Alen - BreatheSmart 75i

Alen is the best of that group by far. And especially since this is r/BIFL - they offer a lifetime warranty as long as you buy your filters from them (or authorized 3rd party) Remember, get a unit bigger than you think you’ll need so you don’t need to run it on full blast constantly and be overwhelmed by noise - another plus for Alen is that they are insanely quiet. I have a 45i and 75i and they are excellent. The VOC filter has a crazy amount of carbon in it too to help with smoke. I believe they are also one of the few manufacturers that publish their carbon numbers in their filters. A lot of others don’t.

Alen is another brand to look at. Very quiet. Their 75i would be a good fit to not have to run it on high all the time. Plus you get a lifetime warranty if you buy filters from them or authorized 3rd parties.

Alen 75i with the VOC filter. Lots of carbon in there to help with the odors you mentioned. Yes there are others with even more carbon but the price starts to go through the roof.

I don’t work there, but +1 for the Alen 75i. Excellent unit, super quiet and their odor and VOC filters have a bunch of carbon. The filters last 12-15 months, so don’t be sticker shocked at the price of the filters. They tend to last longer. So running costs are actually less than competitors. Also, buying filters from Alen gets you a lifetime warranty.

If you want BIFL the only answer is Alen. They offer a lifetime warranty as long as you buy filters from them or from an authorized 3rd party. The 75i and 45i are excellent depending on your space. I’d get the VOC filter as well.

I started out looking at IQAir, expanded my search, and somehow ended up on ALEN BreatheSmart 75i. It was a while ago so I don't recall every consideration between the two. And the way you describe odor filtering sounds similar to my situation: no particuarly strong source, but I wanted something a little more effective than a flimsy charcoal prefilter. The ALEN is working well. I usually have it on automatic fan control. It spins up if dust gets kicked up, the toaster runs, or it's a low air-quality day. I wouldn't completely rely on that, though: I also manually crank it up from time to time.

Just be aware of the medify filter costs long term, they soon add up compared to the other brands on the list. For smoke I would choose the 75i or EverestAir both have good amounts of carbon compared to the others.

I eventually went with the Alen BreatheSmart 75i for my home, and it's been solid.

Alen purifiers. I have 3. They’re amazing, perfect background noise (I’m sensitive to sound), and work really well to the point anyone who stays at my place doesn’t deal with allergies. I own 1 cat for reference and it helps with pet hair thanks to the ionizer option. I have one i75 and two i45s.

I've had an Alen 75i ( https://a.co/d/fztp1rY) in our bedroom for 3 years now. Nice unit and is quiet.

If you're looking for the best value for a space that large you should look at the Lifubide Y1000. For what it is it's hard to beat. AirDoctor is fine but their units are a bit noisy and their filters are expensive. iQAir is great but it's noisy on its highest level. Wanted to like MedifyAir but had a horrible customer service experience with them and not only that but they would not confirm that their filters were actually HEPA nor would they tell me the amount of carbon in their filter they said that was a company secret.. so that to me means they lied.. just not a fun company to deal with at all. The Dyson are basically just big fans, they do help with formaldehyde but that's about it, they are way overpriced for what they are and boy their customer service is on a whole new level of hell.. I won't ever recommend a Dyson to anyone ever again. Blue air I'm not a fan of and their always on ionizer isn't wonderful. My favorite air purifiers are Alen Breathesmart 75i, super quiet, moves a ton of air and is also super expensive. I also really like Oransi Mod+ but their air purifier prices have doubled recently so it's hard for me to recommend them anymore, for what they charge there are better alternatives.

I have a 75i in my house with an open first floor about 1150sqft and I have even better extraction than it sounds like you do. I like that it gives me a visual indication of AQ with the light but it goes pink (the worst AQ light) whenever we sear things with the extraction on. The fan will run on the highest setting for 20 minutes after searing/sauteeing then step down through the rest of the speeds. I know people will say that they’re overpriced but they’ve worked well for us in our home. We have 4 and price hasnt been my primary decision driver. Noise, filter quality, an longevity have been. We also have focused on modifying our air handlers for HEPA filtration without altering static pressure. If you have the space near the returns to do so it is a big bang for your buck.

The one with the charcoal element keeps things smelling better which I prefer in the kitchen. It’s not the absolute highest filtration they offer but I think it’s still within spitting distance of the others.

The problem with most is they're too loud so you run them on a low speed which is pointless, which makes the best the one that moves meaningful cfm: Alen 75i

I have Alen air purifiers… a 75i and two 45i. I notice sleep better when I run one at night & I vacuum the filters weekly since I have dogs. My neighbor’s new born always has a runny nose- they have three dogs & a smaller place. The Mom loves cleaning- place always looks great, vacuums pretty much daily. I loaned the 75i to her for a month… the filter came back completely matted with dog hair- and her baby had been sleeping a lot better…