wil lend up doing if you do not keep the cage clean enough.

What kind of materials are you using to line the cage with and how often do you clean/change it?

I think the air purifier would be nice to have, but it is really not needed. I recommend making sure that the room has natural air flow from windows or air conditioning/heating and just keeping the cages clean.

Rat urine breaks down into ammonia and other chemicals which are harmful to their respiratory systems, so it is always good to ensure proper ventilation and to clean the cages often.
 
Agreed- a well maintained cage should not smell bad. I have an air purifier to protect my rats and myself from my house's air, not to protect me from the cage smell.
 
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