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Honeywell 50250 99.97% Pure HEPA Round Air Purifier
By: Honeywell       Average Rating: 4.0     Total Reviews: 189
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Air filter     On: 2010-02-15

Its a good investment if you suffer from allergies. It cleans the air well and is not to noisy.
Honeywell 50250 Pure HEPA Round Air Purifier     On: 2010-01-30

The Honeywell 50250 did a more than satisfactory job of cleaning air in our downstairs apartment of cigarette smoke and residues. We are very satisfied.
Strong, Low Maintenance Costs, Loud     On: 2010-01-28

We have a couple dogs, one who sheds 365 days a year, and a bunch of rescued cats.

These things do a pretty good job, its amazing how much dust and fur is on the pre-filter when I change it. This thing really pumps the air. The pre-filters are relatively inexpensive.

The trade-off is noise, even on Low. It actually provides nice white noise for sleeping, and is good for times when you are not home, but when you are home and awake, trying to have a conversation, or watch TV, this filter is too loud. Would be nice if it had an "Ultra Low" setting.
It works     On: 2010-01-28

Have had this for about six months. It definitely works. How do I know this? Because since I have used it I have not needed to reguarly purchase kleenex boxes for the first time in probably a decade. I have serious allergies and typically go through a kleenex box in a week or two due to dust, etc. Now I only get kleenex when I have a cold. The only reason I game it four starts is because its loud but its worth it...
VERY PLEASED WITH HONEYWELL 50250 AIR PURIFIER     On: 2010-01-27

After much research, including using Consumer Report recommendations, the air purifier with
the best reviews was the Honeywell 50250. I have used the purifier for almost 3 months, it
was very easy to set up from the box, the filter is the type that you clean and re-use, and
has a charcoal pre-filter! My wife and I both love it! The dust in our house has been reduced
drastically! We do not have allergies so I cannot say it has reduced the allergins but the
house does smell very fresh. I am VERY pleased with the unit and would recommend it to anyone
looking for a unit that works well and does not cost an arm and a leg to operate and maintain.
Great for my allergies     On: 2010-01-16

I bought this purifier on the advice of my allergist in October 2009. He told me I had to get a HEPA air purifier. Ive been using it almost non-stop for the last 3 months.
I need to use the purifier only in the winter when the house is closed up. I have a cat and that is the main reason for getting the Honeywell 50250. I get the usual; sniffing, sneezing, watery eyes, etc..but I also get itchy eyes all through the winter from the cat. Unfortunately for me I cannot stop myself from scratching, which causes my eyes to get puffy, dry, and scaly. I can control the upper respiratory symptoms with OTC antihistamines, but controlling the itchy eyes has been more difficult. Drops help some, but I knew that an air purifier was the answer so I did my research before purchasing this one. I have been very pleased. My eyes have so far made it through the winter with a minimum of problems. Even when I was off work for a week over the holidays and spent a lot of time at home.
Some have commented on the noise. I dont think its that bad. It is about as loud as a window air conditioner. I turn it to high when Im gone then on low for sleep. One advantage is that it has cut out any street noise and has turned into a nice white noise. Its been almost 3 months and the filter light still hasnt come on.
One downside is that it makes the air in the room VERY dry. I guess thats a point of a purifier because humid air can breed mold and dust mites, but combined with the already dry winter air, that just makes me shock myself around the house and that wasnt a problem prior to the purifier. Definitely not a plus. So, Ive had make sure my humidifier is constantly going to counteract the dry purified air.
Very pleased with this purchase...     On: 2010-01-10

I probably read a couple hundred reviews of similar HEPA air purifiers before deciding to buy this one. The main complaint many of those who purchased this unit had was that it was noisy even on the lowest setting, and a couple people complained about the blue light on the dial. This unit, while not whisper quiet is about a noisy on the low setting as the tower blower fan we were using prior to purchasing this unit, so the noise was really a non issue as my wife and I both enjoy some "white noise" in the background when sleeping, and the blue light on the dial makes for a very nice night light. We are using this in a bedroom of approximately 210 square feet, and ever since we started using it my wife does not have the allergy symptoms she was experiencing before we got this air purifier, and is able to breathe easier when sleeping. This particular model was also recommended by some of the allergy publications, so it was one that I definitely wanted to look into prior to purchasing one.

If youre looking for one that is whisper quiet, this is probably not the one for you (although I dont recall reading any reviews of units that were that quiet), but if you dont mind a little white noise in the background I would highly recommend this unit.
Very happy with this purchase.     On: 2010-01-06

I purchased this product from Home Depot due to a sale. I think its excellent for this price range. The only negative is that it makes noise. I sleep with this on the quietest level and it took two nights to adjust. Although, I do wear ear plugs but I did this even before this purchase. On a side note- I recently read a study that said using an air purifier increases cardiovascular health. (Of course avoid air purifiers that emit ozone because its carcinogenic.)

Edit: One aspect I didnt consider before making this purchase is that this air purifier lowers the temperature in the room.
Solution for nightlight-beacon     On: 2009-12-30

The solution for the nightlight is simple. Cover it with a jar lid. Go to your kitchen and find a screw-on lid from a jar. Any lid that is about 2 1/4 to 3 inches in diameter will work....a jar of applesauce, gravey, spaghetti sauce, whatever. Place it over the dial/light area and duct tape it down on the high side. Then you can flip it up from the bottom to turn the thing on and off, and flip it back down when youre done. The bright light is gone. There is still a little light that seeps out around the top of the machine, just enough to see where it is in the dark, but there is no longer a bright beacon that bounces off the ceiling and lights up the whole room.

This is the second Honeywell air purifier Ive had and I love it. The first one finally died after eight years of nightly use. Our bedroom is large so I needed another big unit. I was a little hesitant to get this model after reading about the loudness and the light in the reviews. But I took the gamble. The noise is the same as the older model I had..not that bad. Just background noise that is good to sleep to. The light really is bright and does bounce off the ceiling like an airport beacon. But its easy to cover up as I described above and that problem is solved. I gave it only 4 stars instead of 5 because I had to find a solution for the bright light. But it is serving me very well for my purpose...breathing easy while sleeping well.
Haven't gotten sick this season     On: 2009-12-30

I generally dont believe in air filters ever since reading about an Italian study where they saw that children who grew up in homes with purified air were more likely to be asthmatic and have other health issues. It makes sense--if you train your lungs to be accustomed only to the purest of air, then you are too fragile to handle the polluted air outside.

Nonetheless, I purchased this air filter for its HEPA filter when we renovated our master bedroom and I was still freaked out about the possibility of lead paint dust in the air. Even after the renovations were complete, we continued to run the air filter in our bedroom simply because we saw that it was an effective white noise machine for our toddler (who still sleeps with us and who still needs the noise machine to keep her from waking at every sound). The machine makes a nice, low hum on its lowest setting, which is less intrusive than the noise machines wed been previously using.

After 6 months of use, I suddenly realized that none of us have gotten sick this season yet (knock on wood). My daughter is enrolled in 3 different school programs (dont ask) and each of her many classmates and 4 of her 5 teachers/asst. teachers have been out with flu, H1N1, colds or something or other. My husband had 3 major colds and flu before the end of December last year. And yet, none of us have gotten sick yet this year. I cannot definitively trace it to the air purifier, but I think that it has contributed to it.

Moreover, Ive noticed that in the living room, when the morning sun streams through the window, you can see all the dust dancing in the rays. In the master bedroom with the air purifier, directly above the living room, the same rays produce almost zero dust floating in the sunlight.

Ive been so pleased with this product and I think using it on the low setting and at night only has been great for our family.

My only complaint is the same as others--the blue light is pretty bright at night and theres no easy way to shut it off without dismantling the item. We usually just take a pair of my daughters sweat pants to throw over the switch to dim the light.

If you found this review helpful, please let me know!
Spectacular     On: 2009-12-26

I bought two of these based on the reviews I found here and elsewhere online. One for the bedroom and another for the living room. These little machines are fantastic. I can tell a difference in the air within a matter of minutes, and my allergies have really abated since using them. I highly recommend them!
Large, Loud, But Noticable Improvement     On: 2009-12-18

This sounds just like a fan, which doesnt bother me because I prefer to have a fan running while I sleep, however the lowest setting it the loudest I would want it to be. We bought this because we have a smoker in the house and no one is a fan of it. If you put this on too high with the smoke, it just circulates the smoke around the room because of the amount of air it pushes out which is a major bummer. I also hate the fact that you have to buy "pre-filters" so it really doesnt have a permanent filter system. However, with these cons, if you leave the unit on before there are smells in the house, it does a pretty good job filtering them out.
It really is loud     On: 2009-12-18

I read some of the reviews warning how loud this filter is. Being an allergy sufferer, i have had many air filters in my life.

THis thing is huge. It is hard to talk to others in the same room if the purifier is not on the low "sleep" setting.
Honeywell 50250     On: 2009-12-06

This machine works as advertised. We were kinda skeptical as to it doing what it was advertised to do. The house has a cleaner smell and makes it easer for me to breathe, as I have some serious breathing problem.
Effective, but noisy     On: 2009-12-05

Many others have created much more detailed reviews. Mine is same as theirs and I will summarize.

Pro: Cleans the air very well.
Con: Very noisy at all settings.
It does the work, but too loud     On: 2009-12-04

We got this air purifier after reading reviews and also we watched a review at youtube and we knew it had lots of complains about the noise but got it anyway. At first it was a bit noisy and we kinda got used to it, but after a week of using it we couldnt take it anymore! The TV had to be louder, we had to speak louder and it was just way too much noise. But, note that we live in a small one bedroom apartment crowded with furnitures, maybe in a bigger house the noise wouldnt be so bad, anyway, we decided to try the 3M purifier. The highest setting on it is like the lowest setting on the honeywell, and the lowest setting is so quite that you cant even notice that it is on, so we returned it and got another 3M. The 3M needs to change the filter every 3 months, but this honeywell has to change the pre filter every 3 months also, so there is no difference there...
Honewell the one to buy     On: 2009-11-29

this is the only air purifier I have been happy with. It is quiet and seems to do a nice job with air freshening
Excellent Air Purifier     On: 2009-11-27

I bought one of these air purifiers and placed it in my bedroom. It helped me sleep much better through the allergy season. When the next season hit, I bought one for my office. It works very well.
Good for the price     On: 2009-10-17

Good:
- Actually works: reduces allergy symptoms from pet dander.
- Removes odors from the air: leaves your place smelling fresh (as long as you keep up on pre-filter changes)

Bad:
- NOISY: Its not so much the "volume," but the sound. The high pitch howling is impossible to tune out.
- Inefficient: uses 180 watts on high and 80 watts on low, yikes.

Recommended: for living rooms, basements, and kitchens. Its too noisy for a bedroom, but works well anywhere else.


We have two cats in a small-ish apartment (800sq/ft). As we close up the windows for winter my allergies get absolutely out of control.


It does work well, depending on how you define "well." It can move enough air to work on the whole apartment...but its loud.

The actual noise level is about equivalent to my window AC unit, however the quality of noise makes the difference.

The AC produces a mechanical hum which, even though its loud, is easy to "tune out." The air filter produces a high pitched howling that cuts through everything and is impossible to ignore.

Given that, I couldnt put it in the bedroom like I intended. Its going back to Amazon :(

It DOES work though! My symptoms subsided enough that I could even start skipping doses of allergy medicine (I dont like being "drugged" all the time). It also did a good job keeping the place smelling "fresh" by removing kitchen odors. I think thats my favorite part!

I would have liked to keep it in the living room, in addition to the more expensive cleaner in the bedroom. Can you clean your air too much? Unfortunately, we can only afford one right now.

Bigger than I thought     On: 2009-10-11

It takes up more space than I was expecting. But its quality more than makes up for it. It has exceeded my expectations in air quality.
Just what I needed!     On: 2009-10-05

I made the rather foolish decision to bring a kitten in my small apartment despite my asthma and allergies. I did as much as I could to prevent myself from being sick - she stayed off my bed, her litter was in another room, I washed my hands after I touched her, I bathed her regularly, I vacuumed often, etc - which did keep my hives to a minimum but it did nothing to keep me from sneezing uncontrollably and being continually congested (which was bad for my asthma).

I did a lot of research very quickly to find a quality HEPA purifier and finally stumbled upon this little beauty. It shipped quickly and I immediately set it up. The difference in air quality was immediate! As recommended, I put it on "high" for an hour or two and then switched it back down to "low." I keep it on "low" most of the time, but I do turn it up when Im vacuuming (it seems to help catch the stuff that comes out of the carpet before it settles again) and if I notice myself congested for some reason. After it ran for a day, my congestion was completely gone and my sneezing was drastically reduced. No asthma symptoms, either. Two weeks later, I feel great!

The unit is larger than Id expected - about 2 across and slightly taller - but it is stylish and fits in the room nicely. It is not as noisy as some reviewers would have you believe - when standing next to it, it is more noisy than an upright fan, but less noisy than an air conditioner. It was annoying and loud the first day, but I soon was able to tune it out and now dont even notice it.

I would definitely recommend this product!
Good Purchase, but noisy     On: 2009-10-04

Air filter works great, but is very noisy - even on the sleep setting. It has helped with my daughter who has asthma and allergies. She is much less congested in the mornings than she used to be. The filter is not a cure-all, but has certainly been helpful for us. We will probably buy another for the vacation house unless honeywell comes up with something quieter before then.
Stinky and Cold!     On: 2009-09-27

It still smells weird after 2 weeks.
And all the cold air blowing out is freezing me!
Im sending it back to amazon now.
I am much happier with the counter top units Honeywell has. I
have 3 strategically placed in my home to take the place of the
bigger unit. And their filters do not need to be replaced at all, only vacuumed periodically. This one has a pre-filter that needs to replaced every 3 months, so more expense. It is really a rip-off to say that it has a permanent filter & then call the replacement a pre-filter.
There is too much to say negatively about this; read the fine print in the ad for the stuff that doesnt make sense.
Very Good Air Purifier     On: 2009-09-22

Weve had this for about a month now with no problems. It is a little bigger and a little louder than we expected, but given the amount of air it filters, it cant be expected to be silent. It seems to be doing a good job, even though we only have it on the low setting. It does need to be away from all walls by at least a few feet, so keep this in mind.
Large, Bright and Loud     On: 2009-08-29

I live in a small one bedroom apartment and I wanted to buy an air cleaner for the bedroom. I should have done my due diligence as this purifier is much larger than I thought. This is definitely not a table top unit. The unit is very loud. One of those that cycles from high to low, so brace yourself when you first switch it on. Even on low settings, its louder than my AC. The light on the power switch is very very bright. It emits a blue light that illuminates the entire area where I put it. I had to tape a piece of cardboard over it because it to block the light. Even then the light is still very noticeable.
Effective but Loud     On: 2009-08-24

I purchased this filter for my office at work, and it does great. The difference in the air quality was very fast, and has really made my office more enjoyable to work in. The biggest negative to this filter is its noise level, its way to loud to be used in a sleeping area. If noise is not a real concern however, it will get the job done. I have a 20 x 25 office, and have it in the far corner so the noise wont interfere with my phone calls.
Great for room with Pets     On: 2009-08-21

Have been using for three months now. We use in our 275 sq ft bedroom. We have 4 large dogs that sleep in the same room and I was always complaining of the dog odor. After reading reviews, I decided to try this unit....
I must say, I am very impressed. We use low speed while in out room, we can still easily hear the TV and the white noise it creates does not bother us at all. I do still notice a musty smell when coming in/out of the bedroom at night but nothing like before. I bet if I had it on medium while sleeping, there would be no smell.
I set it to high when we leave for work and the room smells great when we get home.
The dust level is very much reduced and neither of us has sneezed or had a stuffy head like we used to.

The machine does produce an ozone type odor that takes getting used to. At times, our fire alarm sensor will beep once or twice. I am sure it us due to the ozone produced.

We also have a overhead fan on high while sleeping.........this seems a great combination for us......
Clean Air with Nasty Smell     On: 2009-08-19

Pretty tough to rate an air cleaner without high tech equipment to gauge air quality before and after. Ill take Consumer Reports word for it when they say this air purifier does a good job of getting the air clean in the room. I dont even mind the sound.

My gripe is with the odd odor that came from the machine. Ive read other reviews about this happening and a call to the manufacturer confirms that it does give off an odor that they say goes away. Ive been running it for almost a month now and entering a room where this is running brings a whiff of some rubbery smell. Maybe my nose is just sensitive to smell, but its become more of a nuissance than any dirty air was. In a large room its not so bad, but my unit left in a bedroom will leave that funky stench.

Not sure if I got a bad purifier or just a sensitive nose. But Im getting an odd smell from mine and it seems like many others are too.
A spectacular air purifier- but noisy.     On: 2009-08-13

Ive been using my Honeywell 50250 for about a month and could hardly be more pleased with its performance. The air purifier does a spectacular job of removing dust in my bedroom. The resulting reduction in the amount of dust collected when vacuuming the floor is really amazing. The unit seem very well engineered and sturdy. When you change the pre-filter the amount of dust collected is startling.

The unit has had a big impact on my allergies.

Its noisy: Leaf blower or vacuum cleaner noisy on the highest setting. It doesnt bother me but take note if sleeping in a room with a cruise missile engine doesnt appeal to you.
We were disappointed.     On: 2009-07-31

This unit didnt clean the dust from the air. It might have been cleaning the tiny unseen dust mites, but the room seem to gather dust even faster when the unit was on. Also it is noisy. My daughter said she still woke up stuffy, so she would rather suffer from her dust mite allergy than try to sleep with the unit on. We couldnt keep a unit that took up so much space and didnt do what we needed it to do.
Good Product     On: 2009-07-13

The 50250 air purifier is a good product. But, be aware it is a little
noisy on low and much noiser at higher speeds. I knew this when I bought
it. Just a word of caution for the light sleeper. For me it was a good
buy. George Roller
A powerful, effective air purifier     On: 2009-07-05

This is a fantastic product. I bought this unit to replace an Oreck Tabletop XL Professional Air Purifier (a complete waste of money). I use it in a storage room where I keep my cats litter boxes. I have three cats and they tend to kick up quite a bit of litter dust.

The Honeywell 50250 99.97% Pure HEPA Round Air Purifier is heavy duty and is recommended for large rooms; it is actually large for the room I have it in, but it is very effective. The purifier pulls air in on all sides and expels clean air from venting around the top of the unit. The expelled air is cool and creates quite a draft so this may be a consideration when used. On the "high" and "medium" settings this purifier is loud; on the "low" setting it is fairly quiet (but not as quiet as the Honeywell Silent Comfort model).

Overall I am very satisfied with this product. I have noticed a major decrease in the amount of litter dust that seemed to coat everything in the room prior to using this purifier. When I change the charcoal pre-filter I cant believe the amount of very fine litter dust (powder), dust and cat hair the filter has trapped. It is also very effective in controlling litter box odor and the musty smell that seems to haunt closets and storage rooms.
Noisy, but very efficient     On: 2009-07-03

I got this purifier to go in a room in which I keep kittens that I foster for the local animal shelter. The dander flies, as you can imagine. After the air purifier had run for about a week, the air was MUCH cleaner and the room smelled fresher. I am very happy with the quality and performance of this air purifier. It has 3 speeds and the highest one is very noisy. I dont think you could talk over it or watch TV with it set at that speed. I leave it set on the middle setting and the noise is tolerable. The size of the room in which its located is about 10 x 12 and it takes care of that size room with no problem. I would definitely recommend this product.
honeywell enviracaire air cleaner     On: 2009-06-29

had the honeywell air cleaner almost a mouth so far doing a good job .keeps the air in my apt clean have not had to clean the pre filter yet or hepa filter yet like the idea of just vac hepa filter once a year or when the hepa light or pre filter light comes on . no light yet . little loud on high but i dont care about that as long as it keeps the air in my apt clean its worth being lond . the power switch has a blue light works as a nice night light when i go to bed .
Great Air Purifier     On: 2009-06-27

I am currently living in Iraq, in less than ideal conditions. The room in which I sleep uses an external air conditioner. The dust in the air is incredible, and the air is full of particulates from burn pits not more than a mile away--when we are downwind it is almost like a snowy day. When I walk into my room in the evening to sleep, I am rewarded with the one truly comfortable moment of my day...clean, cool air. This purifier is working overtime and performing incredibly 24 hours per day, 7 days per week.
Hepa Air Purifier     On: 2009-06-16


Works great. I work with essential oils and the purifier keeps the aroma from the other offices that may not like them. Cools the air as well. One plus I didnt expect was it also gets rid of the dust I can feel and smell from the carpet.
I CAN BREATHE!     On: 2009-06-06

I live in an older home with old plaster throughout the home, and have two cats. The home had an "old" smell, and no matter how much I cleaned the "old" smell would return as soon as the cleaning product smell wore off. I also have a bronchial condition, and struggle with congestion. With so many air purifier products out there, I have been researching for quite while. I finally chose the Honeywell 50250. When it arrived, I plugged it in and within 3 hours my husband could even notice the difference! THIS MORNING I CAN BREATHE BETTER! For anyone not sure about the expense, I can tell you its worth every penny!
air cleaner cleans well, is loud on max     On: 2009-06-01

happy with this unit, bit bigger than thought but still ok with it. much more efficient than the smaller ones - good for living rm/dining rm combos or large basements.
awesome air purifier!     On: 2009-05-27

I recently found out that Im allergic to dust mites! What a hassle... my doctor suggested purchasing the honeywell with the the permanent hepa filter. Wow, what a difference it has made, I am so glad I invested in this product. A little pricey but well worth it! :)
buy it, youll be glad you did!
Nice and loud, but some erratic noises     On: 2009-05-24

I purchased this product primarily for its white noise generating ability, and secondarily for a dust allergy that I have. For sound masking, it is good in the sense that it is extremely loud -- not unlike a motel AC unit on high. However, in the two units I have tried, you can hear an intermittent scraping sound (as if something is rubbing ever so slightly in the fan), which can become irritating. I realize that this is a subtle point, but for people who are extremely sensitive to sound abnormalities and are considering this unit for its white noise generating qualities, you should be aware of this potential issue. I rarely use the unit as a result.
Allergy meds no longer needed     On: 2009-05-21

I was recently tested and found to have many allergies, including to my 5 cats. My dogs as well tested positive for allergies and are on meds. I did get a purifier and ionizer for the bedroom. I did remove the drapes and added pella windows with blinds between the glass. The Honeywell air purifier was the extra boost I needed. I have it in the living room and yes you hear it especially if you have it on the top speed but it works. It is more powerful than the other two that I have in the bedroom and covers more area. I had a followup with my allergist and asked him why am I now almost med free and he said because I listened to him, and I got a HEPA Purifier. I also noticed that the dogs are scratching less. While this might not do for you what it did for me, for I went above and beyond what one might do to ease the allergy reactions all I can tell you is that it certainly helped in my situation. I do not care that it is in my living room by the entrance, I do not care if it does not match the decor, I do not care if there is noise, what I do care about is the benefits. This unit has been running non stop for a month and still the unit does not need to have the filter vacuumed. I am thinking of purchasing another just for the office.
PERFECT AIR PURIFIER!!! AND HAS PERMANENT HEPA FILTER!     On: 2009-05-01

Folks, dont waste your time with those Ionizers that I found can actually worsen allergy symptoms by releasing the chemical ozone. I do my research & this baby went straight into my family room & started working immediately. And I dont see the amount of dust floating through the air anymore. Dont let the "N" suffix on the model # confuse you... That just means it has the permanent HEPA filter, but you will get that with the regular 50250 as well, as long as it hasnt been sitting on a shelf for a few years. Mine did NOT have the "N", but I got the new model from Amazon. These folks know what they are doing!

The piano only has a small layer of dust after a week, but we used to dust every couple of days before adding this Honeywell unit. Just keep your doors closed as much as possible & let this beauty run on high all the time. DONE!

...hATCh - "You can trust me, Im an air traffic controller"...
WHAT DID YOU SAY?     On: 2009-04-29

Here in the southern end of the San Joaquin valley, we can claim the dubious distinction of having the worst air quality in the USA!! Much of it is dust from all the agricultural activity. You can dust and by the time you are finished, you can already see the dust settling on the surfaces you first dusted. I set the filter directly below the return air duct at the end of a hallway. It really does a pretty good job of removing much of the dust. Only problem is the noise level! If you have this unit on high, you can forget watching TV in the adjoining room. Since I have a hearing problem to begin with, I use wireless headphones to listen to the TV anyway so it isnt a problem for me. Plus, there is that added bonus; "What was that you said dear"?? Maybe I should get another one!
Excellent for reducing smoke odors     On: 2009-04-27

When my boyfriend moved into a new apartment, he found out too late that the people below him smoke heavily and continuously. My eyes would water and burn and the smell was awful - it stuck to my clothes, hair and stuff. I desperately read tons of reviews on air purifiers and ultimately chose this one. It has made a huge difference! It has reduced the smoke odors dramatically. Other people have complained that it is noisy - and it is. But we turn it down to the lowest setting when we are watching t.v. or listening to music. Otherwise we leave it on high and it is no worse than all the other noise that comes with living in the city. In fact, it acts as white noise to drown out a lot of the street noise. His apartment is probably about 600 sq ft. This air purifier worked great for most of it, but we did end up needing a smaller extra one for the bedroom so we could run it with the door closed at night.
Not sure about dust, but great at odor control.     On: 2009-04-24

Honeywell claims, "With proper maintenance, your Honeywell air cleaner is designed to provide years of high efficiency air cleaning." Its rare to find a product that actually does what it claims, but this one does. I have had this Honeywell 50250 Round Air Purifier for about five years now. I had a similar one previously and after I moved I bought another one. The reason? Well, I had lived in a small room in a boarding house and I had two cats and with this purifier running no one ever remarked on the smell of the cats or their litter pan. I figured if it could keep the smell of my cats out of a small room then it was worth the purchase.

Im not sure how well it does on keeping the dust out of the air because Im always having to vacuum a lot to keep the dust down, but it does an awesome job at keeping the odors out of a room. The HEPA filter lasts a long time and in fact my first one is still going strong. The charcoal pre-filter lasts a long time as well. Periodically, I unscrew the bottom nut and pull out the assembly and vacuum off the pre-filter. I find this prolongs the life of the charcoal filter. One pre-filter will last me several months.

I have found that the filter-clean monitor does a pretty good job of letting you know when each filter needs to be replaced. You simply press one of the buttons (for the pre-filer or HEPA) and gauge the condition of either filter by watching how many times the red light flashes. One flash is up to 1/3 expected life used, two flashes is between 1/3 and 2/3 expected life used, and so on (this is all mentioned in the user manual). When the filter monitor light remains on it is time to replace the filter. I have not had to do this with the HEPA filter yet, but I have had to replace a couple pre-filters. As I said these do an excellent job at keeping the odors out of my room and with proper maintenance can last a long time.

Keep in mind that this purifier is AHAM certified for cleaning the air in rooms up to 400 square feet so naturally its going to be loud on the "high" setting. However, if youre like me and accustomed to having white noise in the background then this can be an added plus.
Disappointed     On: 2009-04-17

I purchased this product in the hopes that it would help to remove a mildew smell in my apartment. I ended up returning it because of three factors: it didnt help with the smell, it was surprisingly large and an eye sore, and it was loud (about as loud as a dryer). I had read all of the reviews that had discussed the noise that it made, but I only really understood when it arrived and I turned it on. The noise might be acceptable if you were going to turn it on in an underground basement and shut the door behind you...
Loud noise, even on low     On: 2009-04-10

The low level produces a loud noise making it difficult to sleep as well as the light on the knobs. It did not produce the air purifying effect I was hoping for.
It sounds like a fan!     On: 2009-04-08

I bought this fan to use in my living room with the wood stove. I was hoping that I would see a decrease in the amount of dust in the room. I didnt really see a decrease in the dust but the air seemed better. It sounds like a fan, therefore we dont run it when we are in the living room watching tv or on the phone. We usually let it run all night and all day while we are at work. We have only had the fan for about a month so I have not had any of the other complaints, like unbalanced blades or that it stopped working.
works very well     On: 2009-04-05

I bought three of these for the very large studio I teach in. They have made a big difference in the air quality of the room. My only complaint is the noise they make when the unit is set on high -but it is okay. When I am teaching, I just turn the fan down and it works fine. I am getting ready to buy these for home too. Excellent delivery time and received in good shape. Would definitely recommend to anyone needing a Hepa air purifier.
Honeywell     On: 2009-03-25

This is my second hepa filter system and I love it. While it is very large, and pretty loud its well worth the money.

The Size:

Its a washing machine tube sized system, so make sure you have room. The manual suggest at least 3 feet all around since it sucks in air 360 and spits it out top.

The Noise:

It can produce quite bit of noise, even on its lowest setting. I found that I had to raise my tv about 20 "bars" which I know doesnt help but to put in perspective, my tvs volume goes to 100, I used to use 35 now I use 55. Things getting louder already :)

Its a soft noise, that I have found is very easy to tune out on low, and tolerable on medium, but high is strictly left for when we leave the house.

The Performance:

This thing moves so much air it creates a draft! Noticeable less dust and no more eye snot in the mourning made it all worth it to me. The air is fresh and very "clean" feeling, probably more physiological then anything else.

My ac filter used to get pretty dusty and cause the ac unit to freeze up, but since Ive been filtering the air it looks clean and like new and performing great like it should.

The Good:

- Works very well
- Great value for performance
- Reusable true hepa filter
- Amazon ships free :)

The Bad:

- Very large, requires a bit of room
- Pretty loud
- Uses a lot of watts and will raise your electric bill
- Coverage seams small
- Creates a draft

The Verdict:

If you have kids, newborns, pets, dust problems or allergys this thing is worth every penny. You will notice a improvement in your air quality and sleep with in the first few days.

Dont debate - buy it and buy as many as your home needs, one unit will not cover your entire house effectively!
works well     On: 2009-03-24

I purchased this item to purify the air in our bedroom.
It is loud when on high [air rushing noise] but that is one of the reasons we bought it too. Drowned out the other sounds.

Had it running 24/7 for the past 4 weeks with no problems
Use them in my mold remediation business     On: 2009-03-24

I use this and other Honeywell models in my mold remediation business. I recommend them to customers all the time. They are reliable and efficient. This type of air cleaner uses a filter to remove particulates from the air. They are many times more efficient than the type that uses ionization. Ionization devices provide extremely poor filtration and some of them have been found to generate ozone. Ozone can cause immediate tissue damage and should never be used in a living area.
Inconvienient, but it works     On: 2009-03-24

We purchased this about two weeks ago for a room that is about 13x16. We have two dogs and a house that seems to produce dust on the double. So far, it has helped to slow down the dust, the air feels cleaner and it doesnt have any smells when we enter.

On the other hand, there are a few things that are little inconveniences:

1 - The unit has to be 3ft away from any walls for optimum air circulation. Other than putting it smack dab in the middle of the room, this is not an option for most people. We put ours on a little trunk that is up against one wall, but it is clear on 3 sides. It seems to be working okay.
2 - This unit is NOT small. It kind of reminds me of a food dehydrator. It doesnt blend well with any home decor or furniture, but you wont find many purifiers that do.
3 - This unit is pretty loud. We can hear the TV when it is on low, but forget about TV or even standard conversation when it is on high or medium. We leave it on low most times, and turn it up at night when we go to bed, or when I am cleaning.

Overall it is a good product for the price if you can deal with the little inconveniences.
Remarkable, Simply Remarkable!     On: 2009-03-02

I have severe year-round nasal allergies. To make matters worse, my prolonged allergy symptoms have triggered the growth of polyps in my nasal passages. Zyrtec and other allergy medications offer only partial relief. Then, I stumbled on this very favorably rated air purifier and decided to get it to see if it would help with my allergies. I have been using it for 6 months now, and the difference it has made is simply remarkable!

Function
--------
- HEPA Filter (High Efficiency Particulate Air filter)
I use the Honeywell HEPA Air Purifier in my bedroom, which measures about 15 x 13 - well within the specification of 17 x 22 for the optimal performance of the air purifier. I keep it turned on 24-7.

Initially, I wasnt entirely sure that this HEPA business wasnt mere hokum. But much to my delight, this air purifier has made a HUGE difference for me. My allergies symptoms have consistently shown a marked improvement whenever Im in my room with my air purifier running; sometimes my allergies dont even act up - What a relief! I also dont get sinus headaches as often as I used to. Finally! Respite from the barrage of outdoor allergens! To all the allergy sufferers: the Honeywell HEPA Air Purifier does work!

Now, the *CAVEAT*
I have discovered that the air purifier works in alleviating my allergy symptoms only at the highest setting. It really moves the air in the room at the highest setting, but the problem, as many reviewers have noted, is that it can be quite loud at the highest setting. I think this is inevitable since the noise comes NOT from the fan, but from "the high air flow", as someone has astutely noted.

The noise really doesnt bother me too much. As a matter of fact, it serves as white noise for helping to mask my tinnitus. The only time I turn it down is when I need to talk on the phone.

- Carbon Filter
The carbon filter is very effective at controlling bad odors. The recommended carbon filter change interval is every 3-4 months, which sounds about right since my filter started losing its effectiveness after roughly the same time period. If you dont have a problem with bad odors, you can probably change the carbon filter much less frequently.

Aesthetics
----------
Contrary to some opinions about the aesthetics of the Honeywell HEPA Air Purifier, I actually think the unit looks rather attractive. But, of course, its a subjective matter.

Durability
----------
At the lowest setting, the unit wobbles a little, which makes me worry about its durability. However, Ive had my Honeywell HEPA Air Purifier for six months now, and I leave it on 24-7 -- no problems so far. At any rate, the unit has a 5-year warranty (a rarity these days).

Conclusion
----------
I just wanted to share my personal experience with the Honeywell HEPA Air Purifier since its worked so well for me. Hopefully, its been helpful for you. Do be aware of the noise issue that many people have trouble with. Good luck.
Too noisy for my taste     On: 2009-03-01

I guess this filter is a borderline case. It does its job and is not excessively noisy so many people may be fine with it. However, for me it became clear after a few days that I could not imagine sleeping for a long period if time with the filters hum in the background, so I figured that I was likely to eventually discontinue using it and put it in the attic. I ended up sending it back.
Good unit to large for a normal bedroom     On: 2009-02-22

Unit works very well but is to much air for a small bedroom. Need to use a smaller unit for a small room
removes the floating things in the sunlight     On: 2009-02-21

two years ago i began to have shortness of breath when waking up in the morning...also conjestion in nose and cheast...this product removes the fine dust that has been making me ill...i never awake with these problems again .

thank you honey well
Met my expectations     On: 2009-02-18

Easy to move from room to room when needed. Not too noisy; more like white noise.
AIR PURIFIER     On: 2009-02-17

AT FIRST THE NEW SCENT GETS TO YOU, 24 HOURS LATER IT WEARS OFF AND SHOULD HAVE CLEARED THE AIR IN THE ROOM. iT GIVES OFF A SMALL AMOUNT OF HEAT. MAKES LESS NOISE THAN MY FAN ACROSS ALL THREE SPEEDS. FIND A CORNER PLUG IT IN AND FORGET IT!!!
great filter     On: 2009-02-15

after research I chose this purifier for economy and quality. It is not quiet but it is like a soft fan and not bothersome to me on the lowest setting. The highest setting is too loud to have on all the time. The blue light is not very nice if you are sleeping in the room but can easily be covered with a shirt. I have a mold problem in my house and allergies and it has helped me considerably. The filter moves the air around which is nice.
Extremely Satisfied!     On: 2009-02-09

I have to say I am extremely satisfied with this product! I felt like I was constantly chasing dust. I finish dusting and the last table I dusted needs dusting again! I try to air out the house, clean the blinds, wash the curtains, beat out the couch pillows, even getting up on the mattresses with a hepa vacuum cleaner and vacuuming the mattresses between changing sheets. I vacuum about every other day. I have done everything I can think of to curb the dust! We have lived in our home for 12 years. My husband does HVAC and I have been hoping our unit would kick the bucket so he could put in a whole house electrostatic filter which is about $600 just to help the problem. (It actually goes into the ductwork.) I went to a friends home and they had a free standing air cleaner and they were talking about no dust. I got on Amazon and researched the selection and ended up with this one. I am completely amazed! The dust in my home has finally met its match! I was thinking it isnt that loud and couldnt figure out what some of the reviews were referring to when I realized for the first week, I had the machine on the lower setting. It is pretty loud but I dont care because it works! And we turn it off when we have company or we are watching a movie. One review said it is heavy but I carry it from room to room with no problems with the handle on the top. I took the carbon filter off after the first week and beat it out outside to start fresh. I am very happy and will probably not need the whole house filter after this! I also thought I read in a few reviews that the hepa filter needed to be replaced every three years. On the box though, the filter is referred to as lifetime and specifically states there is no need to replace it. If it starts getting too hard to clean, I priced it at around $60.
50300 similar - energy hog     On: 2009-01-29

This applies to the 50300 model. The 50250 is almost identical.
Power consumption kind of high: 50 watts on low, 170 medium and 200+ on high. Honeywell does not put this info on the box - I had to call them. Even on low its not too quiet but acceptable. List price for the 50250 which replaces the discontinued 50300 is $249.99. I got my 50300 at Costco (Jan 09) for $160. The true HEPA reusable filter is what sold me. But I guess Ill be paying in electricity: About $50 per year on low (at 11 cents per kilowatt hour) and $200 a year on high.
Good but not fantastic (pun intended).     On: 2009-01-22

We heat with wood. There was always ash all over the room. This filter reduced the ash by about 75%.

On full speed it is loud. On low speed it is reasonably quiet.
nice, except for one inexplicable design flaw     On: 2009-01-17

Ive used Honeywell HEPA air purifiers for the last 10 years or so. I used to frequently wake up with soar throats and runny eyes and so forth, and found that by using one of these units in my bedroom, I could do away with such symptoms. This is my third unit, as the last ones motor gave out.

Ive been using this one for a month now and am pleased with it. For those that havent used these before, they are certainly not silent. But then again the rhythmic noise is not a problem for me to sleep to. Its kind of soothing actually. But if you are the type that needs absolute silence to sleep, this may not work for you.

One thing that I really cant fathom about this model, is that they decided to make the knob glow brightly in neon blue. WTF? They even say that they want you to run this at night, they even have a specific setting for doing that. And the light is BRIGHT! And there is no setting to turn it off. Owch. Horrible design decision. My solution to this is to drape some socks or something over the top of it, and hide the light, but I worry that this is somehow affecting the air flow *shrug* you do what you gotta do.
Watch my video review on youtube...     On: 2009-01-15

The positive reviews speak for themselves for this air purifier. It is highly rated by Consumer Reports and has many good reviews on Amazon.com. I thought I would address the "supposed" negatives people mentioned in other reviews, regarding the noise level and the led light on the unit. I recorded a video on youtube (too long to upload here), that will let you hear and see these "issues" for yourself to make your own decision (just do a search for "Honeywell Enviracare 50250 air purifier" and you should find it). To me, these arent issues at all. I was shocked that it made a difference in my allergies after the very first night of use. I can actually breathe out of my nose while sleeping now, without having to use one of those breathe right strips. Worth every penny!
Good Product!     On: 2009-01-13

I bought this for our apartment which was always making my mother and I sneeze. We have allergies, and decided to try this product after a friend recommended it. We were concerned about other reviewers saying it was noisy, but it is tolerable. Its like having a fan on, not that bad. The only bad thing is that it is kinda bulky but thats not such a big deal either. It works great because after having it for a while now, we sneeze less. Also, when I go to my bedroom I can tell how stuffy it is in there, (the purifer is in the living room) but in the living room the air feels cleaner and way more breatheable. I recommend this product if you have allergies, its worth the buy!
Honeywell Pure HEPA ROund AIr Purifier     On: 2009-01-10

The product is excellent and the prefilter is really easy to change. (Havent had to clean the HEPA yet). The blue light that indicates the appliance is on is a little bright at night though.
Great Product     On: 2009-01-09

It is a tad loud, but that doesnt bother me, as Ive had air filters in my bedroom for years, so Im used to it. Think of it as a white-noise machine. I actually have a hard time going to sleep without it on.
Very happy with the results!     On: 2009-01-06

We purchased this air purifier because my daughters asthma acts up everytime she gets a cold (which happens too frequently with the midwest weather conditions). Weve had the purifier for about 6 weeks & we have seen a dramatic difference in her condition (plus it benefits my husband & I too). Because the purifier can be a little bit loud on the high setting, we only run the high setting when were not home. When were home, we use the medium setting & at night, the low setting. Its so easy to move the unit from room to room that we now run it 24/7 in our home. For the cost, I would definitely recommend this to anyone considering an air purifier!
blue light     On: 2009-01-06

How do I like the unit, it works well but it has a terrible blue night light that never goes out, bright and stupid .. I wrote to the MFG and told them to the same thing, see my letter to the MFG following;

Service/Sales/Engineering or anyone else who will listen ..

I have two Honeywell air purifiers .. the original model 83332 which quite working (motor stopped running and just hums) a few days before xmas 2008 (original purchase date 11/01/02) and the unit I replaced it with .. called a 50250 which looks very similar and pretty much runs the same expect for one big difference ..... the 50250 has a BLUE light which never goes out and shines from around the rotary switch and all the edges of the control panel and even through the out side housing in a dark room. I call it a night light because unless your a 4 year old who sleeps in semi daylight the light is a terribly unpleasant complication to anyone trying to sleep .. in a darkened room it shines enough light to make the entire room look like your sleeping in a home aquarium. The first night I covered it partially with a small bean bag but it only helps marginally .. I called the service number the next day and ask how to turn it off and they said it was a FEATURE of that model .. like it did something beside keep me awake .. and that it could not be turned off .. they did in the end tell me to try covering it with duck tape .. believe me duck tape doesnt work .. were back to bean bag sitting over the switch blocking near 80% of the light and Ive moved the unit to where it is least offensive but I am bewildered that someone at your company thought a bright blue light on 24/7 is somehow a good idea .. you recommend the unit be run 24/7 which means if you run it in the bedroom then its sea world aquarium time every night.

The first unit gave out after almost exactly 6 years of NO BLUE LIGHT perfect service and sadly the replacement which was hard to find since no one in the SFV (91335) local Los Angeles area except Home Depot (who keeps them piled up in a lost corner covered with dust) carries them, I had to go to Amazon and order it in (which works well) but unless you folks can figure out who decided to stick the useless blue light into the new models and some how lock them in a closet so they do no more harm it may not make a difference that its hard to find your products on retail shelves .. because this guy and I assume anyone else who is lucky enough to find out about the blue light before they put their money down is not going to be buying these things.

I am trying to see this in some .. oh well, another strange happening in declining America .. but honestly this blue light thing is really stupid, really.

Thanks for listing ..
Air Purifier Under Heavy Load     On: 2009-01-06

I am using this product in our basement where we have 8 ferrets and it is doing a great job of eliminating the odors that come from having so many of these little critters all together in the same space. Our whole house air filter built into the furnace/AC system just couldnt deal with the problem of ferret odor in the basement, but since Ive added this filter the problem is gone. I do need to vacuum the outer filter every week because it does collect so much fur, something that wouldnt be necessary if the unit was being used in almost any other location. It should be noted that the filter can be a bit loud, but that is not an issue in my particular usage, but would be a problem if you were trying to use it in an area where say you wanted to watch television or listen to music.
Large, but solid, easy, and effective     On: 2008-12-31

PROS:
- 360-degree input and output, which means you move a lot more air than other purifiers
- 3 speed settings (turbo, day, and sleep)
- Warning lights when your filters need changing/cleaning
- Lifetime HEPA filter that you just vacuum clean
- Replacement carbon pre-filters are cheap, around $10 (and you can probably find them for less)
- Solid construction, cannot be tipped over by animals
- Filters are easy to access - unscrew the bottom, slide out the filters. Nothing to latch in place, everything just fits easily
- Handle on the top for easy carrying into other rooms
- You are supposed to run this 24/7 and I feel that it is safe enough to do so with a curious cat in the apartment!

CONS:
- Its big, lets just face it. But its not heavy. Im a petite young woman and I can carry it to and from other rooms with little problem. Mostly its the bulk that gets me!
- Its a little loud. Its no louder than a large floor fan with the same 3 settings. If you like white noise, this is fine for you. I usually sleep with a floor fan set on low, and this makes the same noise on its low setting. If you have it in the same room as the TV, you will need to have it on low. Use the higher settings when you are not home, or if you have it in an unoccupied room. I would not expect something of this size to be totally quiet.
- The blue "on" light is BRIGHT. I had it in my bedroom and it was like a nightlight. Just turn the unit so the indicator light faces away from your bed (which is what I did), or if you need total darkness just put some tape over it. No big deal.

SUMMARY:
The pros outweigh the cons for me, which are really just a minor annoyance and shouldnt deter you from buying it unless you really want a quiet one.

NOTE:
I wasnt sure this was really sucking in any air since I could not feel anything even on the highest setting (I only felt the output at the top). Light a match and blow it out, and hold it a few inches from the side of the unit. The smoke drifts effortlessly into the unit, so it DOES work.
Excellent Value, but do not underestimate the noise     On: 2008-12-23

By no means am I an expert at the exact cleaning abilities of this air purifier or the exact terms used when comparing the specifications of it to other models. Thankfully, you can find those in other reviews. I will describe my impressions and what I have found to be true with this air purifier, both negative and positive.

First, some have commented on the smell the unit emits. The manual itself describes that you might notice a smell in the first few hours of usage, but it is nothing horrible. It says it comes from the carbon prefilter and the odor did disappear after the first night of usage. That was not a huge deal to me and it likely occurs in many air purifiers.

Second, I have noticed a difference in the air. Some noticeable smells have been dramatically reduced and it certainly helped with allergies. While we were looking to improve the air condition for allergies, we also wanted an air purifier to help with odor (specifically from a wood burning fireplace). This purifier helped in both areas.

Third, do not underestimated the noise this unit generates. I noticed a few people commenting on it, but I thought that surely it couldnt be that loud. I was wrong. There is no way you could leave it on its highest setting (unless you were not at home). We leave the unit on the lowest speed at all times and admittedly the noise it produces is within reason. We do turn it off at times (while watching a movie, etc). The noise produced on the lowest speed is okay and I did not see a reason for returning it based on sound alone. However, I think they could have lowered the noise by dissipating the air flow a little bit more. Its not really the machine making so much noise as much as it is the air flow being generated.

Speaking of airflow, this unit is very powerful! I was impressed by its power. I use it in a fairly large space and it handles it just fine. I was also impressed by the easy access to filters. Most units do not make it that easy to access the filter for cleaning/replacement, but it is super simple on the 50250. Overall, I really like this unit. It does make some noise, but it also gets the job done and thats what is most important. For the price to quality ratio, this unit would be hard to beat!
Works very well, is noisy     On: 2008-12-15

My husband and I are sleeping much more soundly and are waking refreshed ince using the Honeywell 50250. We researched different air filters on line and found that this was rated a best buy by several groups. The replacement filters are also less expensive than many other models. We agree with all those who commented that it is loud, but on the low setting it is fine while we are sleeping.
Expensive, loud, and dirty.     On: 2008-12-01

I have done extensive research on indoor air purifier and the thing is, you do not want the one that is 1) heavy and ugly 2) Nosy 3) expensive to run it 4) expensive to maintain 5) Does not function as well for the money. I came up with THE BEST air purifier there is on the market AIR SOURCE 3000 by Shaklee. One SMALL unit covers up to 3000 Sq feet, no filter to chance, they look like an art, quite and energy saving, kills bacteria and virus, and DOES the job it is supposed to. I will think twice before you buy one of these ugly heavy bulky expensive appliance.
Excellent     On: 2008-11-22

This item is a little noisy, but has made all the difference in the world to my husband and daughter.
THROW OUT THE PILLS !     On: 2008-11-21

After receiving my Honeywell 50250 (which DOES come with the PERMANENT HEPA filter), I put it on "High" and let it run, in my carpeted 266 sq. ft. bedroom, with the door shut. I slept that night on the sofa in my tiled-floor living room, downstairs. The next evening I noticed a significant change in the air quality in the bedroom. I changed the setting from "High" to "Low" (less noise) and slept in the bedroom.

Results: no more cervical pillow and/or nasal strips needed to help keep my airway open when I sleep. No more need for Singulair,Zyrtek,Wal-Dryl and Vicks nasal inhaler. I simnply did not experience the hacking cough
that didnt allow me to sleep at night.

Summary: Item works great, best bang for the buck. Large and noisy ? Nothing you cant handle in exchange for a good nights sleep !!

Buy it !
Allergy Relief for me     On: 2008-11-19

The Honeywell 50250 I recently purchased replaces my (10 years already?) old Honeywell 52500. I run it daily when Im home (and over night) and it makes a considerable difference in my allergies. I have a cat and a dog and our house does not have that "dog smell" because of this machine.
The only reason I had to buy a new one was because my 10 year old HEPA filter began getting an intermittent noise. - sounds like the motor bearings are finally going out. How many appliances motors last 10 years with a duty cycle like this!?
If I could find bearings, or figure out how to lubricate the existing bearings Id do that instead and keep the old one. At least the filters are the same part, so my spare pre-filters wont go to waste.
The 50250 is not a very quiet appliance, so I run it in another room. That means it is not able to circulate the room air as often as rated. Im also covering a much larger area (1500+sq feet), but this appliance is much cheaper than converting my house to a central air system and getting some sort of central system.
I expected better!     On: 2008-11-16

If youre wanting to use this in a bedroom, "THIS IS NOT FOR YOU!"
Let me list the cons on this purifier first:
1. Its huge. Too big for a night stand. Just right for the floor.

2. Its loud. Even on low sounds like a 747 warming up.

3. The blue power light is really bright. Its like being in a gay bar. Not that I have ever been in one. Had to put 2 layers of Duct tape over mine just so I could get to sleep.

4. The carbon pre-filter emits a funky oder even after running for 5 days.
The company recommends you place the cleaner outside or in a garage. I put mine in the garage since only a fool, or some nitwit that would suggest to you to do this, would place an electric appliance outside and let it run.
Then let it run on high for 24 hours. I did this and it still STINKS. The lady said that in a room it was just recirculating the bad smell. Duh! let me see. Its an Air Purifier, Right?
I dont know if I can get used to this.

Now let me list the Pros:
1: Uh, let me mention if I havent already that it is "BIG".
I will most likely be sending this Smelly, noisy, huge, bright
Pain in the butt back to Amazon.
If you go ahead and buy one of these dont let me say "I told you so".
Works great     On: 2008-11-01

Ever since I bought, I can breathe easier and less dust in the house. Loud on high setting, but it just means it is pushing a lot of air. Fine for daily use on Med and Low and high for when I goto bed.
A bit noisy but works well     On: 2008-10-29

This Honeywell 50250 Air Purifier works well but is a bit noisy, even on the lowest setting. We keep it on all night in our bedroom so we have gotten used to the sound. The other thing to consider is that this unit needs to be placed 3 feet away from any wall so it cant be tucked in a corner or up against a wall. This is because the air flow goes in from all sides and flows out at the top perimeter.
No allergy relief     On: 2008-10-28

I returned this product because I saw no difference in my nightime allergies despite running it in my room. Maybe I did not give it a fair trial; I ran it about 15 hrs/day for 2-3 days in my room with doors & windows closed. It was a very easy return with amazon, and so I dont regret trying it.
It sucks in a good way     On: 2008-10-28

I had a large round kenmore air cleaner in my living room.
I wanted another large one for my finished basement.
Due to my sons allergies my cat likes to spend the mornings down there.
Well I read alot of the reviews here and other places
and felt confident in this model. I was worried about
the unit being to loud or vibrating. I was pleased with the sound its quieter (low setting) than my Kenmore as for vibrating you have to be up close and staring at it. I like it so much Im keeping it upstairs.
Another review mentioned the lifetime hepa filer I was pleased to see mine had the filter I was hoping for. Super speedy free shipping I have to add.
Thanks Amazon.


Works great, but loud and bright     On: 2008-09-21

After reading reviews on Amazon, I bought mine at home depot, where it cost a few dollars more, but knowing in advance from other reviews that I might not be able to tolerate the noise, I opted for a local store where return would be easier. Im considering buying a few more for other rooms now, and would go with Amazon for lower price and free shipping.

The hepa filter works great. I use it in my bedroom, usually running it only on the lowest speed and only at night, but it works well enough even at that use level to ensure I have no allergy, dust, or pollen problems while sleeping. The unit is quite loud, even on the lowest setting. I wear disposable foam earplugs to bed at night anyway, which is sufficient to block out the sound, and I actually sleep better with that bit of white noise in the background. What I could not tolerate was the very bright blue led ring around the control dial. At first I carefully put black electrical tape all around the ring, which helped but some light still got past and kept me up. I ended up taking the control panel apart and removing the led. If you want to try it yourself (make sure you unplug the electric cord first!) pop off the gray part of the control panel but just prying up at the bottom of it, then there is an inner white cover over the circuit board. Remove the 3 screws and you will see a single LED in there. Just snip off the 2 leads to the led, cover with a piece of electrical tape so it wont short out, and the problem is solved. The LED really does not serve any useful purpose other than to indicate the unit is on, which is obvious by the fan noise.

The hepa filter is also easy to clean, I just take it outside and shake it out in the trash can for the bigger bits like dog hair, run the shop vac over it, and then blow it out from the inside with the air compressor to get the finer dust.

Ive tried using this machine in other rooms, but it was just too loud. It is difficult to hear a tv or radio over the noise of the fan, I would really only use it in a bedroom if you can sleep through the noise or wear ear plugs to block it out.
Is this the N version?     On: 2008-09-12

Can anyone tell me if they are receiving the N version of this air purifier? The one with the permanent air filter?
Performs as advertised     On: 2008-09-05

It does a great job of cleaning the air of cooking smells, smoke, dust, et cetera. We keep in the living area of our apartment, and have noticed a marked improvement in the air quality.
It does make noise, but its at about the level of a window air conditioner fan on the regular cleaning. Turbos louder, but we dont need it that often.
I'm happy with it but.........     On: 2008-08-19

I use this Air Purifier in my bedroom and am very happy with the results. But if youre going to use it in a similar application then there are a few things you should know. First and foremost is that its noisy, even on the lowest setting there is substantial fan noise and if that will affect your sleep patterns then reconsider your purchase. Secondly there is a blue ring of light surrounding the selector switch on the top of the unit. Very bright will light up the room at night (my solution was to tape a piece of paper over light and switch to reduce the glow). So to recap if a constant fan noise or a fairly bright blue glow is going to disrupt your lifestyle then you might reconsider your purchase. As I mentioned earlier I am very happy with the Air Purifier it does a great job.
Works Great, Powerful, LOUD     On: 2008-08-11

I recently picked this up to add to my collection of HEPA filters and was not disappointed. Buyer beware, this unit is LOUD. It moves more air than most house fans. It has 3 speed settings, and the lowest is still a bit too loud for bedroom or family room use. Make no mistake though, this unit has a huge filter and moves more air than any purifier Ive ever used.

If you want something a little quieter for bedroom use, Id recommend the Honeywell 18500 series. Same filtration, same principles, moves half the air at probably a quarter of the noise.

Another quality Honeywell product, highly recommended. Just not for the bedroom.
Good product... can move a lot of air     On: 2008-08-04

This product seems to be the best bang for the buck. Bought it on sale for about $105 at Kohls. It is noisy, but if you want clean air and dont mind the noise... then this is the filter for you.
Works well..except for the blue light     On: 2008-07-28

This model is every bit as good as all the reviews state: It filters very well, It is loud (but I like the white noise). I returned mine to the store because unlike a previous model that I owned this one has an intense blue light on the control knob that is too bright for my taste. Other than the light..I would have kept it. For those that do not mind this then I would recommend the model. I will look for the same brand but one that does not have this light on it.
smells awful     On: 2008-07-28

Since I have used the Honeywell air purifiers before with great satisfaction, I was surprised that when I unpacked it and started to use it it gave off a sickening plastic smell worse than the ones in the shower curtains that we are told to avoid. Ive been running it as much as possible near an open window to get rid of the smell. A little bit of the smell still remains. If I hadnt already thrown out the box I would have returned it. The smell emanating from the machine defeats the purpose of the machine. The purifier should be recalled and removed from the marketplace and remade with non toxic materials.
Paul from Maryland     On: 2008-07-24

The Honeywell 50250 works great in keeping our master bedroom, family room and bath area of the house free of allergy causing air born particles which both my wife and I are allergic to. Both of us have not needed our allergy medicines to the point we are hardly using the medicines at all.
Works just fine + permanent HEPA filter     On: 2008-06-27

Ive read so many reviews of air purifiers that it became an exercise in futility. I zeroed in on the Honeywell 50250 as the best overall best bang for the buck. Several reviewers posted that the 50250 does not have a permanent HEPA filter. For that you need to get the 5025N. Well, I bought a 50250 yesterday at Home Depot for $169.00 and it clearly states on the box, and in the user manual that the 50250 has a permanent HEPA filter, and gives directions for cleaning it by vacuuming. So, it has a permanent HEPA filter. It also has a carbon-based "pre-filter" that wraps around the HEPA filter -- the carbon filter must be replaced, probably yearly. THR HEPA filter looks like a giant car air filter, about ten inches high.

Anyhow, having the unit for only a few days, I cant speak for its effectiveness, but I will say that it isnt nearly as loud as some claim, and putting it in the room with our central air return seems to really help remove lots of dust that would normally be recycled back through the system via the return duct and 3M Filtrete filter. It may be just wishful thinking, but I swear our household air seems fresher, and we live in south Florida where the air conditioning is a big deal.
air purifier     On: 2008-06-09

very satisfied with product. I am using it in my family room and it gets the job done! I have 2 small dogs that live in that room and one of them sheds like crazy. This purifier seems to clear the room of dog hair and doggy odors.
allergy chaser.     On: 2008-06-05

I highly recommend this air cleaner, especially for someone with pets and/or allergy problems. We live in the country surrounded by pollen, have indoor pets, and this is the only unit that cuts the allergens. A perk is less dust. I have 2 of these units, which run full time, and this purifier does a superb job. Amazon has a great price and great delivery time. In this era of high gas prices having it delivered to the door is the way to go.
I can breathe!!!     On: 2008-05-17

I dont care what anyone else says....I picked the unit up on Thursday evening, started it running on high in my room about an hour before I went to bed, then turned it down to low for the night...Friday morning I woke up with NO congestion and my eyes were not all raw, itchy and sore! I read another review that said they didnt think it was possible to help allergens that fast...Im telling you it DOES! I moved it downstairs to our main living area for the day on Friday and after a couple hours, again, no problems with allergies. I cant express what a relief this is! Ive been on two different allergy meds plus antihistamine eye drops, none of which is doing diddly. Ok..sure, when I go outside, everything flares up again, but at least I can find comfort and relief in my own house now. I usually flare up everytime the dogs come in the house also. The came in for about 20 min and then back out again. I wasnt nearly in the pain I usually am from that.

Ok, so the machine is loud...really loud...but its like an airconditioner without that clankety start up and shut down noise a window a/c unit has. I would also compare it to a hairdryer that you sit under at the salon...not really the handheld one. Anyone who has sat under one will know what Im talking about. I thought low was the high setting when I first turned it on because it was quite loud...ummm...nope...high is much louder. My husband HATES noise when we sleep, but even he confessed that the ability to breathe was worth getting used to the sound on low.

I will definately be looking into a couple of the slightly smaller ones for the bedrooms and keep this one downstairs.

A couple more things. Someone said it blows cold air...yes, it does because the air at ground level is cooler. And like that person said...that will be nice come summer (and maybe save on running the house a/c), but winter will be a challenge. Fortunately we dont suffer from too many winter allergies.

Also, I commented on someones review that said their daughter got loads of enjoyment out of floating a balloon above the unit in the circle of blown air. I intended to show this to my kids, but they beat me to it!!! I didnt even mention the idea to them! They came calling for me to see what they discovered, and there they were chasing a balloon with the string attached in circles. I have to admit, this was quite entertaining and made the noise a bit more tolerable. :)

I got a price match and paid $139 (this included the price + shipping cost on Amazon) at Home Depot where it is $169. I would have paid full price though if I had to and it would have been well worth it!
Don't buy this unless you are deaf!     On: 2008-05-04

I bought this yesterday at Walmart for $158. Im amazed that an air purifier can be sold that is this LOUD. They expect you to run this 24/7!! Even on the lowest setting, I think I would hear this motor if it was down in the garage, let alone near my bed as Im trying to fall asleep. Horrible product.
Bad quality - poor value     On: 2008-04-29

I bought one of these, took it home, turned it on, and it had a bad rattle and would shake when running. I turned it off and looked it over carefully. You can see the fan through the slot on top. The fan had a section of plastic missing throwing it off balance. I am surprised the assemblers of the unit tried to slip an obvious defective part into a unit. Neverless, I took it back and swapped it for another unit. Although the new unit did not rattle, it shook when operating on low speed and made a pulsating wind noise. Looking at the fan on this unit found it to be off center slightly. I took the second one back, got a refund, and bought a different brand model at sears.
Large and in charge     On: 2008-04-23

This thing is LOUD. Then again, thats the price you pay for moving a lot of air. Ive had filters before where you couldnt just wash the filter; this is a big plus for this model. Great buy.
A Good Purchase for the Basement     On: 2008-04-05

Purchased - February 08 - To eliminate cat odors

Positives: Our male cat has sprayed in the basement, even after a lot of cleaning, the odor lingers. This air cleaner has done the job and eliminated the smell. We leave it on all the time.

Deltas: It is loud. Too loud for our bedroom or living room. When we watch tv in the basement we turn it to low or off. We purchased an excellent Rabbitaire for the bedroom.

Overall: Worth the $.
Proven excellent     On: 2008-04-03

After not feeling well for a time, I discover (under wallpaper) a section of wall full was incredibly moldy. My brother lent me his Honeywell air purifier and it was placed in the offending room. Within a few hours, I noticed a difference. My long term sniffles - gone. Sleeping throughout the night with no congestion. I am sold.

I read a review about how this unit was received with the old style filter.
My air purifier also came with the permanent cleanable HEPA filter
Good product     On: 2008-03-30

For the Honeywell pure HEPA Round air Purifier

This is an air cleaner and that is exactly what is does. It is a bit larger than I expected but I like it and feel that it does a good job.
Great Air Purifier     On: 2008-03-23

This thing is a dust eating monster! I have no complaints about this unit at all. Makes a HUGE difference in the quality of your household air. I would and have recommended this unit to friends and family. I also have 2 other models of Honeywell air purifiers. Honeywell is a great company with quality well priced air purifiers.
good price and product     On: 2008-03-08

pro: good price for the product and works well; permanent filter. con: big size and noise even with the lowest speed; produce too much fan air.
I LIKE IT A LOT but there are SOME ISSUES     On: 2008-03-07

Picked it up a few weeks ago from a Home Depot. I did end up paying probably $15 more for it than if I had bought it online. That is the way I wanted it because if it didnt work well I could easily return it with no hassle and maybe pick up another one. So I have 90 days to check it out. I purchased it for my basement rec room that is 16x30 with an 8 ceiling. So I am looking at 480 sq feet. I think the purifier is rated for 340 sq feet... So I consider that close enough. I live in the southwest where it is dusty all the time. I also have a 16 year old cat that needs a good spanking. After two weeks of using the purifier I LIKE IT A LOT. It filters the room fast and leaves you with a really clean smelling room. When I come down the stairs and turn the corner to the rec room you can smell and feel the difference right away. So up to now (two weeks) everything is great. NOW FOR THE ISSUES: My purifier does indeed wobble at low and slighly at the mid range settings. The purifier is sitting on carpet so the amount of vibration that you see is extremely small. I think it may be more of a visual problem than a real mechanical problem. If it was sitting on a wood floor it might bug me but if I liked it I would put it on a rug or get some felt or rubber pads to put under the feet. The way it is now for me is just fine. I also wonder if you could put a small piece of duct tape on one of the blades to try to offset the wobble. You can do this sort of thing with ceiling fans and it seems to work... Just a thought. The second issue is indeed the NOISE. I have read all the reviews and some people are saying that it isnt loud. To these people I say you need to go to an ear doctor (LOL). It is loud on the high setting (Trust Me). However the way I look at the noise is, Thats fine with me because I know it is really pushing the air through the filter and thats what I wanted in the first place. I think very few people could stand to listen to it on the high speed setting for more than a few hours. The medium speed is just barely acceptable and I could probably get used to it if I had to. The low speed, to me, is very acceptable. How you intend to use this purifier is a big factor in whether you should buy it or not. The way I use it is like this: I bought a $5 mechanical plugin timer which has the ability to set two settings per day. I have the filter set to HIGH and the timer is set to start at 11AM-2PM (3 hours on high) and then it shuts off and starts again at 3AM-6AM (3 hours on high). The rest of the day the filter is not running. We have no bad physical conditions where we need to run it 24/7 so the six hours that we run it keeps everything fresh. Unless you need it running 24 hours a day there should be a schedule that you can come up with where the noise is really never an issue. This purifier is really cheap to operate when comparing to the more expensive makes and models - And especially if you never have to change the Hepa filter (My purifier says on box that you dont have to change it) but I will probably change it once a year or so. So, in conclusion, this Honeywell is a great purifier if you can work around the sound issue. I think the vibration issue is more a problem in your head than an actual mechanical problem. I do realize that my two weeks of operation is not a great test but if anything goes haywire I will be sure to let you guys know. Also consider buying it somewhere where you can return it if you dont like it.... Worth paying a few extra bucks I would think. Hope this helps.
no more allergies     On: 2008-03-05

I bought this for my son who suffers from some type of pollen allergy. I was surprised at how large the item was. I was expecting it to be around the size of a humidifier. At first I was concerned that the instructions said to place it at least 3 feet from any wall or furniture. I cant imagine a scenerio where someone is going to actually place this very large item, which has about a three foot long cord that far away from any wall. It would pretty much have to be in the center of the room, which would create a tripping hazard as well as an eyesore. We put it at the end of my sons dresser, in a corner. Although it is close the walls of the corner, this doesnt seem to affect its function. I definitely feel that it is cleaning the air in his room, as he is not suffering from his allergies anymore. Where he used to go through a box of Kleenex every couple of days, he now uses only a few kleenexs. We normally run it 24 hours a day, as recommended and we have gotten used to the "white noise" that it creates. However, on day I turned it off and accidentally left it off overnight. The next morning my son was back to sneezing heavily again. We are careful to keep it on all the time. It really seems to work. We have a Betta fish in a bowl in his room and another one in my other sons room (without an air purifier.) I noticed that the water in the room with the air purifier is clean and clear at the end of the week, whereas the fishbowl in the other room is cloudy after a few days. Before we got the purifier, they would cloud up at the same rate. So this was an unexpected benefit for one of our fish!
I would recommend this product for use in a bedroom to help with pollen allergies, as long as you have the space and dont mind constant white noise.
loud, but good     On: 2008-02-22

I live an apartment complex where the odour of cigarette smoke constantly seeps into my suite. Also, I am one of those cat owners that is allergic to her cat. After doing some extensive online research on the units available, I decided to purchase this unit based on the price, type of filter, the size of the room it cleans, and the positive reviews.

I like:
- Lifetime HEPA filter (no buying a replacement HEPA filter, no ozone from an ionizer)
- Charcoal prefilter for odours (it really does work immediately to get rid of cigarette smoke odours)
- Reduces allergens (if my nose is running from my various allergies and i turn this on, i notice a reduction in symptoms within 20 minutes)
- Price. I thought it was rather pricey to begin with, then I found out what the high end purifiers cost, and this unit started looking pretty good. (Note, I paid about $300 CAD. I could have ordered online through an American retailer, but after considering taxes, duty, shipping, and potential return hassles, I decided to buy locally)

Not so thrilled:
- Believe the reviews; this unit is loud, even on the lowest setting. I have to turn up my music and speak more loudly when i have it running on low. When Im home, I find it difficult to run it all the time because I find it so noisy. Yes, its white noise, but I find it a relief to my ears when I turn it off. Note that I am fairly sensitive to noise, though.
- Its big. In a small apartment, it overwhelms the room. Especially since, to be most effective, you are supposed to place it 3 feet away from any walls and furniture. Its not much of a centrepiece, aesthetically.
- It makes me cold. It does involve a giant fan, after all, to suck the air through the sides of the unit and then vent it back out through the top. Since it is winter, this means I end up putting on an extra sweater or cranking the heat a bit when Im in the same room as the purifier. I assume that any purifier that needs to circulate so much air several times an hour would have the same issue, though. Could be considered a pro in the summer.

Ive had this unit for 5 months now, and I decided to keep it despite the noise and size, as I would have paid a lot more for a quieter unit that purified the same square footage. I would still recommend it. Just get ready for the noise.
Works excellent, no louder than most fans     On: 2008-02-20

Our son is used to the noise of a fan when he sleeps at night and this filter isnt any louder so it works out perfectly for him. If you enjoy the quiet nights with chirping crickets outside your window then I guess you wouldnt find it so soothing. I dont see how a decent filter could do its job if it were much quieter. We run it on low during the day but he pumps it up to high when he goes to bed because he likes the noise. Ok, so that might not be normal but Im just saying that its not much noisier than most fans, if you care for a comparison. Check out where this one ranks on consumer reports compared to the price and youll be sold. It helps with our boys allergies during pollen season.
Yes its loud.     On: 2008-02-18

Yes this unit is loud, even on its lowest setting. We keep it on low during times of conversation and watching television. During the night its on high. It seems to make a difference. I noticed that dust floating in the air is reduced significantly. Ive also noticed a decrease in the severity of my allergies. Time will tell. I live in Austin, Tx. Id recommend it if you can put up with the noise.

honeywell 50250     On: 2008-02-17

I ordered this product becuase I was informed by my doctor that I have severe allergies to dust, pollun, and pet dander. He stated that an air purifier may help, but it was not necessary. I went ahead and bought this product and immediately noticed a difference in the air quality of my home. Originally I had it in the living room, but it is too noisy for the TV even on the lowest setting. You have to turn the volume on the television up very loud to hear it. I now have it in the kitchen so that it is farther away from the TV and am happy with the purchase. The air is cleaner and even smells better!
Clarification (hopefully) on model number confusion 50250 vs. 50250N     On: 2008-02-14

I read the reviews here, some of which said something like, "Dont buy from this - or that - retailer on Amazon, they are advertising 50250N but shipping 50250"

I decided to email Kaz, the manufacturer of the Honeywell 50250, to see if I could get a clarification about this. The following is the email I got in response:


I am sorry for the confusion. 50250N is not going to be the model number on the box or bottom of any unit. 50250N is the unofficial model number for the new versions of the 50250. The actual units and boxes will only say 50250. The way to tell the difference between the new 50250 and the old 50250 is by the box. The new version (what we refer to as 50250N) will indicate a Lifetime HEPA filter while the older/original version of the 50250 will make no reference to this. The newer unit has a box that is mostly white/light in color while the older version had our black and red packaging.

Based on what you said, I am not sure if Amazon is really sending out the wrong items or if customers are confused when the box and unit only say 50250 when they expected to see 50250N, but really it is the N version. I know Amazon has a pretty good return policy so its up to you if you want to try ordering from them or not. They have bought both versions of the unit from us in the past so I really couldnt comment on what they are currently shipping out.

If you check your local Home Depot store you may be able to pick the unit up locally, it is carried by some Home Depot stores.

Kaz is committed to offering quality customer service and we hope we have done this for you. Please dont hesitate to contact us if you require further assistance.

Jessica Goncalves
Electronic Data Specialist
Kaz, Inc - Southborough, MA


I did go to Home Depot to check this out, and it was in fact packaged in light colored box. There was no indication of model number 50250N anywhere on the box or on the unit. But the documentation included (and maybe the box - I cant remember) did describe it as having a permanent HEPA filter.

So apparently if you want to know what model you have, you need to look for "permanent HEPA filter." The model numbers as marked on unit or box do not help. Go figure.

I guess this probably exonerates the Amazon retailers from accusations of bait and switch.

Hope this helps!
Extremly Loud     On: 2008-01-28

It took all but a minute to figure out that this unit is just too loud on the lowest setting. This unit might work great in a room that you do not use, but whats the point in that? You could also just turn the unit on when you are not in the room or when you leave the house altogether, but thats a pain and a purifier is best left on all the time. I eventually got the Blue air 201 series and at the highest setting it is quieter than this unit on the lowest! I really cant figure out why anyone could stand keeping this unit.
it works     On: 2008-01-27

This purifier really works. I bought this thing to remove the bad smell in the house. I turned it on for a whole night, and the smell was just gone.
A REAL air filter     On: 2008-01-25

This thing is large, makes a steady noise, kicks up a breeze, and it filters the air terrificly. I let it run in my house for a couple days and it clears up all smells, no dust, no mildew, no smell. Not the kind of thing that sits unnoticed on a coffee table and does nothing. This is a machine that hums along and cleans the air.
Loud on high, but works well     On: 2008-01-23

One of the best units in its class. Does well with cigarette smoke.

Something to note - there are three versions floating out there - the 50250, 50250N, and 50251. All the units themselves are the same, but the only (and big) difference is that the 50250N and the 50251 have permanent filters. My box had a sticker with 50251 placed over the 50250 that was printed on the box. This concerned me, so I called the toll-free support line on the box and asked about the different model numbers.

The 50251 means that it comes with a free gift (which mine did - a digital thermometer). To be extra sure, I asked the tech how to distinguish between the permanent and non permanent filters. The permanent filters are white, with a clear mesh on the outside. The non-permanent filters have a black mesh.

Hope that helps.
Great Air Purifier     On: 2008-01-18

I just purchased 3 of these. Unfortunately I only ordered one from amazon! The other 2 from Home depot for $30 more each!!! We have had Honeywell air cleaners for 10 years. Just found mold in our house so decided it was important to upgrade to these that clean mold too. Kinda loud on high, but turn it down to low at night and it is wonderful!
Great Air Purifier     On: 2008-01-17

I just purchased 3 of these. Unfortunately I only ordered one from amazon! The other 2 from Home depot for $30 more each!!! We have had Honeywell air cleaners for 10 years. Just found mold in our house so decided it was important to upgrade to these that clean mold too. Kinda loud on high, but turn it down to low at night and it is wonderful!
Works great     On: 2008-01-14

This purifier is what I was looking for. Before buying this I was skeptical about the performance but finally I just gave it a try. We do cook everyday and most of our cooking (Indian cooking) involves a lot of spicey preparations. Be it garlic, fish or whatever. I just need to run it for an hour and a half and smell is gone.

Hope this review helps.
air cleaner     On: 2008-01-12

Great product. Rather loud on highest setting but gets the job done. Set it on high while youre gone and let it do its magic, then turn it down when you return. No problems.
Timing     On: 2008-01-07

I bought a Honeywell 50250N air purifier for a Christmas gift. I ordered it on Dec.7, 2007. My daughter recieved it 7 days later & product did not work. So, she sent it to back to Allergy Be Gone per Amazon. They just recieved it Jan.2, 2008. It was not processed promptly. Thank you but would shop somewhere else.
Ahhhhh Clean Air     On: 2008-01-07

I purchased two of the these systems for my parents and my in-laws... What a difference it makes. No more dust, mold smell or pet dander. I can sleep without my head exploading.
Great product, for the hard of hearing     On: 2008-01-04

I have owned this product for around a year, and cannot recommend it for the fact that it uses the all too common and all too faulty circular fan design. While it does clean air quite efficiently, the fans design is too susceptible to imbalance, which is the case with my unit. It isnt noticeable at high speed, but medium and low it is very evident. So much so that the vibrations caused make low speed as annoying as high speed.

Also detracting from this products value is the fact that it is not a 24/7 household unit. It is way too noisy for that. I turn it on, walk away, come back, and find my wife has turned it off. Why? Too noisy. Kind of hard to keep the air clean when it isnt running...

So, 5 stars for high efficiency, losing 2 for high noise, and poor fan quality.
Great product, for the hard of hearing     On: 2008-01-03

I have owned this product for around a year, and cannot recommend it for the fact that it uses the all too common and all too faulty circular fan design. While it does clean air quite efficiently, the fans design is too susceptible to imbalance, which is the case with my unit. It isnt noticeable at high speed, but medium and low it is very evident. So much so that the vibrations caused make low speed as annoying as high speed.

Also detracting from this products value is the fact that it is not a 24/7 household unit. It is way too noisy for that. I turn it on, walk away, come back, and find my wife has turned it off. Why? Too noisy. Kind of hard to keep the air clean when it isnt running...

So, 5 stars for high efficiency, losing 2 for high noise, and poor fan quality.
Wobbly Motor     On: 2007-12-28

Ive owned one before so I knew how it functioned and performed. Comparing price with performance this air filter is the one with the economical person in mind or someone who doesnt want to shell out $$$.

I ordered this product and recieved it shortly after doing so. I think its great and works wonderfully. It filters 360 degree of air coming onto it exhausting the fresh air outwards above. The filter has three fan speeds: loud, normal and night, all three of them have noticable noise differences in them. With the night setting I can sleep on it however it is not quiet at all. The noise on sleep even overtakes my noisy computer. However I purchased this unit for performance in mind and it meets my expectations. Im using it in my bedroom.

For those that say the blower motor is unbalanced. That is true. I recieved mine with the unbalanced blower motor. On the lowest speed it vibrates, and no it is not because of the filter causing some sort of drag on it. I wanted to get to the bottom of it so I took a huge maglight and peered right into the exhaust of the filter and I can clearly see the fan spinning. On the lowest setting you can clearly see the fan wobbling back and forth, hence it not being balanced. Either the fan was not cut to a perfect circle or there may be an installation error. Anyhow this is probably the biggest downfall of this very nice filter and I hope only select few are stuck with one. Maybe that could be why this filter is priced significantly lower than other higher priced models.
Its The Best for the Job, But Its Not Its Predecessor     On: 2007-12-28

First, I live on acreage, have 3 dogs, large rooms and tile floors. Dust seems to come with the territory, and these large circular Honeywells are the only thing that do the job! However, its now defunct predecessor lasted 7 years running at least 7 hours a day, and was MUCH better made. I had expected this new model to be even better, but its actually a few steps back. I had to go through (3) units with Amazon as the first was cracked, the second had a clicking motor, and the third was the charm! I stuck with the product because I need the power and air volume circulation, and I think I finally got a good one.

So if you need to filter a good deal of air, dont mind a little white noise, and can put up with some poor quality control, grab one. I think its worth the headaches as I have tried many brands and sizes, but your needs may not be as extreme.
Clean Air     On: 2007-12-28

The Honeywell 50250N 99.97% Pure HEPA Round Air Purifier delivers the clean air that it promises. The three fan settings offer a choice between max air flow but loud fan noise (turbo setting), adequate air flow with quiet operation and a middle compromise of flow and noise. We use the turbo setting for max cleaning during the day when we away from home and then select a lower fan setting when we are using the room.
Its The Best for the Job, But Its Not Its Predecessor     On: 2007-12-27

First, I live on acreage, have 3 dogs, large rooms and tile floors. Dust seems to come with the territory, and these large circular Honeywells are the only thing that do the job! However, its now defunct predecessor lasted 7 years running at least 7 hours a day, and was MUCH better made. I had expected this new model to be even better, but its actually a few steps back. I had to go through (3) units with Amazon as the first was cracked, the second had a clicking motor, and the third was the charm! I stuck with the product because I need the power and air volume circulation, and I think I finally got a good one.

So if you need to filter a good deal of air, dont mind a little white noise, and can put up with some poor quality control, grab one. I think its worth the headaches as I have tried many brands and sizes, but your needs may not be as extreme.
Clean Air     On: 2007-12-27

The Honeywell 50250N 99.97% Pure HEPA Round Air Purifier delivers the clean air that it promises. The three fan settings offer a choice between max air flow but loud fan noise (turbo setting), adequate air flow with quiet operation and a middle compromise of flow and noise. We use the turbo setting for max cleaning during the day when we away from home and then select a lower fan setting when we are using the room.
50250n review     On: 2007-12-23

The 50250n filter is well made with easy to use controls. The indicators for time to change the pre-filter and HEPA filter take the guesswork out of when to service. The only issue I see is that the filter is a little noisy, especially on medium and high speeds. The permanent HEPA filter is great because it saves hundreds of dollars per year in replacement filters.
WARNING: DONT BUY FROM ALLERGY BE GONE. THEY DONT HAVE THE 50250N in stock     On: 2007-12-18

Allergy Be Gone is advertising the 50250N. WARNING: THEY NO LONGER CARRY THEM.

IF YOU ORDER ONE, YOULL GET THE 50251 (WHICH DOESNT HAVE A WASHABLE FILTER). T

HEN YOU WILL HAVE TO DEAL WITH THEIR BAD RETURN POLICY. Currently, they cant "find" the package that I returned to them and arent crediting my return until they can find it.

Works very well, loud     On: 2007-12-17

I ordered two of these after discovering they no longer make the hoover silent air that I love. Well, we went from silent to a loud fan noise. You do adjust however. I run both of these on the lowest setting, or the fan noise is really absurd! I am completely used to them now. I have one in the master bedroom, and one in the family room. I put the quiet hoover model in the living room where we usually watch tv. You do get quit a bit of cool air blowing from the top of these units. NOthing that bothers me, but it cools off a room a bit. You see a huge difference in air particles floating about. So I feel they work well. The rooms smell fresh. The filter is easy to take in and out, and the filter that wraps around the hepa filter is a snap to remove and replace. I would definately recommend these air purifiers, just know it sounds like you are running fans in the summer. The upstairs unit has the slight wobble I read about , the downstairs unit does not. They are not light, but I can easily move them about and Im a wimp. The green indicator light is bright, but my bed blocks it. Great machines, I hope they last! The allergy be gone company is fantastic. I recieved both in less than a week, brand new factory sealed. Awsome.
Save yourself time and money and buy this one     On: 2007-12-05

I live in the country and have the dustiest house. Ive tried all kinds of machines and finally found a keeper. It is a little noisy but well worth it. I dont have to dust but once a month now compared to everyday.
You've found the right page     On: 2007-12-04

Congratulations. If you are reading this, you are exactly where you want to be. This is the absolute best value filter on the market. The only filters better than this one sell for $600. If you want to pay six times the price to get those last few microscopic particles out of the room, go ahead. This filter is a pretty big boy, about the size of a small TV, and on Turbo it is certainly loud enough to drown out your TV. On the other two settings, it is reasonably quiet. In my opinion, the more sound the better, because this is the sound of air passing through and blowing out. There are no vibrations or anything like that.

When you first get the filter, run it on Turbo for a few hours. After that little time, you will actually be able to sense that the air in the room is much fresher. Its like being outside in the fresh air, except without all of the irritating particles getting into your sinuses and lungs.

Now click on Add To Cart.
Do not buy from Beach Camera     On: 2007-11-30

Do not buy this product from Beach Camera. They will intentionally send you the 50250 not the 50250N. They did this to me and other Amazon users who have posted complaints. DO NOT BUY FROM BEACH CAMERA!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Honeywell 50250 HEPA filter     On: 2007-11-29

This is an excellent product to improve the air quality in a room. HEPA filtration helps remove air-borne particles and the activated carbon pre-filter helps deodorize and extend the life of the HEPA.
Do not buy from Beach Camera     On: 2007-11-29

Do not buy this product from Beach Camera. They will intentionally send you the 50250 not the 50250N. They did this to me and other Amazon users who have posted complaints. DO NOT BUY FROM BEACH CAMERA!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Met expectations     On: 2007-11-25

The product has been working well and meeting my expectation.
It has given relief and better sleep at night.
Honeywell 50250N 99.97% Pure HEPA Round Air Purifier     On: 2007-11-23

Great product!! Great for allergies and asthma. Nice & quiet. On light is a little bright.
Honeywell 50250N     On: 2007-11-17

This product is excellent in clearing the air; however, it is a bit noisy.

We bought three of them, and they are just great. If you put them in the living room, dining room, den; no problem with the noise. It is in the bedroom that there is a slight roar. It is a great unit.
Glad I listened to the good reviews     On: 2007-10-20

I read through hundreds of reviews for dozens of air purifiers I could afford. I kept coming back to this one and finally went with my gut and bought it. I am so glad I did! This arrived yesterday but I got home later and didnt open it. Well, I live with indoor smokers, and having fallen asleep on the couch, I woke up coughing uncontrollably at 6am. I couldnt just go back to sleep, so I decided to install the thing right then. EASY. Opened it up, wrapped the extra carbon filter around the HEPA filter, put it back together and turned the thing on. Yeah, its a bit loud on the high setting as people warned about, but not nearly as bad as I was expecting. It sounds like a normal fan does on high. On the sleep mode (lowest setting) I didnt even notice it after a couple minutes. Its actually kind of soothing. BUT the most important thing, I immediately noticed a difference in air quality. My cough has subsided and I feel I can breathe much more easily. The thing has been on for an hour and I feel amazing. If you can afford it (and not something way more expensive) definitely invest in this purifier. Especially if you live in an apartment in a city with poor air circulation/quality, have allergies, and/or live with smokers/smoke.
A solid choice     On: 2007-10-18

My second purchase of this model in about 5 years. The first one is still running well. A very effective filter, does a great job, mechanically solid.
decent purifier     On: 2007-10-04

The purifier is very good at pulling in lots of air that needs filtered and pushing out clean air rapidly. It is louder than any other model I have had. We are not able to have it on more than low speed if we are trying to watch TV or have a conversation with company. Not having to constantly change the main filter is wonderful. At maximum level, this thing can clean the air in a room wonderfully. I would purchase one again.
noisy     On: 2007-09-14

replacing a dead hamilton beach purifier w/ auto fan speed and a "whisper" mode, i found this unit very noisy even on the lowest setting. if you actually put it in a room that matches its square footage rating, you will be cranking the volume on your voice or anything else you need to hear in the room.

i purchased this because the HEPA filter can be cleaned and doesnt require purchasing another, at least for some time. i havent actually cleaned the filter yet, so i cant comment on that.
Honeywell 50250N     On: 2007-08-29

I just started using this in a 25 by 25 classroom.
The high speed is a bit noisy (duh--it has a powerful effective motor)
but I can run it on high between classes.
So far, I am very pleased...it makes a difference
Very good...keeps our bedroom air fresh     On: 2007-08-28

Since getting this, the air in our bedroom is significantly fresher. It was noticable on the very first night of running it. It is pretty noisy though. We dont run it all the time. We run it on high a couple hours before going to bed and then on low during the night (a higher setting is too noisy for going to sleep).
no good at all     On: 2007-08-27

We were much exited about getting these purifiers and some others after reading many really good reviews. For more than 20 years we have been allergic to smoke dust you named, with plug noses all day or taking medicine my wife,son and me, we both two of each, included the Ionic Pro and the True Air purifier, about $700.I had all of them in my room for more than four months and we had got worst I will not recommend this product too somebody like me and my family with a real bad allergic problem maybe some person that write five star reviews do it to make you spend the money they had spend I will not recommend this products at all dont buy this Items save your self some money.
no good at all     On: 2007-08-26

We were much exited about getting these purifiers and some others after reading many really good reviews. For more than 20 years we have been allergic to smoke dust you named, with plug noses all day or taking medicine my wife,son and me, we both two of each, included the Ionic Pro and the True Air purifier, about $700.I had all of them in my room for more than four months and we had got worst I will not recommend this product too somebody like me and my family with a real bad allergic problem maybe some person that write five star reviews do it to make you spend the money they had spend I will not recommend this products at all dont buy this Items save your self some money.
Does the job, loudly.     On: 2007-08-10

First off, I can already tell the air in my condo is much cleaner, and my sinuses feel better already, and I have only had it for one day!

The only downside is the noise, reading other reviews I figured it was loud compared to other air purifiers.. and wouldnt be that bad, but this is NOT something you want running in your bedroom while sleeping. In fact, I have mine out in my TV room right now on low, and would not even want to watch tv while this was running, and I have a loud surround sound system.

Anyway, four stars, because it does the job well, I was aware it was loud, but thats the only reason it lost a star. Still, very very nice unit.
Huge     On: 2007-08-09

I bought this and then returned it. Im sure it works great, but it is HUGE. Just really be aware of this, and plan accordingly. I thought I had made the mental calculation of the size, but when this thing arrives it is something else. I purchased the smaller model and Im very happy with it.
As Expected     On: 2007-08-03

Before purchasing this unit I read all the reviews I could find anywhere. Please read "Best Value Purifier" by Richard Wong "Wolf" on March 5-07. Its the best information youll find anywhere on the web and its on Amazones reviews. For my children it was a bit nosiy but since I grew up with a wall unit air conditioner, it was music to my ears. The best "white noise" you can get that is productive in cleaning the air. Pre-filter is easy to change and if you use Amazons special of buy 3 get one free its a better deal. Target sells the pre-filters for $9.99
Allergy to animal dandruff     On: 2007-07-23

The Enviracaire 50250 removed sufficient animal dandruff (2 dogs that scratch frequently) from a 1000 SqFt apt. so that allergy shots are not required to live and breathe comfortably. Unit is moved around to each room daily set on medium speed. Audible sound is not bothersome to conversation or entainment equipment.
Instant relief plus white noise     On: 2007-07-21

We bought this for a 3 yr old suffering from seasonal allergies in west suburban Chicago. Symptoms disappeared completely with first use to clean a small room with forced air heat/AC. Machine provides the best white noise so far to mask other household and environmental sounds. Easy to use and set up. Reasonable cost for replacement filters. Very cost effective solution.
Quick Review     On: 2007-07-20

I will spare you a long review, as there are PLENTY of good reviews for this fine air purifier already. I will simply be leaving my opinions on the negative reviews I had read before ordering. The blue light is NOT so bright that it is a problem at night. It is a bit on the loud side, but not so loud that it is an issue (especially on the sleep setting). It arrived in its factory seal with a new carbon pre-filter and had not been returned previously. It does not rock or make strange noises due to an off balance fan. It does a great job cleaning the air and our smoke problems are now gone. We have a cat and a guinea pig... pet hair does not seem to be a problem whatsoever. For the money, I can definitely say that it is a great deal and a quality machine. If you want to spend $600-$700, Im sure you can get a better one. For this price, I defy you to find a better product. Lifetime HEPA filter that you can vacuum clean? Awesome.
A powerful air cleaner, but a little on the noisy side     On: 2007-07-15

The Honeywell 50250N is the largest air purifier Ive ever owned. In terms of cleaning efficiency, this product came out as one of the top 5 air cleaners in several online reviews. However, the noise output from the air purifier was described as borderline unbearable.
I agree with the reviews. Granted I have only owned the unit for a few weeks, I found that the 50250N was powerful and sufficient for my 500 sqft apartment. There is a noticeable difference in the odor of the air when returning to the apartment. However, the unit is indeed loud even on the lowest speed.
If you want true affordable air cleaning, I highly recommend this product.
Honeywell 50250N     On: 2007-07-12

My Honeywell 50250N, does the job I want. It clears smoke coming from the other apartments, and my allergies have not been rough on my while inside the apartment. For the money, and for all those expensive Air Purifiers this one was one of the best purchases I made. I leave mine one lowest setting throughout the day, and still walk into a great smelling apartment. Which is saying a lot as the people below me are chain smokers and that would filter in almost every day. If you looking for a decent Purifier, I would recommend this one. With its lifetime HEPA filter you cant go wrong and the carbon (smoke filtration) filter will be needing replacing once every 3 to 4 months depending on bad the smoke is.
Honeywell 50250N     On: 2007-07-11

My Honeywell 50250N, does the job I want. It clears smoke coming from the other apartments, and my allergies have not been rough on my while inside the apartment. For the money, and for all those expensive Air Purifiers this one was one of the best purchases I made. I leave mine one lowest setting throughout the day, and still walk into a great smelling apartment. Which is saying a lot as the people below me are chain smokers and that would filter in almost every day. If you looking for a decent Purifier, I would recommend this one. With its lifetime HEPA filter you cant go wrong and the carbon (smoke filtration) filter will be needing replacing once every 3 to 4 months depending on bad the smoke is.
I don't get all the negative reviews     On: 2007-07-04

We were somewhat hesitant to purchase the HEPA filter after reading some of the reviews. However, we are perfectly satisfied. The machine actually cools the room down. We have 3 dogs that sleep in our bedroom, and our room no longer smells "like dogs." It now smells really fresh. If you have a mate or spouse that snores, the white noise produced by the filter can really come in handy! Trust me on that!
Great for Allergies, and dust control     On: 2007-06-24

Allergies: Several years ago, my sister and her husband came to visit me (and my two cats) for an extended stay. My brother-in-law was allergic to the cats, and was using his asthma inhaler many times per day (miserable). So, for the house I purchased two large Honeywell units for the downstairs, and smaller units for the bedrooms.
After turning these on, he didnt use his inhaler for the rest of the visit!

Dust: Usually, when a sunbeam streamed into my kitchen window, you could see the uncountable dust motes, dancing in the air. Once I turned these units on I noticed that the individual dust motes could be counted easily, one...two....threee... maybe as many as a dozen.

Noise: Yes, they are noisy, however, if you arent home during the day, you can run them on high, and turn them down (or off) when you are in the room. I find the benefit greatly outweighs the noise (and I HATE noise).
It works for me.
by: Anonymous    On: 2007-06-08

I bought this unit and put it in my bedroom and closed the doors. It really made a difference and I sleep much better at night now. I have sleep apnea and had problems using my CPAP machine at night because my sinuses would act up. Now, my nose stays clear and since I can breathe through my nose, the CPAP is effective and I feel so much better getting decent sleep at night.

As others mentioned, it is loud, especially on the High setting. On Low, its a little louder than a fan. I dont mind the noise at all and sleep fine but I can see how it may bother others.
Honeywell Air Filter -- Excellent
by: Anonymous    On: 2007-06-01

This air filter does an outstanding job of filtering air in a very large area. At low speeds it is very quiet, at higher speeds, it makes its presence known, but it is no louder than other filters that I have used, and it does a better job than others have done. It has made quite a positive difference in my life. I highly recommend.
Just what I expected
by: stacia167    On: 2007-05-22

Ever since moving to a new home just over a year ago, my husband and I have had an increase in our allergies and sinus problems. We decided on an air purifier for the bedroom since our symptoms were worse in the mornings, and we researched air purifiers for several weeks before deciding on this one. It was the least expensive model recommended by Consumer Reports, and the most conveniently sized for our very small bedroom. As a reference, our bedroom is 14 x 15.

Good points first: this baby moves a lot of air! On the high setting, youll notice a difference in the smell and quality of air within just a few minutes. When its on high, we can leave it in the bedroom but still tell that its working in other rooms that are 30 feet away.

This purifier really does work well at removing smells. Thats my favorite part of the purifier. It also seems to help with the allergies. It hasnt cured us, but my symptoms have reduced significantly, and I credit the purifier with that.

Now the not-quite-so-good: This purifier is loud. Believe what everyone says, if you have trouble getting to sleep with noise, you wont want this unit on at night. We like white noise so after just 1-2 nights, we were able to sleep just fine. On high, we can hear it through the whole house, and if its in your living room youll have to turn up your radio or TV to hear properly. While its much quieter on low, its still a bit louder than what I would choose for white noise. The blue light on the switch is pretty bright, too, and we had to cover ours so it wouldnt light up our whole room.

The air it puts out is warm, so in the summers, we have to turn the a/c down to compensate since it warms up our whole bedroom.

The fan is a bit off-balance, especially on low. It doesnt cause noise or affect the air output so we havent returned the unit, but its noticeable. The unit is kind of ugly and quite large. Before buying, I recommend deciding on where youll put the unit and then carefully measuring a spot the size of the unit, just to see how much room it needs, especially if you have space issues like we do.

All in all, the concerns I had (noise, aesthetics, size) before buying it ended up being valid, but for the price and the good its doing, I think its worth it. Id give this 3.5 stars but since we cant, Ill round up to 4.
Clean Air
by: Anonymous    On: 2007-04-25

My wife and I noticed the difference within a day of using it. We felt better in the morning. Neither of us has been sick this Winter after using it for several months. And I was amazed at how much dust was on the pre-filter when I replaced it for the first time. Im so glad we bought it. Note: As with all HEPA filters it does make noise. I recommend buying a large one and running it on low when youre sleeping in the room.
Very effective. Does the job as advertised
by: bidtoask2002    On: 2007-03-23

I keep this unit running throughout the day in my bedroom and shut it off at bedtime. (Too noisy for me). Im actually sleeping better/less stuffy. I recommend this filter for anyone who has some difficulty breathing easy at night.
Best Value Purifier
by: chemicalkinetics    On: 2007-03-06

In this review, I will first summarize the major points and focus the details afterward. This way you can stop reading when you get the level of details you need. Please vote for this review if you like it :) I appreciate it.

Pros: Powerful, inexpensive, permanent HEPA filter, easy to maintain, 360 degree air intake and output, portable, accessible replacement parts, good support from Kaz.
Cons: Noisy, high power consumption, not stylish.

I love my Honeywell 50250. I bought it last winter and noticed the room smells less stuffy after using it. It is spring now and since I have a mild allergy, I can notice a difference. I sneeze and experience itchy eyes when I am outdoor, but stop when I am at home (where my purifier is). I recommend two important points when shopping for a purifier: (1) Always examines the CADR number. It is a important performance indicator. (2) Always buys an air purifier adequate for your space. Do not use a 100 sq ft purifier for 1000 sq ft living space.

Honeywell 50250 is a true HEPA filter purifier with a 250 CADR, which translates into a recommended 375 square feet usage space. Currently, this purifier is being sold at ~$160. 50250 has been quoted as the only purifier under $200 that can clean air effectively by several reports: Consumer Reports, Consumer Search, Air-purifier America. Many purifiers have inadequate seal designs in which air flows around the HEPA filter instead of through it, but 50250 has a good air seal. HEPA filter replacement often is the highest up-keeping cost and is ~$100 annually. 50250 has a permanent Lifetime HEPA filter which can be regenerated using household vacuum cleaners. This saves a lot of money. The purifier has an activated carbon prefilter which serves two purposes: extends the lifetime of the HEPA and absorbs traces level of volatile molecules, sources for odors. The prefilter is recommended to be replaced every 3 months for optimal odor removal. If odor removal is not needed, then the prefilter does not need to be replaced regularly. This purifier has a 360 degree air intake and air exhaust, making it very effective in circulating air. The unit weighs in only 20.1 pounds and all parts are large and sturdy. Replacement parts are extremely easy to find. I have seen them at my local Target, Home Depot, Walmart and Sears.

The unit has two major shortcomings. It is noisy at the highest fan speed, and noticeable at the lowest fan speed. For those who wonder if you can tolerate the noise, it is not a machine cranking noise. It is a high air flow sound similar to the wind sound when driving down a highway with your car window rolled down an inch. There are other high quality purifiers which are quieter than Honeywell 50250. The purifier also has a high power consumption of 170/120/50 watts at the three fan speeds. This purifier is not stylish.

Is Honeywell 50250 the best purifier? Absolutely not! IQ Air purifiers are considered the very best, but their cheapest model is $700 and many are above $1000. Honeywell 50250 is one of the most effective purifiers in its prize range (<$200). In comparison, we will look at Whirlpool AP450 which is rated as number 1 by Consumer Reports, and Ionic Breeze Quadra which has a very large market. Whirlpool AP450 has a ~330 CADR rating and costs $250. This yields a nice ratio of 1.3 CADR/$, which means you get 1.3 CADR capability for every dollar spent. Honeywell 50250 has an even better ratio of 1.6 CADR/$. The two purifiers are also competitive in term of the operation cost. AP450 is quiet and is energy star certified using only 105 W, whereas 50250 has a permanent HEPA filter. In the case both purifier run at full speed continuously and the electricity cost is $0.1 per kWh (average in USA), the annual electricity costs will be $92 and $150 for AP450 and 50250, respectively. The AP450 saves an annual $60 in electricity, but costs an annual $90 for HEPA filter replacement. Of course, AP450 is more powerful, so when considering the cleaning power per annual cost, then they are almost the same: 1.8 CADR/$ for AP450 and 1.7 CADR/$ for 50250. On the other hand, the Ionic Breeze is a real insult. It has an estimated 10-20 CADR and it costs over $200 -- a ridiculous 0.05-0.10 CADR/$ ratio. Consumer Reports has come out arguing that Ionic Breeze should not be called as an air cleaner. Moreover, ionic breeze produces a high level of ozone that Consumer Reports and Air-purifier America issue warnings.

A spotlight review here claims Sharp Plasmacluster FP-N60CX is a better purifier. It is misleading. FP-N60CX has a 210 CADR and sold at ~$350 - less powerful and more expansive. The review justifies this expense in that the FP-N60CX needs one carbon filter replacement in 5 years and consequently saves $200 in 5 years. This is a math error. The carbon filter replacement for Honeywell 50250 costs $200 in 5 year, but FP-N60CX also needs replacement at the end of 5 years at $80. This is a $120 difference in 5 years. The 5 years replacement is also the best case scenario, as it may need to be replaced as early as in 2 years. The FP-N60CX carbon filter needs to be cleaned every 2 months and the operation manual suggests a 6-steps cleaning process: (1) vacuum clean (2) soak in detergent mixture for 30 minute (3) scrub with a toothbrush (4) rinse with clean water (5) remove excess water with a big towel for 1-2 days (6) hang up and air dry for another 1-2 days. The purifier cannot be used in during these days. In one year, this may result up to a month-worth downtime. The actual cleaning instructions described in the manual are more cumbersome. Lets summarize this: $120 saving for cleaning the carbon filter 30 times in 5 years. You save $4 for each cleaning. Since each cleaning can easily take an hour, this equates $4 per hour of labor. You cannot even pay an illegal immigrants to do this! I also want to reiterate that Honeywell 50250 has a permanent HEPA filter, which can be simply regenerated by vacuum cleaning. It takes 3 minutes to do and need to be done twice a year. Considering the typical HEPA replacement costs $100 annually, each filter cleaning saves $50. That is $50 for 3 minutes of your time, or $1000 for an hour. This is a real saving. The "plasmacluster" thing is more of a gimmick than anything. Major hospitals, national, pharmaceutical and computer reseach labs use HEPA for air purification.

One last point about vacuum cleaning the Lifetime HEPA filter: a HEPA grade cleaner is recommended to regenerate the HEPA filter. Otherwise, the particles on the Honeywell HEPA will be dispersed back into the air during vacuum cleaning. If you suffer from a serious allergy or asthma, then you should consider owning a HEPA vacuum cleaner to begin with. An easy way around this is to vacuum clean the filter outside of your home, such as your patio. Yes, and if you are really funny, you will do this at your ex-girlfriends room. I am kidding!

Definitions:

HEPA (high efficiency particulate air) is a filter grade strictly defined by US Department of Energy, in which the filter can remove >99.97% of airborne particles that is 0.3 micrometer. The removal success rate is usually equal or higher for larger particles and for slightly smaller particles (down to ~0.01 micro), but performance drops drastically for much smaller particles. HEPA can effectively trap pollens, fine dust and smoke particles -- the major causes of allergy. "HEPA-type" and "HEPA-like" purifiers fall short of this requirement, and there is no strict guideline for their exact definitions. Historically, HEPA was a top-secret technology developed to filter radioactive aerosol, part of the Manhattan Project. HEPA is not designed to remove odors and VOC (volatile organic chemicals), since they are much smaller than the effective range of a HEPA filter.

CADR (clean air delivery rate) is certified by the AHAM (Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers). CADR is expressed in units of cubic feet volume per minute. The suggested floor space is usually calculated based on a 8 foot ceiling and a 5 air change setting. For example, Honeywell 50250 produces 250 cubic feet of clean air per minute or 15000 cu ft per hour. Divides 15000 cu ft by a 8 ft ceiling and by a 5 air change equates to a recommended floor space of 375 sq ft. A shortcut is to multiple the CADR number by 1.5: e.g. 250 CADR X 1.5 = 375 sq ft. Although the recommended floor space value is easier to related to, there is no legal guideline for the calculation. Neoairs most powerful purifier, Neoair Plus, has a suggested 600 sq ft floor space, much larger than that of Honeywell 50250. In reality, Neoair Plus has a CADR <200, meaning it is a less powerful purifier. It turns out Neoair uses a 2.5 air change per hour for the floor space calculation. Another company, Alen, uses a 2 air change per hour for their calculations. Consequently, it is safer to compare air purifiers using the CADR values.
Best Value Purifier
by: chemicalkinetics    On: 2007-03-05

In this review, I will first summarize the major points and focus the details afterward. This way you can stop reading when you get the level of details you need. The definitions of HEPA and CADR are placed at the end of this review. Please vote for this review if you like it :) I appreciate it.

**Warning** (Honeywell 50250N has the Lifetime HEPA filter, but Honeywell 50250 does not. I ordered my second Honeywell 50250N from BeachCamera through Amazon, but the one arrived is the 50250 version. I called and BeachCamera admitted it does not have 50250N and therefore exchange is not an option. I finally got my refund, but it is a hassle. Be extra caution when you are buying online, especially when the sellers are advertising the 50250N purifiers for <$160.)

Pros: Powerful, inexpensive, permanent HEPA filter, easy to maintain, 360 degree air intake and output, portable, accessible replacement parts, good support from Kaz, a 5 year limited warranty.
Cons: Noisy, high power consumption, not stylish.

Previously I owned the Honeywell HFD-130 Germicidal Tower HEPA Air Purifier with Permanent IFD Filter, but due to its ozone emission and my respiratory problem, I returned it back to HomeDepot. I got fully refunded and bought this Honeywell 50250N and loved it. I have a mild allergy. I sneeze and experience itchy eyes when I am outdoor, but stop when I am at home (where my purifier is). I recommend two important points when shopping for a purifier: (1) always examines the CADR number. It is a solid performance indicator, (2) always buys an air purifier adequate for your need. A 100 sq ft purifier will not work for a 1000 sq ft living space.

Honeywell 50250N is a true HEPA filter purifier with a 250 CADR, which translates into a recommended 375 square feet usage space. Currently, this purifier is being sold at ~$160. It has been quoted as the only purifier <$200 that can clean air effectively by Consumer Reports, Consumer Search, Air-purifier America. For most purifiers, the HEPA filter replacement is the highest up-keeping cost and is ~$100 annually. 50250N has a permanent Lifetime HEPA filter which saves a lot of money. The purifier has an activated carbon prefilter which protects the HEPA filter and absorbs traces level of volatile molecules, sources for odors. The prefilter is recommended to be replaced every 3 months for optimal odor removal. If odor removal is not needed, then the prefilter does not need to be replaced regularly. This purifier has a 360 degree air intake and air exhaust, making it effective at circulating air. The unit weighs in 20.1 pounds and all parts are large and sturdy. Replacement parts are easy to find. I have seen them at my local Target, Home Depot, Walmart and Sears.

The unit vibrates slightly at its lowest fan speed and air "pulses" out of the unit. Kaz consumer service was very helpful in explaining this. The small vibration is due to slow air buildup across HEPA filter. The vibration is considered a normal feature and does not affect its performance. I did my own test to prove this, and you can too: take your HEPA filter out of the unit and run it. The purifier should stop wobbling. This proves the vibration is due to air buildup, not an imbalance fan.

The unit has two major shortcomings. It is noisy at the highest fan speed, and noticeable at the lowest fan speed. For those who wonder if you can tolerate the noise, it is not a machine cranking noise. It is a high air flow sound similar to the wind sound when driving your car with the window rolled down an inch. The purifier also has a high power consumption of 170/120/50 watts at the three fan speeds. This purifier is not stylish.

Is Honeywell 50250N the best purifier? Absolutely not! IQ Air purifiers are considered the very best, but their cheapest model is $700 and many are above $1000. Honeywell 50250N is one of the most effective purifiers in its prize range: <$200. In comparison, we will look at Whirlpool AP450 which is rated as number 1 by Consumer Reports, and Ionic Breeze Quadra which has a very large market. Whirlpool AP450 has a ~330 CADR rating and costs $250. This yields a nice ratio of 1.3 CADR/$, which means you get 1.3 CADR capability for every dollar spent. Honeywell 50250N has an even better ratio of 1.6 CADR/$. The two purifiers are also competitive in term of the operation cost. AP450 is energy star certified using only 105 W, whereas 50250N has a permanent HEPA filter. In the case both purifier run at full speed continuously (24/7) and the electricity cost is $0.1 per kWh (average in USA), the annual electricity costs will be $92 and $150 for AP450 and 50250N, respectively. The AP450 saves an annual $60 in electricity, but costs an annual $90 for HEPA filter replacement. Of course, AP450 is more powerful, so when considering the cleaning power per annual cost, they are almost the same. On the other hand, Ionic Breeze is a disappointment. It has an estimated 10-20 CADR and it costs over $300 -- a ridiculous 0.03-0.07 CADR/$ ratio. It was the worst purifier tested independently by Consumer Reports and Air-Purifier-America. Moreover, ionic breeze produces a high level of ozone, which Consumer Reports has issued health warnings.

A spotlight review here claims Sharp Plasmacluster FP-N60CX is a better purifier. I disagree. FP-N60CX has a 210 CADR and is sold at ~$350 - less powerful and more expansive. The review justifies this expense by stating that the FP-N60CX needs one carbon filter replacement in 5 years and consequently saves $200 in 5 years. This is a math error. The carbon filter replacement for Honeywell 50250N costs $200 in 5 year, but FP-N60CX also needs replacement at the end of 5 years at $80. This is a $120 difference in 5 years. The 5 years replacement is also the best case scenario, as it may need to be replaced as early as in 2 years which results in no cost advantage. The FP-N60CX carbon filter needs to be cleaned every 2 months and the operation manual (available online) suggests a 6-steps cleaning process: (1) vacuum clean (2) soak in detergent mixture for 30 minute (3) scrub with a toothbrush (4) rinse with clean water (5) remove excess water with a big towel for 1-2 days (6) hang up and air dry for another 1-2 days. In one year, this may result up to a month-worth downtime. Lets summarize this: $120 saving for cleaning the carbon filter 30 times in 5 years. You save $4 for each cleaning. Since each cleaning can take an hour, this equates $4 per hour of labor. You cannot even pay an illegal immigrant to do this! I also want to reiterate that Honeywell 50250N has a permanent HEPA filter, which can be regenerated by vacuum cleaning. It takes 3 minutes to do and need to be done twice a year. Considering the typical HEPA replacement costs $100 annually, each filter cleaning saves $50. That is $50 for 3 minutes of your time, or $1000 for an hour. This is a real saving. The "plasmacluster" feature is somewhat of a gimmick. Major hospitals, national, pharmaceutical and computer research labs use HEPA for air purification.

One last point about vacuum cleaning the Lifetime HEPA filter: a HEPA grade cleaner is recommended to regenerate the HEPA filter. Otherwise, the particles on the Lifetime HEPA will be dispersed back into the air during vacuuming. If you suffer from a serious allergy or asthma, then you should consider owning a HEPA vacuum cleaner to begin with. Alternatively, you can vacuum the filter outside of your home so the fine particles are dispersed outside, such as your patio. Yes, and if you are really funny, you can secretly do this at your ex-girlfriends room. I am kidding!

Definitions:

HEPA (high efficiency particulate air) is a filter grade strictly defined by US Department of Energy, in which the filter can remove >99.97% of airborne particles that is 0.3 micrometer. The removal success rate is usually equal or higher for larger particles and for slightly smaller particles (down to ~0.01 micro), but performance drops drastically for much smaller particles. HEPA can effectively trap pollens, fine dust and smoke particles -- the major causes of allergy. "HEPA-type" and "HEPA-like" purifiers fall short of this requirement, and there is no strict guideline for their exact definitions. Historically, HEPA was a top-secret technology developed to filter radioactive aerosol, part of the Manhattan Project. HEPA is not designed to remove odors and VOC (volatile organic chemicals), since they are much smaller than the effective range of a HEPA filter.

CADR (clean air delivery rate) is certified by the AHAM (Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers). CADR is expressed in units of cubic feet volume per minute. The suggested floor space is usually calculated based on a 8 foot ceiling and a 5 air change setting. For example, Honeywell 50250N produces 250 cubic feet of clean air per minute or 15000 cu ft per hour. Divides 15000 cu ft by a 8 ft ceiling and by a 5 air change equates to a recommended floor space of 375 sq ft. A shortcut is to multiple the CADR number by 1.5: e.g. 250 CADR X 1.5 = 375 sq ft. Although the recommended floor space value is easier to relate to, there is no legal guideline for the calculation. Neoairs most powerful purifier, Neoair Plus, has a suggested 600 sq ft floor space, much larger than that of Honeywell 50250N. In reality, Neoair Plus has a CADR <200, meaning it is a less powerful purifier. It turns out Neoair uses a 2.5 air change per hour for the floor space calculation. Another company, Alen, uses a 2 air change per hour for their calculations. Consequently, it is more reliable to compare air purifiers based on their CADR values.
no more cat allergens
by: jaswon247    On: 2007-02-24

Pro: very good ratings from Consumer Reports
Con: to read the reviews here, its loud

But its not what I imagined. Its "loud" setting is about as loud as a bathroom fan, and it can easily be set to "low" at night to make it just white-noise.

What matters: my wife didnt need her asthma inhaler after the first day, so Im very happy with this.
no more cat allergens     On: 2007-02-23

Pro: very good ratings from Consumer Reports
Con: to read the reviews here, its loud

But its not what I imagined. Its "loud" setting is about as loud as a bathroom fan, and it can easily be set to "low" at night to make it just white-noise.

What matters: my wife didnt need her asthma inhaler after the first day, so Im very happy with this.
Works really well
by: Anonymous    On: 2007-02-14

I bought this to replace an old Honeywell Heppa air purifier. Since we were use to the white noise of the old one, we wanted one we could hear. If you put this one on the lowest setting its just right noise wise.The 2nd and 3rd settings we find way too loud. It cleans the air well. I only gave it 4 stars instead of 5 because the light around the control is extremely bright. I had to paint around it to black it out and it still shines through some.
Honeywell Pure Hepa 50250
by: Anonymous    On: 2007-01-15

Good unit, helps my girlfriend who has allergies. Downside is that it has a bright blue light that lights the roon at night if it isnt covered with our socks, and its LOUD on high, semi-loud on low. The brain gets used to the noise though,bad if you watch alot of tv next to it.
The best I have used so far
by: Anonymous    On: 2007-01-10

I bought one of these to help my familys allergies and my asthma. It is great. I can tell a huge difference even in the amount of dust. I will say that the are a little noisy. My sister has the same one and hers doesnt seem to be as noisy but maybe it is just me. It is isnt enough for me not to use it though. I highly reccomend this product. Especially if you suffer from allergies the way I do. You will notice a big difference within just a day or two. I am even buying another to put in my bedroom.
The best I have used so far     On: 2007-01-09

I bought one of these to help my familys allergies and my asthma. It is great. I can tell a huge difference even in the amount of dust. I will say that the are a little noisy. My sister has the same one and hers doesnt seem to be as noisy but maybe it is just me. It is isnt enough for me not to use it though. I highly reccomend this product. Especially if you suffer from allergies the way I do. You will notice a big difference within just a day or two. I am even buying another to put in my bedroom.
Loud, and not good for house with pet hair.
by: stevehops    On: 2007-01-09

Seems to work fine for dust, but it is too loud for bedroom use, even on the lowest setting. And the bright light on it is annoying in a dark room, but can be covered with tape.

Another problem is pet hair gets in the motor and burns making a horrible smell. Have to take it apart and vacuum out the hair. Very poor design that allows hair to get past the prefilter.

But it does to an effienct job on dust and smoke, even in a large room. And the HEPA filter is permanent (just vacuum it every month) so that saves a lot of money.
good
by: Anonymous    On: 2007-01-09

the air purifier works well. the only problem is that it takes up a lot of space. it provides great white noise for sleeping.
Great potential - but fails
by: mcampbel@spacestar.net    On: 2007-01-05

I had my previous Honeywell air cleaner for over 5 years. I liked it so much that I bought 3 more for gifts for other family members with dust allergies. But when I needed a replacement that unit was no longer available - I bought this one. It is slightly less efficient at removing dust and dog hair, and WAY noisier. My old one could be running 24/7 in a bedroom and no real problem with the noise. This one absolutely must be turned off when sleepy-time comes. It can run and clean the air when you are not present, but it must be turned off in order to sleep or even have a conversation. I am satisfied with its performance for the price - but very dis-satisfied with the noise levels resulting only an average rating. If you have another choice, even at a few dollars more, consider taking it.
Effective, economical HEPA filter
by: ltcharber    On: 2007-01-05

I have purchased several Honeywell air cleaners recently for my family (children, parents and brothers household) and have been very pleased with their performance and and engineering. I was looking for an air cleaner for my daughters room and was given an older model by friends who had used it briefly before buying an Ionic Breeze instead due to the noise level- the only reason I didnt rate it 5 stars. While that machine is a Sears labelled appliance, it is identical to a small Honeywell. It has effectively reduced her symptoms, and the noise hasbnt been disagreeable on lower settings with any of the machines. Using the higher settings an hour or so before bedtime and reducing the fan speed to low during the night produces a white nboise" that I find soothing.
Replacement filters (permanent) arte readily availabvle and economical (under $15.00 at Amazon). Other Honeywell air cleaners we have purchased differ in that they have no ionizer (not recommended by medical authorities- i am myself a family physician) and in their capacity. All of the machines I have bought are the round hassock-shaped ones and this is an imiportant design feature in that these models use either og two sizes of replacement permanent filters as above. Larger models may use up to three stacked filters in place of the original and expensive non-permanent filter. All use a cut-to charcoal-containing pre-filter which may be vacuumed periodically and used for substantially longer than the packaging indicated (at least 6 months). The HEPA filters may be vacuumed as well, a simple maintenance task.
The filter that comes with a filter that is NOT permanent but is instead a "long-life" singlre filter with a recommended replacement interval of five years. It does not have a "permanent filter".
one of the big pluses for these machines is the excellent 5-year warranty. No machine in this price range except a few Hunter models offer a 5-year warranty, and Hunter permanent filters are far more expensive and hard-to find. I have noted some complaints about warranty service in other reviews of Honeywell products, but nonetheless it is still a very good value.
I ofund some of my machines in the local Goodwill for $10 or so- check it out!. On new machines, I really couldnt beat the Amazon deals substantially and ordered one of these and another odel for family. My brother was so impressed he went out and bought 2 other machines (regrettably, not Honeywell) for his fairly severe allergy problems. t wouldnt count on these machines to eliminate strong odors vcompletely but they do make a difference.
I would add a final note about my experience with central air conditioner filters. A NMERV of 8-10 is sufficient to remove almost all common allergens. Higher filtration requires larger surface area to prevent excessive air obstruction. We bought a filter some time ago that we couldnt use for that very reason. The most economical is the Lysol brand filter available in Lowes stores.
Removing bacteria from the air is unimportant- "air sdanitizer" are a waste of money. Airborne bacteria rarely survive long and DO NOT cause odors in and of themselves- they must be in a nutrient rich medium and actively growing to cause odors. As for mold, remember that removing moisture is the answer to that problem. A relative humidity of 40 % or less will take care of mold and mildew very nicely. So, use your AC, dehumidifier, or pipe wrench as needed to control moisture problems. As for vacuums, they all work- IF YOU USE THEM! A central system that exhausts to the outdoors or a garage area that can be aired is a great option. bagless vacuums, water trap vacuums, etc really dont make much difference in air quality. We find that using simple bedlinens in the childrens rooms which can be tossed in the dryer for 10 minutes are useful ways to control dust mites and remove some of their allergens. Stuffed animal toys can also be given a spin for the same reasion.
Sorry if I get carried away, but I have always felt a duty to teach my opatients to take care of themselves. I hope this has been helpful. The Honeywell air cleaners are a great way for allergy sufferers to take control of their symptoms in part.
Used Item broken sold as new
by: Anonymous    On: 2006-12-30

This item was received with a taped box and directions to install pre-filter when opening the bottom the electric controll panel fell out. That was not the worst yet, no prefilter or filter present. I called to return and have to wait 5 days for another try at replacement unit. If second try gets a used item I will seek refund. I cant rate item until I get one that is in working order. I see others received used items as well sold as new be careful. I am hoping for a new factory sealed item in the second try and will post evaluation of product then so my rating is related to amazon not the product.
the gold standard
by: moonwords    On: 2006-12-13

I own this purifier and find it sturdy and reliable. It is loud on its highest "turbo" setting because it moves a great deal of air.
Also, the permanency of the HEPA filter is nice. Vacuum clean. The pre-filter charcoal filter wraps around the HEPA filter. The pre-filters do need to be changed every two-three months. Currently $10 on amazon (12/06).
There are many new air cleaning "technologies" out there, inspired in part by the wild success of Sharper Images Ionic Breeze.
This unit has no bells and whistles and none of the newer, dubious "technologies." This is why I and so many others like it. It simply pulls air through two filters. And it does so very well.
I did not receive damaged or used items. Definitely new. Sealed box, prefilter included. Took five minutes to set up.
This is a reliable, serious product, and it gets my vote for best air purifier currently available.
the gold standard     On: 2006-12-12

I own this purifier and find it sturdy and reliable. It is loud on its highest "turbo" setting because it moves a great deal of air.
Also, the permanency of the HEPA filter is nice. Vacuum clean. The pre-filter charcoal filter wraps around the HEPA filter. The pre-filters do need to be changed every two-three months. Currently $10 on amazon (12/06).
There are many new air cleaning "technologies" out there, inspired in part by the wild success of Sharper Images Ionic Breeze.
This unit has no bells and whistles and none of the newer, dubious "technologies." This is why I and so many others like it. It simply pulls air through two filters. And it does so very well.
I did not receive damaged or used items. Definitely new. Sealed box, prefilter included. Took five minutes to set up.
This is a reliable, serious product, and it gets my vote for best air purifier currently available.
Beware, I received used items
by: fphuskies    On: 2006-11-15

I ordered 2 of these units from Amazon after paying twice as much for the same item at Home Depot. When they arrived they BOTH appeared to have been used. Neither of the units were in their protective plastic bags and one was missing the pre-filter. These were not labeled as refurbished but had obviously been returned. Amazon is sending replacements, but something is wrong with the system.
It does the job, but is a noisy...........
by: bigalbert    On: 2006-11-10

First it does clean the air. I had a Enviracaire for about 9 years before it died. I thought I would try this unit and here are some results:

Moves the air. Has 3 settings: Turbo, Day, and Sleep. All the settings are loud. Its a noisy unit but the sleep mode is tolerable at night. Its does have a blue light on top which signifies the unit is operational.

The unit was shipped in the carton without any additional packing material. The unit was new and did include a prefilter. The unit itself is impressive. Its big but easy to move around, at least for me. My unit does wobble slightly, but it doesnt rattle. I opened the unit upon arrival and say everything was intact. Another neat feature is the unit takes in air from the bottom and blows out on top, effectively moving the air in the room.

I suffer from seasonal allergies and I must say the unit left on turbo for an hour made a huge difference. The room wasnt stuffy. Their are several pros and cons mentioned in previous reviews. I recommend physically going to your local home center or hardware store to view each unit and make a decision based on appearance and performance. Would I but another one, yes.
shakes at lowest setting - fan out of round
by: 9876    On: 2006-11-01

Just as another reviewer experienced, I ordered an original and a replacement and both shook excessively at the lowest setting. Looking through the hole in the top of the second one while the unit was running, I could see that the fan was out of round - the probable cause of the shaking. In both cases the air blew out irregularly (discrete puffs) at the lowest setting as well. The first unit came without a prefilter. After two attempts to find a non-defective model, I applied for a refund.

Before buying this item I had tried out a different model Honeywell purifier from a friend and it was fine - no shaking and not loud. Perhaps problems with this model are an anomoly. Very dissappointing.

Incidently, as other reviewers mentioned, this unit is quite loud. One would have a hard time conversing with others with the unit at the highest setting.
Stay Away From This One
by: grlfrnd69    On: 2006-10-13

I bought this machine last summer because I suffer from allergies and asthma. It has two major problems. One is that its so noisy that I cant sleep with it on. Even at the lowest setting its noise level makes it miserable to keep in the bedroom. The other problem is the blue light thats on constantly. The light also makes it tough to sleep. And I havent noticed that the air quality is all that much better than before I started using it. Consequently Im looking for a new one - and I definitely will not buy another Honeywell.
Stay Away From This One     On: 2006-10-12

I bought this machine last summer because I suffer from allergies and asthma. It has two major problems. One is that its so noisy that I cant sleep with it on. Even at the lowest setting its noise level makes it miserable to keep in the bedroom. The other problem is the blue light thats on constantly. The light also makes it tough to sleep. And I havent noticed that the air quality is all that much better than before I started using it. Consequently Im looking for a new one - and I definitely will not buy another Honeywell.
Great for cigarette smoke,pollen,pet hair,pollen you name it.
by: victoriousprettyflower    On: 2006-10-10

Let me start off by saying that I suffer from being allergic to cigarette smoke and my husband and I live in an enclosed apartment complex. This is made worse by the fact that the front door doesnt seal up against the frame and smoke from the hallway leaks into our apartment with other odors and smells. Now let me add that that my husband suffers from severe allergys and takes medicine daily for his condition. Did I mention that we have two cats and a pug. Life was miserable in our 2 bedroom 2 bath apartment, till this little puppy showed up. Its just like the picture describes it, like a barrel, the nice feature on it is the Intellicheck, this little feature tells you when to change the filters and its quite easy the pre filters just lay on the hepa filter and are held in place by two pieces of Velcro. They do need to be changed about ever two months though, this may be more then normal because of our pets. But since we got the first one for the living room we added one more to the bedroom. Now you walk down our hallway gagging on the scent and odors but as soon as you open our door you are greeted by the clean smelling air and the sound of the filter cleaning it. Okay it is a little loud but dont let that discourage you. Wait till you get it home and turn it on full blast. It is a little noisy but when you go up to it, you can feel it sucking in the air from all around the unit. Then the freshly cleaned air gets pushed up through the top of the unit in a circle around the unit. It really does clean the square footage it claims to. Now I no longer complain about the smoke in our apartment and my husband also enjoys less sinus and nasal pressure. We did our homework on this one and read all about the Honeywell 50250. Before we decided to buy ours and were glad that we did.
Poorly constructed product
by: ralphfur    On: 2006-10-03

I ordered this unit and the Honeywell 17000 to filter a medium and a large size room. This unit was intended to handle the large room. The first unit that I received had an unbalanced motor unit that causes the unit to vibrate around on its feet when set to the low setting. The noise that this makes on a hardwood floor is very iritating. As well, the vibrations give one pause to wonder how long the motor will last with it this badly off balance.

This unit is very loud to start with and the vibration just adds to the noise level.

Presuming that this was just a quality control issue, I returned the unit and asked for another to replace it. The second unit arrived with the exact same problem. Calls to the 888 number for Honeywell had the company representative say that the unit should not do that and to return it. A third try resulted in the same problem.

It is possible that the company has just had a bad run of manufacturing; but after three attempts to obtain a usable unit, I would not recommend buying this unit.

Instead, I would recommend using the Honeywell 17000 as that unit works well, is much quieter, and does not have any vibration issues.
Poorly constructed product     On: 2006-10-02

I ordered this unit and the Honeywell 17000 to filter a medium and a large size room. This unit was intended to handle the large room. The first unit that I received had an unbalanced motor unit that causes the unit to vibrate around on its feet when set to the low setting. The noise that this makes on a hardwood floor is very iritating. As well, the vibrations give one pause to wonder how long the motor will last with it this badly off balance.

This unit is very loud to start with and the vibration just adds to the noise level.

Presuming that this was just a quality control issue, I returned the unit and asked for another to replace it. The second unit arrived with the exact same problem. Calls to the 888 number for Honeywell had the company representative say that the unit should not do that and to return it. A third try resulted in the same problem.

It is possible that the company has just had a bad run of manufacturing; but after three attempts to obtain a usable unit, I would not recommend buying this unit.

Instead, I would recommend using the Honeywell 17000 as that unit works well, is much quieter, and does not have any vibration issues.
Works, it makes noise, but that's how you move lots of air!
by: smashpdx    On: 2006-09-06

This unit is amazing for yanking dust and such out of the air and making it go away. Im not inclined to complain about the noise it makes, because the only way this thing can live up to its claim of being able to recirculate the air in a large room 6 times per hour is to move a *lot* of air, over a *large* space, and do it *fast*. Outside of a ceiling fan (which is a lot bigger) there is simply no other way to do it than with a blower that youre going to hear.

One reviewer said it sounded like a floor blower (or something like that). Well, it blows at an upward diagonal, but in terms of air volume it may come close. It has to, to get the whole room to circulate back to the unit and get sucked in. Want your rooms air cleaned for *real*? Grab one of these. I used a Honeywell 13500 for over 10 years before it finally died and the 50250 took its place. No regrets.
Loved it, until it quit working.
by: bob35121    On: 2006-09-02

I own the Honeywell 50250 and loved it. I bought it because it was a Consumer Reports best buy. It cleaned the air of cigarette smoke better than anything Ive ever owned. But, mine quit working after 2 months. The switch gave out.

It has a 5 year warranty, but according to the instructions, you have to mail the unit back, which is a huge bummer. Its not so much the fact that you have to enclose a check for $15 to get warranty service, but the fact that Im gonna have to trudge down to the post office. I cant recommend anything that costs > $100 and quits working after 2 months. By the way, even though this is branded as a Honeywell, the manufacturer is a company called Kaz, according to the instruction manual.
Nice Product
by: suthakar25    On: 2006-08-28

I bought this Air Purifier for my 5 year old daughter because she has a house dust allergy as per her Doctor. She used to get cough,running nose etc all the time but after using this Air Purifier she is doing fine. We turn on in her bedromm just before she goes to bed and it will run until morning. It really works nice. It has a little noise but who cares when it serves your purpose of releving from cough,running nose etc..

I really like this procut.
Works but a bid noisy
by: Anonymous    On: 2006-08-11

This unit does a good job in removing a lot of dust in the room. However, it is a bit noisy even at low setting. It is okay to put it in the living room but definitely not in the bedroom because of the noise.
It does the job well... with some background noise.
by: brushna    On: 2006-07-16

As we build our house we are living in a damp basement that has had quite a bit of water damage. Even with a dehumidifier running all of the time, my wifes allergies were making her miserable. Upon her allergists recommendation, we bought the Honeywell model 50250. We liked the fact that it purifies a large room area and that the HEPA filter is permanent and does not need replacing. After running it for only a short while, we both noticed a marked change in the freshness of the air. It also seemed the air wasnt as "heavy" and it was a lot easier to breathe in our dungeon. My wifes allergy symptoms are also noticeably improved. The only possible negative remark we have is that it is a bit loud on the high speed setting. However, it quickly becomes background noise and we hardly even notice it anymore.
Works but is quite loud
by: sirmrmatt    On: 2006-02-22

First off, while I do not believe this is being sold directly by Amazon any more, when I got this unit from Amazon, it came with a previous customers receipt in the box which said "left unit on overnight. Loud, WHINY hum. Please refund. Do not replace." I did not notice this problem, however little shards of broken plastic (three or four pieces) did fall out of the unit when I turned it over.

Anyhow, I returned this machine because, quite frankly, folks, it is too noisy. Even on the low setting, it sounds like a big whooshing floor box fan on at least medium if not high. It is white-noise-ish but it still interfered with TV watching to an annoying degree. On the other hand, if you WANT white noise, by all means go for this unit.

As soon as I packed this thing up to send back, I ordered the Sharp Plasmacluster FP-N60CX unit and could not be happier. With the rebate available, I was able to get it for a final bill of two hundred thirty eight. Sweet!

The Sharp unit is not only more advanced (kills bacteria with the plasmacluster feature, has separate pollen and dust sensors which will kick the unit on and off depending on environmental pollution, has a remote control that I can program into my learning remote, etc.)

This unit, on the other hand, simply has a low, medium and high setting you have to set manually, no automatic adjustment, no smart sensors, etc.

Also, a big deal was this (pay attention): The replacement charcoal filters for this unit run about $11 online, and you must replace every three months for the odor removal to keep working. That is $44 per year.

On the other hand, the Sharp units charcoal filter is WASHABLE and lasts 5 years. This is a consumables savings of $220! If the price difference is LESS than this $220, and you want to retain the smell removal, the Sharp is CLEARLY the better choice!

The increase in price of one hundred dollars final after rebates was well worth it for the Sharp unit.

All that said, this thing did give that "fresh moutaintop air" feel to the air in my house. The Sharp just does it even better, though.
Fantastic product & value at an affordable price
by: ntd1129    On: 2006-02-15

After slaving for MONTHS of researching the best air cleaner at an afforable price. I had purchased the Honeywell 50250. It is an excellent machine and at such an afforable price. It is comparable to the $400-500 models. At first I was a little taken back by the size but was amazed at how well it cleaned the air. It is really easy to install and change filters - I can do it with one hand. Also filters are very inexpensive and only need to be changed every 3 months or so depending on your environment. The size is misconceiving beause it very light weight and has the easy handle on top (another plus). I travel from room to room, I can hold my baby in one hand and the air cleaner in another. It also has 3 different levels (for example at night I have it on the lowest level called sleep mode). And most important the sealed Hepa Lifetime filter so no need for expensive replacements. Also has 360 airflow which comes out from the top of the machine, it doesnt blow dirt or dust from the floor up into the air. And filter monitors called intelli-check, which lights up when a filter needs to be changed (no guess work or lookign at a calendar). Also 99.97% germ reduction and 5 year warranty. I also want to tell everyone that this machine is approved by the National Allergy.
I recommend this air cleaner
by: Anonymous    On: 2005-10-14

I have suffered from allergies all of my life, but especially the last few years, they have gotten progressively worse. Last year, I lived in an apartment over two chain smokers and was constantly congested. I started researching air purifiers because my medications werent helping enough on their own. I ended up deciding on this unit for my living room/dining area, a Hamilton Beach 04163 for my bedroom, and another Hamilton Beach 04163 to go on the other side of my living room as well since the living room/dining area/kitchen was all together and not separated by doors and was too large an area for only one cleaner to handle efficiently. I have been very satisfied with this unit. I got it in December 2004 and it has not given me any problems. I have had to change the pre-filters a few times (you usually have to change them every three months or so) but have not yet had to change the HEPA filter. I like the way this system has what it calls Intellicheck which lets you know when it is time for the filters to be changed, as well as the way that it has the 360 degree technology. The unit looks kind of like a barrel so that the clean air flows out of the top all around it. I dont notice a cleaner air smell like I have heard people talk about, but I can definitely tell a difference in my allergy symptoms when I am running my air cleaners or not. And when I put my Hamilton Beach air cleaner in the living room which has an auto setting that detects the air quality, it had the air rated as being good from the beginning, which I believe is due to the Honeywell 50250 which had been running 24/7 a few days prior to that since the Hamilton Beach air cleaner in my room had the air quality as poor when I turned it on the auto setting. I still have to take my allergy medications that I was prescribed, but there is a definite difference between when I just take the medication and when I take the medication and use the air cleaners.
I hope this review helps. I also like the fact that it has a carrying handle at the top, and I dont find it very noisy. It has a white noise to it, but I have not experienced any problems not hearing the television or not being able to nap in the living room while it is on.
The replacement pre-filters are easy to find for this unit. The HEPA filter seems a little harder to find in retail stores, but it does not have to be replaced as often so it is not too bad.


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