Does anyone have recommendations on an affordable “good enough” test tools for volatile organic compound (VOC) &/or #Formaldehyde
I’ve read about the affordable #VOC device shortcomings, but the local mold environmental specialist said doing professional VOC testing would be prohibitively expensive.
I don’t need it to be exactly accurate data as much as a warmer/colder: Did making [x] change help? Which areas are more or less safe? Thank you
Adding hashtags for above post asking help with rough VOC &/or formaldehyde metering for reach:
#environmentalHealth #airpurifiers #carbonFilter #carbonFilters #AirQuality #FreshAir #AirHealth #AirSafety #Environmental #Prop65 #tVOC #EPA #DEQ #lungs #Air #LungHealth #AirSafety #HEPA #mastCellDisease #MastCell #Formaldehyde #VOC #MCAS
@moss @VickiWoodward IKEA’s Vindstyrka sensors give a rising/neutral/falling indicator that’s about the limit of cheaper sensors. They’re less sensitive than the ones Dyson have in their overpriced air filters, but they’re able to be used to detect when someone uses a vape where they’re not meant to, someone farts near it, or a cat has used a litter box (and the commensurate drop when the exhaust fan that’s activated vents the stink outside).
I integrate them into Home Assistant and can gauge longer term trends through charts and such on HA.
@sendai @VickiWoodward Oh cool, thank you!! This is really helpful, especially the practical examples and the HA integration, the charts have been very helpful for me with my Aranet for CO2, pressure, etc.
I was looking at the AirThings and the Dyson Formaldehyde stuff but $$$ !especially since I already have HEPA filters and an Aranet 4, and it's just the VOCs/formaldehyde I'm trying to test & remedy rn. Ikea + HA is a great option
@moss @VickiWoodward Wonderful. :)
If you can afford it, grab at least two of them so you can somewhat verify/calibrate the data they output by sticking them side by side, then you can test their sensitivity, workout what distances they work best, etc., by moving them around the spaces they need to be in.
@iris Oh cool, thank you so much!! I bookmarked this and saved it to my note of action items for the issue (yay brain fog).
I might reach out next week depending what else I find and how my initial experiments work with the big carbon filters and the formaldehyde filter. Appreciate the expertise !
Do you just need to test once?
Have you checked your local library?
Ours have them available to check out.
deer witch
sen
Iris Young (he/they/she) (PhD)
MCDuncanLab