What is the best DIY Air Filter?

I live in Mexico and rather than using an AC, I have a number of fans which circulate air into and out of the house... dust is always a problem. I don't know why I never thought of attaching a filter, but this information is very helpful.

I like the way you presented the information. Makes me believe that YouTube still has genuine content creators and not clickbait artists. Definitely gonna try some of the setups you had in the video

this is going to sound disingenuous, but I am so proud of you. this video is absolutely amazing and so unbelievably thorough for someone with a channel that "only" has 20k subscribers. I am begging you, please, keep going. you have the veracity and perfectionism to become a serious force for good for the layman and professional alike

I want to thank you for these videos on air filtration for a workspace. I am about to open a community Art/Maker Space for veterans/first responders and their families. Creating art or simple projects with others helps combat PTSD. So the quality of the air in this space is very important to me. You have helped me make sound choices on how to create a safer environment for everyone. BIG THANK YOU.

@The3DHandyman, there's an old saying: "The best dust mask is the one you're willing to wear", and I think the principle applies here, too. The best air filtration is the one you're willing to turn on, and a big part of that is how noisy the filtration is. It would be easy to achieve greater airflow by simply using bigger and bigger fans, perhaps even stepping up to 240V or Three-phase power in a shop setting. The thing is, if you need two layers of hearing protection to use your air filter... you're never going to use it. I'd LOVE it if you could start to factor noise levels into your testing as well. It might shake things up, and show that if you want top performance, option A is the best, but if you're wanting good performance and low noise, Option B is the best. Thank you for your great testing work so far!

Very good video. Just sub'd and looking forward to more. It's detailed, yet condensed, rational, cost in mind, and hits that 10 minute sweet spot.

Thanks, boss. Very helpful and generous. Can’t wait to see some more projects.

Thanks for the video! This points me in the proper direction for a DIY solution. Currently running the box fan with 1" filter option along with the shop vac hooked to any equipment I can hook to. It's better than nothing but Just better. I needed a something better but wasn't sure which way to go. The data you've shared paves the way for multiple filters with a powerful fan. Again thank you.

I love this serie ! thank you for all your tests. (and thank you for showing the plastic peeling of the remote, so satisfying ^^)

I’m really impressed with your videos. It won’t be long until you have as big of a following as some of the other larger channels. If you've seen Project Farm's video on furnace filters, he shows that one 1” filter greatly outperforms other 1” filters. Turns out the 3M Filtrete 1900 (Merv 13) had more air flow compared to other Merv 13 filters. The reason it performs so well is because it has a lot more pleats which allows more filter media to be crammed in. His measurements showed around twice as much surface area compared to other Merv 13 1” filters. So in theory, if a 20” x 20” x 1” filter has twice as much filter surface area due to having more pleats, it would be the same as using two 20” x 20” x 1” filters with half the amount of filter surface area (fewer pleats). I think what you put together works great and has a lot of value, although I think it would perform even better if you substituted a better performing filter which appears to be the Merv 13 and 14 Filtrete filters. In my eyes the 1900 (Merv 13) hits the performance vs cost sweet spot, especially if you pick them up at Lowes with a quantity discount. However, you can find the 2800 (Merv 14) filters on Amazon, but they cost ~50% more. Another way to improve performance without increasing cost is to use a physically larger filter. So instead of using 5 20” x 20” x 1” filters for a Corsi Rosenthal box, you could use four 20” x 30” x 1” filters. Four 20” x 30” x 1” filters should perform the same as six 20” x 20” x 1” filters, or 7.5 16" x 20" x 1" filters, and cost less. Looking forward to seeing your future videos. If you happen to stay on the filter subject, I’d love to see some performance numbers of a Corsi Rosenthal box using Filtrete 1900 and/or 2800 filters. It would also be interesting to see if they improve the performance of your eight filter box using 16” x 20” x 1” filters.

Great video, thorough test, good humor and humility. Watching more in the series right now

amazing video. thx a lot for all your work!

This is about the 20th DIY air filtration video I've watched. Excellent information. I appreciate you taking the time to do these tests. Cheers

I had just watched a video of a guy building the Corsi-Rosenthal Box and was thinking to myself "self" (I thought) "how is that any better than just a single filter on a box fan"? Then when I move my eyeballs to the right side of the screen was your video, this video. Thanks for the excellent video demonstrating the difference between the various types of set ups

You deserve much more likes and views. Thank you so much for your thorough test.

Great info. Thanks for the research and handy charts! Keep it up!

This is fantastic, totally blew my mind. The way you filter all that data down to a usable information is quite impressive, hopefully this video will continue to be in circulation for years for those who choose to build their own diy filters.

This was very VERY well done! Between painting, woodworking, and metal working, dust collection and air filtration have been one of those things that I'm constantly tweaking and trying to improve. Unbiased and scientifically produced content is always appreciated!

Wow! Very impressive video! Really well done 👍👍

Absolutely amazing test. Well thought out and nice work.