<p>I'm concerned about the number of colds/illnesses floating around the dorm room these days and am interested in purchasing an air purifier for my daughter's dorm. Something that cleans the air of bacteria, mold and dust with a HEPA filter. It obviously can't be too large, I've seen some that look like tower fans that might work well. Just wondering if anyone can offer suggestions/ideas of purifiers they've found effective.</p>
<p>thanks</p>
<p>She needs exposure to the germs to allow her body build antibodies to fight them.
She will have better chance against fighting air borne diseases by washing her hands frequently, getting enough sleep, eating healthy, exercising daily, not sharing drinking vessels and being discriminate in her love life.
Her nose is the best air purifier and it’s free.
To be effective, the air purifiers need to have their filters changed frequently-costly and not something a college student thinks about, just mothers.</p>
<p>Agree with Batllo but I did buy my S a Honeywell Hepa Air Purifier this year as his allergist suggested it may help. He actually requested one and says he does help though I’m not sure how much it will help in the long run if he doesn’t follow all the recommended guigelines his doctor suggested. Bought his at Target and it was a mid-range model/desktop size.</p>
<p>Re: mold and dust, I bought something for my bathroom called a Bad Air Sponge. It’s apparently a cross between a room deodorizer and an air filter. I bought it because the bathroom has no windows or fans and constantly smelled of mildew, and the Bad Air Sponge has solved the problem.</p>
<p>choryphee - I like the idea of a ‘bad air sponge’. No muss, no fuss. It may not filter out as much as a monstrous air blower with a hepa filter but the price is right and its certainly worth a shot!!</p>
<p>I would stick with the HEPA - Honeywell makes good products. FYI - you don’t need to change filters anymore on a lot of them - you just clean them. And as for being exposed to germs to fight disease - I think that’s ony for small children, isn’t it?</p>
<p>I bought D1 a tower fan HEPA air filter because her freshman dorm always smelled bed. After she started using the air filter, her room smelled fresh. She lives in NYC, and she still uses it. I think the one she has, she could wash the filter.</p>
<p>My S’s roommate ended up having to buy one of those tower air purifiers. I don’t know what brand or model, but it really helped him. I think he was having allergy problems, but given that they were living in a 100+ year old fraternity house, it’s impossible to say what was in that air.</p>
<p>I found the perfect air purifier this weekend at target. Its small, not too ugly, doesn’t have a blue light. Its the germ guardian tabletop air purifier for $60. My daughter is happy because the dorm air was stale and this does make the air smell and feel better. I’m thinking of getting one for my bedroom now. Not sure how to measure the effectiveness of killing germs but I can tell you it helps a lot with air circulation.</p>
<p>Our YMCA’s air filtration system includes a UV device to kill stuff - that might be a consideration in selecting a room model. I used to use Hunter Hepa Filters for allergies.</p>
<p>Got dd both the Germ Guardian Tower for the dorm room as well as the plug-in for the the bathroom. It really seems to do a good job of filtering the air in her room. It uses UV-C and True Hepa to cleanse the air. It works on mold too.</p>
<p>My son has allergies, and his dorm has mold. We bought a honeywell tower type from Bed Bath and Beyond with the 20% off coupon. It’s very quiet, and fits into any corner of room easily. It’s also good in the winter when all the heating vents are blasting our dust, and there’s no other ventilation. Set it near an out going vent if it’s low enough on the wall. My son’s is near the ceiling, so couldn’t do that.</p>
<p>But for viruses, hand washing often. Flu vax then is also proabably available at the health center (?).</p>
<p>Visited D’s dorm on family weekend and the sheets were damp, the desk was damp, the walls were damp, and the heating unit had lots of black mildew growing on it. Bought D a bottle of Tilex & gave instructions for use on moldy heater.</p>
<p>D said it did not bother her much but the roomie was having trouble breathing. (!)</p>
<p>Emailed nurse in the Health Office on Monday, tattled, & she forwarded concerns to the Environmental Office. They inspected the room, had the Residential Servicves lady go back in there to clean off the mildew (which the girls had not touched with the Tilex), and they also gave the girls dehumidifiers for the entire suite. </p>
<p>When the heat goes on in a few weeks, the dampness should not be such a problem. But we shall see…</p>
<p>JRZMom, ewww! That is terrible. I hope things work out.</p>
<p>JRZMOM - don’t take this lightly. Mold is a serious issue. I would insist on having her moved or having the place disinfected and tested at the very least. Even if your daughter doesn’t have a mold allergy constant exposure can cause health problems.</p>
<p>I think you are looking for something like this</p>
<p>[Buy</a> Iqair Healthpro Compact Air Purifier](<a href=“http://howdotodo.com/product:iqair-healthpro-compact-air-purifier[in:air-purifier]]Buy”>http://howdotodo.com/product:iqair-healthpro-compact-air-purifier[in:air-purifier])</p>
<p>Have similar model and don’t know about bacteria and dust but for smoke is terrific.</p>