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Hunter Fan Company, builder of what I call "department store air cleaners," offers a good example of the retrenchment happening in the air purifier business after the recession of 2009. The Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers (AHAM) Clean Air Delivery Rate (CADR) website until recently listed a total of 65 certified Hunter air cleaners. Hunter has discontinued all the Permalifes and HEPAtechs, and most of the Quietflo models including;
Only five air cleaners, all Quietflos, remain on the Hunter Fan Company website;
Many vendors still have inventory of the discontinued models, some of which are very similar to current models. Numerous web vendors, including amazon.com, stock the Quietflos, including 30090s. Hunter's Quietflo 90 has been around long enough to garner 32 Amazon customer reviews, which average four stars. Some seller's sites show 30090 on back-order in the spring of 2010. Consumer Reports (CR) has long favored the Hunters, including the Quietflos. I disagree strongly with CR on the Hunters - the Chinese-built 30090 is a sixty dollar air cleaner for good reasons.
Mechanical controls modulate a 3 speed fan, which pulls air through the front and exhausts upward. Although not currently listed in the CADR table, 30090 was AHAM certified at 100 Dust/100 Smoke/100 Pollen, a very weak air cleaner, AHAM Room Size recommendation is 155 sq. ft., too high for the 30090 Quietflo. A large nymber of vendor sites are incorrectly quoting CADRs from the larger Quietflos - Quietflo 90 is a 100 CADR machine, NOT "245." On high speed, Hunter 30090 is advertised as delivering 6 air changes per hour (ACH) in the recommended 12-by-13-foot room. Using a standard 8-foot ceiling, that's 1,248 cubic feet. Six ACH requires 208 cubic feet per minute airflow. That means that AHAM found the Quietflo less than 50% efficient (100 CADR divided by 208 airflow) across their very broad range of particle size classes. I'm sure that the efficiency for fine lung-penetrating particle sizes is even lower. This is about the norm for true-HEPA department store brands. Just about the only issue where I can agree with Consumer Reports on air cleaners: "air purifiers under 150 CADR are not recommended."
Quietflo 90 has two filters. A carbon impregnated pre-filter is attached to the front grill with Velcro-like “hook” tape. Hunters are notorious for this arrangement, which does not effectively seal the prefilter to the HEPA, or hold the HEPA tightly to the frame. This allows plenty of large dust into the HEPA, greatly increasing the demand for replacement filters. Hunter claims that this prefilter offers "30-percent better odor reduction." Thirty percent better than exactly what? Replacing the carbon pre-filter every 90 days, using the $27.95 30901 OEM replacement prefilter, results in annual costs higher than the Quietflo's initial purchase price, just for the "thirty percent" odor reduction prefilter. Non-OEM cut-to-fit replacement prefilters abound for Hunters, these may be marketed as "fits Hunter Quietflo air cleaners," maybe 4 for $30, but buyer beware. Some users report washing and re-using the prefilters, but they have little carbon to start with and some is lost when washing.
Quietflow 30090's main filter is a True-HEPA, and is easy to replace. The Hunter user manual reminds users to carefully press the flaps and seal into the frame opening to assure a tight fit. Recommended once-annual replacement, using HEPA Replacement Filter 30936, costs $84.95. Various deals, like six-packs for $344, might get the per-filter cost down to sixty bucks - same as the cost of the Quietflo to start with. Why not just buy a whole new Quietflo for less than the annual maintenance cost? Whaaaaaaat? This is the classic purifier-as-loss-leader-for-a-lifetime-of-filter-ripoffs, yet a majority of buyers, some of whom have actually owned other air cleaners, say they like the Quietflo! The secret to a user's air purifier success, which Hunter Fan clearly wants buyers not to know, is to protect the HEPA from large visible dust accumulation with good prefilters. By allowing a HEPA to collect only the tiny sub-micron sized material it is designed to collect, you can extend its life almost indefinitely. But the secret to marketing success is "residual income," repeat buyers. Naive buyers notice allergy symptom reduction, marvel at the large-particle dust collecting on the face-loading design HEPA (even some on the prefilter, too, wow.) When the HEPA clogs, symptoms begin to return, they order a new filter ahead of schedule - "worth the money". Well, "You can fool some of the people all of the time." My solution for this is ordinarily to add extra prefilter materials. I use multiple air cleaners to keep my space very clean, and I almost never buy filters. I buy prefilter material, polyurethane foam, in the air conditioning aisle at Wal-Mart, for $1.00. Is the light carbon dust in Hunter's prefilters worth the additional twenty six bucks? I buy high-quality carbon granules from E.L. Foust - 3 pounds for about $15.00. But these made-in-China Hunters are not built to handle extra prefilter material. My 2009 Hunter Permalife 30748 burned up in a short time with just a little increased restriction. It still runs, but makes a burnt odor on any speed but low. See Hunter Permalife 30748 in Ed's Pre-Filter Experiments, before buying any Quietflo. The Hunter 30748 "Permalife" is the only machine to fail in my numerous pre-filter tests.
Hunter Fan publishes no sound specifications for the "Quiet-flow" other than to assert that it works "without excessive noise." Hunters in general are quieter than other department store models, but come nowhere close to the near silence found in leading Japanese-designed air cleaners. Also, this is a 100 CADR machine, it ought to be absolutely silent at that low power output, but isn't. Users report Quiet-flow 90 is noisy on high and quiet on low. 30090 does not have the ionizer option, so ozone is not an issue. But the Quietflos are notorious for plasticky break-in odors, often persistent. In the 30090's amazon reviews, 3 of 32 mention out-gasing from the plastic. Sister units like the 30119, which used the identical plastic case, had even higher ratios of unhealthy odor complaints.
Measuring 15.7" L x 7.8" W x 14.4" H, the Quietflow can lie on its side, stand upright, or be wall-mounted. At 12.25 pounds, the little Hunter 90 is easily portable. Using U.S. standard 120 Volt / 60 Hz power (no premium 12 V BLDC), the Quietflower is not EPA EnergySTAR qualified, although several Hunters are. I suspect 30090 Quietflo uses energy at about 1.95 CADR/Watt, just below the Hunter average, and not quite good enough for the 2.0 CADR/Watt EPA cutoff.
Hunter Fan Company Hunter air purifier's 5-Year Limited Warranty applies specifically to the motor. Buyers will be responsible for insurance and transportation back to the Service Department in Memphis, Tennessee. Hunter will repair the air purifier and pay return freight. Hunter customer service, like all but the best, has deteriorated during the warranty-claims-costs clampdown that has affected nearly all US industry in the "recession."
The Quietflo Hunter 30090 air purifier is a borderline acceptable air purifier for mild seasonal allergy, where large particulate matter, like pollen, is the main trigger. But it is no bargain. Those with more than minimal resources are encouraged to continue researching indoor air issues before a purchase. Before you buy this 100 CADR "bargain," estimate the 5-year cost of operation. you could get at least double the power for that same long term cost, assuming the Quietflo lasts the 5 years. No Hunter is recommended here for serious allergy relief or chemical sensitivity.
Each of ten factors gets up to 10 points, 100 is perfect and very unlikely. 1. First do no harm; minimal out gassing, no ozone. Score: 5 of 10, many reports of outgassing and burn-out smells. 2. Serious gas and odor removal is a requirement if health benefits are expected: Units with real carbon VOC capability rank higher. Score: 6 of 10, light carbon pre-filter. 3. Quality construction; case, gaskets, seals, and precision fitting eliminate bypassing and assure high efficiency at filtering sub-micron particles. Score: 6 of 10, Real HEPA filter, but AHAM tests suggests low efficiency and leakage. 4. The design maximizes the lifespan of each filter stage by allowing independent filter replacement. Ideally this is combined with electronic filter monitoring. Score: 10 of 10, filters independent. 5. Unit has long filter life, low maintenance requirements, and reasonable operating costs. Score: 5 of 10, short filter life means Quietflo costs more to own than many better, and even some premium air purifiers. 6. Purifier produces low noise levels and meaningful air flow rates relative to noise. Score: 8 of 10, relatively quiet compared to other department store models. 7. Manufacturer has a track record, with many units in the field and a reputation for supporting what they sell. Warranty period and average service life are long. Score: 8 of 10, McPurifiers, millions sold. 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: 6 of 10, be sure not to pay full suggested retail. 9. No dirt; unit and manufacturer should be devoid of class-action suits, high returns, recalls, consumer complaints, and legitimate negative consumer reviews. Score: 8 of 10. 10. Unit is stylish, portable, comfortable, and convenientfor consumer use. Score: 8 of 10, portable and convenient.
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