Overview:

Pros: High airflow, large volume of activated carbon, all metal construction
Cons: Purchase price, heavy unit, more complicated filter change process 
Great for:Allergies, Dust, Chemicals, Smoke, Odors
Not Recommended for: May be overkill for allergy/dust only concerns

Summary:

Cover all of your allergen bases and get a great night’s sleep with the Austin Air Bedroom Machine. This heavy duty carbon + HEPA air purifier is similar in design to the popular Austin Air Healthmate air purifier. However, the bedroom machine takes its filtration up a notch for maximum removal of ultra-fine particles and chemicals.

It incorporates a HEPA filter for removing dust and fine particles as well as activated carbon pellets and military-grade carbon cloth for removal of harmful chemicals.

This model is ideal for those needing ultra-fine particle removal from the bedroom. Close the doors, turn on the Bedroom machine, and sleep in a clean room. Wake up without sniffling or sneezing.

Recommended for people with serious concerns where a standard air purifier is not effective. Best for use in bedrooms where doors can be closed and outside particulates can be shut out.


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Review Outline & Key Findings (Click to Skip Ahead)

1. Unboxing the Unit
A Heavy Unit
Complex Filter Change
Solid Metal Construction

2. Key Technologies
High Carbon Content
Military Grade Cloth

3. Available Filter Options
Multiple Unit Options

4. Product Specs
1500 SqFt
99.97% Efficiency
135 Watts

5. Our Testing
Power Consumption
Noise Levels (dB)
Efficiency Tests

6. Cost to Operate
Power: $13.72/mo
Filters: $14.51/mo
Total: $28.23/mo

7. Similar Units
AirPura R600
AllerAir 5000 Exec

8. The Bad
Heavy
Complex Filter Change

9. The Good
Great Chemical Removal
Durable Construction

10. Why Buy Here?
Advice
Expertise
Long Term Support

Full Review of Austin Air Bedroom Machine Air Purifier

Unboxing the Unit

Heavy: A Heavy Unit
TWe’ve been selling Austin Air units for many years. So we used a floor model for our review which is why we don’t have unboxing pictures. However, Austin Air units are heavy and arrive with thick packaging to ensure protection during shipping & delivery. When you first open the box, you may want to turn it on its side to get the unit out. Otherwise you need to be strong enough to lift it up and out of the box. This can be difficult for some as the unit weighs over 45 lbs.

Wheels Make for Easy Moving
Ones you get it out, it has heavy duty wheels that let it roll around easily. Though if you have soft carpet, or have steps to go up/down, it’s going to take more effort to move this unit.


Turning it on/off
Turning the unit on and changing speeds is done with a basic 3 speed knob. Pretty simple.

Opening the Unit/Changing the filter: Get a screwdriver
Most heavy chemical & smoke removal purifiers rely on similar construction styles and controls. This units use large drums to accommodate huge filter and these units are usually built with functionality and simplicity in mind. However, this makes the filter changes a little more complicated than with other units.

This is because these drum-shaped units have their filters changed from the bottom of the unit. With the fan mounted on the top of the unit, and you have tp go through the bottom of the unit to access the filter. Therefore, you have to turn the unit upside down and unscrew it.

2 People May Be Required: Difficult to remove filter
The filter itself weighs 20+lbs, which can make it hard to lift out of the case. However, the real challenge is caused by the little metal tabs sticking out from each side. These tabs are what the base plate of the unit screws into. However, these tabs keep hooking the top of the filter and preventing you from lifting. It either takes two people to remove this filter, or someone that has a strong enough grip to hold and lift the 20 lb filter with 1 hand, while they use the other hand to push the tabs out of the way.

While this filter change was a real pain, you will be relieved to know that you only have to do it once every 3-5 years. This just comes with the territory. If you want a heavy duty, highly effective chemical removal unit with a ton of carbon, then you’re going to have to deal with a filter change once in a while.

Made in America Quality
Austin Air is made with almost all metal construction and has the quality and durability you would expect from a product proudly Made in America. In addition, Austin Air is Made in America! Their headquarters and manufacturing facility is located in Buffalo, New York. This is the only air purifier brand we are aware of that is manufactured in the USA. Awesome.

 

Key Technologies

High Volume of Activated Carbon
Almost all air purifiers targeted for effective removal of chemicals used granulated activated carbon pellets in their filters. Activated carbon is very effective at adsorbing chemicals/odors. The more activated carbon a filter has, the longer the filter lasts, or the better it works against chemicals and odors.

Military Grade Carbon Cloth
Austin Air however, uses an even more powerful form of chemical adsorption: activated carbon cloth. Activated Carbon Cloth was originally developed by the British Chemical Defense Establishment for use in gas masks designed to protect the wearer against nerve gas and other toxic chemicals.

Carbon cloth is far more adsorbent than standard granulated carbon, but it is also far more expensive. For those who need clean-room like performance and want to tur their bedroom into an allergen-free and chemical-free sanctuary, the Bedroom machine is one of the best equipped units for the job.

Available Filter Options

Austin air uses a common body/housing for all of its larger units. This means that a filter from any other Austin Air unit will also fit within the Bedroom Machine housing, allowing you to target other concerns as your needs change.

Here are primary air purifier models offered by Austin Air:
Bedroom Machine: Combines granulated carbon and carbon cloth with HEPA for the highest chemical removal

HealthMate: Combines carbon and HEPA for particle and chemical removal.

HealthMate Plus: Similar to HealthMate, but adds VOC removal additives to target noxious VOCs, great for those with severe chemical sensitivity.

Allergy Machine: Mostly HEPA with carbon cloth added for some odor/chemical removal.

Pet Machine: HEPA and Carbon with special additives included to remove ammonia from pet odors

Product Specs








Coverage Area 1500 sq ft
Efficiency 99.97%
Noise Levels 64.5 dB
Power Consumption 135 Watts
Energy Star Rated No


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Airpura units are not energy star rated. However, very few units with a large volume of activated carbon are energy star rated.

Performance Testing

The following performance specs are what we measured in our performance testing.








Speed Power Consumption (Watts) Noise (dB) Efficiency (0.3 Microns)
3 127 65.5 88.9%
2 92 58.5 87.3%
1 79 49 84.9%

Efficiency Explanation
The efficiency measured here was below the 99.97% claimed by the manufacturer. However, we attribute this to two reasons:

  • The unit/Filter was quite old
  • High Carbon Content skews efficiency results

This unit has been in our office for a few years as our floor model. So we did not unbox a brand new unit for this review. Therefore, the decline in efficiency is due to this unit being used regularly for quite some time. In addition, when a unit has a large volume of activated carbon, some of the fine carbon residue can blow out of the filter and skew the efficiency testing. However, this does not effect its ability to remove dust/allergens.

Cost to Operate

Cost to Operate: Medium to High
Monthly Power Cost:$13.72
Monthly Filter Cost: $14.51
Maximum Operating Cost: $28.23/month
Typical Operating Cost: $14.11/month (We divide max operating cost in half since we don’t expect everyone will run it on high 24/7)

In order to determine the cost to operate, we consider power consumption cost and filter replacement costs:

Power Consumption Cost







Unit Power on High: 127 watts
Cost of Electricity from Utility: 15 cents/kWh
Your Daily Power Cost on High: 46 cents per day
Your Monthly Power Cost on High: $13.72/month on high

Filter Replacement Cost






Filter Cost Change Frequency
Bedroom Machine Drum Filter $439.99 Every 3-5 Years
Pre-Filters $27.49 Every Year

Power Cost:
Running the Bedroom Machine on high speed, 24 hours a day will result in a power cost of $13.72/month.

Filter Cost:
Austin Air Recommends a filter change frequency of once every 5 years. However, at Air Purifiers America, we recommend 3 years because we assume you are using your unit full time. Therefore, changing your main drum filter once every 3 years, and your pre-filter once every year will average out to about $14.51 per month in filter replacement costs.

As we mentioned above, maximum operating cost assumes you are running the unit 24/7 on high. This is probably unlikely. It’s more likely that you will run it on high when your issues are work and then turn it down to a lower setting. Or that you will turn it on in some months and turn it off in others.

However, the Bedroom Machine is a unit designed for people with severe chemical sensitivities. If you are one of those people, you very well could be running this on the high end of the range most of the time, costing you about $28.23/mo. Assuming you run the unit only part time, then we divide the maximum operating cost in half to give a more typical operating cost of $14.11/mo.


The cost to operate the Austin Air Bedroom Machine is in line with other heavy duty drum air purifiers. If you need something significantly cheaper, it is probably not going to be effective at resolving heavy smoke or chemical concerns.

 

Most Comparable Units















AirPura R600

 
AllerAir 5000 Exec
 
Austin Air Bedroom Machine
Price $649 $699 $764
Coverage (2 air changes) 2000 1500  1500
Coverage (5 air changes) 800 600 600
Efficiency (0.3 Microns) Not Yet Tested Not Yet Tested 88.9%
Noise on High (dB) Not Yet Tested Not Yet Tested 65.5
Power on High Not Yet Tested Not Yet Tested 127
Warranty 5 Year 5 Year 5 Year
Max Cost to Operate Similar Similar $28.23/mo
Typical Cost to Operate Similar Similar $14.11
Full Expert Review Not Yet Reviewed Not Yet Reviewed
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The AirPura R600 and AllerAir 5000 Exec are both designed to handle a wide range of chemical and odor concerns as well as particles. They both have a high volume of activated carbon, as well as a thigh HEPA filter. They are all within the same price range and will perform fairly similarly. Both the R600 and 5000 Exec are manufactured in Canada, while the Bedroom Machine is manufactured in the US.

AirPura R600
The R600 is AirPura’s most popular HEPA + Carbon combination unit. You can read the review on the AirPura T600 which is similar, but does not have the full HEPA layer. AirPura T600 Review

AllerAir 5000 Exec
The 5000 Exec features a large carbon filter and a thick HEPA filter.

Areas for Improvement (The Bad)

Heavy Units
THere’s not much you can do about this. If you want a unit that is going to be highly effective at removing chemicals, you need a lot of activated carbon. Activated carbon adds weight. So the more effective the unit is, the heavier it’s going to be. These units have wheels to help with mobility but it will be a challenge if you need to get it up or down the stairs.

Complicated (but infrequent) filter change
Drum air purifiers require changing the filter from the bottom. This also requires lifting the heavy filter out of the drum. This can be difficult to do for those without a strong grip. You may want to unscrew the unit, take the bottom off, and then lift the shell off of the filter. However, this is going to make a huge mess so you should definitely do that outside. Fortunately, changing the drum filter is done infrequently (every 3 years), but if you keep up on the pre-filter changes (every year) you may still be going through this process regularly.

 

Reasons to Buy (The Good)

Excellent Filtration
This is an excellent unit for chemical and odor removal as well as ultra-fine particles. It would also work great for allergies, dust, asthma and other airborne allergens, but may be overkill if those are the only concerns you have. This unit is recommended for those with chemical sensitivities and anyone who wants to make their bedroom a clean-room.

Durable Construction
All Austin Air models are made in America and designed using mostly metal construction. This makes them quite durable and ensures that they will perform effectively for years to come.

Why Buy With Air Purifiers America

With a hundred places you could buy this same product, why choose Air Purifiers America?

With Air Purifiers America, you always have someone to call if you run into a problem.

We can give you advice over the phone or online chat. Help you determine where and how often to run your unit. Help you find the right filter replacement, and more!

If you need to send the unit back, we’ve got you covered. If your unit has an issue in a year, we can walk you through the warranty process.

Amazon may ship it to you 1 day faster, but after that, you’re on your own! When you buy from Air Purifiers America, we are always available to help you resolve any issues you may have.  


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