Oreck Air Purifier ReviewsThese Oreck air purifier reviews break down their claim of being a quality air cleaner with expert advice. Is the XL ProShield a must have or must not? The Oreck XL ProShield Plus with Helios Shield has some pretty big claims. My first concern was the "buy one get one half off" and "buy one get one free" offers. I had not seen this offer before with air purifiers. I could not really understand why they would offer this buy one get one deal. Yeah, maybe on some tasty cupcakes, but I don't generally want an extra home appliance with my purchase. It smacked of gimmick. I do have to say, that with all my research on air purifiers I can usually pick out the bad ones in a second. I was initially impressed by their marketing description. Mostly what stood out was the 30 day risk free trial offer, the filter that never needs replacing and the energy efficient rating. The energy efficient rating on the Oreck air cleaner is great and the "never needs replacing" claim on the air filter would be a money saver, if this were worth buying.I did a second look and noticed no mention of a HEPA filter. First red flag. Then, I noticed the electrostatic ionizer. Second red flag. These often produce ozone which irritate the lungs, and upon research, yes, this one produces ozone. The clean smell of ozone can trigger asthma symptoms, not good! The claim of the Oreck Helios Shield odor control being great for allergy and asthma sufferers does not hold water. In fact, it is potentially harmful for asthma sufferers because of the ozone. The Oreck Truman Cell does hold up to the claim of killing viruses, mold, bacteria and germs. The UV light is a helpful feature in eliminating those unwanted air particles. The only problem is that it does not capture many of these particles. These are the teeny tiny particles this purifier lets through at a rate greater than those with a HEPA filter. Their claim is 99% on the particles. HEPA cleans at 99.97% down to .3 microns. Might not seem like a big difference, but during allergy season it is a big difference! Finally, the Oreck ProShield XL air purifier offers only 2 air changes an hour. This is very low and is hardly cleaning the air. I might expect that from an air purifier costing $75, but not one at a price of $300-$400. Consumer Oreck air purifier reviews are somewhat positive, but I am not convinced these are totally unbiased by the company. It could be the people writing the Oreck air purifier reviews have really low expectations, but the air purifier crowd is generally well educated and have high expectations, so this is doubtful. This is the most expensive, low quality air purifier I have found to date. If you want a no ozone producing, high quality air purifier, I'd go with the BlueAir purifier! |