IKEA is known as the land of flatpack furniture and discount artificial plants, but now it’s home to a wellbeing essential too: an air purifier. Namely, the IKEA FÖRNUFTIG, a small, fabric-covered indoor air cleanser that costs just $54.99. Can anything this small or cheap be that good when it comes to purifying the air inside your home? IKEA thinks so, and early reviews are backing it up.
The IKEA FÖRNUFTIG comes with either a white or black case color (your choice), with a shallow depth of four inches and weighing just 3kg, making it the ideal candidate for mounting on your wall either horizontally or vertically. Sure you can use it with the included floor stand, but those with small homes and precious little floor space will benefit from the wall-mounting capabilities on offer here.
As for its CADR (Clean Air Delivery Rate) performance, the FÖRNUFTIG manages 130 cubic meters per hour on the stop speed, making it better suited to smaller rooms such as your home office or bedroom. Inside IKEA’s first-ever air purifier lives a HEPA 12 filter to block 99.95% of particles measuring 2.5 microns or bigger - think pollen and dust. You’ll also find a carbon filter to soak up formaldehyde, smoke and cooking odors floating around your home.
A replacement HEPA filter costs $5.49, while a replacement carbon filter costs $9.99, both available from IKEA. That’s cheap compared to the cost of filters for competitor brands.
IKEA FÖRNUFTIG: Spec
- Price: $54.99
- Replacement filter costs: $5.49 (HEPA filter), $9.99 (carbon filter)
- Weight: 3kg
- Dimensions: 18 inches (height) x 12 inches (width) x 4 inches (depth)
- Materials: Polystyrene (back cover/ housing); Polystyrene and polyester (front panel); Steel and powder coating (leg)
IKEA FÖRNUFTIG: Design and features
One glance at the FÖRNUFTIG air purifier will tell you that it’s simply designed, so don’t expect to find any of the smart connectivity or bells and whistles you’d get with top-rated models such as the Rabbit Air MinusA2 or the older but still highly rated Coway AP-1512HH.
Instead, the IKEA FÖRNUFTIG has three individual speed settings, but it doesn’t automatically jump between those when it senses rising levels of indoor air pollution in the room it’s placed in. The lowest speed setting is designed to be quiet enough for nighttime use, which is essential if you plan on using it to cleanse the air in your bedroom or baby’s room day and night.
Now, as this is an IKEA product there is some self-assembly required, but even with other purifiers you’ll still have to fit and remove filters yourself. The FÖRNUFTIG has been designed for assembly within minutes, so you shouldn’t find yourself scratching your head an hour later, wondering how it fits together. The soft gray fabric cover of the FÖRNUFTIG is also wipe clean, so you can keep it clean on the outside while it’s keeping the air clean inside your home.
For other ways to improve the air quality inside your home, depending on your needs, take a look at our guides to the best humidifiers and the best dehumidifiers.
