Hamilton Beach: Hamilton 04163 Air Purifier

Automated: 04163

Hamiltons 04163 has three fan speeds and an automatic setting. The AirSmart Sensor on the Hamilton Beach 04163 is a handy indicator of indoor air quality, as well as a filter life extender.

The Hamilton Beach air cleaner digitally displays air quality, as measured by an infrared sensor, as a bar graph against a rule showing poor, fair, or good. When the fan is set to Auto, it automatically adjusts the fan speed to compensate for increased airborne pollutants.

As soon as I read about these sensor chips, I knew I had to have one. I ended up buying the $350 Sharp Plasmacluster FPN60CX air purifier.

Most people will be surprised to see the Hamilton Beach 04163 respond to minor daily activities, such as rustling a blanket, that stir up airborne particles. It's nice to see the meter show that the automated air cleaner sensor is working. But the most powerful benefit of air quality monitoring is simple consciousness raising, awareness of threats. Many users seem not to get it. They continue to engage in activities, discouraged on Air-Purifier-Power, even after their Hamilton Beach air purifier tells them these lower air quality.

The AutoHamilton: Hours of Fun

Users report fun watching the display, or listening, as the Hamilton Beach True Air fan gets louder, when exposed to;

This makes the 04163 a real ice-breaker for social gatherings, a source of jokes: pick a goat and seat him next to the Hamilton air purifier. The auto feature can turn up the fan at just the right moment.

Filter Monitor

The manual filter check tool checks for airflow restriction by measuring output pressure. A colored cylinder rises up inside the check gauge. If it does not rise the filter(s) are clogged.

Replacement costs are on the high side, with a recommended annual HEPA air filter and quarterly prefilters. The uv bulb needs annual or better replacement even if it still emits light. This gives annual maintenance costs equal to original purchase price. A 1.0 maintenance to purchase ratio is not good.

Bypasser?

It is extremely common for an air purifier in this price class to seal poorly, leaking dirty air past loose fitting filters. This cleaner can be pretty tight, as evidenced by efficiency tests at Allergy Buyers Club.com;

At 11"x16" this is a fair sized filter, maybe too big to use soft plastic seals. Many users report whistling noises as air sneaks past the filter:

"May need occasional adjustment to stop loud whistling..."

"Sometimes it runs with a loud whistle..."

"..whistling is caused by air leaking past the side of the HEPA filter..."

"...The cure is simple: (1) Turn off the 04163. (2) Tilt the 04163 to the side until you hear the HEPA filter bump into a new position. (First tilt to the right, and if that doesn't produce the "bump", tilt to the left.) After that, the 04163 will run quietly until someone moves it and causes the HEPA filter to again shift into a non-optimum position. Shaking or tilting it without turning it off will not stop the whistling because while it is running, the air pressure holds the HEPA filter in position."

"....There is a rubber seal along the whole back side edge of the hepa filter. A piece of this broke off and caused the high pitch noise. I taped mine back and the noise went away...."

This is serious bypassing, fine particles dangerous to health are being recirculated by this "whistling" air purifier.

Here is a photo of a Holmes (Not Hamilton) filter with the same type inexpensive seals, arrows note missing section. With the HB04163, make sure the rectangular element is seated properly, but be gentle. Manufacturers, knowing that many users will not replace filters on schedule, build these leaky units to assure airflow to the motor. This is widespread in the industry, and many mechanisms are designed to obscure bypassing.

The Hamilton Beach prefilter is just adequate and there is only token carbon, not enough real for odor and gas reduction.

Outgasser

Hamilton 04163 users report unhealthy smells;

"this awful plastic "new factory" smell that lingered for over a month. I called up tech support, explained the problem, and put the unit outside to air out in the sun as they recommended but it really didn't take care of the problem. As the 30-day return deadline came and went, I realized I was taking a chance on whether the smell would ever go away. It did (eventually)"

"...sensed packing tape and plastic..."

"purifier did give off a plastic-y smell its first week or two but that faded quickly..."

"...emitted a stale dirty smell..."

"...on for a long time (more than 3 hours) it gets hot and puts out a smell in the whole room, not a burning rubber smell but an unpleasant weird smell, ive had it for a month...."

Beaches are Loud

No air volume rate is available for the low setting.

At 56dB(A) on low it is too noisy for bedroom use. Many complaints!

Some dislike the drafty single exhaust opening: a cold breeze while sleeping.

A boxy 19-1/2 by 14 by 8-1/4 inches, the Hamilton Beach Trueair 04163 weights about 15 pounds.

Germicidal Light Radiation Hazard

UV germicidal light can reduce bacteria, viruses, and mold. These small uv lights are, in my humble opinion, more trouble than they are worth. A dedicated air sterilizer, furnace duct uv installation, or premium ultraviolet air purifier is the minimum recommendation.

This UV light is designed to provide approximately 6,000 hours (250 days) of germicidal protection. Hamilton Beach claims their double louver system prevents the uv lamp from being seen directly. There is no uv shielded viewing port. They do warn users that direct ultraviolet light exposure to eyes can cause temporary or chronic health effects.

"Do not place your face directly on the outlet grille or look into the ultraviolet light."

Although the light is switch-able, this is a hazard. Users report:

"... a glow does emanate from the top where the air comes out. It's strong enough to hit the roof in pitch black darkness so you may find it distracting to leave it on while you sleep..."

"...Other air purifiers we have seen let no UV light escape except through a tiny UV-protected window. But this Hamilton Beach leaks a ton of UV light out of a grate in the top..."

The uv bulb light is very delicate and breaks easily, how much Mercury does it release? More than one user had problems installing the light bulb properly, which users must do during setup.

Warranty & Service

Hamilton Beach/Proctor-Silex, Inc. warrants the product to be free from defects in material and workmanship for a period of three years from the date of original purchase. There is no warranty on the carbon pre-filter, HEPA filter, UV germicidal bulb, or starter ballast for uv lamp. This pretty long warranty compared to others of the same price. Several users report motors burned out in the first few months, this is consistent with the bypassing-designed-to-protect-motor theory.

Hamilton Beach/Proctor-Silex, Inc. is a major distributor of small kitchen appliances, selling over 35 million annually. Their customer service department must handle queries from a wide variety of products. One user complains:

"....Customer Service is not the friendliest, and each time I called I had to cajole them into understanding that there was something wrong with their machine and not with me!"

Some note shipping problems;

"Check and make sure the UV light bulb is there, because both of my order are missing bulbs..."

04163 is priced well at the bottom of its price range, as I write, Allergy Buyer's Club shows $135 on it. That's all I would pay. A good alternative is the Honeywell 50250, but it has no electronics at all.

Each of ten factors gets up to 10 points, 100 is perfect and very unlikely. Above 90 is rare/exceptional, above 80 is good, below 70 is not recommended.

1. First do no harm; minimal out gassing, no ozone.

Score: 5 of 10, no ozone, but notorious for plastic and other smells.

2. Serious gas and odor removal is a requirement if health benefits are expected: Units with real carbon VOC capability rank higher.

Score: 5 of 10, lacks meaningful carbon.

3. Quality construction; case, gaskets, seals, and precision fitting eliminate bypassing and assure high efficiency at filtering sub-micron particles.

Score: 6 of 10, efficient only when filters are properly installed, inspected, and maintained.

4. The design maximizes the lifespan of each air filtration stage by allowing independent filter replacement. Ideally this is combined with electronic air filter monitoring.

Score: 8 of 10, monitor is a timer.

5. Air purifiers have long filter life, low maintenance requirements, and reasonable operating costs.

Score: 9 of 10, cheap HEPAs, but beware HEPA-type replacements.

6. Purifier produces low noise levels and meaningful air flow rates relative to noise.

Score: 6 of 10, "unquiet at any speed."

7. Manufacturer has a track record, with many air purifying devices in the field and a reputation for supporting what they sell. Warranty period and average service life are long.

Score: 8 of 10, 3-year warranty good for price, some premature motor burnouts.

8. Purifier is a value in terms of price/performance ratio. Every price range should be included, “models above $1,200 are best”, while true, is not useful to most consumers.

Score: 10 of 10, worth the money in the $135 area, mass market merchandise.

9. No dirt; unit and manufacturer should be devoid of class-action suits, high returns, recalls, consumer complaints, and legitimate negative consumer reviews.

Score: 9 of 10, majority of feedback is positive, although most users are visibly inexperienced.

10. Air cleaner is stylish, portable, comfortable, and convenient for consumer use.

Score: 9 of 10, no remote, good automated interface.

Hamilton Beach 04163 air purifier Numeric Rating;75

True Air purifier is good value when priced low.