With more of us living in smaller homes or working in smaller offices, looking at air purifiers for smaller spaces seems obvious. Levoit offers a lower priced alternative to removing all those allergens, bacteria, pollen, mold, pet dander and bad smells with which we live.
Machine and Design
There is a vast difference in the sizes and designs of the Levoit LV-PUR131 and the Levoit LV-H132, the two air purifiers we will compare in this article
The Levoit LV-PUR131 has the classic rectangular design, not particularly large at 18.5 x 14.5 x 7.2 inches and weighing just 16 lbs. It is available only in white which seems to be the color of choice of most air purifiers. The Levoit LV-H132 comes in an unusual cylindrical shape, much smaller at only 14 inches tall and weighing a diminutive 6lbs and comes in black or white.
In the 131 the air is pulled through the vents at the top of the machine whereas the 132 has vents at the bottom.
It is worth noting before we discuss them any further, that the Levoit LV-H132 is approximately half the price of the Levoit LV-PUR131.
Filters
Both models work on a three filter system, with the Fine Preliminary filter removing dust, pet hair, dander, mold spores, and some bacteria. Then the HEPA filter (which meets the US Department of Energy’s requirements for the removal of 99.97% of 0.3-micron particles from the air) removes the dust mites, larger particles, and pollen. Finally, the Activated Carbon filter removes household odors such as pet, cooking smells, and cigarette smoke.
The machines achieve all this without using ozone which is a popular feature as ozone ions are thought, by some, to be carcinogenic.
The smaller size of the 132 means the filter is smaller too, which results in it being ideal for smaller rooms up to a maximum of 129 square feet whilst the larger 131 can cover 322 square feet.
The 131 has a filter warning which tells you when it’s time to change your filter, but you will have to remember on your own with the Levoit LV-H132. Filters require changing approximately every 6 months depending on usage and air quality.
Functions
The 131 has a clever smart auto-mode with sensors checking the surrounding air quality and increasing the speed of the fan to ensure faster air purification. The display shows air quality colors and tells you why different fan settings have been chosen in auto mode.
Blue means excellent air quality so will be in sleep mode. Then green for good quality means low fan speed, yellow means average air quality so the fan will be at medium and red means poor quality so the fan will be turning at high power. Alternatively, you can choose the low, medium or high-speed fan settings manually.
The Levoit LV-H132 has no auto-mode or color display so relies purely on you choosing one of the 3 speeds, but it does have a nifty little nightlight for when it is in sleep mode which makes it ideal for bedrooms.
Energy Efficiency
Both machines have the Energy Star certification to show them to be among the top energy-saving air purifier with the Levoit LV-PUR131 running at 40 watts and the 132 at 28 watts.
The efficient operation of the fan also reduces noise levels, and with between 36 and 38 decibels depending on fan speeds, both machines work very quietly indeed.
Warranty
The warranty is for 2 years which is excellent considering the low end of the price range both these air purifier represent. The basic warranty is one year, but if you go online and register, they will give you the additional year free of charge.
Conclusion
With larger machines costing four or five times as much as these purifying babies, they are excellent value for money and ideal for smaller spaces. The LEVOIT LV-H132 has been chosen as Amazon’s best air purifier for 2018 for small rooms and is still in the running for this year.
The 131 is a better model if you plan to leave it running on its own a lot or if you have reason to believe you need the auto or timing modes.
Otherwise, at half the price of the Levoit 131, the 132 cleans the air half the space, it’s as simple as that. Choosing one of these requires you to take a tape measure and do the math.
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Last update on 2023-06-05 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
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