I’ve struggled with severe seasonal allergies for a few years now, and, somewhat cruelly, they seem to get worse as I get older. What started out as the occasional sneeze when I went outside has evolved into waking up with burning eyes, persistent sneezing, a massive headache, and a cough, despite keeping my bedroom clean and the windows closed. It’ll usually only subside when I take allergy medication, and even that’s not foolproof.
There is one thing that has been foolproof in alleviating my allergies when I’m at home, though. Since I started the Molekule Air Mini+ air purifier a month ago, I haven’t woken up with allergy symptoms once—something that would have previously been impossible during the months of April and May, considering that’s peak allergy season.
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I began using the Molekule Air Mini+ in early April, just as my allergies were beginning to worsen with spring approaching. The directions say to set it up on a raised surface in whatever room you want to purify—I used a side table in my bedroom, since I was noticing most of my allergy symptoms after waking up in the morning. From there, it’s super easy to use. You can completely control on your phone via the corresponding app that’s free to download. There are two main settings to choose from: “auto-protect”,which monitors the level of allergens in the environment and increases or decreases the speed of the purifier appropriately, or manual mode, in which you can set it on a low, medium, or high setting. I’ve tried all of the settings and found that it runs rather quietly on all of them; on a higher setting, you may just hear a low humming sound akin to running a fan or a white noise machine, but I never found that it disturbed my sleep.
Molekule Air Mini $499; molekule.com
The app gives you real-time helpful insights on the level of allergens, like dust and smoke, in the surrounding room. The air quality is indicated by green for good levels, yellow for moderate levels, red for bad levels, or purple for very bad levels. The color also glows on the top of the purifier itself, which is useful if you’re not looking at your app at any given moment. (Interestingly, I found that my Molekule glows yellow in the mornings, when my allergies were at their worst, and then moved to green later in the day as the air quality improved.)
Since beginning to use it, I’ve noticed a palpable difference in not only my aforementioned allergies, but also in the overall crispness of the air in the room. It’s easier to take deep breaths, and even with the window closed, the room never feels stuffy. I can even smell the scented candles on my dresser better, and as a result, my entire bedroom now smells of gingerbread (I’m not complaining). The Molekule is designed to work best inspaces of up to 250 square feet, which is even larger than the size of most bedrooms. What’s more, the mini model is compact enough that it’s barely noticeable on my side table, and its sleek design doesn’t clash with the aesthetic of my room.
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The purifier comes with one of Molekule’s patented PECO filters, which, according to the company, works by capturing dust, pollen, and other allergens, and then breaking them down in the filter. You can also monitor the status of your filter on your app so you know exactly when you need to change it out to a new one. After one month of use, my app still indicates that the filter is at near-perfect health.
Available for just under $500—or a 12-month payment plan of $42 a month——the Molekule Air Mini+is definitely a splurge, but for me, waking up without any harsh allergy symptoms every morning makes this handy little appliance well worth the price tag.
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