Re: Filter Shortage Grows - Sharp Plasmacluster FPP40CX and FPP60CX Filter Compatibility

Background;

During the recession of 2009, many air cleaners have been discontinued, including Sharp Plasmacluster FP-P60CX.

Of the non-humidifier Plasmaclusters, only FP-P40CX remains, FP-P35CX is not a Plasmacluster ionizer, despite many vendors advertisements to that effect.

This has sent Plasmacluster affectionados looking everywhere for filters and parts.

Users report a shortage of replacement filters for the FPP60CX Sharp: see previous post; Sharp FP-P60CX Replacement Filters Scarce

So the user community is improvising, including one very prolific air-purifier-power contributor, who owns, and experiments with, multiple Sharp Plasmaclusters.

This guy digs up information I myself have overlooked.

He has earned the nom-de-guerre "Sharp Power User."

Sharp Power User writes:

Hello Ed -

Just read your review of the FP-P40CX.

Really enjoyed it, and glad the info I sent you was helpful!

Also, very interesting to learn that the mystery duct in the upper left corner of the unit is for the missing dust sensor. I think I'lljust go ahead and tape it shut in my unit.

Meanwhile, wanted to pass on some frustrating news about FP-P60CX filters.

I'd been looking for a P60CX, and finally purchased one (a clean, one-year old unit) yesterday off of Craig's List.

(craigslist.com, online want ads, often has secondhand air cleaners - Ed).

I was surprised to discover that Sharp apparently rethought its filter strategy between the FPN60CX and the FPP60CX.

They significantly beefed up the HEPA filter - it's about 1 13/16 inch thick, up from 1 1/2 inch in the N60CX, and it has rows of plastic supports woven into it to make it more rigid and keep the filter pleats properly spaced.

But they significantly downgraded the carbon filter; in fact, it appears to be essentially identical to that of the FP40CX.

It only weighs about 11.5 ounces, compared to the 10.5 ounces that my P40CX carbon filter weighs (I suspect that this difference is within the margin of error for different manufacturing batches).

I double-checked with the previous owner that these were the original filters; he said that they were and he seemed like an honest person.

I suppose it's possible that the unit was a store return or open box unit, and the carbon filter somehow got switched out for an FP40CX unit, but this seems unlikely.

Bottom line is that it now appears to me that FP-P60CX filters won't really fit in the FP40CX - the HEPA filter alone completely fills the Filter frame.

I suppose one could tape the carbon filter AND pre-filter in place, and then file down the tabs on the front cover to get the thing to close, but

I'd now be worried about restricting airflow into the front of the filter.

I'm in a real quandary about whether to keep the FP-P60CX or sell it on ebay.

The main reason I wanted it was because I assumed it had the larger carbon filter; now that point seems to be moot.

It IS better made than the P40CX (heavier duty motor, larger fan, more diffuse exhaust air flow), and I reallylike the 31CFM air flow at silent speed - the 17CFM that the P40CX puts out on 'silent' is so small as to be nearly useless, even in a small room.

However, the 109CFM/35db medium speed of the P60CX is sufficiently loud so as to be unpleasant to use while we are in the room, while the 70cfm/30db medium speed of the P40CX is near perfect - enough airflow to do some good, while sufficiently quiet to remain generally inoffensive.

But it's still a bit loud for sleeping, which is where the P60CX would really help.

Yes, I know the solution would be the four-speed N60CX - wish I could find one in good condition somewhere!

And I really like the size of the P40CX - despite the similar measurements, it really seems a lot smaller than the 60CX models.

Anyway, I hope you are well!

Best,

Ed's Reply

Hey Sharp Power User;

Dude, how you got so lucky?

My Austin/Houston craigslist has mainly old Ionic Breezes, burnt-out Hunters, and leftover Ecoquests. I never see any Sharps!

Some folks still believe their four-year-old Ionic Breeze is worth 300 bucks! Is there a classic air purifier market I haven't heard about?

FPP40CX carbon filters have distinctive aqua blue seams, blue corner straps to hold the bag to the perfilter frame, and 9 carbon chambers.

Looking at the company product manual, FPP60CX filters look the same, giving substance to your suggestion that identical carbon bags were used in the FPP60CX and FPP40CX.

FPN60CX, the older 60-series progenitor, had about 27 oz of carbon in a 7 chamber bag.

It was common for replacement filter sets sold by some vendors to contain less activated carbon than the original Sharp filter.

You are correct to suspect that store returns and open box units are easily substituted with cheaper parts. This doesn't seem unlikely to me.

Often this is employee graft, but in online retail, it is frequently management's principal profit center.

It is also common for retail stores to pirate filters from open box items to satisify irate customers quickly.

I bought a Hunter Permalife 30547 at Lowe's a while back. When I got home, there was no "Permalife" 2-micron HEPA-not-even-close filter. These filters failed in mass and store employees were cannibalizing every remaining 30547 for filters.

Lowe's could not find another filter anywhere in Texas.

Very often online replacement filters advertised as "OEM specs" or "fits Honeywell..." are bogus, substituted, generally inferior junk, at prices worthy of the real part.

You are correct in noticing that the new Sharp models are downgrades, (Japanese manufacturers must do this to stay price competitive with Korean/ Chinese knockoffs, especially with the dollar tanking which raises US prices for imports) and now are Made-In-China.

I am leaning toward building carbon bags to fit in any old air cleaner that happens to be laying around.

Remember the home made fiberglass 2-pound carbon bag I built for the post Re: Sharp Air Purifier Washable Carbon Filter Sweet Odor?

I removed the 2-micron NOT-A-HEPA filter from the Hunter Permalife 30748 that Lowe's gave me when I took back the missing-filter purchase, and stuffed the carbon bag in the ample space.

It seems to work fine on the odors from my indoor container garden, which contains recycled garbage.

But, for FP-P60CX owners looking for scarce replacements, FP-P40CX filters will fit the FP-P60CX, with just minor adjusting, maybe some scotch tape.

See post:Re: Sharp Plasmacluster FP-P40cx/FP-N60cx Carbon Bag Swap

Best wishes,

Ed