Oreck XL Professional Air Purifier Reviews

Consumer Magazine's comments on the Oreck XL Professional states:  "NOT RECOMMENDED These were poor at cleaning, and some exceeded the UL ozone standard".  Our test results support similar conclusions made by this magazine.

Recommendations

We tested several air purifiers to determine their effectiveness in removing harmful particles with a specialty laser particle counter.  View test results on all units

	Alen™ T300	Alen™ A350	IQAir HealthPro Compact
Allegy Particles ?Particles of 0.3 microns or larger represent pollen, mold spores, pet dander and dust which cause allergies and respiratory problems.	93%	98%	99%
Price:	Price: $299 Buy 2 & Save $50! $548 for Two!	Price: $399 Buy 2 & Save $100! $698 for Two!	Price: $649
Noise Level: ?Noise Level (dBa) Comparisons Soft Whisper: 30 Refrigerator: 50 Dishwasher: 55-70 @ Low Fan Speed:	36 dBa	36 dBa	44 dBa
Warranty	Lifetime	Lifetime	5 year
Filter Costs:	Low	Low	High
More Information:	More Info	More Info	More Info

We have gotten quite a number of calls from customers about how this unit works.  So, we decided to purchase one and conduct our standard testing on how well this unit works in removing particles from a standard office or bedroom. We tested for pollen, mold spores, pet dander and most of the dust in a home environment at our offices with a high-tech particle counter to measured the ability to remove particles from the air which are 0.3 microns and larger.

Higher % means higher removal of dust, pollen, mold and pet dander.

IQAir Health Pro $695 Alen™ A375UV $499 Alen™ 350 $399 BlueAir 601 $599 Whirlpool AP510 $299 RabbitAir Minus A2 $599 Austin Air HealthMate $400 Oreck XL Tower $599 RabbitAir BioGP $329.95 Friedrich C-90B $499 Oreck XL Pro $349 Sharper Image Ionic Breeze $449

Oreck Test Results - The Oreck air purifier was one of the worst performing unit of those that we tested, in that it removed 33% of the particles in the room (see chart above).  This is similar to the Friedrich C-90A electrostatic plate technology, where air passes through the negative charged electrostatic plates that attract opposite charged particles.  These electrostatic plates create a chemical called ozone which is harmful to the body.  The Oreck machine had the same issue as the Friedrich C-90A where at higher speeds, fewer particles were being trapped in the electrostatic plates.  The Oreck unit emits some ozone which has a detectable odor and one of our employees complained of a headache when the unit was operating. 

For additional information, please visit the following:

1. Air Purifier Reviews for Allergies and Asthma
2. Test results on the Oreck XL air purifier
3. Health Hazards of Ozone-generating air cleaners
4. Air purifier price to performance comparison