One of the main concerns I had when I bought my first air purifier was how it would work with my other appliances.
In my office alone, I have a regular fan and a ceiling fan to keep me cool during the hot summer days.
It wouldn’t be ideal if I had to give up one of the devices to make way for my air purifier.
I wondered if I could use a ceiling fan with my air purifier for the longest time until I did some actual research.
After all, I always keep my ceiling fan on because of the hot climate I have to live and work in (I work from home).
And since I live in a fairly polluted city, I bought an air purifier to guarantee I’m constantly breathing in the highest quality air possible.
And when researching whether or not you can use my ceiling fan at the same time as air purifiers, I found out a lot.
So, in this article, I’ll go over why you should use your ceiling fan alongside your air purifier.
Then to finish, I will show you how to optimize this combo and how to know your air purifier is working correctly when the ceiling fan is on.
Why You Should Use a Ceiling Fan With an Air Purifier
Not only is it possible to use a ceiling fan with an air purifier, but I would highly recommend it in some cases.
If done correctly, ceiling fans and air purifiers can complement each other and make it much more comfortable to hang out in a room.
Granted, using these two appliances at the same time will undoubtedly mean you’re using more power. But when you consider the benefits, you might find that it outweighs the costs.
Remember that if you have an air conditioner, you can also use that in combination with your air purifier.
So, what are the benefits of using a ceiling fan in conjunction with an air purifier?
Well, there are a lot.
But to keep things simple, we’re only focusing on the most important benefits in this next section.
You Can Cool Down or Warm Up a Room
The first benefit of using these two devices simultaneously is that you can control the room’s temperature. Remember, air purifiers aren’t designed to cool down a room.
These devices are only there to clean the air, so if the temperatures get too hot or too cold, the air purifier won’t be able to help you that much.
This is where the ceiling fan comes in.
While they might seem very simple, ceiling fans are versatile and exciting pieces of technology.
With a ceiling fan, you can “warm” up or cool down a room by changing the direction the fan spins.
Now, I quoted warm because the ceiling fan will make the room feel warmer, and it won’t actually change the temperature.
To “cool” down a room, turn the ceiling fan counterclockwise to push down cool air into the room.
And to “heat” it up, simply spin it clockwise so it pushes down warm air into the room, making things much more comfortable for everyone inside.
Better Circulation
Circulation is the next benefit of using a ceiling fan with an air purifier.
If you have a ceiling fan, you can easily circulate the air in the room.
And if you know anything about air purifiers, you’ll know that proper airflow is crucial for the best results.
One of the first mistakes I made when I got my air purifier was placing it in the corner of my room.
I didn’t know it then but doing so put my air purifier in a position where the airflow was terrible.
So, it couldn’t suck in that much air and effectively clean the air in the room.
That’s when I discovered that air purifiers’ placement is critical.
So, when I moved the air purifier to a place with better circulation and found that it worked much better. And since ceiling fans can increase the circulation in the room, it can also make the air purifier work much better.
With that said, you have to find the right balance between increasing circulation with the ceiling fan and keeping the airflow down so that it doesn’t overwork the air purifier.
Air purifiers can only handle a certain amount of airflow.
So if you increase it too much with the ceiling fan, you might cause the air purifier to work too hard, shortening its lifespan.
Things to Consider When Using a Ceiling Fan With an Air Purifier
Using a ceiling fan with an air purifier is far from a simple task. If done right, these two appliances can complement each other.
The ceiling fan allows for better circulation for the air purifier, while the air purifier allows the ceiling fan to circulate clean and particle-free air.
If you want to get the most out of both appliances, you have to consider a couple of things. While it isn’t that complicated, these factors are important nonetheless.
So, here are some things you will need to consider if you plan on using your ceiling fan and air purifier simultaneously.
When you consider these factors with the appliances, finding the right balance between the settings will be much easier.
That way, you can really get the most out of the fan and purifier, making the room much more comfortable and safe to hang out in.
Fan Speed
The first thing you want to consider when using a ceiling fan and an air purifier at the same time is the fan speed.
Ideally, you want to keep the fan speed of both devices fairly low. This is because you don’t want to increase the airflow too much, as it can have a negative impact on your air purifier.
Air purifiers function with fans that push unpurified air through a filter. So, it requires decent airflow to capture as many particles as possible.
With that said, these filters are designed to take in a certain amount of air at a time.
And if there’s too much airflow, the filter can get overwhelmed.
This can put your air purifier at risk and shorten the filter’s lifespan.
Remember, air purifiers with replaceable HEPA filters must be changed every couple of months.
If there is too much airflow, you’ll be forced to replace them sooner.
On the flip side, too much airflow can break the filter if you have a permanent HEPA filter.
Remember, the fiberglass mesh on the HEPA filter is very delicate, so if you force too much air through it, the mesh could get damaged.
When this happens, you will have to replace the entire filter.
Permanent HEPA filters can get expensive and aren’t meant to be replaced.
So, you might have to bring your air purifier in for a costly repair or get a new one altogether.
The Type of Ceiling Fan & Air Purifier
Another thing to consider is the type of ceiling fan and air purifier you have.
For example, if you bought a small, budget-friendly air purifier, you don’t want to increase the airflow too much.
Because using a strong fan and air purifier running at the same time risks damaging the device.
So, before using these two appliances at the same time, make sure that the air purifier will be able to handle the additional airflow.
And if it can’t, it might be best for you to use only one of these appliances at a time.
How to Make Sure Your Air Purifier Works Properly When the Ceiling Fan is On
Regardless of whether or not you’re turning on the ceiling fan, you have to make sure that you’re using the air purifier properly.
Suppose you don’t use the air purifier properly. In that case, it won’t be able to function as well, which means there will be a lot of particles left floating around the air out of your control.
When I first got my air purifier, I didn’t use it properly.
So, when allergy season came along, I noticed that I was sneezing just as much, if not more, than when I didn’t have the air purifier.
So, I tried to figure out what was running.
And I learned that my air purifier was in the wrong position and in the wrong settings in the room.
So, it wasn’t absorbing pollutants as well.
This can be really annoying.
But here are some tips to follow when using an air purifier to ensure you get as many benefits as possible.
Keep It Running
The first thing I recommend when using an air purifier is to keep it on 24/7.
Or, at the very least, have it on whenever someone is in the room.
A lot of people think they can leave the air purifier on for 20 minutes to clean the air and then turn it off.
This isn’t how air purifiers work.
New pollutants and particles constantly enter the air, even if you close the doors and windows.
So, whenever you turn off the air purifier, the particles are free to float around and end up in our lungs.
Modern air purifiers are designed to stay on 24/7. That’s why you can find a lot of models with an automatic setting.
These air purifiers have special sensors on them to check the air quality.
When it detects a lot of particles, it boosts the fan speed to capture more particles and lowers the speed when there aren’t too many particles.
I would highly recommend getting these air purifiers.
This is because it makes it easier to leave the air purifier on without worrying about damaging the device or using up too much electricity.
On top of that, it ensures that you have clean air whenever you are in the room.
Consider Placement
Another thing you want to check when setting up an air purifier is the placement.
Ideally, you want to place the air purifier in a spot where it has unobstructed airflow.
This is why I advise against placing the air purifier in the corner of the room, which was my mistake with my first model.
Additionally, it would be best to elevate the air purifier to capture more air.
If the air purifier is on the floor, it will have difficulty capturing particles.
Say it’s on an elevated surface; it has a much easier time absorbing and capturing particles that can cause you harm.
So, make sure to place the air purifier in the best place in your room.
Practice Proper Maintenance
Lastly, I can’t stress enough how important maintenance is for air purifiers.
You need to clean the air purifier every couple of months as dust and dirt can quickly build up on the grills.
Additionally, the filters in your air purifier will need cleaning and changing from time to time.
So, make sure to check the interior or your air purifier from time to time as a dirty air purifier won’t work as well as a clean one.
While it will take some time and effort to do this, it’s necessary if you want to ensure that your air purifier is working 100% of the time.
Conclusion
If you have a ceiling fan to cool down a room and control the temperature, feel free to use it with your air purifier.
However, take care when doing this, as turning the ceiling fan on too high might cause too much air to flow through the air purifier.
While airflow is important for air purifiers, too much of it can actually damage the filters, which is something you want to avoid.