I have watched numerous UA-cam videos on air quality monitors. They all look like they were just advertisements. Your video is actual testing and comparing with real information. Thank you for taking the time to do this.
You are most welcome Enjoying Nature - I do love to create content that will enlighten and help those who are in need of more information. I truly appreciate your kind words as they help me to grow as a channel, a channel that will continue to offer help to those who need it. It is comments like yours my friend that give me the excitement and strength to continue on with Outside In - - I thank you for that...
@@Outside-In. Liked your video very much. I have problems in the apartment with the air. I live in Sweden. I want to buy an accurate detector that have many sensors. Do you have other to suggest than what you recommended in the video?
@@jewsusjewtube1880 I have another monitor on the way from Aliexpress that I will be reviewing, testing and doing a tear-down in a couple weeks. When it comes to a persons well-being/health, I can't recommend anything that I haven't first tried and tested to be legitimit, so other than what I recommend in this video, there are no other monitors I can speak intelligently of.
@@jewsusjewtube1880 Yes it is one of the lesser expensive monitors and looks great - but looks can be deceiving... After some communication with someone in the comments - I was asked if I could test it. I am hoping this will be an inexpensive alternative for knowing quality of air in the home.
Thank you Tom very much for that sentiment - much appreciated. I enjoy helping others in making decisions that could save a life... - Plus I just love doing research 👍
Hello everyone. I just wanted you to know that I am getting ready to do another video in a couple days, and it is a Re-Visit of the Fake Monitor in this video. Unfortunately after this video was complete - I threw away the Fake Monitor, but a few comments about the Fake - Maybe - Not - So - Fake after all monitor has caused me to once and for all put to rest ANY doubt at all to this Fake monitor truly being Fake. Since I threw the monitor away, I decided that if I am going to save someones life, then I need to have that Fake monitor back for further testing, so I purchased it again so I could prove once and for all that it is Fake. I will be testing this Fake monitor against a TRUE and accurate co2 monitor as well as a TRUE and accurate co Monitor. I will also be doing a tear-down again to show the second sensor that is in this Fake monitor that a commenter brought to my attention that I missed. The sensor that I missed in the Fake monitor is very interesting for sure, and will be amazed at what it really is. So please keep an eye out for the video. I have purchased some new devices that will enable me to do more thorough testing on air quality meters/monitors - to sort out the scams.
I am highly allergic/sensitive to formaldehyde and preservatives and brighteners which I find is in some imported clothing (at least 90% that I've bought) and in laundry detergents, fabric softeners, etc. I have a playlist dedicated to this on my channel where I talk about this -- what's scary is if it hadn't been for my allergies which are excruciating I wouldn't have known. Although it is disclosed in laundry products the names sometime don't really tell consumers how dangerous some of these chemicals are -- a lot of people think if they buy a free and clear this takes care of it, and really that might not be the case... and a lot of people don't feel anything and are either completely unaware or, they don't care as it doesn't affect them. The trouble I fear is as we get more bombarded with these chemicals more allergies are going to surface... I know of 2 children already that have this problem. Imagine having to go to school and sit by others that use these chemicals... And then there's the fact that the suppliers that use this process do NOT disclose on any clothing and cloth item labels that these fabrics have been doused in formaldehyde, dried and then ironed in... what this does is create a resin which is really hard to get out of the fabric, especially tightly woven nylons, and terry cloth, etc... but then it will break down into a very fine powder -- yet it doesn't dissipate -- it's sort of like lead... and now it's in a lot of paper products as well.. and in garbage liners, paper towels... and to me, this is not only scary... it should be illegal... I'm glad I found your video and thank you for it. I did buy a detector and although I sense the chemicals it's not sensing on the meter... ha... but it shouldn't be a surprise at your findings... You know, a long time ago I studied the book of revelations and although I'm not an expert these people said our major war will come from China -- Personally I think we are at war with this issues and if we aren't careful this might happen...
Thank you Lisa for your information and experiences. I am sure it is going to help allot of people with these same issues regarding laundry detergents and other products. Thank you so much for putting your thoughts out there for others. I am glad that the video helped in even a small way, but yes you are right, these monitors are not going to be able to detect the chemicals in clothing, but they will keep us aware of particles, Formaldehyde etc., that are in the air around us, but we should never become paranoid - as these things have been in the air since God created all of this wonder and enjoyment, so we need not get so paranoid as that will result in a much larger problem - mental health related sickness, which Can be more harmful than the things we are afraid of... just a thought... ;). Glad for your reference to Revelations - I sat down one day, and read the whole book of Revelations from start to finish, and I must say that it is like the stores I used to read as a child of fantasy and fantastical dreams, but the difference is that This story is real - not fantasy... ...And that is what makes Revelations even more special and beautiful. So many people read a verse here and there - they pick and choose what to read in Revelations, and why Revelations seems so scary and finite, but I am here to tell you that if you read the whole book from start to finish - it brings SO MUCH more meaning and realization to light. Reading the book of Revelations is when I realized Dinosaurs where a real beast that roamed the earth before God destroyed it in the flood, as Revelations speaks of Dragons and such animals.
In case you missed it he said, "the m-10 was pretty good" I agree. I have had one for many years. I find it accurate enough for me. I run 2 Winix air purifiers 24/7 they have blue and red lights they indicate good and warning. I' am not always in the same room with the m-10 and if my nose is running and my eyes are burning I will look at the air purifier on my way by to the other room, it is red the other air purifier is red and the m-10 up around 135-200 and that little green light is a bright red. Their are only 3 readings on the m-10 the 4th is the Quality Air Index or QAI which is the average of the other three. So if one changes the QAI will change. I drilled a hole through both my walls so I could pass a cable through it. This allowed formaldehyde (HCHO) quietly and undetectable to enter my living spaces except all my gauges were going off.
Yes, the M10 does a pretty good job, but all we need is a close approximation of our levels, so "I find it accurate enough for me." is a good way to put it... Drilling holes in walls would (I am sure) cause the HCHO levels to go up, but as long as you have good ventilation, the reading should come back down fairly quickly. High humidity will also cause HCHO levels to go up as well.
Why did you ignore the AliExpress box when it came to particulate measurements? You pointed out the carbon monoxide with great gusto. But didn't point out it was reading about the same when it came to the PM2.5.
If you are talking about the FAKE monitor as in when you said "the Aliexpress box when it came to particulate measurements". This video was about exposing the DANGER of owning it (because of no CO or CO2 sensors), and how the particulate measurements were not agreeing with the others, and how sometimes they went nowhere when they should have - I even took it apart to show that there is either no sensor at all, or a garbage particulate sensor inside. I pointed out the Carbon Monoxide AND Carbon Dioxide with such gusto, because Carbon Monoxide and Carbon Dioxide is THE 2 MOST IMPORTANT measurements on any monitor that incorporates them... It is beyond me why people continue to try and make excuses for this fake monitor... I do apologize for sounding aggravated, but ANY MONITOR that has just ONE reading that is a lie (in this case CO and CO2), then the whole thing is a lie and nothing but a lie, and cannot be trusted for any of it's information. Would you trust someone who lies to you only on occasion?, I would hope not, as you wouldn't be able to trust anything that they say, and the same goes for any monitor that attempts to deceive, even with one (or in this case 2) of its readings... When people come to Outside In, they can be sure to get the truth and nothing but the truth. I am not going to go easy on a product that doesn't do what it states - especially when it is lying. I am also not going to recommend a product that could get someone killed - just to make money. If I have to start shading the real truth about a product - in order to make money and survive, then I will just have to starve to death, because anyone's life is more important to me than making a buck. Thanks Paul for your comment and thoughts - much appreciated - and again - sorry for sounding a bit frustrated, but I am not going to sacrifice anyone's life or my integrity - for money - EVER, and if that means that Outside In will never grow beyond where I am now - then so be-it. As long as I can save someones life - maybe yours, then that is EXACTLY what I sat out to do in the beginning - I truly hope you can understand and appreciate that. 👍
I recently modified IKEA vindriktning pm2.5 meter to report for homeassistant and when reading about it, there was a case when someones unit red high all the time like your M2000. So what they did - took the sensor apart and saw some smudge on the laser leds, cleaned it as well as they could with high concentration alcohol and put together and then readings were normal. So there can be just bad assembly mistakes for the sensor too. Tho it should be quite automated..
Thank you gelisob for your comment, it is much appreciated. I wish I had known this information before I sent them both back. That is good information, but both monitors read the same and the second meter as a replacement was worse than the first with more wrong with it, and also TemTop would not help me with the issue - so still can't recommend TemTop Customer service however... Still - this is good information for anyone that has this meter and wishes to try this fix. Thanks so much for your invaluable detailed info.
So in your tear down I noticed you mentioned a fan. There wasn’t one. However. There was a chamber. Diffusion of particulates by size is dependent on buoyancy. On the back side of the board/box you pried off at 48:41 shows two diffusion chambers. Is/are there a sensors coming off the board into either of the chambers? When I was cooking breakfast I did get the pan a little hot and there was some smoke. The 6 in one monitor in the other room went into alarm for pm10. And pm2.5 was elevated until my oreck Truman cell scrubbed it out. Monitors require an air flow over the sensor to get a live and current reading. Gasses tend to expand to their confines.
The fake monitor has no fan, I only said that before taking it apart because the small pinholes made it appear that a fan was in that spot. Odors will cause monitors with TVOC sensors to go nuts, and cooking puts off allot of odors as well as particulates from smoke, so why allot of monitors appear to not register correctly especially while cooking food. You are right, monitors with fans work better because of a constant air-flow. The six in one that you speak of, is it the fake monitor in the video?. I tested this monitor again the other day, and blowing alcohol into the device made ALL the numbers go nuts. I do believe the monitor is using math for it's readings and why it sometime appears to be working, which is why monitors like this confuse people, and make it hard to believe it is fake. I may have to visit this monitor once again, but am not sure how I am going to convince some that this monitor truly is fake and not to be trusted. If you have this monitor, and would like for me to do another video, what kind of test could I do that would convince you that this monitor is not to be trusted?. I did another video about this monitor, so not sure if you saw that one. This is the link to the other video, if you still have questions about it's legitimacy, I would be happy to do another video with a test of your choosing. Let me know The "other" video: ua-cam.com/video/KCpIaTC5las/v-deo.htmlsi=TIxZmrtGzqFLv2Sc
Thank you Guntara for the information. I did look up that number, and it looks exactly like the box in the device, so I have to assume that in fact it is a PM 2.5 sensor. Makes me now want to check this with the device again. But here is the thing... Even though this small box may be a legitimate PM 2.5 sensor, does not mean that this device is not a fake, as it does not have a co2 or co sensor, so for that reason alone - it is still a fake, and NOT to be TRUSTED by anyone. Any device that has even one fake reading, is a complete fake and not to be trusted.
good review . That model that you dissassembeled I had order from temu . When breething out directly to it Co goes up to 20 and co2 up to 2000 and abit above . so hope in that they didn`t missed the sensors on the PCB :)
Interesting and thanks for your comment. There are a number of these monitors that look like the fake one in this video, so hopefully you got a legitimate one. With that said, I did another video about smokers putting off CO when they breath... If you are not a smoker, a CO meter will not go up, but if you are smoking and breath into a CO sensor, the reading will jump to around 11 to 19 or 20, and stay there for a second or two before falling back down to 0. CO2 on the other hand will go up while breathing into it because that is what we as humans expel from our lungs with every breath whether a person smokes or not (but of course you know that already LOL). What you may not know is that with every breath we put off around 35,000ppm of CO2, and that is a lot of CO2, so a legitimate CO2 sensor should go absolutely bonkers whenever we breath directly into it, and also how much easier it is to tell a fake CO2 sensor from a monitor that does not have a legitimate CO2 sensor inside. Most of the Fake CO and CO2 monitors have an Alcohol sensor inside and why the CO reading shoots way high along with CO2, especially if a person is drinking an alcoholic beverage or smoking, or just brushed their teeth, chewing a minty gum etc.. A legitimate CO monitor/meter will go up (in the video that I did on this topic), if you are in a crowded room with people that smoke, the CO levels will rise significantly due to smokers putting off not only CO2 but CO as well, and we must take care that the room is properly ventilated. Companies have gotten very good at fooling people that these fake monitors are real. Also, a lot of people love seeing the numbers go up and down (it gives them a false confidence that the sensors are real - and companies know that), and using an Alcohol sensor instead of an actual CO or CO2 sensor guarantees that their monitors are actually going to not stay at 0 for CO or constantly sit at around 600 to 800ppm for CO2. The best way to test if a CO2 monitor is fake is to spray rubbing alcohol or perfume around the monitor to see if the reading shoots way up, and also a fake CO meter will do the same around alcohol based liquids. CO2 WILL NOT react to anything other than CO2, and the only thing that will mess with a CO2 sensor or CO sensor is loud odors such as perfume, paint, alcohol etc., BUT the number will only go up for a second or two and fall immediately back down to normal. For CO - 0 to 1ppm is normal, and will only go up to 1 for a 1/2 of a second and fall back down to 0, and for CO2, 600 to 800ppm is normal, and if the reading does go up due to being influenced by a loud odor, it too will only go up for a second or so and fall back down to normal... I do hope that your monitor is real, but just be sure before you put your trust in it. Also keep in mind that CO and CO2 sensors have a life span of about 2 to 3 years (from date of manufacture) and need to be replaced, and some companies say theirs have a life span of 10 years, but I wouldn't trust that number. Just do checks every few months and keep track of numbers/readings for the CO and CO2, because after a few months the "normal" numbers may start declining or going up due to life expectancy for these sensors. Hope this helps, and thank you again for your comment and thoughts, much appreciated.
very good video, I absolutely agree, in tech, you do get what you pay for, and a lot of times, it is something you can't put a price on. Thnx for the heads up about Temtop products. Whilst I don't think I live in a dangerous environment, I still think my particular room in the house might be rather dusty or have some air impurities. What is your thoughts about the Amazon Air Quality made by Amazon themselves?
Thanks for the comment and question. I have not had a chance to try anything by Amazon yet, so I can't speak inelegantly on those. I have a number of projects going on right now, but hopefully soon I will be able to make a purchase of one of the Amazon monitors for testing and review...
Just the video I needed. I’ve been extremely worried of the gas cooktop after realizing the hood wasn’t designed to vent out. Hoping the Temtop will yield some valuable data. Excellent info!! Thanks.
Thanks Gedion for the comment. It would be interesting to hear your results after doing some tests if you didn't mind. It may be useful for anyone with the same concerns as you had about your cook-top. It is always good to hear of others' experiences.
@@Outside-In. Hi, I was asking chatgpt how to make a c02 sensor, it recommended a high end $55 dollar SCD41 Sensirion sensor connected to an Arduino uno R3, I was hoping for highly accurate pre-calibrated readings, do you think my expectations are too high?
@@TheChromePoet I would have to look into that sensor. It has been my experience that after you spend what it will take to build a monitor, you would save money buying one already made with more readings than one. If you are looking for just a CO2 meter, I highly recommend the Smart Sensor Handheld CO2 meter, as it is a industrial meter built for factory use, so would be what you are looking for as far as accuracy. ...And our expectations are never too high - until we expect that which we cannot do... ;)
This is a link to the CO2 handheld meter I purchased: www.aliexpress.us/item/3256804532459210.html?spm=a2g0o.detail.1000014.46.65c8147bnU1c9S&gps-id=pcDetailBottomMoreOtherSeller&scm=1007.40000.326746.0&scm_id=1007.40000.326746.0&scm-url=1007.40000.326746.0&pvid=efc3c710-34f9-449e-8bd0-1c9c8a114481&_t=gps-id:pcDetailBottomMoreOtherSeller,scm-url:1007.40000.326746.0,pvid:efc3c710-34f9-449e-8bd0-1c9c8a114481,tpp_buckets:668%232846%238114%23748&pdp_ext_f=%7B%22sku_id%22%3A%2212000030221280226%22%2C%22sceneId%22%3A%2230050%22%7D&pdp_npi=3%40dis%21USD%21255.4%21173.67%21%21%21%21%21%402101d1b316774814052091262e2b28%2112000030221280226%21rec%21US%21872586204
Not trying to defend the temptop but in my city the cheapest CO2 monitor that I can get my hands on is actually the temptop M2000 or M2000C - they are worth the $$$ just for the CO2 monitoring alone. You can ignore the rest of the readings but the CO2 seems to be quite accurate and consistent in your video. If you do a bit of research, the temptop has a senseair S8 chip for CO2 and it is one of the best CO2 chips for monitors in the sub $200 range.
It is ok to defend the TemTop. In this video, I speak about the two defective units that I received, and my horrible experience with customer service. However - the other TemTops I own are great devices. You are right, the CO2 is quite accurate on the TemTop M2000, but my problem was not with the CO2 reading, it is the device as a whole. I will be doing a new video review of the TemTop M2000 2nd edition that TemTop sent to me about 2 weeks ago. Yes the Senseair S8 is a great sensor for home use, and quite accurate, but when you buy a monitor with multiple sensors, and has two sensors you can't trust, it makes that unit not worth owning. I have several videos about air quality where I recommend TemTop monitors, just not the M2000, but the M2000 2nd edition is a good monitor that I will be reviewing soon. Thanks for your comment and thoughts - much appreciated.
I was searching for an air monitor for 3d resin printing workplace and luckly i found this. Very valuable video, i love this kind of approach to specific topics. Everything covered, thank you! Greetings from Poland
Thank you Harry for the comment. It is comments like yours that keep me inspired to create more content like this. If you have any suggestions for what you would like to see, please leave a comment, and I will do my best to create a video to address any concerns. ...And - Greetings back to you from Virginia USA.
I have long been concerned about the air quality near coal plants. Do you think that any of these testers would be able to assess that air quality accurately?
Well... That is a tough one... Coal plats put off the following... CO (Carbon Monoxide), CO2 (Carbon Dioxide), CH2 (Methane) which can explode at the very slightest spark. H2 (Hydrogen) which is also very explosive. There are gas leak detectors, and the one I own is this detector on Amazon: www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0B82MP3HB/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&th=1 I have not been able to test it or one like it, because I don't have a lot of those types of gases for testing purposes in my possession (other than CO and CO2 of course). The meter mentioned above has high ratings and why I purchased it, but being able to test it without having the specific gases, there is no way to verify if it works. I have another gas leak detector made by Smart Sensor that works great, and super fast to respond to leaks I have tested like propane and butane, but the only thing I don't like about any of these detectors, is the none of them tell you what type of gas is being detected. I found a Smart Sensor gas leak detector that does display the type of gas that is being detected, but it is very expensive and I simply don't have the finances to purchase it.
Thank you Ronald for the comment and gratitude. Hope you get allot of enjoyment out of the M10. It would be great to hear of your experience here once you get and use it so others can benefit from your experience as well.
Hello, great video. I only noticed this video after i bought the "fake" meter you showed in the video. I ran a few tests with it: - Sprayed some WD40 on tissue paper and it spiked the HCHO/TVOC reading (cant remember which) - Breathing out heaviliy onto the meter spiked the CO2. - Smoke did nothing for the CO value. - Emptying the vacuum cleaner dust into the bin spiked the PM2.5/PM10 levels. Does this sound like its actually sensing something a bit more than yours did? Doesnt seem like all of this could be achieved with a single sensor? Would be interested to hear what you think.
That is normal behavior for the fake monitor. WD40 will get picked up because of the odor. Breathing heavily into it and triggering CO2 reading, could be because of an alcoholic beverage or mouth wash, or even if you had just finished brushing your teeth. The Chinese are very clever at making these appear to be legitimate.
@@Outside-In. I didn't consume anything for hours before each test but still pinged the monitor. Still interested in how the PM2.5/PM10 value spikes and alarms when emptying the vacuum cleaner if there is only a VOC sensor. The same with banging on a dusty carpet like in another UA-cam video. I've sent mine off for a refund and will get a Hotkrem or Temtop, but I have a feeling that the sensor isn't as bad as it seems, albeit the values it throws out are a bit inconsistent, the alarms is raises are genuine for most values.
@scout9012 Thanks for the clarification. Even dirt has an odor, and why they can make these look legitimate. However, any monitor that gives even one piece of false data is fake, and not to be trusted period... I cannot emphasize this enough. I would ask everyone to please not put trust into a device that gives even one piece of false data. A fake device is not ok even it it gives at least 1 good reading, and this fake monitor - gives zero good readings and that is a promise....
@@Outside-In. Sorry but that explanation "WD40 will get picked up because of the odor" is just pure bullshit. As is "CO2 reading, could be because of an alcoholic beverage or mouth wash". The sensor on the cheap air quality meter is doing what it should, it's just less accurate, obviously.
Hi, I recently moved to a semi new apartment that had a lot of adjustments (walls got painted, walls broken, etc etc). Even though I open every window for 8 hours 10 days and also cleaning every day, the problem wont go away. I also even bought the Levoit Air Purifier and no change whatsoever. I wake up very very tired and with a lack of air when I breathe. What sensor would you reccommend to check mainly PM10 and PM2.5 as I think the problem is dust, debrie, paint, from the construction?? The TemtopM10 only does PM2.5. Great video btw!
Hello Bernard, and thanks for the comment and question. If there was a lot of recent construction done to the apartment, there will be high VOC's and HCHO for a while as the paints dry out and off-gas. Unless you have allergies, I would not suspect Particulates to be the culprit. A very good friend just purchased the uhoo air quality monitor on Amazon, and he is very very happy with it. It shows all that you would need to know including CO and CO2, which is something very very important for you to look into because of your symptoms. The uhoo is more expensive at 300.00, but if you want a monitor that gives good information, I am finding that we are going to have to stop buying monitors for less than 200.00. None of my monitors that I have reviewed can I recommend any longer, as they have either quite working or stopped giving accurate information. My Hotkrem works great still, but more and more people are complaining about the Hotkrem not working out of the box, or stops working after only a few days or weeks of use, so I can't even recommend the Hotkrem any longer - bummer because I really like it. The ONLY meters that I have that I can still recommend are the CO and CO2 meters, and they are very very accurate, and no home should be without one. Your VOC's and HCHO is high because of all the recent construction, and no, an Air Purifier is NOT going to get rid of any type of gas (VOC, HCHO, CO, CO2 etc.). The Temtop M10 I cannot recommend any longer because I just found out that they do not include a genuine VOC sensor inside, and they use the HCHO sensor along with a calculation to estimate TVOC, which in my opinion is just plain crazy that a company would do that. TemTop does have a new monitor on the market - the M10+, and they told me that it does have a genuine VOC sensor inside, except that they did away with the HCHO sensor (weird). Check out the uhoo, and see what you think. I contacted to uhoo to ask if they would send me a unit for test and review, but have heard nothing from them, and I assume it is because Outside In simply does not have enough subscribers yet unfortunately, so won't be able to create a video about it because I cannot afford to purchase another monitor at this time. Thanks Bernard for your question and comment - they are much appreciated, and I do hope this has helped at least a little... uhoo Smart Air Quality Monitor: www.amazon.com/uHoo-Indoor-Air-Quality-Sensor/dp/B076PV9X99/ref=sr_1_6?sr=8-6
Yes, you are right gelisob, I did fail to look closer, but if you see my updated video, I purchased a second monitor for the video (because I had already thrown the other one away), and found that even though there looked to be another sensor (laser) in the unit, it still gave horrible readings and not at all to be trusted. A company that creates a monitor that gives gives readings from a genuine sensor, and creates 6 other readings from sensors that don't even exist - is (In my opinion - A FAIL) and a lie to the end user. A meter that gives blatant false information should not be allowed on the market, and should never be trusted by anyone who values their life. Thanks however for pointing that discrepancy out - much appreciated... 👍
I subscribed the moment you said 'God showed me' that's a big statement but I totally get it as he's done the same for me. I thank God I found your video. Cheers J
Joshua - YOU my friend, just made my day. I Love interjecting God into conversations, as it is He who led me to create Outside In, so no matter how far I am able to go with the Channel, I will have the assurance that I will go no further than God wants... ...And I thank God for you Joshua and your kind words, and thanks for the sub - much much appreciated.
@@Outside-In. No thank you. God has certainly led me to do a similar thing in my videos but you've inspired me to seek him further in guiding the content to be as helpful to saving people's lives as much as possible. I'll certainly be linking my next video to this one as reference to the hard work and research you've done. Cheers J
@@joshuadelisle Thank you J for the inspiration that you have now given to me as well. I will be checking out your channel as well, sounds interesting 👍👍
Hey J, I am hoping that I didn't offend you in my video when using an Australian accent lol.. I have been doing that since I was in my early 20's, so it was nothing forced because of your accent. I LOVE LOVE your accent, and why I spent years learning how to use the accent - practicing, practicing by watching many many movies and TV shows with Australian actors, and constantly repeating phrases to learn the accent because I enjoy it so much. At one trucking company I drove for years ago in OH, I met two drivers that every time they would see me - they would call me Aussie, and we had allot of fun with the accent, so it wasn't meant to be disrespectful to you at all... I love making people laugh, and every time I use the British or Australian accent, it brings laughter and smiles, and that is why I do it - not too offend for sure, just wanted you to know that. Have a Happy and Joyous New Year.
Hi Steven, have you considered a DIY approach to making your own custom Air Quality Monitor? After watching this video I was interested to see if you could do it? There are videos online on how to make it, but I don’t have technical knowledge or tools to make such devices.
Thank you Thomas for your comment and question. I have thought of that very thing, but after looking into it, the cost of such a project is something that I am unable to do at the moment. I have been working with AirKnight in developing their new model, but I guess that is as close as I can come to actually creating one myself. 👍 AirKnight's new model is supposed to be out by the end of this year, but haven't heard from them in a while, so no updates on how close they are in completion.
The Hotkrem monitors seem to have fallen off in quality since this video. I recently purchased one from Amazon that would always read 0 AQI, and 0 on PM 1.0, 2.5, and 10. So, I had them send a replacement and guess what? That one reads all zeros too! I've taken both units outside to compare readings to a known purple air station about half a mile away. That station is reporting an AQI of 19, and both of the Hotkrem units are reading zero to one for AQI. The PM .3 and .5 are registering between 0 and 20, and 1.0 occasionally will show 1. Otherwise, nothing is registering, which is impossible. With a slight breeze and lots of pollen being released everywhere, there should be lots of PM 10 at least. Indoors with the doors and windows shut,all monitors read zero. My Levoit air purifier has a built in monitor that would always read 3-4 with doors shut, and jump up to 12 or so on a breezy day with doors open. I will be returning both of the Hotkrem units, and have a Quingping lite unit coming that I am hopeful will be more accurate. Thank you for your videos. It has been helpful in knowing which units to try and which to definitely avoid.
Thanks William for your comment and thoughts. Yes it is unfortunate that the Hotkrem has fallen in popularity. I have tried to contact Hotkrem, but they have not responded to any messages I have sent, so therefore I cannot promote Hotkrem any longer. I will definitely not be recommending the Hotkrem any longer which is unfortunate because I liked it so much. The two Hotkrem's that I have are still working great, but to get one (from all the negatives I have seen) that actually works seems to be a gamble... The Qingping is a monitor that I have been looking forward to testing, and when I can afford to do so, I will be purchasing one for review.
Update: I received my new Qping lite yesterday, and so far I am very impressed with this unit. First of all, it is small, so it can be placed just about anywhere easily. My initial observations are that it is also very accurate.I initially thought the temp and humidity were off, but after letting it acclimate overnight, it is reading just about dead on on with the local purple air station a half mile from my house. But if for any reason the sensors drift over time, the co2 sensor can be either manually or automatically calibrated, and all of the other sensors can have an offset added to calibrate them to a known source. All of this is done through the qingping+ app. The app also logs up to 30 days of data, can set up notifications, and can configure some display options,as well as update the firmware of the device. Overall, I am very impressed with this little unit. So much so that I just ordered a second one so I can put one in the living area and one in the bedroom.
@@williamwagner-tt7vu Thank you William for your comment and experience with the Qingping, sounds like a nice device, and happy to hear you are enjoying it. Hopefully it stands up to time. 👍
I so appreciate your video. I am inclined to buy the Temtop M2000C but there are so many one-star reviews on Amazon of people who (1) got total duds that were virtually useless, and (2) "I died just beyond the 30 day return period. I had only used it 10 times." (However, I realize that something like 3% of any manufactured electronics is likely to be defective, from what I've read, and those are the people who are going to post a one-star review.) So here is my question: If I buy a Temptop M2000C and let it calibrate out on my outdoor patio for hours and then take it to the location of my city's air quality meter (the source of the numbers shown on the local AIR QUALITY webpage), should I expect the unit to be within 10% (or 5%, or 15%) of the "official" air quality data for my city? I was thinking of hanging around in that location for an hour or so so the meter could adjust. So what do you think of my strategy? Or is there another meter that has won your confidence in the year-plus since this video?
The TemTop M2000 2nd edition seems to be the better one to have, and don't know much about the "c" version. As for your question about calibration. Most monitors' AQI reading is based upon all the sensors that are in the device, and not the AQI in a certain area or town. I would say that even if you do a calibration of your monitor at your house and take it to town, it will not be the same number, and more than likely it will not even be close to the town's AQI. Usually the AQI number is based on the device's sensors, and why most monitors are not even close to the AQI in their local area. Unfortunately I don't have a go-to monitor right now because so many monitors or beginning to be a hit and miss on accuracy. The AirKnight was my favorite until I discovered that the AirKnight also has problems. AirKnight is working on a new monitor and hopefully will be ready to purchase by the end of the year, but until I review and test it, I won't know for sure it is a better choice. There are too many companies more interested in making money than putting out a quality device. The two most important monitors to have are a CO and CO2 monitor. The best thing to do is to have a decent air purifier that runs 24/7, and have good ventilation. Even the TemTop M10 I cannot recommend any longer, as I just found out that it does not have a legitimate VOC sensor inside, as it used the HCHO sensor to calculate a TVOC reading (which is pointless in my opinion), but the M10+ will have a VOC sensor inside, but no HCHO sensor which doesn't make any sense to me. It is getting harder and harder to find a quality monitor, and even to the point that it may actually be better not to have one than to have one, and that is because the quality of most of these monitors is continually going down, as I have had a couple companies turn me down to review their products, and more than likely because they don't want to be found out - just an assumption though.
@@Outside-In. Thanks for your reply. I've been thinking about another issue which I rarely see addressed which may suggest that, in many cases, an air purifier is a semi-futile enterprise: Unless one has a very tightly sealed house (which is rarely the case), there are multiple air exchanges per hour through the various leaks that naturally occur even around well built windows and doors. As a result, how can air-purifiers keep up? Isn't it like air-purifying with a window open? I would think that this would be especially problematic in urban areas with a lot of PM2.5. Wouldn't new particles be constantly coming through the air-leaks from the outside? Even if the air purifiers are major capacity, I would think they would have trouble keeping up in a typical apartment or house built decades ago.
@@VelvetRockStudios @VelvetRockStudios Air purifiers are mostly used in the winter when doors and windows are shut. Yes in the summer, you may not need to use an air purifier if all your windows are open, and you have an intake fan and outtake fan keeping the air within your home fresh at all times. At night when you close some of your windows and turn off ventilation fans, then it would be good to run the purifier to clean the air. Most of the time, we can use common sense to know if we need an air purifier running or not in our homes. In my humble opinion, there are too many people that have paranoia these days about air quality which leads to sickness and unhealthy living... For hundreds of years no-one used (or even head of) an air quality monitor, and they lived to a very old age, but now people are dying much much younger, and I believe it is because of the paranoia surrounding air quality. The most important monitors to own are CO and CO2. If a person is going to be paranoid about anything, be paranoid about those two gases that we cannot see or smell. Particulates we can see, TVOC we can smell, and HCHO is in everything and everywhere, and there is no way of getting away from it. HCHO is abundantly in the forest and plants, and has been since the beginning. The best thing that we can do for our health, is to not become paranoid about air quality, and to love life, not be afraid of it. Companies have created this panic just to make a sale. Just try and remember back when people abundantly went on camping trips, and enjoyed family and friends over a camp fire for hot dogs and marshmallows. Now since all this about air quality has started, see how much less people are getting outdoors for camping or enjoying each others company around a fire, which has resulted in much more sickness than normal, and also depression. This air quality ordeal has gotten way way out of hand. The ONLY time that I get out a monitor is just to check things out from time to time.
Comparison of following items would be great: Qingping Air Quality Monitor, XIAOMI Mijia Air Quality Tester, Airthings Wave Plus, Honeywell Air Monitor.
Thank you for the suggestions. The Qingping is one I have been looking at, Airthings, and Honeywell also, but where am I going to get the money for all these???.. I can only do so much on my own, but I do appreciate the suggestions, and will be able to get to more when I am able to actually make money with UA-cam, but for now, I just have to keep using money out of my own pocket, and why these videos are so far apart at times... I will do the best I can. 👍👍
Awesome thorough review. Just subscribed. I came across your video upon researching how to use my recently purchased Temtop indoor thermometer air quality monitor. I'm wondering if it's inaccurate as you mentioned in your videos.
Danny thanks for the comment and question. I wouldn't classify lesser expensive monitors as being inaccurate - they are just not pin-point accurate... Pin-Point accuracy is very very expensive. Air Quality monitors that are more reasonable in price is simply because the sensors are not super high quality and why the cost is lower. BUT - these monitors are very close to accurate, and after-all, that is all we need - - close. In our homes we don't need pin-point accuracy, we just need to know that the air is getting a little stale, and alert us to opening a window to get some fresh air moving around. The TemTop monitors are just fine, but once in a while, we get one that has a defect just like the one in this video. And thanks for the subscribe
Great informative video thanks for your effort to keep us safe! I am a truck driver that sleeps in my truck, I have been put off work because an exhaust leak in the truck. Unknowing to me I have been breathing diesel exhaust for months now getting progressively worse until I got sick from it. Sadly I have to go back to work knowing how bad diesel exhaust is for you. The exhaust leak has been located and repaired. Can you suggest a monitor that would help me out best for my case. I do have an inverter 110v so power is not an issue but being rugged and robust air tester unit would help my cause. Thanks in advance ! Your the Man!
Thank you Whaler for the comment and thumbs up - much appreciated. I myself was a driver for 24 years, so I understand what you are going through. Exhaust fumes are going to put off CO, so be very careful with that because I have been poisoned by CO and CO2 and almost died. It is very serious stuff for sure. You will get mostly CO from your exhaust, but you will also experience CO2, not just as much, but can be just as deadly. I would definitely recommend getting the Smart Sensor CO handheld meter, as it is super fast at detecting CO. I love mine, and you can even walk outside of your truck, use the meter to test everywhere you can think of, and pin-point the exact location where these harmful fumes may be entering your cabin. I would also recommend getting the Smart Sensor CO2 handheld meter, but it is a bit more expensive because it is a professional meter, so you will be sure to get most accurate readings. I have links in videos that I have done to both of these meters. Try not let the price of the CO2 meter stop you from getting it, as for me anyhow, my life or the life of someone else is worth much more than the cost for sure. After your comment, I would feel safe to say that you yourself would feel the same as I do. What is also great about the Smart Sensor meters, is that they are battery powered so you can easily take them to a friends truck if they are experiencing any symptoms, such as - Headaches, Dizziness, Vomiting, Euphoria, stumbling as if you were drunk, uncontrollable shacking in the limbs that you can't control (scary believe me as that was one of the symptoms I was experiencing, and all of the others as well - that is why I know LOL). Slurred speech, Vision problems, Closing eyes and seeing thousands of stars or small specs of multicolored light, and you really know it is getting bad if when you lay down, the whole world begins to spin around and around like a merry-go-round. Those are all the symptoms that I experienced when I had extensive poisoning to my system from CO and CO2. My body was so saturated that I even began falling down when I would try to stand, it was quite the experience for sure, and wouldn't wish any of what I went through on anyone, and that is why I am so detailed about air quality videos, I do loads of research to make sure I get the correct information out to those that need to know... The best way to know if something is wrong, is that you will first start to feel dizzy, and experience headaches. If you immediately get out of your truck, walk around in fresh air for a few moments, the symptoms should go away, and once back inside your truck, and a few moments later the symptoms return, there is a serious problem. You can also use this information if another driver may be complaining about symptoms they don't understand like mentioned above, and then you could take your meters to their truck and do a check for them for CO and CO2. I hope this information has helped, and am so glad to hear that you were able to get your truck fixed. Hopefully it won't happen again, but just in case, you would have the tools to check for leaks. I apologize that this was a bit long-winded, but when discussing this topic it can get quite involved because there is so much information to cover regarding CO and CO2 symptoms.
Thanks for your prompt response and have read it a couple of times. I did not get the shakes but many of your symptoms I can relate to. Money is not an issue ,so for clarity the Smart Sensor CO2 will do both CO and CO2. It feels like I am being told by the Good Lord to stop trucking, I just returned from years off from a Suicide/murder, a young man drove his car into my grill killing both occupants. And just weeks into my return behind the wheel the Company truck had 3 exhaust leaks getting me sick. Now off work again , I know it will get better. The symptoms have almost subsided and should get Dr clearance to return next week , so I want to give myself the best chance to mentally succeed and the physical should follow. Thank again for your great response !
@@WhalersWorld The Smart Sensor CO2 does only CO2, and the Smart Sensor CO does only CO. I will try and find a link for you on Aliexpress, as I do believe that is where I bought the CO2 meter by Smart Sensor. Crazy thing about the suicide, but I know it will get easier to deal with as time passes.
@@WhalersWorld This is a link to the CO2 meter I bought, and it is around 180.00 I think it said: www.aliexpress.us/item/3256804532459210.html?spm=a2g0o.detail.1000014.46.65c8147bnU1c9S&gps-id=pcDetailBottomMoreOtherSeller&scm=1007.40000.326746.0&scm_id=1007.40000.326746.0&scm-url=1007.40000.326746.0&pvid=efc3c710-34f9-449e-8bd0-1c9c8a114481&_t=gps-id:pcDetailBottomMoreOtherSeller,scm-url:1007.40000.326746.0,pvid:efc3c710-34f9-449e-8bd0-1c9c8a114481,tpp_buckets:668%232846%238114%23748&pdp_ext_f=%7B%22sku_id%22%3A%2212000030221280226%22%2C%22sceneId%22%3A%2230050%22%7D&pdp_npi=3%40dis%21USD%21255.4%21173.67%21%21%21%21%21%402101d1b316774814052091262e2b28%2112000030221280226%21rec%21US%21872586204
Thanks FalconWing for the question, and yes I can absolutely recommend the Smart Sensor CO2 handheld meter. It is fast to respond to use around a home of office to find problems spots. I love the Smart Sensor handheld CO2 meter. www.aliexpress.us/item/3256804532459210.html?spm=a2g0o.detail.1000014.46.65c8147bnU1c9S&gps-id=pcDetailBottomMoreOtherSeller&scm=1007.40000.326746.0&scm_id=1007.40000.326746.0&scm-url=1007.40000.326746.0&pvid=efc3c710-34f9-449e-8bd0-1c9c8a114481&_t=gps-id:pcDetailBottomMoreOtherSeller,scm-url:1007.40000.326746.0,pvid:efc3c710-34f9-449e-8bd0-1c9c8a114481,tpp_buckets:668%232846%238114%23748&pdp_ext_f=%7B%22sku_id%22%3A%2212000030221280226%22%2C%22sceneId%22%3A%2230050%22%7D&pdp_npi=3%40dis%21USD%21255.4%21173.67%21%21%21%21%21%402101d1b316774814052091262e2b28%2112000030221280226%21rec%21US%21872586204
Hello, sir! Really appreciate your video. What air quality monitor would you recommend that specifically detects co2? I'm a college student and it is for project purposes so I'm hoping to find a budget-friendly monitor since it would be a one time use only.
@kevs8829 You just have to be careful about their other models, as it is a hit and miss on one that works unfortunately. The TemTop C10 is a great CO2 monitor, and it is around 80.00 I think, but would be a good choice. CO2 monitors are very expensive, but other than Hotkrem, I would recommend the TemTop for budget reasons. Hope this helps.
Its a shame you didn't use the 2nd gen version in your test! The M2000 has been replaced with a 2nd gen version. The upgrade has a Swedish S8 and SHT3X series sensors and no longer has the China Weisheng and Si7020 series sensors.
Thank you Richard for the comment, and yes, I would have loved to give the 2nd gen a try but unfortunately I can't afford that one as it is more expensive. When I contacted TemTop they didn't even suggest that the 2nd gen was a replacement with better sensors - TemTop just wanted me to buy one of the even more expensive models than the 2nd gen. I also believe that the 2nd gen has data connection to monitor readings over time.
@@RichardO1369 Richard - I know what you mean. While researching products that I am interested in, sometimes I find that I come away with more questions than answers, so I use those situations to give me a cause/idea to create another video so that people can find the answers they are looking for. Allot of reviews I find seem to be more an advertisement than a true test and review... :)
@@pkd2411 Yes PKD. There are at least 4 in this video that I recommend. I would love to be able to do more testing and reviews, but there are so very many air quality monitors, and some very very expensive prices to go along with them. I have a very limited budget which does not allow me to make elaborate purchased to review and test products. I wish I could buy everyone that someone wants me to test, but that is absolutely and fortunately impossible for me to do.
48:40 that's an optical particle sensor. Not just nothing. Most smoke detectors work this way. I also work with professional particle detection systems, much more sensitive than a normal smoke detector. They also use a lightsource (some times a laser) and specific angle and a light sensor. Just saying "there is nothing in there" is wrong. But it's not closed well enough to block light to come in. This makes the sensor less reliable. The good ones have air channels with multiple corners avoiding any light getting in.
Nice video, with 3d printing filament and Resin becoming more affordable, definitely having this info is very helpful. I have been looking at a lot of VOC monitors and half of them seem like crap and to good to be true. Amazon sadly sells stuff and removes after to many complaints.
Thanks Justice for your comment and thoughts. I do allot of 3D printing with PLA, so may be why my numbers are a bit higher when printing. I have never used ABS, but I hear that it puts off even more fumes/odors than PLA, so a great reason for having a VOC sensor around for sure... Good to know when to get that window open for some ventilation. Yes, unfortunately, Amazon let's the fake ones through, but I am sure it would be hard to keep up with the many monitors to know which are good, and which are bad, so a good point that when there are enough complaints, it is a good time for Amazon to look at the specific device closer, and remove it from the sales window... All good points Justice - much appreciated 👍
@Outside-In. Hey there outside. I started getting headaches, a sore throat, and a bad feeling in my lungs, while in my apartment. And something that's adding to my paranoia is that these symptoms happen on random days, and they started happening after I got into a confrontation with my downstairs naighbor. I thought my air quality was just bad so i got a clorox air purifier that has a PM2.5 air sensor on it, and on random days around 7pm to 12pm, and 8am to 12 am the sensor starts reading around 10-30. I know that the most common form of air poisoning is carbon monoxide, but is there any other kind of air pollution I should make sure my air sensor has?
@@TheRealPaul_Morphy @TheRealPaul_Morphy Hello Paul and thank you for your comment and concerns. First of all anyone who has a confrontation with a neighbor, and suddenly starts having symptoms that you describe, and have not had them before the incident - would be easy enough to become paranoid about the confrontation... Secondly: There is some troubleshooting steps one must take to evaluate the paranoia... A. Is the person with whom you had the confrontation someone who has a vengeful personality?. B. A person who does not get along well with others?. C. Have you changed anything (routine) that you normally do lately, and may just be coincidence to the confrontation?. D. Are you lately using cleaning supplies that you do not normally use?, as ammonia would cause the symptoms you describe - believe me - I know this from personal experience and why I had to stop using ammonia based products. C. You say the person with whom you had the confrontation with lives below you, but do they live directly below you, or does someone live in an apartment between the two of you?. If there is someone living between the two of you, maybe you could find out from the neighbor directly below you if they are having the same or similar issues at the times you specify. E. If it is ammonia causing the issue, you would know from the odor as ammonia has a potent odor, and will also cause you to have breathing issues as well. Ammonia is very very toxic, so check all of the cleaning supplies you use for an ammonia base (it should be in the list of ingredients). Thirdly: 10-30 on a PM2.5 monitor is fine, and nothing to be worried about. Dehydration can also cause headache and sore/dry throat, so check you humidity levels. This time of year, when the weather is constantly changing, it can cause sickness such as a common cold, pneumonia or the flu, and the Flu and Covid can and will cause these symptoms as well. It may be that the confrontation is nothing more than a coincidence, and you have possibly contracted the Flu during this time. Without knowing more about your situation and environment revolving around the confrontation, it is very hard to asses what may be happening, but I do hope that the steps I presented above will help to eliminate your paranoia about the neighbor. CO and CO2 poisoning has many symptoms, but they both start out as your symptoms you are currently having. I nearly died from CO poisoning, so I have a lot of experience with how the symptoms start and progress. BUT we have to be very careful with specific information as that also can lead to false symptoms. The mind is a very powerful thing but so is paranoia. The most important thing is that you need to find out what is causing your environment to change randomly. I would suggest that you get a CO monitor and also a CO2 monitor as those are the two MOST important monitors a person needs. CO and CO2 are both tasteless and odorless, so you don't even know they are there and why it is so important to be able to keep an eye on their levels in your home/environment. I am so hoping that the confrontation is just a coincidence. High levels of any gas can cause (in the beginning) headache, sore throat, breathing problems, and without correction can later lead to nausea/upset stomach, vomiting, convulsions, dizziness, euphoria, memory loss, muscle control loss, a feeling of being drunk, stumbling, falling, flashes of scattering light in your vision, closing eyes and room spins around and around. I have mentioned all the symptoms that I had personally when poisoned, but at the time, I had no idea about CO or CO2. There are many symptoms caused by gas exposure, but the more severe symptoms take constant exposure for a few days and up to a week to appear. The only symptom I did not get (thank God) was death, but it was very close, and the loss of muscle control was the most embarrassing, as I was behaving like someone with Parkinson's disease. It was a pretty scary time for sure. The first step is to find someone with a few monitors that can check for things such as CO and CO2 levels. CO should NEVER go above 1pm for any length of time. Some will say don't worry about CO if it is 50ppm, but that is horrible information, and also a lie. In your situation, I would definitely be checking my CO and CO2 levels during the times that you have described. Check with other neighbors to find out if anyone else is having the same symptoms during the times you state. It is all about troubleshooting and not letting paranoia get the best of you. I hope I have been able to help and give you peace of mind. If you can't afford to get CO and CO2 monitors, there is also another option, and that would be to contact your local fire department, and explain to them your situation, and they may want to come to your apartment and use their professional meters to check things out for you, as it may also be a gas leak that only occurs at certain times. Just be careful about contacting the Fire Department, as they get 100's of calls every year due to paranoia that turns out to be nothing. Another step you can take, is when the symptoms happen, immediate go outside into fresh air, and if there is a serious issue, your symptoms will go away while outdoors, and then go back inside to see if the symptoms return, and if they do, then you will know that there is something going on that needs further investigation. I hope that I have been able to help, and I also hope that it is just paranoia. Keep us informed if the symptoms persist or go away. Thanks again for your comment and concerns, as your solution may help others going through similar circumstances.
Thanks you GTCRISTIAN for the comment and question. I have not been able to use the Amazon AQI monitor, so I can't give an intellectual opinion on that. 👍
Thank you for the very informative video. I’m about to pull the trigger in getting the recommended M10. Not sure if anyone has asked you this, but is it possible to continuously operate the unit while plugged in to a power source, instead of relying solely on battery power?
Thank you Mohammad for the comment and question. Yes, you can leave this constantly plugged in for continuous use so if the power goes out, the unit will still run on battery until the power comes back on.
Went with the Hotkrem and a CO detector. With all the smoke on the east coast, I thought that should be helpful. Thanks for all your videos, I'm learning quickly watching you operate and test all these units. Made the decision process much simpler.
So happy these videos have helped. Getting ready to do another comparison with the AirKnight 9 in 1 and a Smart Sensor 5 in 1, it should be interesting. I love the Smart Sensor co meter, and the Hotkrem is a good choice as well. I do hope those work great for you.
Just to clarify it's the 5 in 1 Hotkrem that includes the CO2 monitor. I will definitely look at your AirKnight review as well. The Hotkrem PM readings have brought a lot of peace of mind during these Canadian wildfire events.
@@juicebowl I found out that Hotkrem has several versions and one includes a CO2 sensor, so that would be a great choice. I just wish that Hotkrem would stop with the numbers changing colors as it is very hard to read the screen when the numbers go dark red, as the dark red blends into the black background causing the numbers very hard to read. Thanks for your comment - it is much appreciated.
Thank you so much, as that is why I truly believe that God led me to create Outside In. Your sentiments are very much welcomed and appreciated, as it is comments like yours that give me not only encouragement, but inspiration as well to continue to do what I believe God has led me to do.
Thanks for the video. I am looking for a reliable meter primarily for particulate monitoring that can be plugged in and has onboard storage for later download. Any suggestions for a decent one ?
Thank you Paul for your question. I cannot recommend anything that I have not tested, but I have tested Hotkrem devices, and the ones I have work great. Hotkrem also makes a model with data logging: www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0B9S6WRZS/ref=ox_sc_saved_title_1?smid=A1SDL45DDNCD9H&psc=1 I have not tested it, but keep in mind also that allot of people say that their Hotkrem did not work or only worked for a few days, I myself have not experienced that, so would have to recommend only with risk of possibly getting one that did not work. I did find another that looks very interesting, but unfortunately cannot afford to purchase for testing, but this is the link if you would like to take a look at it: www.amazon.com/BLATN-Formaldehyde-Detector-Pollution-Particle/dp/B08YRVGCSV/ref=sr_1_3?crid=TT5DX8HRT35Z&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.JPSUlzIRQbRlHWsJVlvmg_jmjMnJjp2bVM5CsolImXq1oCwS4wCctYppJ1Wtzh9rOC7GgJAeuDM9G9C09HgdAeBAwPIIsdRrSPkttidTxwIGYGPJQUEfA8mDq_wCNs0Zl2R_nF72fj_AQY59OUvR-kW5aENz8hExN4QZ435YSvy0MDsqnfbyrGw1ipBn0zndQxGWLz-vRjOKD2CVQNTdLzNFHiKMUx9Scrkr2FRZB8o.eki4FYmFi2Usc-Nq0XoeSSQWzK6QaGm7SSRBR0h-tbk&dib_tag=se&keywords=air+quality+monitor+data+logger&qid=1710874513&sprefix=air+quality+monitor+with+data%2Caps%2C164&sr=8-3 Thanks for your question, and hope this has helped. 👍
Recently came in the market for an air quality sensor and am so glad the UA-cam algo recommended your video. Having done some research prior to watching your video, the scourge of cheap and inaccurate air quality monitors on Amazon is pretty evident. I want to monitor PM/TVOC/CO2 and so far the units I am agreeable with are the Airthings View Plus, Awair Element and Airknight 9-in-1. Reputable companies such as Airthings and Awair will publish the types of sensors they use to measure/calculate the various elements and I figure this would be the best way to decide on a monitor. None of the cheap air quality monitors had their sensor components published or readily available anywhere that I could find. I emailed Airknight inquiring about the sensors in their monitor. Hope they get back to me because the Airknight 9-in-1 at $130 is the most affordable of the three.
Thank you Tippy for the comment. You just have to be careful about "published sensor information", because I have seen an air quality monitor (a fake one I show in this video from Amazon) that published it had the sensors advertised, and it even showed photos of the sensors, BUT when taken apart - there were no such sensors inside - ONLY the one voc sensor that is in most of these fake monitors. That is why I don't recommend any monitor that I haven't physically touched, tested, and taken apart to verify what is inside is what is stated to be inside. I have also seen that some of these fake monitors are now selling for close to (if not more than) 100.00, so just be careful and do your research before making a purchase.
Shobuddy, I just thought I would reply again to say that in a couple weeks I will be creating another air quality video that includes the AirKnight 9 in 1 monitor, and I am looking forward to doing another tear-down and comparison video for sure. Also in the line-up is one of my favorite meter making company's "Smart Sensor". I just found out they make a 5 in 1 monitor, so I decide to make the purchase and compare it with the AirKnight 9 in 1 that someone had asked about recently.
I sent you a comment that on my meter CO2 was at 544ppm and in the green. You answered that the meter was not good, now I see on your chart CO2 in the green is between 400_650ppm, so my meter as for CO2 should be good. All this is getting confusing
I am so sorry Ruudy, I have been responding to so many questions in the past couple of days, that I am starting to get confused with whom I am speaking too. I will have to go back and review those comments, and I will be right back to answer this concern about your CO2 meter. Please, I know I had asked what the name of your meter was, but you did not respond, so if you could tell me the name of your meter, I would be happy to look into that specific meter, and why I would have suggested it was wrong. Sorry again, as it is hard to keep up with everyone at the same time LOL....
It is hard to keep up with you, as you have watched so many of my videos and thank you for that, but it is very hard to follow your questions from one video to another especially when your comments are referring to a different comment on another video other than this one. I have went over I believe every comment that we have had on all the videos that you have watched..., and I see no comment where you mention 544ppm and in the green... The only comment I saw where I suggested the CO2 was wrong, was the video that you had said your CO2 reading was 422 - not 544, and all I was suggesting is that 422 is not a very good reading, as that is way too low for a typical home environment. A real CO2 detector, will show 500 to 800 on average for normal air quality, and some times, that number may even go as low as 465 or a little higher, but a monitor that shows in the low 400's, is not likely, unless you go under ground. If you could point me to the video where you mentioned 544ppm, I would be able to help better, but I really need to know the name of the Pro CO2 monitor that you told me you have.
Ok RuudyL, let me see if I can address your question about the "chart" that I show in the video, that says in the green is between 400-650ppm... First of all, these are NOT my numbers.. These numbers and charts, are from the Scientific Community, and they are nothing more than a base-line for knowing what CO2 levels can be... The reason that the Scientific Community states 400 as a low number, is because 400ppm is going to be the lowest number that you will ever see on a CO2 device, unless you take that monitor, and go under-ground, and only then will the numbers go below 400ppm. Right now, the atmosphere has a CO2 concentration of about 415ppm, and at ground level, it may be (depending on where you live), be as low as 404 to 410ppm, so your inside CO2 levels will never be that low, unless you open all your doors, all your windows for about an hour or so, but as soon as you close your doors, and your windows, the numbers will go right back up to a normal levels of around 600 to 800ppm, and maybe even 500 to 800ppm, again, depending upon you specific region and environment. According to the Scientific Community, Normal Levels of CO2 in a HOME - is going to be between 600 to 800ppm, and that is the average of homes they have studied over the years. It is possible that CO2 levels, CAN go down as low as 455ppm or so - inside of a home, but that greatly depends on how many people are in that home at the time, and how often they breath in and out (which is pretty often), so it is not likely to see numbers go that low inside of a home with windows and doors closed, especially in the winter time, as it is too cold to keep them constantly open, and also why CO2 levels typically are higher in the winter than they are in the summer inside your home. I just checked with my CO2 meter, and my outside CO2 level goes down to 424ppm, but when I bring it back into my home, the CO2 goes back up to 600 to 705ppm, which is typical in my home, but won't be the same in someone else's home. It also depends on where you are living on the planet Earth, as the CO2 levels are very different based upon where a person lives. However, 422ppm (which is the number you told me in a comment), is not likely at all on the inside of your home, and the reason for that is because we as humans expel around 35,000ppm CO2 with every exhale when you are breathing, and that number accumulates over time inside your home. Without proper ventilation, your CO2 levels will begin to rise, and if you have more than one person within your home, that number will rise much higher, and why ventilation is so very important to remove higher levels of CO2 from your home environment. You mentioned that you have a Pro CO2 meter for testing CO2 levels in your environment. Could you please give me the name of your CO2 meter, so that I can check it out?.
My m10 hcho seems to be about 20% cross reactive with tvoc. So, when tvoc reads .50, hcho reads .10. I assume this is normal. Anyone do a tear down to confirm the dedicated Dart HCHO sensor?
Thank you Josh for the comment. I have taken apart TemTop monitors before, so I know that they do use legitimate HCHO sensors in their devices, so why I didn't take this one apart, but I guess maybe I should??. :). Normal depends on the amount of Formaldehyde in your environment. I would say that mostly there should not be too much Formaldehyde, unless of course a person has actual Formaldehyde in use. Formaldehyde is in everything that we use, so there will always be a minimal amount in our environment, and more if we buy a piece of furniture from WalMart etc., and as we put it together, that will cause the levels to rise (and that is just one example of possible HCHO sources).
Unfortunately I think you are right. There are so many fake ones out that it is almost a gamble which one to buy, and because some fake monitors are getting more expensive, it is harder to know that more expensive means real... Kinda like where AI is going - - soon it will be hard to tell the difference between a fake photo or video from a real one??...
calypsocat thanks for the information on the M2000 2nd edition. That is good to know that they fixed problems with the 2nd edition. Happy to hear it is working fine for you.
Talk about Ironic... I am in the process now of building a new case for testing monitors, and am building it so I can create a vacuum inside to more precisely test monitors. I couldn't afford to get 1/2 inch acrylic, but am using 1/4 inch, but it should be strong enough to create a good enough vacuum for testing purposes. I just want to create a case that won't let anything out or let any contaminants in while testing. Great idea though, and thanks for the comment - much appreciated. 👍👍
I saw the user guide in the box. I see first time use Temtop M10 is leave it at outside for 6 hours. It's mean leave it at room or outside the house? I'm sorry, little silly here
Yes Stephan, leave it outside in fresh air for 6 hours for calibration. I think what it is for is to clear the device of any fumes accumulated during manufacturing. Once you have opened the package for the first time - step 1 is to leave it powered off, place it outside in fresh air for 6 hours. Step 2 is to turn it on (while still outside) and leave it for about 30 minutes before bringing it inside. You should only have to do the 6 hour thing once after purchasing or storing it for any length of time. Hope this helps Stephan. Before performing the above procedure, make sure it is fully charged before you start. Myself, I connected it to a power bank and set it outside so that the initial charge acted as part of the 6 hour calibration/clearing of unit.
I love this video! I bought a used FFU hepa filter unit to do some at home microbiology. I want to test the unit by buying a budget P2.5 tester. All I care about is accurate particulate readings so my agar plates aren't contaminated. Do you have any recommendations?
Sir do you have idea if TUYA Wifi 15 in 1 Air Quality detector App Control Portable is Accurate, please consider to evaluate if time permits. Thank your video is really amazing help other people in choosing gatgets
If that is what I just saw on Ali-express for around 30 or 40 dollars. Absolutely NOT. Do not purchase any monitor that claims 10 or more readings for 20 bucks or 30 or 50 or even 100 dollars. If you could add a link or send me one via email to the device you are talking about, I could get a better assessment of what it is.
@@LakbayDrone It will be interesting to hear what you find inside... The listing says 15 in 1, but they only show 9 in the description?, very suspect. I did not know you had purchased one. If I were you, I would not trust it for safety. If might be cool to look at, watching the numbers dance around, but please don't trust it for anything even close to accuracy or honesty. We have an internal air quality monitor within each of us, and all we have to do is open a window when we get the urge to do so - (the urge is our alarm going off) :)...
So my neighbor burns in a barrel and he smoked out my cabin, I am very concerned on the, me going to sleep and not waking up, he burns treated wood, copper wire and so on. what would you recommend for an air monitoring device for my home it's a small place 24' by 16' with vaulted ceilings but I woke up with a headache and nausea from the smoke alone and I was down stairs inside
My biggest recommendation for anyone is to have a CO and CO2 detector. If you are waking up with a headache, it more than likely is too much smoke which adds CO in your environment. Get yourself a CO detector - there is a lot of CO in smoke. Make sure you have plenty of ventilation. If this happens a lot, you should have a fan in a window venting out, and a CO monitor (I recommend the Smart Sensor handheld meter, it is very accurate and sensitive. ALWAYS keep an eye on your CO levels inside your cabin. It should NEVER go above 0 ppm. If CO goes up to 5ppm and stays there for more than a minute, something is wrong and needs to be addressed. Please get yourself a CO monitor if your neighbor burns wood a lot, as the smoke will produce Carbon Monoxide (CO). Hope this helps.
you have an awesome grandpa laugh.. made me crack up, ur review is the best from all i have seen on UA-cam and yes that includes the ones that come on top...
Thank you Neil for the kind words it is much appreciated. I love to laugh - as it cures many ailments... Thank you also for the comment on the review and am glad you liked it.
Thanks for the video im glad i could see whats inside of that cheap one i was going to buy one now im not! Are there any you would recommend that i can record the data and check it later? btw i skipped to 43 mins in the video i didnt see the earlier parts so sorry if i missed something. I have fibromyalgia i have sleep issues and tiredness i want to find out if its my fibromyalgia or if there is actually a problem with the air quality in my home. of course, if there is a problem in my home id like a unit that would alert me and i can do something about the issues. i looked at the airgradient one looks good however the shipping to the uk is $55 which to me is ridiculous! i wouldnt mind getting a few pcb's made and soldering but im more of a through hole solderer i am not sure if there is much surface mount components so i cant tell if i could do it or not. ive done a couple bits of surface mount but not anything too small. id like to monitor what that cheap one "supposedly" (but not really) monitors. anything more than that would be a bonus.
Thanks, Toto, for the comment. If you are having a problem with sleeping that is not caused by your condition, what you would want to check for would be CO and CO2, and my recommendation first of all would be the Smart Sensor handheld CO meter. If there is a problem with carbon monoxide, you will know pretty quickly. As far as. CO2, I recommend Smart Sensor CO2 handheld meter. The AiKnight with CO2 detection would also be a great choice, but would also need to get the Smart Sensor CO handheld meter for checking carbon monoxide, but those two together would be all you would need for air quality testing. I hope this information has been helpful. I would have gone more in depth, but I am at the garage right now getting my truck worked on, and writing on my phone is not the easiest thing to do, LOL..
@@Outside-In. Thanks for the information my fibro comes with sleep issues but I wanted to check if it was just that or if there is any air quality issues in my home that could be making it worse. Sleep is very important and rem sleep is the most important and I don't seem to get enough of that some nights I'm waking up 10 or more times. It would be nice to find out if there is anything like air quality causing issues then maybe if there is I can do something about it
@@TotoGuy-Original Thanks Toto. I am starting to wonder if there is another issue related to not sleeping well, such as - stress will cause one not to be able to sleep very well, eating just before lying down will also be a factor in a bad nights sleep (waking up throughout the night), anxiety (not feeling happy, worry etc..) is a big reason why someone is up and down all night. I don't think that PM or TVOC's would cause a person to be up all throughout the night, as there would be some symptoms after waking up like coughing or sneezing, itchy eyes etc.. If CO or CO2 was an issue, there would be symptoms such as headaches, dizziness, euphoria, a sick feeling in the stomach (nausea), and as the symptoms progress, there would be convulsions, and walking around like someone intoxicated, - I know - that is what happened to me, so why I am so familiar with CO and CO2 poisoning. Drinking allot of coffee (like I do) will cause you to get up many times throughout the night, but I guess that makes sense anyhow right??? LOL. Just trying to think of anything that could cause having to get up many times at night. I don't know anything about your fibro condition, so can't speak intelligently on the subject. wish I could be more help, but I feel your problem doesn't stem from air quality, I feel it is either the fibro or something personal in your life that is causing undue stress and or anxiety.
To me, defective is a term for a product that could work, but does not, due to some unusual issue in manufacturing. That is not the case with some of these monitors, which appear to be deliberate frauds. I know amazon can't police their entire platform, but this goes beyond just bad manufacturing.
I would have to agree that defective is just an issue with quality control. With that said, TemTop has recently reached out to me to ask for my help and collaboration on a new monitor they are developing, and they have been pleasantly appreciative of my help and suggestions. They will be sending out their new device to me by the end of the month for beta testing it before it goes public, so they can fix any last minute issues that there may be. They have been watching the channel for some time now (and I had no idea of course until they contacted me), and also apologized for the customer service experience that I had, and that they are working on fixing that issue, so hopefully their customer service will get better. They also sent me a new M2000 2nd edition to make good on the two defective units I had received, and I will be doing a video review of that one soon. I am close to finishing my new case for better testing of monitors, so have a few monitors to catch up on once that is complete. I am excited to use this new case, as it is bigger and is going to also be more air tight so I can be more precise of testing monitors. I have a busy road ahead once the case is complete, because I have been getting some pretty cool ideas from viewers to try out in the new case, so that is also going to be exciting to do. Thanks for your comment and thoughts - they are much appreciated. Just don't give up on TemTop yet, as I really do want to give them the benefit of the doubt, as they didn't have to reach out to me since Outside In is so small, but they genuinely seem to want to get better with their quality, so only time will tell of course. For now, let's just take it one step at a time, and if they are not being honest with me, that too will show itself just as quickly.
Thanks for this very helpful video! I am looking into air quality monitors after a recent search for a radon detector/monitor. (I am currently running two different continuous radon monitors side by side and trying to figure out which one is giving me the accurate reading...that's another story). But in reading up on radon, I started reading up on air quality. I searched the internet for reviews for AQ monitors and the Temtop M10 kept coming up. I then searched UA-cam for Temtop M10 reviews and I saw your video among several reviews. I am glad to see that you are pretty happy with it. It's appalling that manufacturers would made devices that display fake data. There really should be independent testing labs that can certify these devices (because even if I opened it up I wouldn't know what to look for). Thanks for going through all you did to compare these monitors.
Thank you Mary Ann for the comment and input. Yes I agree - there should definitely be testing done to prove there are these fake meters out there - especially when people are counting on them for safety... I am glad this video helped in your search for an AQ meter - and if you should get the M10, it would be nice to hear how it works for you. I am always on the lookout for a cool meter, so maybe I should look into a radon detector\meter and see what that is all about.
@@Outside-In. I did wind up purchasing the M10 Temtop. After airing it out overnight, I brought it in and was happy to see each room of the house everything was in range (except the formaldehyde....it doesn't "zero out" but only zero is good...I will have to try it outside). I wasn't sure if the readings were accurate since they were all low, and then I decided to make dinner using the air fryer. Well, the readings went very high (PM, TVOC and AQ)....all through the first floor of the house. Well, that was pretty educational! Our kitchen has poor ventilation so I will pay more attention to that while cooking. I would say this meter is going to be helpful.
I just wanted to amend my comment to say that I'm not sure how low the formaldehyde levels need to be to be safe, whether that's zero or ....? It was the one reading that didn't change with cooking.
@@maryann6365 Thank you Mary. Wow - again UA-cam didn't notify me of a comment. Sorry I didn't respond to this incredible information, but it is truly appreciated to hear others' experiences with the M10.
@@maryann6365 Formaldehyde is (I believe) mostly associated with smoking. Overall, there is a growing consensus that indoor air concentrations in the range of 0.08-0.1 ppm (100-120 μg/m3) represent safe exposure level for most people. So yes, if your levels are 0 or about there, I would say that you are in good shape Mary... Thanks again for the information and again sorry I didn't know your comment was made....
You should compare these to a Dylos DC 1100. Even with the Dylos DC 1100 it only detects down to .5micron. Ultrafine particles are not detected. Many particles (ultrafine) are unfiltered even with a HEPA grade filter.
Thank you Josh for the comment and suggestion. I love doing comparison videos, but the cost is killing me to keep reviewing Air Quality products as they can be very expensive... That said... I looked into this monitor, and it would be something very very interesting for me to create a comparison video that I would absolutely love to do, so I contacted Dylos directly, and spoke with a woman there, and told her what I had in mind, and that I had gotten a request from a viewer to do a review of their product. Nicole told me that the owner Roger would be the best person to speak to, so she took down my information, and said that she would have Roger get in touch with me. I am looking forward to talking with Roger, and hopefully he will be interested in sending me their pro version so that I can do a review and comparison to the other monitors I have already tested. That would surely be a fun video for sure. I just don't have 260.00 right now to purchase this device or even 200.00 to purchase the standard version, and am not sure Roger would want to send one to Outside In since we are so small - Not enough subscribers yet LOL... I will do my best to convince Roger that he will get a great review if their product is what they say, and after much research, I am positive this device is capable of what is claimed, but unfortunately for now, I just don't have the money available to make a purchase. The only company to send me a product for review was the AirKnight 9 in 1 monitor, and after the video, they cut ties with me because of my honesty, so not sure what will happen with this one. I hope and pray that it is in God's plan that you contacted me, and if it was, then I see no problem why Dylos would not send a device for me to review, or allow me the finances to make the purchase... Let's keep our fingers crossed, and prayers going, as I would be excited to do a video review of the Dylos 1100 Pro. The Pro is the same as the standard, but the Pro is more sensitive to smaller particulates which would be the better one for testing against my other monitors. Thanks again Josh for your comment, and let's hope that Dylos will be happy to send their device to us for a review and comparison video... Will let you know of the outcome.
Hey Josh, just thought I would let you know that Roger from Dylos contacted me, and we had a great conversation about their DC 1100 Pro PC, and this will be great for those that want to record a history of air quality for review. Dylos is sending me their DC 1100 Pro PC version for review. The PC version allows you to record unlimited data using your Computer. It is going to be fun to test, teardown, and review this monitor. Thanks again for the suggestion, and it will work out that I can in fact do a test & review using the DC 1100 Pro PC air quality monitor.
@Outside-In. That is fantastic! Kudos to reaching out to Dylos and speaking with Roger. I will be looking forward to future test. As noted, the DC 1100 will only detect down to a .5micron level. This .5 to 2.5 micron range should be the left display of the unit while the right display is calibrated for particles 2.5 micron and above. Fine particles as defined by pm2.5 include particles less than or equal to 2.5 microns in diameter. (Not even a Dylos DC 1100 is giving a true representation of the true pm2.5 level as it only detects down to a .5 micron range) These fine particles account for roughly 9% of the air we breath. This topic is of vast interest to myself, and I am no expert by any means. Although i beleive The Dylos DC 1100 to be a superior test instrument to those previously tested it would still be an insufficient test instrument for even HEPA level filtration as hepa is 99.97% down to .3 microns. Smaller than the .5 micron range of the DC 1100). Another point with HEPA as it stops at the .3 micron range for testing/certification purposes is that you still have the potential for airborne pollutants to be present 100 times smaller down to the .003 micron range than HEPA is rated to filter. What stands out the most to myself is that ultrafine particles in the .003 to .1 micron range account for 90% of all airborne pollutants. These ultrafine particles when inhaled are deposited into the lungs, can penetrate tissue, absorb into the bloodstream, and reach any organ. These non visable particles can include but not limited to cooking, smoke (including wood, cigarette, candle, incense), pet dander, soot, and viruses. I think more emphasis is needed on these ultrafine particles, the filtration needed that exceeds HEPA standard, as well as testing equipment capable to detect at these sensitive ranges.
@@JSATI Thank you Josh for that detailed and deep dive look into particulates. I love to learn, and why talking with someone like you is a pleasure. I understand your interest in understanding these small tiny contaminates as I do as well, and my interest has grown since starting these comparison videos, but what everyone needs to understand, - is that we do not want to be able to filter out all particulates that invade our lives, as doing so would surely lead to an early death, and I say that because, our bodies are built specifically to protect itself from sickness and disease, and therefore in our young years we need sickness and disease to invade us so that our bodies can build the appropriate anti-bodies to fight off infections and sickness later on in life as we get older... When I was a child, my brothers and myself would play very hard outside, get cut, get sick from sweating in the winter months, breath in all kinds of contaminates etc., but what happened as a result is that our bodes built up such protection, that we nearly never got sick, and even today at a much higher age, still don't get sick as much as others, but today, people are so worried about the "floaters" out there, that they do everything possible to get rid of those, and ultimately create a (as near as possible) sanitary environment to live in, and that is why so many young people are dying today from a simple sickness, and that is because their bodies are not strong enough to fight off the simplest of invasions to their body. Being conscious of our environment is a great thing to help protect ourselves, but if some becomes paranoid about what we breath, it can and will lead to over-protecting ourselves - ultimately leading to our undoing... Just my two cents LOL. I am going to have to look into a way to inject smaller particulates into a closed space with the monitors to see which one detects and which ones don't. Do you have any suggestions on how I can get a hold of the smallest particles possible to use in a test?. By the way - I do hope that your interest is purely scientific, as it does seem to be, because we definitely don't want to live in a bubble LOL, or at least I don't... Being paranoid about air quality, can in itself be very dangerous to our state of mind, health and well-being, leading to sickness from nothing more than anxiety and stress. ...We can be our own source of disease and sickness - using nothing but our mind...
@Outside-In. @Outside-In. solely scientific purposes. We do not do anything out of the normal for home filtration. However, I am looking to improve our current air quality as we are utilizing two Corsi Rosenthal style designs equivalent to about a merv 13 rating. I agree that exposure allows our bodies to use its natural defense system day to day outside, at work, etc I am currently unaware of a source for ultrafine particles that could be used in a test setting. I would think a commercial grade air quality device capable of detecting those ultrafine particles would be a starting point. As normal air carries many ultrafine particles. I do understand this is most likely cost prohibitive for the channel.
Very helpful video, I had that fake monitor in my cart when I went to go do further research. There really isn't that much quality information / reviewing on these products out there, it's very difficult to ascertain whether people's opinions (good or bad) are accurate or just influenced by user error and misunderstanding. Having a clear comparison of multiple models is really the only way, so it was very helpful. Any chance you had any thoughts on the Airknight 9 in 1? It's a bit more expensive, but after understanding why the fake single sensor unit is so much more expensive, I figure maybe it's worth spending what the sensors would actually cost. I like the display a bit better, but I couldn't find anyone do a teardown, all the video reviews I could find were just the typical youtube bloat spam. Reviews say the support is good though, so it seems promising.
Thank you so much Justin for the comment and thumbs up - much appreciated. I am so happy to hear that you didn't get stuck with the "fake" monitor... The Airknight you speak of is one that I looked at before, and now that you mentioned it, causing me to go see it again. I believe that I am going to make the purchase because I actually have another monitor on the way made by my favorite company "Smart Sensor" - I love Smart Sensor products. I thought that maybe I could purchase the Airknight monitor and do another video comparison. This should be another fun video to do. If there is anything specific you would like for me to do in the test comparison - please let me know and I will try an implement that into the video. I am very much liking the Airknight, and am so glad that you brought it to my attention as I had nearly forgotten about that one. The Smart Sensor 5 in 1 monitor should be here in a couple weeks, and I will try and get the Airknight so I will have it to use in the video. Thanks again Justin for your question and suggestion for sure. Am excited to get to do another air quality video for sure my friend.
@@Outside-In. Thanks! I'll be looking forward to a video on the Airknight 9 in 1. I've occasionally experienced some minor breathing issues so I'm just trying to determine if it's an issue with air quality in the home as I live next to an airport and a highway. I also got a higher MERV furnace filter and I want to see if I can quantify the difference in any way. I'm still pretty new to the idea of monitoring air quality, so I'll look forward to your input on the device. Thanks again
@@Lightja_ Always happy to help in any way I can. I enjoy doing these tear-down and comparison videos, so this should be exciting. If you live near an Airport and highway and are starting to have breathing issues - it may be that you have an elevated co2 in your home, so yes a co2 monitor would be good. Also a co monitor would be a good thing also since there are all those fumes of different kind roaming around... Using cleaning supplies that have concentrations of Ammonia will also be a super huge reason for breathing related problems, and allot of people don't realize that ammonia is very very dangerous even in small doses. I am looking into getting an Ammonia meter, but I have to get devices one at a time when I can afford them. So you may also want to look into your cleaning supplies for products that contain ammonia - and also how often you use them. For high strength cleaners that use ammonia, you may consider getting a respirator to wear while cleaning.
Great content! Thank you for putting out this information. I was looking for an air quality monitor but now I may just upgrade to a particulate counter when I can afford one! As you say you can't put a price on health. As far as I understand it, all the sub-$200 devices measure air quality relative to what they were calibrated to in the factory and is therefore not a true representation. This seems to be fine for most people as the laser particulate counters are just too expensive at $1-2k at a minimum (except maybe the Dylos).
Thank you for your comment - much appreciated, and am glad it helped you in making the right decision for yourself, and your family. There are a great many things that we can be "less expensive" about, but when it comes to health and awareness of our environment, cost should really not be too much a consideration, - after all, we get these devices because we want or even need to know our environment, so if we accidentally purchase a fake monitor to save money, then what do we really have in our possession?... Doom... ...And that is why I create these videos, to try and let someone know that the "cheap" monitor they own - may very well be fake or misleading. I did a test/review of two Dylos monitors, but I am at a loss for recommending them as they are not programmed to give information in the correct way (the numbers don't match air quality charts that most monitors show) - in other words - you have to do math (using the Dylos readings) to get legitimate information from them, and I wish they hadn't made them the way they did, and if you watch the video, you will see exactly what I am saying. The only reason I am keeping them around, is because I am hoping they can fix the calculation they do, and then hopefully do a firmware update so I can use these with future videos. The Dylos monitors are very confusing which can and will cause undue paranoia and stress for the end user. Thank you Nayib for the comment, it is much appreciated. As far as particulates, we don't need lab results, we just need a general idea of our environment, so that we know when it is time to open a window to let in some fresh air. Lab results are (like you say) very very expensive, and less expensive particulate meters that are legitimate, is really all we need. BUT knowing our CO levels and CO2 levels are an absolute must, so spending more in these situations is Paramount for sure. CO and CO2 is what is way more deadly than the rest, and CO is the most deadly of the two, and so that is why, if spending a bit more money, then spending more for these types of monitors/meters, is much more important, but that is only in my humble opinion of course. I have spoken to companies about CO sensors in their devices (namely AirKnight), and they say that adding CO sensors in their device is not only very expensive, but also there is allot of legal paperwork that they must go through to implement it, and so, (in my opinion) that is why you don't see too many monitors that incorporate CO sensors into their devices, and also to be sure that any device that incorporates CO readings at a cheap price, is more than likely giving fake/false information.
@@Outside-In. Thanks for the response! I've been researching this subject because I want to build a woodworking shop that can filter out things to create a safe breathing environment. I was mostly interested in monitoring the formaldehyde levels and the very fine PM sizes. I didn't mean lab tested, just tested with the handheld particulate counter devices (a step up from air quality monitors and a step down from laboratory equipment). I've been looking mostly at the Trotec PC 220, Temtop PMD331 and CEM DT-9883M but these devices don't get a lot of reviews by independent UA-camrs since they cost upwards of $1k haha so I am holding off on my purchase and collecting information for now. In the UK, carbon monxide monitors are pretty standard in homes near boilers. They are indeed a life saver and cost just $15-30 for a standalone device. I would also suggest everyone have one of those standalone CO monitors. Having an all in one device that monitors absolutely everything is probably not the way to go!
@@nayib5145 My experience with TemTop has not been good at all for customer service. If you did get something made by TemTop, I would recommend getting straight from Amazon, as their costumer service is much better if you have a problem. My suggestion (after reading what you want to do), is to build your wood - workshop, but make sure to implement a good circulation/exhaust system, either into the ceiling through the roof, or a window will do as well - inserting an exhaust fan (a genuine exhaust fan), and not just a box fan. A genuine exhaust fan will ensure that you have the best possible opportunity to expel all particulates and smells that you would encounter. Also a ceiling mounted Air Purifier would be a consideration as well, and I have seen them for around 400.00 industrial size, so you should be able to have the safest environment to work in. If you can set up an environment as described above, something like the AirKnight would be a good choice for knowing that your setup is working. With the AirKnight, you could also have a CO meter with digital readout to keep an eye on those levels. I am with you that 1k for a monitor/meter is a crazy amount of money to have to spend, but I really like the AirKnight because it is pretty close to accurate, and the best thing about it is it is so easy to read from across a room. AirKnight said they are working on a fix for the alarm and buttons, but I guess we will just have to wait and see... Unfortunately, after my video review of the AirKnight, AirKnight don't talk to me any more, so I guess the negative remarks I made, turned them off which is unfortunate, because I really do like their product, it just needs a little tweaking to make it better.
@@Outside-In. Thanks for the advice. I have a HEPA vacuum, HEPA air filtration system and commercial/exhaust fan all on my wish list! I was planning on having a big window on one side of the shop and an opening on the other side to run a big commercial fan that way I can get some good air changes when using high VOCs products. Perhaps I could have a dedicated exhaust fan but then you create negative pressure… the air replacing the exhausted air has to come from somewhere (cracks, windows, underside of the door etc). I'll consider the Air Knight then as being able to glance at the monitor’s screen and get approximate results in real time seems more productive/efficient compared to taking air samples and waiting for results to load on the screen. I’ll watch the review you did on that next! Cheers
@@nayib5145 Yes, an Exhaust fan on one side of the shop, and an open window on the other side, would be perfect for constantly pulling fresh air through the whole shop, and you are right, the air has to come from somewhere, so yes, the air will come through any available crack or opening in the walls/floor/roof, but the important thing is that the air coming in through those areas, would definitely be cleaner than the air it would be replacing. One of the viewers said that the AirKnight she purchased was way off in temp and humidity readings, but mine is pretty much spot on with my dedicated temp and humidity monitors, so either she got a defective unit, or she didn't wait and let the AirKnight settle into the environment before shipping it back, as she said she had just received it in the mail. Any new monitor that you purchase needs a day or even two sometimes, to adjust to the environment that you are putting it into. ...Also, I don't personally purchase an air quality monitor for the temp and humidity readings, as there are allot of monitors that have inaccurate temp and humidity readings, and I believe the reason for that mostly is because of all the other sensors in the monitor, are causing additional heat and or humidity to be created inside the device, causing a faulty reading for temp & Humidity, and is why I don't think having those sensors in a device (with so many other sensors that could interfere), is a good idea, but just my opinion of course. Just make sure that whatever monitor you choose to purchase, you do a manual and factory calibration, and also, allow the device a couple days to completely adjust to the environment that you are going to be placing it into, to fully put trust in those readings. You probably already know this, but I go over how to not only complete, but also the importance of completing a manual and factory calibration with any new or stored air quality monitor in a number of my videos. I do believe you will find the AirKnight to be a valuable monitor simply because of the screen size and the ease of reading the display from a distance. There are a few issues with the AirKnight, but you will see those if you watch the video review, but these issues would probably not be too much of an issue with allot of people (except for the alarm thing), and I hope they will fix that as they said they would.
Great video, thanks for going through all the details and for doing the teardown of the cheap meter that I bought and reviewed. I was particularly interested in seeing what the particulate sensor looked like. The top lid didn't contain anything, but I think I saw that the part connected to the board did have the required led type infrared emitter/detector in the holders. So that actually looks legitimate. It also clearly reacted to the smoke and around the 20 minute mark it is showing just about the same readings as the M10. The meter seems to never go below 24, so obviously not useful below that range, but not completely fake. I'll have to wait for the wildfire season to kick up next summer to see if it has any practical usefulness. That was the only thing I was really looking for in a meter, so your tests seem to show that it roughly shows the same as the other meters when the readings are fairly high. Of course, no one should rely on the CO readings on this, as I was waving it around an automobile exhaust and it showed nothing and the rest of the readings are suspect, but as a particulate only meter, it may be OK for $25.
They do such a good job building these cheap meters making them look so legitimate. I looked thoroughly at this meter Franklin and there are no sensors except for the voc sensor. There are no lasers or infrared led's to pick up particles. I would not do anything with that meter except throw it in the garbage. It doesn't even give legitimate voc readings. I do believe it is just a lot of calculations based on the voc sensor. I really thought the other meter (that I show the guy taking two of them apart in his video) was real, but somehow they make the numbers change in such a way that makes them look legitimate. Please Franklin don't trust that meter. If you want a decent meter for smoke, get the HOTKREM PM2.5, PM1.0, PM10 with AQI. That seems to be a great little meter and it has a legitimate Particle sensor in it (you can see the sensor without taking it apart). The one you have is definitely a fake and I wouldn't trust it with any degree of accuracy at all. Yes the numbers for awhile stayed pretty close but that is why these can fool people so easily. If you also noticed that even when the other meters were well over 100, the cheap meter had settled to well below 100. if you watch the other video where the guy takes two of them apart, you will see that both of them have the same exact and only the one voc sensor inside as this one does, and if you watch the meters in action - they appear (just like this one) to be legitimate but they are not. There is nothing at all about this cheap meter that is legitimate except that it legitimately gives false information. I care about you as much as I would care about anyone else and why I ask that you please do not put your trust in any of the readings this fake meter shows. The only way to know for sure - is to get the HOTKREM meter and during a smoky few days, compare the two meters and see which one gives better and more consistent readings. ...Ok - I wanted to be sure - so I went back and reviewed the original video (before editing) and watched the part about taking this apart. I did see inside the plastic housing there was a small board inside. I unfortunately already threw this away but there may have been an led on that board that may have been a infrared led that would pick up particles, but still would not buy another one of these and trust it for accuracy. The fact that is does not have a legitimate CO sensor or Formaldehyde sensor or even a CO2 sensor makes this fake and not to be trusted...
@@Outside-In. 48:28: the top view is not clearly shown, too blurry and dark. But the back of the PCB shows the soldered vias of the LED transmitter and receiver at the corners of the PCB, in 45° angle. Seems you did not look close enough.
The laser sensors only average they dont actually measure co2. The chinese are sneeky bastards a co2 sensor is in a little rectangle metal box, but they are even putting light sensors in those now to make them look legit. Your right they just guess or average. they are meant to be calibrated in a factory to give a good ballpark indication. Id hazard a guess that none of the meters on amazon can tell co2
@@Steve211Ucdhihifvshi The TemTop meters sold on Amazon do actually register CO2 but unfortunately the two I got had defective particle and formaldehyde sensors and why I couldn't recommend them. I am going to show (without any doubt) what the sensors actually are in allot of these fake co2 monitors and it is not what you are guessing they are. I was shocked when I discovered what they are as they have nothing to do with air quality - it is registering something else. I don't want to say too much as to not give away the punch line, but I promise, you will find the video quite interesting and entertaining as I have purchased a couple more tools to be able to accurately show that sensors are actually showing what they claim to show, ultimately proving to people that a fake is still a fake no matter how the numbers randomly jump around, - and are not to be trusted.
@@horstsauer9089 Sorry about that, I just noticed this comment - usually I am notified, but I guess this got missed... You may have seen I did another video to prove once again the monitor at 48:28 is fake, so hopefully my second attempt was enough to stop people from wasting good money on a lie. Thank you very much for your comment - it is much appreciated, and again, sorry it took so long for me to see it.
You are wrong about the particulate sensor. It is real, the PCB is a light scattering sensor with a small led (probably IR) and a receiver at a right angle with some lenses which you can see. The light scattered off the particles is read to determine the reading. It’s likely without a fan to move air it would take longer to respond though, you probably should give it more time or have burned the smoke underneath the holes to let thhe particles in quickly
The purpose was to show that this monitor is fake, and fake is fake no matter what may be inside - that may be real - period. This fake monitor is not to be trusted by anyone that values honesty, and the need to know actual data. This monitor is so fake, that the legit particulate sensor inside doesn't even register correctly. I have done other videos on this fake monitor just to keep proving that it is fake, no matter how many times someone tries to make excuses for it. I am getting ready to do a video on another possible fake monitor, and yet another one on the way that is more than likely fake. I keep making videos about fake monitors to prove that there are many on the market, and one must be Leary of any monitor that sounds too good to be true. Thanks for your comment and thoughts, they are much appreciated and welcomed. I just wish that people would stop trying to find reasons to make this fake monitor seem legit, because that - I simply do not understand.
Thank you for the question. What temperature has to do with Mold: Most molds cannot grow below 40° F. This is why food is typically refrigerated at 39° F. Mold grows best between 77° F and 86° F, - Especially if the air is humid. What water has to do with Mold: Molds thrive in damp, humid, and wet conditions. There are no detectors for mold currently on the market, but you can purchase a mold test kit on Amazon, that you can use to test your home in different areas, following all instructions, and send the test kit back to the manufacturer, and they will analyze the results and let you know if your home is at risk of mold contamination, and also steps you could take to keep future contamination from occurring. You may also consider a dedicated Temperature and Humidity monitor, so you can keep an eye on levels, and if the humidity is high and stays high, that can be a danger for spores to multiply and turn into mold. If you have high humidity on a consistent basis, you may consider a de-humidifier to keep your humidity in check. As far as allergies, a PM monitor would be good to have, as high particulates in the air along with high humidity can aggravate allergies. It would also be safe to say that pollen in the air will cause a PM monitor to go high in readings, but as for a specific monitor to detect pollen, I have not heard of one, so not sure if such a device exists. Allergies are a hard one to tie down as there are many things that can induce an allergic reaction or cause existing allergies to flare up, but these are ONLY my opinions of course. Just keep an eye on humidity, and particulate levels and your body's reaction to them, and for the extent of my knowledge, that would be the best way to go. If you decide to use a mold test kit, please let us know here your results, and how it goes - it would be nice to know. I only hope that I have been able to help, and thank you for your questions and comments, as the answers may help others as well in their search for peace of mind.
Thank you so much for this video. I might get both of the temptops or just the m10. Just to clarify, I know they detect famaldahyde, but can they also detect O3 gas molecules like from an ozone generator? Just used one and want to make sure the home is safe to breathe in, since my mother & I have asthma. Also VOCs...been airing out the house with fans past few days. Thanks!!!
Some air purifiers use ozone to eliminate VOC's, so I would say that that eliminates ozone as being a VOC itself, but is that true????. The ridiculous thing is that there is no one who will say yes or no to that question - is ozone a voc?... Every time the question is asked - the answer is a multitude of dances around the subject, and I think that is because no one wants to take the risk of being wrong LOL.. When I read some articles on the subject, I think, ok, then ozone must be a voc, and then I read another article, and say, ok, then ozone is not a voc, but there is absolutely no one that will say definitively whether or not ozone is a voc - yes or no, so your guess is as good as mine. I will do a test with my ozone generator to see if that makes the VOC go up, and maybe that will say that ozone is a voc, but then there will still be others that would argue it is not, so there ya go, pulling out the rest of your hair LOL... From my understanding of ozone after much research, ozone is a result of the reactions of many different VOC's, so that would tell me that ozone is in fact a VOC, but then I read another article that states that ozone is a by-product of VOC's, so I would still think that ozone gas is a VOC, so do you see the confusion?. I guess we could take humans as an example... Two humans get together and after many different reactions - end up with a child, - Is that child a human? - yes, so maybe that is the answer... Ozone is a VOC because it is a result of many different reactions from VOC's, so therefore is has to be a VOC itself... hmmmmm 🤪
On a side note however... Ozone is some very very nasty stuff, so be very careful messing around with it. Ozone generators are a great way of eliminating VOC's (especially odors), but the result of using ozone is very dangerous. After you run an ozone generator, make sure you allow your home to ventilate for at least 12 hours before returning into the home, and then run fans like you are doing for an additional 24 hours to make sure that all the ozone is gone. The human body reaction to ozone is allot like the reaction you would get from using Ammonia, - it is very very uncomfortable, and will cause you to feel like you are being suffocated. Ozone can and will kill you, and it would not be a very easy way to go, and as a matter of fact, it would be an excruciatingly painful way to die.
@@Outside-In. thank you so much for your time & patience for replying! If I can go back in time I would def not have used the ozone generator for cat odor and black mold/mildew smell. Apparently I bought an ozone on Amazon that gave off 40000 mg/h & that is way too much! The "safer" ones give off 1000 - 3000 mg/h you can run it for like 4 - 8 hours & be ok...depending on your square footage! My mother's home is only 1300 - 1600 square footage! I was told by a ozone generator company that I did a little too much & get this...I only did it for 30 min! I was told that for 40000 mg/h, I would've been fine running it for 5 min! Thank God I didn't listen to people who said run it for 3 - 4 hours!!! Anyways If you can test the m10 or even all those air quality monitors for ozone that would be a life saver for me! I'm going in the house for just 3 - 5 min & getting dizzy & headaches very quickly...not good! I have some hope with the ventilation process but to speed it up...I heard air purifiers with activated carbon/charcoal filters in them work great with eliminating 60 - 70% of O3 molecules & VOCs...it's called the shark filter for 1400 square feet...I'll highly appreciate it if you can make a video or at least respond to this comment with your results on ozone detection. I heard there're ozone meters, but they are so expensive! I am going to Lowe's now to pick up the air purifier. Thank you!!!!
@@ElliotCS1.6 I was thinking about using my generator in my new case for a video, but my generator is a DIY generator I built, and it is much too powerful for use in a case, as also an ozone generator will have an adverse reaction to plastics in your car or home (or in my case), and why allot of people don't use them, as they will also break down any rubber seals in devices that may be in your home or car (ozone is very toxic stuff for sure). If your ozone generator is powerful, it will only take a couple of minutes for you to start feeling the effects of the ozone it is putting off. When I use my generator, I have a timer on mine that I set to turn on at a specific time, and run for up to 4 hours, and then it shuts down, and then I stay away for an additional 12 hours before returning home. If I am going to use it, I set it for a specific run-time, and then I immediately leave my house. I usually do this when I am going to be gone for a day or at least 20 hours, so that when I return home, the ozone is gone, but still I turn on a fan for a while anyhow just to be sure that all ozone is gone and not going to effect me. The 3000-4000 is still not at all a very good thing to do while you are in the environment while it is running. One of the biggest symptoms of being in ozone too long, is your throat will start to feel scratchy and irritated, and you will also either start coughing or feel as though you want to cough, and that is one of the best ways to know that you have been around ozone too long. The longer you stay in that environment, the more you will begin to feel as though you can't breath, and that is when you know it is time to get out and away from it. I know this from personal experience, and there is no better teacher than the I have been there kind of experience... A study found that the Sharper Image Ionic Breeze Quadra puts out (ONLY) 2.2 milligrams of ozone per hour -- far below the lowest limit California is likely to set., so in my opinion you do NOT want to be in the environment where a ozone generator is putting out 3000-4000 milligrams of ozone per hour for very long. Most of these purifiers that put off ozone to help eliminate VOC's, are only putting out a very very small amount - around maybe 2-5 milligrams of ozone per hour, and anything above that will have adverse effects on your health, so just be very careful messing around with any ozone generator that puts off more than 50 mg/hr while you are in that same environment. You also (very very important) DO NOT want to leave any pets in the environment while the ozone generator is running, as when you get home, your pets will be dead or suffering greatly from the exposure. People sometimes use ozone generators to kills bugs or bedbugs in a hotel, - just thought I would throw that in... I will see what I can do to create a video about using an ozone generator and seeing if a VOC monitor will pick it up as using a TVOC monitor. Great idea, and will see what I can do. I just don't want to create a bad situation for myself even for a video, as from personal experience, ozone is very very nasty stuff, and extremely uncomfortable, and also it takes a while to get over it, as a throat problem can exist for quite some time after exposure to ozone.
@@ElliotCS1.6 Elliot, I just checked by using my TemTop M10 set to TVOC mode, and turned on my ozone generator, and it did not react to the ozone it put off, so I am assuming that a ozone detector would be what you would need for knowing how much ozone was in your environment. I found an ozone detector for 100.00, but right now I just can't afford to get it, but definitely will be something that I put on my bucket list for a next monitor to invest in. I hope this information is helpful. Once I get a detector, yes, a video would be good to do about ozone, but until I can get a monitor to show the results of what an ozone generator putts off, it would probably not be a very informative video.
Very interesting video! Thank you. Do you have an opinion on the GAIA air quality monitors offered by the aqicn organization or Sensor community project ?
@Louise Anthes I went to the website and read with great interest about this product. I sense that these are mainly for knowing air quality in your area outdoors. It says it can be used indoors, but they say nothing about using them indoors, only showing photos of them mounted on the outside of buildings. Hmmm... sounds reasonable for as low as 200.00, but like I have mentioned to others who ask about specific monitors, I would not feel comfortable recommending anything that I personally have not physically have touched, did a teardown and tested. If I could afford to purchase one of these units, I would love to do a review and teardown. I have another video coming up in a couple weeks of another monitor review and teardown that is going to be quite interesting for sure, but it has drained me financially to get all the items that I will be using in the review, so no finance left to be able to test this device. ...BUT I will be adding it to my list of possible future videos. I would love to dedicate Outside In to testing different air quality meters, but it can get quite expensive purchasing so many monitors. I spend my own money to purchase everything for my videos to help people to make informed decisions, so the little that I make from my job, just isn't enough it seems to do a much as I would like LOL... I will keep this information however so that when I can save enough to review this - I will. There are so many companies that claim to have the latest and greatest, but I am finding too often fake monitors and why I would not be comfortable recommending anything I haven't personally used. I hope this helps. I am sorry I can't give a recommendation about this monitor - YET anyhow, but maybe some day I can and I look forward to that day.
@@Outside-In. No need to apologize. You are doing a superb job comparing all these fake monitors and stuff on your personal money. Thank you for your long answer and good continuation! You have gained a subscriber ;)
Hi is there a brand to the carbon monoxide sensor shown here? I did a search and there seems to be various listing all under seeming generic brand names. Not sure if there are fakes? Or they are just rebrands of the same product? Thank you!
Thank you for the question. Yes it is hard to tell. The Brand is "Smart Sensor", the one I purchased on Amazon turned out to be legitimate - Just look at the photo of the packaging, and it is branded with the Smart Sensor Logo, even though the other photos don't bare the Logo, and I wish they would change those photos, as yes, it can be quite confusing. The following is the link to the one I purchased: www.amazon.com/Cheffort-Handheld-Professional-Grade-0-1000PPM-Industrial/dp/B091DRT5DN/ref=pd_ybh_a_sccl_8/136-3484219-7714427?pd_rd_i=B091DRT5DN&psc=1 You may want to contact the seller, and ask concerning the confusion because most of the photos do not bare the Smart Sensor Logo, and hopefully the seller will update the photos. I suspect that most of these sellers are using stock photos, and unfortunately, the stock photos are of copies, and not the actual meter, - which is unfortunate, as I am sure they are loosing sales because of the incorrect photos...
Thank you Milky Smokes for the question, and I have looked a little into DIY monitors, but they can be more expensive than just buying one already made - unless I missed something. Do you have anything specific in mind?.
Fluke is a particulate meter only, and I don't know anyone with a 7,000.00 meter that would let me borrow it. If I had to choose a "standard" for testing, it would be the Hotkrem, as that seems to be the most accurate and consistent so far that I own. I will soon be putting it up against a TemTop M2000 2nd edition.
Unfortunately, the TemTop M10 uses the HCHO reading to get aTVOC reading (through a calculation), so I wouldn't trust the TVOC at all on the M10. TemTop verified (after sending them an email) that the M10 does not have a VOC sensor and uses the HCHO sensor instead. Weird for sure. Sorry that I did not know that when I did the video., as I told TemTop that I would not have recommended the M10 of I had known that, and why now I will not be recommending the M10 any longer. TemTop told me that the M10+ does have a VOC sensor but does not have an HCHO sensor any longer, which again is weird and nuts that they would do that.
@@rowelquero TemTop was supposed to send me their M10+ for review, but decided not too. Other companies that I have contacted to test and review their monitors, stop communication with me as soon as they check out he channel, so not sure quite what to think of that... I always tell companies that I am completely un-biased and honest, and that is when I don't ever hear from them again, accept from AirKnight. AirKnight is getting closer to their new monitor, so hopefully that will be out soon. Jim will let me know when it is ready. Other than that, I simply can't recommend anything that I have not tested, and I just can't afford to purchase any more monitors for now. Thanks for your interest. I would like to do more but the cost is way too high, and Outside In is just too small for companies to take serious - not enough subscribers yet, but I am sure we will get there some day - just not today...
Thank you Fred for the question. I am trying to find a indoor/outdoor monitor as that would be something I would really like to review, but until I can find a monitor like that, the M10 is a good choice in the interim. Also the AirKnight 9 in 1 also gives great information and more so than the M10, but I reviewed the AirKnight in my latest video - however, there are a few issues I found with it and it may be that I am a bit picky. The issues to some will be minor, but the readings are very good, and it is also portable so you could take it outside from time to time to check for outdoor air quality. I did find and indoor/outdoor monitor but it only does PM2.5 and AQI so don't think it would be good for your wife as it doesn't read HCHO or TVOC.
I would love to see a review on Amazon's new air quality tester! I'm sure it would help a lot of other people too. It is quickly becoming the most popular consumer monitor.
Hello Devon, and thanks so much for the comment and question. I did receive your email, but would like to know if you could email a link to the specific Air Quality tester you are talking about. I will look into it and let you know whether or not I could do this. I love testing monitors, but the expense has gotten too much to handle LOL. I am currently working on another project and it has maxed out my ability right now to make further purchases, but will see what I can do. Look forward to hearing from you with a link in an email.
Hi, I'm considering getting into resin 3d printing which is notorious for creating rather harmful VOCs, most people put the printer inside an enclosure of some kind with a vent fan and a tube leading either out a window or to a carbon filter that they change frequently, I've heard conflicting information on wether this kind of diy setup is actually effective for safety, I want to do everything I can but I have no way of testing it, do you think one of these meters would allow me to make sure I'm printing as safely as possible?
I have heard the same thing, but have not built an enclosure to test that, but it does make sense that it would be good to do. You would want to keep an eye of VOC's, so the AirKnight would be good for that. I found out that the TemTop M10 does not have a VOC sensor, so I would not be able to recommend it any longer, but TemTop is developing a new monitor - the M10+ which does have a dedicated VOC sensor. TemTop told me it should be available in April, so that will be a good monitor to test. TemTop is supposed to be sending me one for a video review and test, but I guess I will just have to wait and see....
Thanks for the video good sir. I have HCHO suspicion after kitchen remodeling, would you kindly test your specimen specifically for HCHO (with some glue I guess?) and cross-test with pinching orange zest to rule out very broad gas response? Thanks
Ok, I don't have any orange zest to try, but I did try breathing into the meter with Kingbond Wood Glue, CLR grease cleaner, Windex, Goo Gone, Simple Green Concentrated cleaner, and the levels didn't go above 0.12, but when I breathed Venigar into the meter, it jumped to 0.18 - so Vinegar had the biggest effect on HCHO (Formaldehyde). I also did some research and found (among other things) the following - based on questions posed that would cause high levels of HCHO: Sources of formaldehyde in the home include building materials, smoking, household products, and the use of un-vented, fuel-burning appliances, like gas stoves or kerosene space heaters. Formaldehyde, by itself or in combination with other chemicals, serves a number of purposes in manufactured products. I also tested HCHO with a cigarette, and it rose to about 0.69. Mostly - HCHO (Formaldehyde) monitors are primarily used to detect smoking or smoke from burning building materials or Forest fires. I hope this helps you out with some information, and am glad I could offer assistance to you sir.
@@Outside-In. Thanks for the clarification, I could swear I wrote a reply before but *poof youtube magic* I guess? Anyways just ordered the monoxide sensor you endorsed and an M10 from ebay. Will post the results, I think if I close the room with lots of particle boards during midday it should pretty much show if any HCHO is being emitted.
@marakll yes, particle boards should do the trick very nicely, LOL. You are going to love Smart Sensor meters. There are a couple more I would really like to get, but 500.00 is way more than I have, so I guess I will have to wait. And yes, I myself have left replies that did not get posted as well, so don't feel bad. Thanks for getting back with some pretty cool information. And yes, also, let us know how it goes with the meters for sure.
@@Outside-In. Hello again good sir, the sensors are finally here and here are the early results: CO basically 0 everywhere, except right above the gas stove on very low flickery fire, it jumped 35+ there and started beeping. HCHO: 0.01-0.02 anywhere except the room with leftover particle boards, 0.06 there. TVOC: 0.02-0.04 anywhere except that room, almost 0.3 there. PM2.5: 5 to 7 around. I'm going to leave the kitchen door and windows fully closed overnight and test levels tomorrow when it's heated by the sun. Guess at least I didn't get dummies and prolly my nose did just as good of a job. Taking the sensors to the office tomorrow for... scientific purposes.
@marakll Thanks Marakll for the update. Sounds like your levels are pretty good. However, you may want to be careful how low you have the flame, as the flame being too low will create CO and even CO2. If the co should jump to 35 or more around 3 feet away from the stove, you may want to check things out. To anyone using a stove with a wick, make sure you keep the wick trimmed to get the cleanest burn. If a wick gets charred, that is when it will start putting off co or even co2. It would be good to hear how it goes at the office with your scientific tests. I have another air quality video coming up by the end of the week, so if you could tell me the scientific tests you are doing, maybe I could use the technique for my up coming video...
The board was a sensor. You ignored the IR LED and IR detector facing each other at 90-degrees . It shines light on dust and measured the reflection. More reflection, more dust. The worse way to do it though. Pure crap. The "proper" version of that sensor use a laser diode at least. That ways they can actually count the individual number of particles that intersect the laser beams, which creates a relatively bright flash.
It doesn't really matter - Fake is Fake is Fake, no matter what they put in it - it can't be trusted. Good points though. I was new at sensors when doing that video, and I was just focused on the Fake aspects. A monitor that has just one fake reading, (and this one has several) - is all fake and can't be trusted no matter what's inside that may be legitimate. 👍
@@Outside-In. Yeah, totally agree. I was being OCD due to being AS, purely on the comment "There is no sensor." It doesn't matter indeed. That product is a total scam.
Thanks for the question. The Hotkrem is the most budget friendly if you are looking for PM readings. If you need HCHO also;, the TemTop M10 would be the way to go.
Nice video. It seems I have ok level measurement device. it was those 140e handheld "black boxes". When looking that sensor in tear-down part. It looked like those sensors in optical fire alarms. So it can give basically analog signal back to MCU of detected smoke levels. Edit: in my meter TVOC stays in "waiting" mode for few minutes after all other readings are fine. it seems those sensors just take to time to get operation temperature.
There are no monitors on the market yet that detect mold. You can get a kit on Amazon. You buy the kit, follow the directions, send in the data, and they send you back a breakdown of your environment and possibility of mold or not. So far that is the only thing you can do for mold detection. You will want to make sure you keep your humidity in check as that is where mold comes from - high humidity on a regular basis. Hope this helps.
@@Outside-In. I recently had friends over and they have been saying my room smells bad when my Aircon is turned on but I don't smell anything so maybe I've already gotten used to the smell. I have called someone and he washed my Aircon but the smell is still there and my friends said that judging from the smell it's probably mold. I have just looked up a test kit and found one called mold armour and I'm thinking of buying it. Saw a video of a guy saying I could just put a petri dish with some solution in a room then just wait a few days to see if mold grows on it. I'm not sure if I saw this on a trusted site but I think I saw them said that the particles detector could detect mold spores. Anyways great video. Saw the fake meter online and was planning to buy it. Thanks for saving me a few bucks
@@idkname007 If you can keep your humidity at between 40 to 60%, you should be fine from mold beginning. Make sure also your filter/s for the AC is changed out to clean ones. Did your friends say the odor smelled like mold?, if so, you need to check your humidity in all your rooms and especially the basement as that is where mold is most likely to begin. The mold test will help, but just keep your humidity throughout the home at a good level so mold doesn't start.
thank you so much for your video! I was hoping maybe you could help me. my aunt lives nearby an airport that sometimes during the day lets a very horrible smell in the air, something chemical and toxic, and her health is decreasing, but I'm not sure what I should be measuring, since not all meters have the same parameters.
The first thing I would guess being that near an airport - definitely invest in a CO (Carbon Monoxide) detector, as that sounds like that is what you Aunt is experiencing. There may also be co2 mixed in with that as well because spent fuel can also cause co2 off-gassing, but because you can smell a significant odor - it is more likely Carbon Monoxide as Carbon Dioxide has no odor or smell - so you don't know that it is present in your environment.
@@ck.campos The Smart Sensor CO handheld detector I show in this video is extremely useful for detecting co very quickly and is very reasonable in price - here is a link to the one I use in this video: www.amazon.com/dp/B091DRT5DN?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details
I am also uploading a new video in the next couple days showing a co2 monitor that is 66.00 which is also another monitor that people should have. I believe the two most important monitors to have would be a co monitor and co2 monitor as those are the most deadly gases that can exist in a home and of those two - co2 being the most deadly simply because you don't know it is even present due to the lack of odor or smell. A link to the co2 monitor I am getting ready to review: www.amazon.com/dp/B0BBG9DZHB?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details I hope these responses have helped.
Perhaps God led me to this channel. I recently moved to the mountains of western North Carolina (of all places!) and we just got the wood-burning furnace system started. Concerned about PM2.5, I found your channel as you seem to have the best air-quality testing videos. Later in the day, I began feeling light-headed and nau·seous ( I work from home and have been in the house all day with the stove burning). I reached out to you and you provided excellent information on testers. I'm ordering the Smart Sensor tonight (and sleeping with the window open!)
"Perhaps God led me to this channel" - Thank you for saying that - God does work in mysterious ways doesn't He?... "I began feeling light-headed and nau·seous" - one of the MOST important effects of CO or CO2 poisoning - NOT PM, so very happy our discussions have led you too not look so hard at Particulates, but rather gasses like CO or CO2... "I'm ordering the Smart Sensor tonight (and sleeping with the window open!)" - Priceless I can sleep a little better myself tonight as well, knowing that all of this was not for nothing, and thank you for allowing me the peace of mind, that as long as we speak up, speak out - there will be someone who will listen, and thank you for listening.
Hi ,I am looking to buy an accurate air quality monitors ,can you also review some of the popular air quality monitors like "airwair element ", " airthings wave plus " and EG Egress Air quality montior ?
Thank you PKD for the question. I am looking on Amazon and there is nothing for the airwair element, so maybe you spelled it wrong. Also I find nothing for EG Egress monitor either, so maybe that also is spelled wrong. Or if you have a website these are sold on, I could look there. As far as the Airthings wave plus monitors. I would not review a product that I would not buy myself. The Airthings and some of the other monitors require Alexa or a subscription based app to view the data. There are plenty enough air quality monitors that have actual displays without the need of an app. An actual display in the device that I am using is what I want - not another app to have to install. The Airwair Element, and EG EGress you mention, since I can't find those, I don't know if I would be interested or not. Also some of these monitors are getting very expensive, and so far I am getting no help from anyone, and simply can't afford to purchase any monitors at the moment for testing and review, but like I say, I would not purchase or test anything that I would not buy and use myself. I definitely thank you for your question - it is much appreciated.
@@Outside-In. Hi ,Thankyou for replying .Yes I had mis spelled it ,it is "Awair element" not airwair ,also another is "EG air quality monitor" exclude egress and search it in Google you will find it .I am specially looking for a air quality monitor which uses sensirion sensors because they make dedicatedly environmentle sensors.Please let me know if you are aware about any air quality monitor that uses sensirion lastest sensors.Thankyou
@@pkd2411 The Awair unfortunately is not one that I would be interested in purchasing so couldn't recommend or test it. The EG is however a good monitor, just like the Hofun in the video. The EG (unlike the Hofun) has a calibration function that I really like and wish the Hofun had. I will look into the Sinsirion Sensor and let you know if I can find any specific monitor that uses this sensor. Hope that I was able to help.
Thank you very much for such an informative video! I'm currently looking for an air quality monitor. Could you tell me if it is worth buying a board with a screen for measuring 7 in 1 SM300D2? Maybe you've heard of her. How accurate does it measure?
Thank you for the comment and question. I can't find the sm300d2 so not sure what you are talking about. Maybe a link to what you are talking about would be helpful. I have seen a couple DIY air quality monitors, and they look fine. I can't speak on how accurate they are as I have not had the opportunity to build one to try out. The Hokrem in this video is a DIY air quality monitor that is pre-assembled - and it works just fine.
@@Outside-In. yes, this is a board with a screen without a case for home-made assembly. I now choose on aliexpress, unfortunately there are no reviews there, and there are no video reviews either. Given your professionalism and experience, I decided to consult with you. And what is better to take, what will work more accurately. Board for DIY or ready-made device. I have a limited budget, so I'm very afraid of making a mistake.
@@kolyakolya922 could you provide a link to this diy monitor on Aliexpress?, I would like to see the listing. Thank you. I went on Aliexpress and found this module sm300d2. After looking at this, I would not take a chance that this actually has the seven senors, because I only see one sensor (PM Particle sensor). I don't even see a temp & humidity sensor on this board. I do see what looks like a breathalyzer sensor which has nothing to do with the claimed sensors on this board. I would not take a chance on this for more than $60.00. If you would like a good monitor, I would look at the TemTop M10.
@@Outside-In. I will be very grateful if you can tell me if it is worth buying. Since it's quite pricey for me, I don't want to make a mistake. What can you say about its measurement accuracy. And the main question that the seller of aliexpress does not answer me. Does it need to be calibrated, or can you just turn it on and it will already measure accurately?
@@kolyakolya922 I went on Aliexpress and found this module sm300d2. After looking at this, I would not take a chance that this actually has the seven senors it says it has, because I only see two sensors a PM Particle sensor, and possibly a breathalyzer sensor. I don't even see a temp & humidity sensor on this board. I do see what looks like a breathalyzer sensor which has nothing to do with the claimed sensors on this board. I would not take a chance on this for more than $60.00. If you would like a good monitor, I would look at the TemTop M10. I would love to be able to purchase the sm300d2 board for testing, but unfortunately I don't have the money to do that right now.
For PM 2.5, I recommend the Hotkrem The Hotkrem registers... PM 0.3 PM 0.5 PM 1 PM 2.5 PM 5 PM 10 Hotkrem also has an inexpensive CO2 monitor, so check them out. Thanks for the comment - much appreciated.
I need a co2 and tvoc measurement instrument for LEED or WELL certification. Could you recommend me an instrument that does at least these two measurements and I could rely on them for commercial purposes in an office environment?
In a couple weeks I am creating another Air Quality comparison and tear-down video of the Smart Sensor 5 in 1, and the AirKnight 9 in 1 air quality monitors. If you are looking for something for commercial use - I am not sure the monitors I review would cover that, as monitors for highly accurate and pin-point data are very very expensive and not in my budget to purchase by any means. I review these monitors for people that need an inexpensive solution - that gives very very good readings, but not scientific lab results.
@@Outside-In. Thank you for the quick response! When I read the prescriptions for LEED for co2 sensor it is needed to be nadir and compliant with EPA standards. As I am reviewing the Temtop M2000 from the original site it says that covers these requirements. The problem is that there isnt available instrument with co2 plus tvoc sensors combined. If i have to purchase 2 instrument from Temtop will go over my budget. Are you familiar with the instruments you tear down if they have such sensors like co2 nadir Sensair and for the tvoc just to have any type of sensor in it?
@@silviahristiyandraganovi3289 I can not and would not recommend the M2000 because I received two in a row that were defective (the second one more defective than the first), and the company would not help except to encourage me to spend more money on a more expensive model. If however, you intend on buying TemTop handheld, I would go with the M2000 2nd edition - as it has very good reviews and it is an upgrade to the M2000 (which TemTop told me it resolved issues with the M2000). The M2000 2nd edition also has the ability to record a history of data and connected to a pc for analysis. I hope this helps. ...Also the Hotkrem in this video I can recommend for TVOC. Finding a handheld or monitor that does Co2 AND TVOC is proving to be a problem, as I just realized that the M2000 2nd edition also does not show TVOC - just Particle Matter only (which is were most of your TVOC comes from), but I guess the other parts of TVOC is important as well, and the reason for the need for TVOC - not just PM...
Silvia, I thought I would reply again with additional information on your question. I wrote the AirKnight 9 in 1 company asking them specifically about their monitor's co2 sensor and this was their response: "Thank you for contacting us and yes, we use the NDIR sensor for the CO2 monitoring of the AirKnight AK1000.". In a couple weeks, I will be doing a comparison, review and tear-down of the AirKnight monitor, and until then I can only go by what the company tells me, so I won't be able to recommend the monitor until I have done the review. I hope this gives you the possibility that I may have found a monitor that you can use for your purposes, and look forward to confirming AirKnights claim.
@@claudiogobber Sorry Claudio I don't know anything about that monitor, I will have to look into that one. Do you have a link to the one you are talking about?. Thanks ...Never mind Claudio - I found it and yes it looks quite interesting and would love to test that one and do a tear-down especially since it has a carbon monoxide sensor - would love to know if it is real or not... Unfortunately I don't have the finances to make a purchase like this right now as I spent all I had on doing this video. Hopefully some day I will be able to buy multiple devices at a time, so that I would be able to do more of these side-by-side comparisons and tear-downs - so people will know (without a doubt) what they are getting instead of just hoping they are getting a legit product....
Well Denise - that would be a very hard thing to do without testing every single monitor made, and that would take more money than I could earn in a lifetime LOL... I was being a bit sarcastic there, but if I were to recommend the best of all the monitors I have tested to date?... It would be as follows... 1. Smart Sensor CO meter 2. Smart Sensor CO2 meter 3. Hotkrem CO2 monitor 4. Hotkrem PM monitor 5 TemTop M10 6. TemTop C10 Also here is something else to consider pertaining to your question... The best air quality monitor to buy, would cost 10's of thousands of dollars, and is also one that I will never be able to get in my lifetime I am sure. "The best", is subjective of course, so I guess we could say - the best in a certain price bracket, so my list above is based on what I have tested personally, and also in the more budget friendly market. Hope this helps, and thanks for the question Denise - it is much appreciated. I am getting ready to do two more videos very soon, so maybe we will find a new "best" of all that I have reviewed to date - who knows right?...
I have watched numerous UA-cam videos on air quality monitors. They all look like they were just advertisements. Your video is actual testing and comparing with real information. Thank you for taking the time to do this.
You are most welcome Enjoying Nature - I do love to create content that will enlighten and help those who are in need of more information. I truly appreciate your kind words as they help me to grow as a channel, a channel that will continue to offer help to those who need it. It is comments like yours my friend that give me the excitement and strength to continue on with Outside In - - I thank you for that...
@@Outside-In. Liked your video very much. I have problems in the apartment with the air. I live in Sweden. I want to buy an accurate detector that have many sensors. Do you have other to suggest than what you recommended in the video?
@@jewsusjewtube1880 I have another monitor on the way from Aliexpress that I will be reviewing, testing and doing a tear-down in a couple weeks. When it comes to a persons well-being/health, I can't recommend anything that I haven't first tried and tested to be legitimit, so other than what I recommend in this video, there are no other monitors I can speak intelligently of.
@@Outside-In. I look forward to the review and it sounds reasonable
@@jewsusjewtube1880 Yes it is one of the lesser expensive monitors and looks great - but looks can be deceiving... After some communication with someone in the comments - I was asked if I could test it. I am hoping this will be an inexpensive alternative for knowing quality of air in the home.
Bravo. You deserve way more exposure and support. Thanks from the UK.
Thank you for the encouragement - much appreciated👍
This is peak UA-cam. Thank you for all your effort
Thank you for making this video. You have clearly spent alot of time and money on this for the huge benefit of others. God bless you.
Thank you Tom very much for that sentiment - much appreciated. I enjoy helping others in making decisions that could save a life... - Plus I just love doing research 👍
Hello everyone. I just wanted you to know that I am getting ready to do another video in a couple days, and it is a Re-Visit of the Fake Monitor in this video. Unfortunately after this video was complete - I threw away the Fake Monitor, but a few comments about the Fake - Maybe - Not - So - Fake after all monitor has caused me to once and for all put to rest ANY doubt at all to this Fake monitor truly being Fake. Since I threw the monitor away, I decided that if I am going to save someones life, then I need to have that Fake monitor back for further testing, so I purchased it again so I could prove once and for all that it is Fake. I will be testing this Fake monitor against a TRUE and accurate co2 monitor as well as a TRUE and accurate co Monitor. I will also be doing a tear-down again to show the second sensor that is in this Fake monitor that a commenter brought to my attention that I missed. The sensor that I missed in the Fake monitor is very interesting for sure, and will be amazed at what it really is. So please keep an eye out for the video. I have purchased some new devices that will enable me to do more thorough testing on air quality meters/monitors - to sort out the scams.
Great content....really appreciate I buy one and don't think they are actually accurate
@@omargdottin Which one did you buy?.
I am highly allergic/sensitive to formaldehyde and preservatives and brighteners which I find is in some imported clothing (at least 90% that I've bought) and in laundry detergents, fabric softeners, etc. I have a playlist dedicated to this on my channel where I talk about this -- what's scary is if it hadn't been for my allergies which are excruciating I wouldn't have known.
Although it is disclosed in laundry products the names sometime don't really tell consumers how dangerous some of these chemicals are -- a lot of people think if they buy a free and clear this takes care of it, and really that might not be the case... and a lot of people don't feel anything and are either completely unaware or, they don't care as it doesn't affect them. The trouble I fear is as we get more bombarded with these chemicals more allergies are going to surface... I know of 2 children already that have this problem. Imagine having to go to school and sit by others that use these chemicals...
And then there's the fact that the suppliers that use this process do NOT disclose on any clothing and cloth item labels that these fabrics have been doused in formaldehyde, dried and then ironed in... what this does is create a resin which is really hard to get out of the fabric, especially tightly woven nylons, and terry cloth, etc... but then it will break down into a very fine powder -- yet it doesn't dissipate -- it's sort of like lead... and now it's in a lot of paper products as well.. and in garbage liners, paper towels... and to me, this is not only scary... it should be illegal...
I'm glad I found your video and thank you for it. I did buy a detector and although I sense the chemicals it's not sensing on the meter... ha... but it shouldn't be a surprise at your findings... You know, a long time ago I studied the book of revelations and although I'm not an expert these people said our major war will come from China -- Personally I think we are at war with this issues and if we aren't careful this might happen...
Thank you Lisa for your information and experiences. I am sure it is going to help allot of people with these same issues regarding laundry detergents and other products. Thank you so much for putting your thoughts out there for others. I am glad that the video helped in even a small way, but yes you are right, these monitors are not going to be able to detect the chemicals in clothing, but they will keep us aware of particles, Formaldehyde etc., that are in the air around us, but we should never become paranoid - as these things have been in the air since God created all of this wonder and enjoyment, so we need not get so paranoid as that will result in a much larger problem - mental health related sickness, which Can be more harmful than the things we are afraid of... just a thought... ;).
Glad for your reference to Revelations - I sat down one day, and read the whole book of Revelations from start to finish, and I must say that it is like the stores I used to read as a child of fantasy and fantastical dreams, but the difference is that This story is real - not fantasy... ...And that is what makes Revelations even more special and beautiful. So many people read a verse here and there - they pick and choose what to read in Revelations, and why Revelations seems so scary and finite, but I am here to tell you that if you read the whole book from start to finish - it brings SO MUCH more meaning and realization to light. Reading the book of Revelations is when I realized Dinosaurs where a real beast that roamed the earth before God destroyed it in the flood, as Revelations speaks of Dragons and such animals.
In case you missed it he said, "the m-10 was pretty good" I agree. I have had one for many years. I find it accurate enough for me. I run 2 Winix air purifiers 24/7 they have blue and red lights they indicate good and warning. I' am not always in the same room with the m-10 and if my nose is running and my eyes are burning I will look at the air purifier on my way by to the other room, it is red the other air purifier is red and the m-10 up around 135-200 and that little green light is a bright red. Their are only 3 readings on the m-10 the 4th is the Quality Air Index or QAI which is the average of the other three. So if one changes the QAI will change. I drilled a hole through both my walls so I could pass a cable through it. This allowed formaldehyde (HCHO) quietly and undetectable to enter my living spaces except all my gauges were going off.
Yes, the M10 does a pretty good job, but all we need is a close approximation of our levels, so "I find it accurate enough for me." is a good way to put it... Drilling holes in walls would (I am sure) cause the HCHO levels to go up, but as long as you have good ventilation, the reading should come back down fairly quickly. High humidity will also cause HCHO levels to go up as well.
Why did you ignore the AliExpress box when it came to particulate measurements? You pointed out the carbon monoxide with great gusto. But didn't point out it was reading about the same when it came to the PM2.5.
If you are talking about the FAKE monitor as in when you said "the Aliexpress box when it came to particulate measurements". This video was about exposing the DANGER of owning it (because of no CO or CO2 sensors), and how the particulate measurements were not agreeing with the others, and how sometimes they went nowhere when they should have - I even took it apart to show that there is either no sensor at all, or a garbage particulate sensor inside. I pointed out the Carbon Monoxide AND Carbon Dioxide with such gusto, because Carbon Monoxide and Carbon Dioxide is THE 2 MOST IMPORTANT measurements on any monitor that incorporates them...
It is beyond me why people continue to try and make excuses for this fake monitor... I do apologize for sounding aggravated, but ANY MONITOR that has just ONE reading that is a lie (in this case CO and CO2), then the whole thing is a lie and nothing but a lie, and cannot be trusted for any of it's information. Would you trust someone who lies to you only on occasion?, I would hope not, as you wouldn't be able to trust anything that they say, and the same goes for any monitor that attempts to deceive, even with one (or in this case 2) of its readings...
When people come to Outside In, they can be sure to get the truth and nothing but the truth. I am not going to go easy on a product that doesn't do what it states - especially when it is lying. I am also not going to recommend a product that could get someone killed - just to make money. If I have to start shading the real truth about a product - in order to make money and survive, then I will just have to starve to death, because anyone's life is more important to me than making a buck.
Thanks Paul for your comment and thoughts - much appreciated - and again - sorry for sounding a bit frustrated, but I am not going to sacrifice anyone's life or my integrity - for money - EVER, and if that means that Outside In will never grow beyond where I am now - then so be-it. As long as I can save someones life - maybe yours, then that is EXACTLY what I sat out to do in the beginning - I truly hope you can understand and appreciate that. 👍
I recently modified IKEA vindriktning pm2.5 meter to report for homeassistant and when reading about it, there was a case when someones unit red high all the time like your M2000.
So what they did - took the sensor apart and saw some smudge on the laser leds, cleaned it as well as they could with high concentration alcohol and put together and then readings were normal.
So there can be just bad assembly mistakes for the sensor too. Tho it should be quite automated..
Thank you gelisob for your comment, it is much appreciated. I wish I had known this information before I sent them both back. That is good information, but both monitors read the same and the second meter as a replacement was worse than the first with more wrong with it, and also TemTop would not help me with the issue - so still can't recommend TemTop Customer service however... Still - this is good information for anyone that has this meter and wishes to try this fix. Thanks so much for your invaluable detailed info.
So in your tear down I noticed you mentioned a fan. There wasn’t one. However. There was a chamber. Diffusion of particulates by size is dependent on buoyancy. On the back side of the board/box you pried off at 48:41 shows two diffusion chambers. Is/are there a sensors coming off the board into either of the chambers? When I was cooking breakfast I did get the pan a little hot and there was some smoke. The 6 in one monitor in the other room went into alarm for pm10. And pm2.5 was elevated until my oreck Truman cell scrubbed it out.
Monitors require an air flow over the sensor to get a live and current reading. Gasses tend to expand to their confines.
The fake monitor has no fan, I only said that before taking it apart because the small pinholes made it appear that a fan was in that spot. Odors will cause monitors with TVOC sensors to go nuts, and cooking puts off allot of odors as well as particulates from smoke, so why allot of monitors appear to not register correctly especially while cooking food.
You are right, monitors with fans work better because of a constant air-flow. The six in one that you speak of, is it the fake monitor in the video?. I tested this monitor again the other day, and blowing alcohol into the device made ALL the numbers go nuts. I do believe the monitor is using math for it's readings and why it sometime appears to be working, which is why monitors like this confuse people, and make it hard to believe it is fake. I may have to visit this monitor once again, but am not sure how I am going to convince some that this monitor truly is fake and not to be trusted.
If you have this monitor, and would like for me to do another video, what kind of test could I do that would convince you that this monitor is not to be trusted?. I did another video about this monitor, so not sure if you saw that one. This is the link to the other video, if you still have questions about it's legitimacy, I would be happy to do another video with a test of your choosing. Let me know The "other" video: ua-cam.com/video/KCpIaTC5las/v-deo.htmlsi=TIxZmrtGzqFLv2Sc
that small box at 48:53 you teared down is GP2Y1010AUOF, which is PM2.5 sensor from Sharp
Thank you Guntara for the information. I did look up that number, and it looks exactly like the box in the device, so I have to assume that in fact it is a PM 2.5 sensor. Makes me now want to check this with the device again. But here is the thing... Even though this small box may be a legitimate PM 2.5 sensor, does not mean that this device is not a fake, as it does not have a co2 or co sensor, so for that reason alone - it is still a fake, and NOT to be TRUSTED by anyone. Any device that has even one fake reading, is a complete fake and not to be trusted.
Thanks for making this! You really helped me make an informed decision here!
Thank you Josh for the comment - much appreciated, and glad I was able to help.
good review . That model that you dissassembeled I had order from temu . When breething out directly to it Co goes up to 20 and co2 up to 2000 and abit above . so hope in that they didn`t missed the sensors on the PCB :)
Interesting and thanks for your comment. There are a number of these monitors that look like the fake one in this video, so hopefully you got a legitimate one. With that said, I did another video about smokers putting off CO when they breath...
If you are not a smoker, a CO meter will not go up, but if you are smoking and breath into a CO sensor, the reading will jump to around 11 to 19 or 20, and stay there for a second or two before falling back down to 0. CO2 on the other hand will go up while breathing into it because that is what we as humans expel from our lungs with every breath whether a person smokes or not (but of course you know that already LOL). What you may not know is that with every breath we put off around 35,000ppm of CO2, and that is a lot of CO2, so a legitimate CO2 sensor should go absolutely bonkers whenever we breath directly into it, and also how much easier it is to tell a fake CO2 sensor from a monitor that does not have a legitimate CO2 sensor inside.
Most of the Fake CO and CO2 monitors have an Alcohol sensor inside and why the CO reading shoots way high along with CO2, especially if a person is drinking an alcoholic beverage or smoking, or just brushed their teeth, chewing a minty gum etc.. A legitimate CO monitor/meter will go up (in the video that I did on this topic), if you are in a crowded room with people that smoke, the CO levels will rise significantly due to smokers putting off not only CO2 but CO as well, and we must take care that the room is properly ventilated.
Companies have gotten very good at fooling people that these fake monitors are real. Also, a lot of people love seeing the numbers go up and down (it gives them a false confidence that the sensors are real - and companies know that), and using an Alcohol sensor instead of an actual CO or CO2 sensor guarantees that their monitors are actually going to not stay at 0 for CO or constantly sit at around 600 to 800ppm for CO2.
The best way to test if a CO2 monitor is fake is to spray rubbing alcohol or perfume around the monitor to see if the reading shoots way up, and also a fake CO meter will do the same around alcohol based liquids. CO2 WILL NOT react to anything other than CO2, and the only thing that will mess with a CO2 sensor or CO sensor is loud odors such as perfume, paint, alcohol etc., BUT the number will only go up for a second or two and fall immediately back down to normal. For CO - 0 to 1ppm is normal, and will only go up to 1 for a 1/2 of a second and fall back down to 0, and for CO2, 600 to 800ppm is normal, and if the reading does go up due to being influenced by a loud odor, it too will only go up for a second or so and fall back down to normal...
I do hope that your monitor is real, but just be sure before you put your trust in it. Also keep in mind that CO and CO2 sensors have a life span of about 2 to 3 years (from date of manufacture) and need to be replaced, and some companies say theirs have a life span of 10 years, but I wouldn't trust that number. Just do checks every few months and keep track of numbers/readings for the CO and CO2, because after a few months the "normal" numbers may start declining or going up due to life expectancy for these sensors.
Hope this helps, and thank you again for your comment and thoughts, much appreciated.
Did you have a drink before because some had a alcohol sensor
@@tobypoingdestre no .
very good video, I absolutely agree, in tech, you do get what you pay for, and a lot of times, it is something you can't put a price on.
Thnx for the heads up about Temtop products. Whilst I don't think I live in a dangerous environment, I still think my particular room in the house might be rather dusty or have some air impurities.
What is your thoughts about the Amazon Air Quality made by Amazon themselves?
Thanks for the comment and question. I have not had a chance to try anything by Amazon yet, so I can't speak inelegantly on those. I have a number of projects going on right now, but hopefully soon I will be able to make a purchase of one of the Amazon monitors for testing and review...
Just the video I needed. I’ve been extremely worried of the gas cooktop after realizing the hood wasn’t designed to vent out. Hoping the Temtop will yield some valuable data. Excellent info!! Thanks.
Thanks Gedion for the comment. It would be interesting to hear your results after doing some tests if you didn't mind. It may be useful for anyone with the same concerns as you had about your cook-top. It is always good to hear of others' experiences.
@@Outside-In. Hi, I was asking chatgpt how to make a c02 sensor, it recommended a high end $55 dollar SCD41 Sensirion sensor connected to an Arduino uno R3, I was hoping for highly accurate pre-calibrated readings, do you think my expectations are too high?
@@TheChromePoet I would have to look into that sensor. It has been my experience that after you spend what it will take to build a monitor, you would save money buying one already made with more readings than one. If you are looking for just a CO2 meter, I highly recommend the Smart Sensor Handheld CO2 meter, as it is a industrial meter built for factory use, so would be what you are looking for as far as accuracy.
...And our expectations are never too high - until we expect that which we cannot do... ;)
This is a link to the CO2 handheld meter I purchased: www.aliexpress.us/item/3256804532459210.html?spm=a2g0o.detail.1000014.46.65c8147bnU1c9S&gps-id=pcDetailBottomMoreOtherSeller&scm=1007.40000.326746.0&scm_id=1007.40000.326746.0&scm-url=1007.40000.326746.0&pvid=efc3c710-34f9-449e-8bd0-1c9c8a114481&_t=gps-id:pcDetailBottomMoreOtherSeller,scm-url:1007.40000.326746.0,pvid:efc3c710-34f9-449e-8bd0-1c9c8a114481,tpp_buckets:668%232846%238114%23748&pdp_ext_f=%7B%22sku_id%22%3A%2212000030221280226%22%2C%22sceneId%22%3A%2230050%22%7D&pdp_npi=3%40dis%21USD%21255.4%21173.67%21%21%21%21%21%402101d1b316774814052091262e2b28%2112000030221280226%21rec%21US%21872586204
Not trying to defend the temptop but in my city the cheapest CO2 monitor that I can get my hands on is actually the temptop M2000 or M2000C - they are worth the $$$ just for the CO2 monitoring alone. You can ignore the rest of the readings but the CO2 seems to be quite accurate and consistent in your video. If you do a bit of research, the temptop has a senseair S8 chip for CO2 and it is one of the best CO2 chips for monitors in the sub $200 range.
It is ok to defend the TemTop. In this video, I speak about the two defective units that I received, and my horrible experience with customer service. However - the other TemTops I own are great devices. You are right, the CO2 is quite accurate on the TemTop M2000, but my problem was not with the CO2 reading, it is the device as a whole. I will be doing a new video review of the TemTop M2000 2nd edition that TemTop sent to me about 2 weeks ago.
Yes the Senseair S8 is a great sensor for home use, and quite accurate, but when you buy a monitor with multiple sensors, and has two sensors you can't trust, it makes that unit not worth owning. I have several videos about air quality where I recommend TemTop monitors, just not the M2000, but the M2000 2nd edition is a good monitor that I will be reviewing soon.
Thanks for your comment and thoughts - much appreciated.
I was searching for an air monitor for 3d resin printing workplace and luckly i found this. Very valuable video, i love this kind of approach to specific topics. Everything covered, thank you! Greetings from Poland
Thank you Harry for the comment. It is comments like yours that keep me inspired to create more content like this. If you have any suggestions for what you would like to see, please leave a comment, and I will do my best to create a video to address any concerns. ...And - Greetings back to you from Virginia USA.
I have long been concerned about the air quality near coal plants. Do you think that any of these testers would be able to assess that air quality accurately?
Well... That is a tough one... Coal plats put off the following...
CO (Carbon Monoxide),
CO2 (Carbon Dioxide),
CH2 (Methane) which can explode at the very slightest spark.
H2 (Hydrogen) which is also very explosive.
There are gas leak detectors, and the one I own is this detector on Amazon: www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0B82MP3HB/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&th=1
I have not been able to test it or one like it, because I don't have a lot of those types of gases for testing purposes in my possession (other than CO and CO2 of course). The meter mentioned above has high ratings and why I purchased it, but being able to test it without having the specific gases, there is no way to verify if it works. I have another gas leak detector made by Smart Sensor that works great, and super fast to respond to leaks I have tested like propane and butane, but the only thing I don't like about any of these detectors, is the none of them tell you what type of gas is being detected. I found a Smart Sensor gas leak detector that does display the type of gas that is being detected, but it is very expensive and I simply don't have the finances to purchase it.
Thanks from Canada so much for your great video. I just ordered the M10 greatly appreciated!
Thank you Ronald for the comment and gratitude. Hope you get allot of enjoyment out of the M10. It would be great to hear of your experience here once you get and use it so others can benefit from your experience as well.
Hello, great video. I only noticed this video after i bought the "fake" meter you showed in the video. I ran a few tests with it:
- Sprayed some WD40 on tissue paper and it spiked the HCHO/TVOC reading (cant remember which)
- Breathing out heaviliy onto the meter spiked the CO2.
- Smoke did nothing for the CO value.
- Emptying the vacuum cleaner dust into the bin spiked the PM2.5/PM10 levels.
Does this sound like its actually sensing something a bit more than yours did? Doesnt seem like all of this could be achieved with a single sensor? Would be interested to hear what you think.
That is normal behavior for the fake monitor. WD40 will get picked up because of the odor. Breathing heavily into it and triggering CO2 reading, could be because of an alcoholic beverage or mouth wash, or even if you had just finished brushing your teeth.
The Chinese are very clever at making these appear to be legitimate.
@@Outside-In. I didn't consume anything for hours before each test but still pinged the monitor.
Still interested in how the PM2.5/PM10 value spikes and alarms when emptying the vacuum cleaner if there is only a VOC sensor. The same with banging on a dusty carpet like in another UA-cam video.
I've sent mine off for a refund and will get a Hotkrem or Temtop, but I have a feeling that the sensor isn't as bad as it seems, albeit the values it throws out are a bit inconsistent, the alarms is raises are genuine for most values.
@scout9012 Thanks for the clarification. Even dirt has an odor, and why they can make these look legitimate. However, any monitor that gives even one piece of false data is fake, and not to be trusted period... I cannot emphasize this enough. I would ask everyone to please not put trust into a device that gives even one piece of false data. A fake device is not ok even it it gives at least 1 good reading, and this fake monitor - gives zero good readings and that is a promise....
@@Outside-In. Sorry but that explanation "WD40 will get picked up because of the odor" is just pure bullshit. As is "CO2 reading, could be because of an alcoholic beverage or mouth wash". The sensor on the cheap air quality meter is doing what it should, it's just less accurate, obviously.
Hi, I recently moved to a semi new apartment that had a lot of adjustments (walls got painted, walls broken, etc etc). Even though I open every window for 8 hours 10 days and also cleaning every day, the problem wont go away. I also even bought the Levoit Air Purifier and no change whatsoever. I wake up very very tired and with a lack of air when I breathe. What sensor would you reccommend to check mainly PM10 and PM2.5 as I think the problem is dust, debrie, paint, from the construction??
The TemtopM10 only does PM2.5.
Great video btw!
Hello Bernard, and thanks for the comment and question. If there was a lot of recent construction done to the apartment, there will be high VOC's and HCHO for a while as the paints dry out and off-gas. Unless you have allergies, I would not suspect Particulates to be the culprit. A very good friend just purchased the uhoo air quality monitor on Amazon, and he is very very happy with it. It shows all that you would need to know including CO and CO2, which is something very very important for you to look into because of your symptoms. The uhoo is more expensive at 300.00, but if you want a monitor that gives good information, I am finding that we are going to have to stop buying monitors for less than 200.00. None of my monitors that I have reviewed can I recommend any longer, as they have either quite working or stopped giving accurate information.
My Hotkrem works great still, but more and more people are complaining about the Hotkrem not working out of the box, or stops working after only a few days or weeks of use, so I can't even recommend the Hotkrem any longer - bummer because I really like it.
The ONLY meters that I have that I can still recommend are the CO and CO2 meters, and they are very very accurate, and no home should be without one.
Your VOC's and HCHO is high because of all the recent construction, and no, an Air Purifier is NOT going to get rid of any type of gas (VOC, HCHO, CO, CO2 etc.).
The Temtop M10 I cannot recommend any longer because I just found out that they do not include a genuine VOC sensor inside, and they use the HCHO sensor along with a calculation to estimate TVOC, which in my opinion is just plain crazy that a company would do that. TemTop does have a new monitor on the market - the M10+, and they told me that it does have a genuine VOC sensor inside, except that they did away with the HCHO sensor (weird).
Check out the uhoo, and see what you think. I contacted to uhoo to ask if they would send me a unit for test and review, but have heard nothing from them, and I assume it is because Outside In simply does not have enough subscribers yet unfortunately, so won't be able to create a video about it because I cannot afford to purchase another monitor at this time.
Thanks Bernard for your question and comment - they are much appreciated, and I do hope this has helped at least a little...
uhoo Smart Air Quality Monitor:
www.amazon.com/uHoo-Indoor-Air-Quality-Sensor/dp/B076PV9X99/ref=sr_1_6?sr=8-6
49:45 like many probably already pointed out, you failed to look closer at the other side of the circuit board to see the leds in plastic housing.
Yes, you are right gelisob, I did fail to look closer, but if you see my updated video, I purchased a second monitor for the video (because I had already thrown the other one away), and found that even though there looked to be another sensor (laser) in the unit, it still gave horrible readings and not at all to be trusted. A company that creates a monitor that gives gives readings from a genuine sensor, and creates 6 other readings from sensors that don't even exist - is (In my opinion - A FAIL) and a lie to the end user. A meter that gives blatant false information should not be allowed on the market, and should never be trusted by anyone who values their life. Thanks however for pointing that discrepancy out - much appreciated... 👍
I subscribed the moment you said 'God showed me' that's a big statement but I totally get it as he's done the same for me. I thank God I found your video. Cheers J
Joshua - YOU my friend, just made my day. I Love interjecting God into conversations, as it is He who led me to create Outside In, so no matter how far I am able to go with the Channel, I will have the assurance that I will go no further than God wants... ...And I thank God for you Joshua and your kind words, and thanks for the sub - much much appreciated.
@@Outside-In. No thank you. God has certainly led me to do a similar thing in my videos but you've inspired me to seek him further in guiding the content to be as helpful to saving people's lives as much as possible. I'll certainly be linking my next video to this one as reference to the hard work and research you've done. Cheers J
@@joshuadelisle Thank you J for the inspiration that you have now given to me as well. I will be checking out your channel as well, sounds interesting 👍👍
Hey J, I am hoping that I didn't offend you in my video when using an Australian accent lol.. I have been doing that since I was in my early 20's, so it was nothing forced because of your accent. I LOVE LOVE your accent, and why I spent years learning how to use the accent - practicing, practicing by watching many many movies and TV shows with Australian actors, and constantly repeating phrases to learn the accent because I enjoy it so much. At one trucking company I drove for years ago in OH, I met two drivers that every time they would see me - they would call me Aussie, and we had allot of fun with the accent, so it wasn't meant to be disrespectful to you at all... I love making people laugh, and every time I use the British or Australian accent, it brings laughter and smiles, and that is why I do it - not too offend for sure, just wanted you to know that. Have a Happy and Joyous New Year.
This video and the others on your channel helped me make a valid choice (and saved a couple of bucks buying worthless pieces of junk). Thanks again!
Hi Steven, have you considered a DIY approach to making your own custom Air Quality Monitor? After watching this video I was interested to see if you could do it? There are videos online on how to make it, but I don’t have technical knowledge or tools to make such devices.
Thank you Thomas for your comment and question. I have thought of that very thing, but after looking into it, the cost of such a project is something that I am unable to do at the moment. I have been working with AirKnight in developing their new model, but I guess that is as close as I can come to actually creating one myself. 👍
AirKnight's new model is supposed to be out by the end of this year, but haven't heard from them in a while, so no updates on how close they are in completion.
I wish I seen this video 24 hours ago
The Hotkrem monitors seem to have fallen off in quality since this video. I recently purchased one from Amazon that would always read 0 AQI, and 0 on PM 1.0, 2.5, and 10. So, I had them send a replacement and guess what? That one reads all zeros too! I've taken both units outside to compare readings to a known purple air station about half a mile away. That station is reporting an AQI of 19, and both of the Hotkrem units are reading zero to one for AQI. The PM .3 and .5 are registering between 0 and 20, and 1.0 occasionally will show 1. Otherwise, nothing is registering, which is impossible. With a slight breeze and lots of pollen being released everywhere, there should be lots of PM 10 at least. Indoors with the doors and windows shut,all monitors read zero. My Levoit air purifier has a built in monitor that would always read 3-4 with doors shut, and jump up to 12 or so on a breezy day with doors open. I will be returning both of the Hotkrem units, and have a Quingping lite unit coming that I am hopeful will be more accurate. Thank you for your videos. It has been helpful in knowing which units to try and which to definitely avoid.
Thanks William for your comment and thoughts. Yes it is unfortunate that the Hotkrem has fallen in popularity. I have tried to contact Hotkrem, but they have not responded to any messages I have sent, so therefore I cannot promote Hotkrem any longer. I will definitely not be recommending the Hotkrem any longer which is unfortunate because I liked it so much. The two Hotkrem's that I have are still working great, but to get one (from all the negatives I have seen) that actually works seems to be a gamble...
The Qingping is a monitor that I have been looking forward to testing, and when I can afford to do so, I will be purchasing one for review.
Update: I received my new Qping lite yesterday, and so far I am very impressed with this unit. First of all, it is small, so it can be placed just about anywhere easily. My initial observations are that it is also very accurate.I initially thought the temp and humidity were off, but after letting it acclimate overnight, it is reading just about dead on on with the local purple air station a half mile from my house. But if for any reason the sensors drift over time, the co2 sensor can be either manually or automatically calibrated, and all of the other sensors can have an offset added to calibrate them to a known source. All of this is done through the qingping+ app. The app also logs up to 30 days of data, can set up notifications, and can configure some display options,as well as update the firmware of the device. Overall, I am very impressed with this little unit. So much so that I just ordered a second one so I can put one in the living area and one in the bedroom.
@@williamwagner-tt7vu Thank you William for your comment and experience with the Qingping, sounds like a nice device, and happy to hear you are enjoying it. Hopefully it stands up to time. 👍
I so appreciate your video. I am inclined to buy the Temtop M2000C but there are so many one-star reviews on Amazon of people who (1) got total duds that were virtually useless, and (2) "I died just beyond the 30 day return period. I had only used it 10 times." (However, I realize that something like 3% of any manufactured electronics is likely to be defective, from what I've read, and those are the people who are going to post a one-star review.)
So here is my question: If I buy a Temptop M2000C and let it calibrate out on my outdoor patio for hours and then take it to the location of my city's air quality meter (the source of the numbers shown on the local AIR QUALITY webpage), should I expect the unit to be within 10% (or 5%, or 15%) of the "official" air quality data for my city? I was thinking of hanging around in that location for an hour or so so the meter could adjust.
So what do you think of my strategy? Or is there another meter that has won your confidence in the year-plus since this video?
The TemTop M2000 2nd edition seems to be the better one to have, and don't know much about the "c" version.
As for your question about calibration. Most monitors' AQI reading is based upon all the sensors that are in the device, and not the AQI in a certain area or town. I would say that even if you do a calibration of your monitor at your house and take it to town, it will not be the same number, and more than likely it will not even be close to the town's AQI. Usually the AQI number is based on the device's sensors, and why most monitors are not even close to the AQI in their local area.
Unfortunately I don't have a go-to monitor right now because so many monitors or beginning to be a hit and miss on accuracy. The AirKnight was my favorite until I discovered that the AirKnight also has problems. AirKnight is working on a new monitor and hopefully will be ready to purchase by the end of the year, but until I review and test it, I won't know for sure it is a better choice.
There are too many companies more interested in making money than putting out a quality device. The two most important monitors to have are a CO and CO2 monitor. The best thing to do is to have a decent air purifier that runs 24/7, and have good ventilation. Even the TemTop M10 I cannot recommend any longer, as I just found out that it does not have a legitimate VOC sensor inside, as it used the HCHO sensor to calculate a TVOC reading (which is pointless in my opinion), but the M10+ will have a VOC sensor inside, but no HCHO sensor which doesn't make any sense to me.
It is getting harder and harder to find a quality monitor, and even to the point that it may actually be better not to have one than to have one, and that is because the quality of most of these monitors is continually going down, as I have had a couple companies turn me down to review their products, and more than likely because they don't want to be found out - just an assumption though.
@@Outside-In. Thanks for your reply. I've been thinking about another issue which I rarely see addressed which may suggest that, in many cases, an air purifier is a semi-futile enterprise: Unless one has a very tightly sealed house (which is rarely the case), there are multiple air exchanges per hour through the various leaks that naturally occur even around well built windows and doors. As a result, how can air-purifiers keep up? Isn't it like air-purifying with a window open? I would think that this would be especially problematic in urban areas with a lot of PM2.5. Wouldn't new particles be constantly coming through the air-leaks from the outside? Even if the air purifiers are major capacity, I would think they would have trouble keeping up in a typical apartment or house built decades ago.
@@VelvetRockStudios @VelvetRockStudios Air purifiers are mostly used in the winter when doors and windows are shut. Yes in the summer, you may not need to use an air purifier if all your windows are open, and you have an intake fan and outtake fan keeping the air within your home fresh at all times. At night when you close some of your windows and turn off ventilation fans, then it would be good to run the purifier to clean the air. Most of the time, we can use common sense to know if we need an air purifier running or not in our homes.
In my humble opinion, there are too many people that have paranoia these days about air quality which leads to sickness and unhealthy living... For hundreds of years no-one used (or even head of) an air quality monitor, and they lived to a very old age, but now people are dying much much younger, and I believe it is because of the paranoia surrounding air quality. The most important monitors to own are CO and CO2. If a person is going to be paranoid about anything, be paranoid about those two gases that we cannot see or smell. Particulates we can see, TVOC we can smell, and HCHO is in everything and everywhere, and there is no way of getting away from it. HCHO is abundantly in the forest and plants, and has been since the beginning.
The best thing that we can do for our health, is to not become paranoid about air quality, and to love life, not be afraid of it. Companies have created this panic just to make a sale.
Just try and remember back when people abundantly went on camping trips, and enjoyed family and friends over a camp fire for hot dogs and marshmallows. Now since all this about air quality has started, see how much less people are getting outdoors for camping or enjoying each others company around a fire, which has resulted in much more sickness than normal, and also depression. This air quality ordeal has gotten way way out of hand.
The ONLY time that I get out a monitor is just to check things out from time to time.
Was looking for a monitor for 3d printing, this video saved me from making a crappy purchase!
It is great to hear comments like yours. Thanks for your input - much appreciated. 👍
Comparison of following items would be great: Qingping Air Quality Monitor, XIAOMI Mijia Air Quality Tester, Airthings Wave Plus, Honeywell Air Monitor.
Thank you for the suggestions. The Qingping is one I have been looking at, Airthings, and Honeywell also, but where am I going to get the money for all these???.. I can only do so much on my own, but I do appreciate the suggestions, and will be able to get to more when I am able to actually make money with UA-cam, but for now, I just have to keep using money out of my own pocket, and why these videos are so far apart at times... I will do the best I can. 👍👍
Awesome thorough review. Just subscribed. I came across your video upon researching how to use my recently purchased Temtop indoor thermometer air quality monitor. I'm wondering if it's inaccurate as you mentioned in your videos.
Danny thanks for the comment and question. I wouldn't classify lesser expensive monitors as being inaccurate - they are just not pin-point accurate... Pin-Point accuracy is very very expensive. Air Quality monitors that are more reasonable in price is simply because the sensors are not super high quality and why the cost is lower. BUT - these monitors are very close to accurate, and after-all, that is all we need - - close.
In our homes we don't need pin-point accuracy, we just need to know that the air is getting a little stale, and alert us to opening a window to get some fresh air moving around. The TemTop monitors are just fine, but once in a while, we get one that has a defect just like the one in this video. And thanks for the subscribe
Great informative video thanks for your effort to keep us safe! I am a truck driver that sleeps in my truck, I have been put off work because an exhaust leak in the truck. Unknowing to me I have been breathing diesel exhaust for months now getting progressively worse until I got sick from it. Sadly I have to go back to work knowing how bad diesel exhaust is for you. The exhaust leak has been located and repaired. Can you suggest a monitor that would help me out best for my case. I do have an inverter 110v so power is not an issue but being rugged and robust air tester unit would help my cause. Thanks in advance ! Your the Man!
Thank you Whaler for the comment and thumbs up - much appreciated. I myself was a driver for 24 years, so I understand what you are going through. Exhaust fumes are going to put off CO, so be very careful with that because I have been poisoned by CO and CO2 and almost died. It is very serious stuff for sure.
You will get mostly CO from your exhaust, but you will also experience CO2, not just as much, but can be just as deadly.
I would definitely recommend getting the Smart Sensor CO handheld meter, as it is super fast at detecting CO. I love mine, and you can even walk outside of your truck, use the meter to test everywhere you can think of, and pin-point the exact location where these harmful fumes may be entering your cabin.
I would also recommend getting the Smart Sensor CO2 handheld meter, but it is a bit more expensive because it is a professional meter, so you will be sure to get most accurate readings.
I have links in videos that I have done to both of these meters. Try not let the price of the CO2 meter stop you from getting it, as for me anyhow, my life or the life of someone else is worth much more than the cost for sure. After your comment, I would feel safe to say that you yourself would feel the same as I do.
What is also great about the Smart Sensor meters, is that they are battery powered so you can easily take them to a friends truck if they are experiencing any symptoms, such as - Headaches, Dizziness, Vomiting, Euphoria, stumbling as if you were drunk, uncontrollable shacking in the limbs that you can't control (scary believe me as that was one of the symptoms I was experiencing, and all of the others as well - that is why I know LOL). Slurred speech, Vision problems, Closing eyes and seeing thousands of stars or small specs of multicolored light, and you really know it is getting bad if when you lay down, the whole world begins to spin around and around like a merry-go-round. Those are all the symptoms that I experienced when I had extensive poisoning to my system from CO and CO2. My body was so saturated that I even began falling down when I would try to stand, it was quite the experience for sure, and wouldn't wish any of what I went through on anyone, and that is why I am so detailed about air quality videos, I do loads of research to make sure I get the correct information out to those that need to know...
The best way to know if something is wrong, is that you will first start to feel dizzy, and experience headaches. If you immediately get out of your truck, walk around in fresh air for a few moments, the symptoms should go away, and once back inside your truck, and a few moments later the symptoms return, there is a serious problem.
You can also use this information if another driver may be complaining about symptoms they don't understand like mentioned above, and then you could take your meters to their truck and do a check for them for CO and CO2.
I hope this information has helped, and am so glad to hear that you were able to get your truck fixed. Hopefully it won't happen again, but just in case, you would have the tools to check for leaks.
I apologize that this was a bit long-winded, but when discussing this topic it can get quite involved because there is so much information to cover regarding CO and CO2 symptoms.
Thanks for your prompt response and have read it a couple of times. I did not get the shakes but many of your symptoms I can relate to. Money is not an issue ,so for clarity the Smart Sensor CO2 will do both CO and CO2. It feels like I am being told by the Good Lord to stop trucking, I just returned from years off from a Suicide/murder, a young man drove his car into my grill killing both occupants. And just weeks into my return behind the wheel the Company truck had 3 exhaust leaks getting me sick. Now off work again , I know it will get better. The symptoms have almost subsided and should get Dr clearance to return next week , so I want to give myself the best chance to mentally succeed and the physical should follow. Thank again for your great response !
just found one for $240 on amazon but made by Sagtas ? Do you have a link for the one you suggest, Smart Sensor is the brand?
@@WhalersWorld The Smart Sensor CO2 does only CO2, and the Smart Sensor CO does only CO. I will try and find a link for you on Aliexpress, as I do believe that is where I bought the CO2 meter by Smart Sensor. Crazy thing about the suicide, but I know it will get easier to deal with as time passes.
@@WhalersWorld This is a link to the CO2 meter I bought, and it is around 180.00 I think it said: www.aliexpress.us/item/3256804532459210.html?spm=a2g0o.detail.1000014.46.65c8147bnU1c9S&gps-id=pcDetailBottomMoreOtherSeller&scm=1007.40000.326746.0&scm_id=1007.40000.326746.0&scm-url=1007.40000.326746.0&pvid=efc3c710-34f9-449e-8bd0-1c9c8a114481&_t=gps-id:pcDetailBottomMoreOtherSeller,scm-url:1007.40000.326746.0,pvid:efc3c710-34f9-449e-8bd0-1c9c8a114481,tpp_buckets:668%232846%238114%23748&pdp_ext_f=%7B%22sku_id%22%3A%2212000030221280226%22%2C%22sceneId%22%3A%2230050%22%7D&pdp_npi=3%40dis%21USD%21255.4%21173.67%21%21%21%21%21%402101d1b316774814052091262e2b28%2112000030221280226%21rec%21US%21872586204
Thanks for this video, Have you found a good monitor to check Co2 levels? that seems accurate ?
Thanks FalconWing for the question, and yes I can absolutely recommend the Smart Sensor CO2 handheld meter. It is fast to respond to use around a home of office to find problems spots. I love the Smart Sensor handheld CO2 meter.
www.aliexpress.us/item/3256804532459210.html?spm=a2g0o.detail.1000014.46.65c8147bnU1c9S&gps-id=pcDetailBottomMoreOtherSeller&scm=1007.40000.326746.0&scm_id=1007.40000.326746.0&scm-url=1007.40000.326746.0&pvid=efc3c710-34f9-449e-8bd0-1c9c8a114481&_t=gps-id:pcDetailBottomMoreOtherSeller,scm-url:1007.40000.326746.0,pvid:efc3c710-34f9-449e-8bd0-1c9c8a114481,tpp_buckets:668%232846%238114%23748&pdp_ext_f=%7B%22sku_id%22%3A%2212000030221280226%22%2C%22sceneId%22%3A%2230050%22%7D&pdp_npi=3%40dis%21USD%21255.4%21173.67%21%21%21%21%21%402101d1b316774814052091262e2b28%2112000030221280226%21rec%21US%21872586204
Hello, sir! Really appreciate your video. What air quality monitor would you recommend that specifically detects co2? I'm a college student and it is for project purposes so I'm hoping to find a budget-friendly monitor since it would be a one time use only.
The Hotkrm CO2 monitor is very accurate, and inexpensive. I recently did a video review of it.
@@Outside-In. Thanks a lot! Unfortunately the item is currently out of stock but I think I would look onto their other models.
@kevs8829 You just have to be careful about their other models, as it is a hit and miss on one that works unfortunately. The TemTop C10 is a great CO2 monitor, and it is around 80.00 I think, but would be a good choice. CO2 monitors are very expensive, but other than Hotkrem, I would recommend the TemTop for budget reasons. Hope this helps.
I'll take your word for it! I think it's definitely worth the price.
@@kevs8829 Yes, I really do like the TemTop CO2 monitor, and I do believe it is worth the money for sure 👍
Its a shame you didn't use the 2nd gen version in your test! The M2000 has been replaced with a 2nd gen version. The upgrade has a Swedish S8 and SHT3X series sensors and no longer has the China Weisheng and Si7020 series sensors.
Thank you Richard for the comment, and yes, I would have loved to give the 2nd gen a try but unfortunately I can't afford that one as it is more expensive. When I contacted TemTop they didn't even suggest that the 2nd gen was a replacement with better sensors - TemTop just wanted me to buy one of the even more expensive models than the 2nd gen. I also believe that the 2nd gen has data connection to monitor readings over time.
@@Outside-In. Thanks for the quick reply and your video content was excellent! It’s hard to find’s reviews sometimes.
@@RichardO1369 Richard - I know what you mean. While researching products that I am interested in, sometimes I find that I come away with more questions than answers, so I use those situations to give me a cause/idea to create another video so that people can find the answers they are looking for. Allot of reviews I find seem to be more an advertisement than a true test and review... :)
Hi ,Can you suggest me an accurate air quality monitor ?
@@pkd2411 Yes PKD. There are at least 4 in this video that I recommend. I would love to be able to do more testing and reviews, but there are so very many air quality monitors, and some very very expensive prices to go along with them. I have a very limited budget which does not allow me to make elaborate purchased to review and test products. I wish I could buy everyone that someone wants me to test, but that is absolutely and fortunately impossible for me to do.
48:40 that's an optical particle sensor. Not just nothing. Most smoke detectors work this way. I also work with professional particle detection systems, much more sensitive than a normal smoke detector. They also use a lightsource (some times a laser) and specific angle and a light sensor.
Just saying "there is nothing in there" is wrong. But it's not closed well enough to block light to come in. This makes the sensor less reliable. The good ones have air channels with multiple corners avoiding any light getting in.
@MrSpacelyy Thanks for your comment and thoughts - much appreciated. 👍
Nice video, with 3d printing filament and Resin becoming more affordable, definitely having this info is very helpful. I have been looking at a lot of VOC monitors and half of them seem like crap and to good to be true. Amazon sadly sells stuff and removes after to many complaints.
Thanks Justice for your comment and thoughts. I do allot of 3D printing with PLA, so may be why my numbers are a bit higher when printing. I have never used ABS, but I hear that it puts off even more fumes/odors than PLA, so a great reason for having a VOC sensor around for sure... Good to know when to get that window open for some ventilation. Yes, unfortunately, Amazon let's the fake ones through, but I am sure it would be hard to keep up with the many monitors to know which are good, and which are bad, so a good point that when there are enough complaints, it is a good time for Amazon to look at the specific device closer, and remove it from the sales window...
All good points Justice - much appreciated 👍
The outcry on pollution and the gap between people getting educated in this matter is really astonishing!!! Great video btw!
I agree, and thanks for the comment - much appreciated.
@Outside-In. Hey there outside. I started getting headaches, a sore throat, and a bad feeling in my lungs, while in my apartment. And something that's adding to my paranoia is that these symptoms happen on random days, and they started happening after I got into a confrontation with my downstairs naighbor. I thought my air quality was just bad so i got a clorox air purifier that has a PM2.5 air sensor on it, and on random days around 7pm to 12pm, and 8am to 12 am the sensor starts reading around 10-30. I know that the most common form of air poisoning is carbon monoxide, but is there any other kind of air pollution I should make sure my air sensor has?
@@TheRealPaul_Morphy @TheRealPaul_Morphy Hello Paul and thank you for your comment and concerns.
First of all anyone who has a confrontation with a neighbor, and suddenly starts having symptoms that you describe, and have not had them before the incident - would be easy enough to become paranoid about the confrontation...
Secondly: There is some troubleshooting steps one must take to evaluate the paranoia...
A. Is the person with whom you had the confrontation someone who has a vengeful personality?.
B. A person who does not get along well with others?.
C. Have you changed anything (routine) that you normally do lately, and may just be coincidence to the confrontation?.
D. Are you lately using cleaning supplies that you do not normally use?, as ammonia would cause the symptoms you describe - believe me - I know this from personal experience and why I had to stop using ammonia based products.
C. You say the person with whom you had the confrontation with lives below you, but do they live directly below you, or does someone live in an apartment between the two of you?. If there is someone living between the two of you, maybe you could find out from the neighbor directly below you if they are having the same or similar issues at the times you specify.
E. If it is ammonia causing the issue, you would know from the odor as ammonia has a potent odor, and will also cause you to have breathing issues as well. Ammonia is very very toxic, so check all of the cleaning supplies you use for an ammonia base (it should be in the list of ingredients).
Thirdly: 10-30 on a PM2.5 monitor is fine, and nothing to be worried about.
Dehydration can also cause headache and sore/dry throat, so check you humidity levels.
This time of year, when the weather is constantly changing, it can cause sickness such as a common cold, pneumonia or the flu, and the Flu and Covid can and will cause these symptoms as well. It may be that the confrontation is nothing more than a coincidence, and you have possibly contracted the Flu during this time.
Without knowing more about your situation and environment revolving around the confrontation, it is very hard to asses what may be happening, but I do hope that the steps I presented above will help to eliminate your paranoia about the neighbor.
CO and CO2 poisoning has many symptoms, but they both start out as your symptoms you are currently having. I nearly died from CO poisoning, so I have a lot of experience with how the symptoms start and progress. BUT we have to be very careful with specific information as that also can lead to false symptoms. The mind is a very powerful thing but so is paranoia. The most important thing is that you need to find out what is causing your environment to change randomly.
I would suggest that you get a CO monitor and also a CO2 monitor as those are the two MOST important monitors a person needs. CO and CO2 are both tasteless and odorless, so you don't even know they are there and why it is so important to be able to keep an eye on their levels in your home/environment.
I am so hoping that the confrontation is just a coincidence. High levels of any gas can cause (in the beginning) headache, sore throat, breathing problems, and without correction can later lead to nausea/upset stomach, vomiting, convulsions, dizziness, euphoria, memory loss, muscle control loss, a feeling of being drunk, stumbling, falling, flashes of scattering light in your vision, closing eyes and room spins around and around. I have mentioned all the symptoms that I had personally when poisoned, but at the time, I had no idea about CO or CO2. There are many symptoms caused by gas exposure, but the more severe symptoms take constant exposure for a few days and up to a week to appear. The only symptom I did not get (thank God) was death, but it was very close, and the loss of muscle control was the most embarrassing, as I was behaving like someone with Parkinson's disease. It was a pretty scary time for sure.
The first step is to find someone with a few monitors that can check for things such as CO and CO2 levels. CO should NEVER go above 1pm for any length of time. Some will say don't worry about CO if it is 50ppm, but that is horrible information, and also a lie.
In your situation, I would definitely be checking my CO and CO2 levels during the times that you have described. Check with other neighbors to find out if anyone else is having the same symptoms during the times you state. It is all about troubleshooting and not letting paranoia get the best of you.
I hope I have been able to help and give you peace of mind. If you can't afford to get CO and CO2 monitors, there is also another option, and that would be to contact your local fire department, and explain to them your situation, and they may want to come to your apartment and use their professional meters to check things out for you, as it may also be a gas leak that only occurs at certain times. Just be careful about contacting the Fire Department, as they get 100's of calls every year due to paranoia that turns out to be nothing.
Another step you can take, is when the symptoms happen, immediate go outside into fresh air, and if there is a serious issue, your symptoms will go away while outdoors, and then go back inside to see if the symptoms return, and if they do, then you will know that there is something going on that needs further investigation.
I hope that I have been able to help, and I also hope that it is just paranoia. Keep us informed if the symptoms persist or go away. Thanks again for your comment and concerns, as your solution may help others going through similar circumstances.
Agree, and just because you have an ozone generator doesn't mean you can detect halogens.
Thanks for the comment and insight - much appreciated. 👍
Great video, thank you! What's your opinion on the Amazon AQI monitor? Thanks!
Thanks you GTCRISTIAN for the comment and question. I have not been able to use the Amazon AQI monitor, so I can't give an intellectual opinion on that. 👍
Thank you for the very informative video. I’m about to pull the trigger in getting the recommended M10. Not sure if anyone has asked you this, but is it possible to continuously operate the unit while plugged in to a power source, instead of relying solely on battery power?
Thank you Mohammad for the comment and question. Yes, you can leave this constantly plugged in for continuous use so if the power goes out, the unit will still run on battery until the power comes back on.
@@Outside-In. Thank you! Keep up the great reviews!
@@monzafreeze I have another Air Quality monitor (from Aliexpress) review coming up by the end of the month. Thanks for the encouragement.
Went with the Hotkrem and a CO detector. With all the smoke on the east coast, I thought that should be helpful. Thanks for all your videos, I'm learning quickly watching you operate and test all these units. Made the decision process much simpler.
So happy these videos have helped. Getting ready to do another comparison with the AirKnight 9 in 1 and a Smart Sensor 5 in 1, it should be interesting. I love the Smart Sensor co meter, and the Hotkrem is a good choice as well. I do hope those work great for you.
Just to clarify it's the 5 in 1 Hotkrem that includes the CO2 monitor.
I will definitely look at your AirKnight review as well. The Hotkrem PM readings have brought a lot of peace of mind during these Canadian wildfire events.
@@juicebowl I found out that Hotkrem has several versions and one includes a CO2 sensor, so that would be a great choice. I just wish that Hotkrem would stop with the numbers changing colors as it is very hard to read the screen when the numbers go dark red, as the dark red blends into the black background causing the numbers very hard to read. Thanks for your comment - it is much appreciated.
Very helpful! This content is rare and so valuable.
Thank you so much, as that is why I truly believe that God led me to create Outside In. Your sentiments are very much welcomed and appreciated, as it is comments like yours that give me not only encouragement, but inspiration as well to continue to do what I believe God has led me to do.
Thanks for the video. I am looking for a reliable meter primarily for particulate monitoring that can be plugged in and has onboard storage for later download. Any suggestions for a decent one ?
Thank you Paul for your question. I cannot recommend anything that I have not tested, but I have tested Hotkrem devices, and the ones I have work great. Hotkrem also makes a model with data logging: www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0B9S6WRZS/ref=ox_sc_saved_title_1?smid=A1SDL45DDNCD9H&psc=1
I have not tested it, but keep in mind also that allot of people say that their Hotkrem did not work or only worked for a few days, I myself have not experienced that, so would have to recommend only with risk of possibly getting one that did not work.
I did find another that looks very interesting, but unfortunately cannot afford to purchase for testing, but this is the link if you would like to take a look at it: www.amazon.com/BLATN-Formaldehyde-Detector-Pollution-Particle/dp/B08YRVGCSV/ref=sr_1_3?crid=TT5DX8HRT35Z&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.JPSUlzIRQbRlHWsJVlvmg_jmjMnJjp2bVM5CsolImXq1oCwS4wCctYppJ1Wtzh9rOC7GgJAeuDM9G9C09HgdAeBAwPIIsdRrSPkttidTxwIGYGPJQUEfA8mDq_wCNs0Zl2R_nF72fj_AQY59OUvR-kW5aENz8hExN4QZ435YSvy0MDsqnfbyrGw1ipBn0zndQxGWLz-vRjOKD2CVQNTdLzNFHiKMUx9Scrkr2FRZB8o.eki4FYmFi2Usc-Nq0XoeSSQWzK6QaGm7SSRBR0h-tbk&dib_tag=se&keywords=air+quality+monitor+data+logger&qid=1710874513&sprefix=air+quality+monitor+with+data%2Caps%2C164&sr=8-3
Thanks for your question, and hope this has helped. 👍
Recently came in the market for an air quality sensor and am so glad the UA-cam algo recommended your video. Having done some research prior to watching your video, the scourge of cheap and inaccurate air quality monitors on Amazon is pretty evident. I want to monitor PM/TVOC/CO2 and so far the units I am agreeable with are the Airthings View Plus, Awair Element and Airknight 9-in-1. Reputable companies such as Airthings and Awair will publish the types of sensors they use to measure/calculate the various elements and I figure this would be the best way to decide on a monitor. None of the cheap air quality monitors had their sensor components published or readily available anywhere that I could find. I emailed Airknight inquiring about the sensors in their monitor. Hope they get back to me because the Airknight 9-in-1 at $130 is the most affordable of the three.
Thank you Tippy for the comment. You just have to be careful about "published sensor information", because I have seen an air quality monitor (a fake one I show in this video from Amazon) that published it had the sensors advertised, and it even showed photos of the sensors, BUT when taken apart - there were no such sensors inside - ONLY the one voc sensor that is in most of these fake monitors. That is why I don't recommend any monitor that I haven't physically touched, tested, and taken apart to verify what is inside is what is stated to be inside. I have also seen that some of these fake monitors are now selling for close to (if not more than) 100.00, so just be careful and do your research before making a purchase.
Shobuddy, I just thought I would reply again to say that in a couple weeks I will be creating another air quality video that includes the AirKnight 9 in 1 monitor, and I am looking forward to doing another tear-down and comparison video for sure. Also in the line-up is one of my favorite meter making company's "Smart Sensor". I just found out they make a 5 in 1 monitor, so I decide to make the purchase and compare it with the AirKnight 9 in 1 that someone had asked about recently.
@@Outside-In. can't wait!
@@shobuddy Neither can I Tippy - Neither can I...
I sent you a comment that on my meter CO2 was at 544ppm and in the green. You answered that the meter was not good, now I see on your chart CO2 in the green is between 400_650ppm, so my meter as for CO2 should be good. All this is getting confusing
I am so sorry Ruudy, I have been responding to so many questions in the past couple of days, that I am starting to get confused with whom I am speaking too. I will have to go back and review those comments, and I will be right back to answer this concern about your CO2 meter. Please, I know I had asked what the name of your meter was, but you did not respond, so if you could tell me the name of your meter, I would be happy to look into that specific meter, and why I would have suggested it was wrong. Sorry again, as it is hard to keep up with everyone at the same time LOL....
It is hard to keep up with you, as you have watched so many of my videos and thank you for that, but it is very hard to follow your questions from one video to another especially when your comments are referring to a different comment on another video other than this one.
I have went over I believe every comment that we have had on all the videos that you have watched..., and I see no comment where you mention 544ppm and in the green...
The only comment I saw where I suggested the CO2 was wrong, was the video that you had said your CO2 reading was 422 - not 544, and all I was suggesting is that 422 is not a very good reading, as that is way too low for a typical home environment. A real CO2 detector, will show 500 to 800 on average for normal air quality, and some times, that number may even go as low as 465 or a little higher, but a monitor that shows in the low 400's, is not likely, unless you go under ground.
If you could point me to the video where you mentioned 544ppm, I would be able to help better, but I really need to know the name of the Pro CO2 monitor that you told me you have.
Ok RuudyL, let me see if I can address your question about the "chart" that I show in the video, that says in the green is between 400-650ppm...
First of all, these are NOT my numbers.. These numbers and charts, are from the Scientific Community, and they are nothing more than a base-line for knowing what CO2 levels can be...
The reason that the Scientific Community states 400 as a low number, is because 400ppm is going to be the lowest number that you will ever see on a CO2 device, unless you take that monitor, and go under-ground, and only then will the numbers go below 400ppm. Right now, the atmosphere has a CO2 concentration of about 415ppm, and at ground level, it may be (depending on where you live), be as low as 404 to 410ppm, so your inside CO2 levels will never be that low, unless you open all your doors, all your windows for about an hour or so, but as soon as you close your doors, and your windows, the numbers will go right back up to a normal levels of around 600 to 800ppm, and maybe even 500 to 800ppm, again, depending upon you specific region and environment.
According to the Scientific Community, Normal Levels of CO2 in a HOME - is going to be between 600 to 800ppm, and that is the average of homes they have studied over the years.
It is possible that CO2 levels, CAN go down as low as 455ppm or so - inside of a home, but that greatly depends on how many people are in that home at the time, and how often they breath in and out (which is pretty often), so it is not likely to see numbers go that low inside of a home with windows and doors closed, especially in the winter time, as it is too cold to keep them constantly open, and also why CO2 levels typically are higher in the winter than they are in the summer inside your home.
I just checked with my CO2 meter, and my outside CO2 level goes down to 424ppm, but when I bring it back into my home, the CO2 goes back up to 600 to 705ppm, which is typical in my home, but won't be the same in someone else's home.
It also depends on where you are living on the planet Earth, as the CO2 levels are very different based upon where a person lives.
However, 422ppm (which is the number you told me in a comment), is not likely at all on the inside of your home, and the reason for that is because we as humans expel around 35,000ppm CO2 with every exhale when you are breathing, and that number accumulates over time inside your home. Without proper ventilation, your CO2 levels will begin to rise, and if you have more than one person within your home, that number will rise much higher, and why ventilation is so very important to remove higher levels of CO2 from your home environment.
You mentioned that you have a Pro CO2 meter for testing CO2 levels in your environment. Could you please give me the name of your CO2 meter, so that I can check it out?.
Best air quality reviews on all of the internet. I also do my research before buying things which lead me to here. Liked and subscribed
Thank you Deem for the comment and feedback - much appreciated.
My man! You have saved me sooo much time. Thanks!
Thanks for the comment, and you are welcome.
Incredible work you've done. You have another lifetime subscriber.
Thank you for the comment and subscribe - much appreciated.
My m10 hcho seems to be about 20% cross reactive with tvoc. So, when tvoc reads .50, hcho reads .10. I assume this is normal. Anyone do a tear down to confirm the dedicated Dart HCHO sensor?
Thank you Josh for the comment. I have taken apart TemTop monitors before, so I know that they do use legitimate HCHO sensors in their devices, so why I didn't take this one apart, but I guess maybe I should??. :). Normal depends on the amount of Formaldehyde in your environment. I would say that mostly there should not be too much Formaldehyde, unless of course a person has actual Formaldehyde in use.
Formaldehyde is in everything that we use, so there will always be a minimal amount in our environment, and more if we buy a piece of furniture from WalMart etc., and as we put it together, that will cause the levels to rise (and that is just one example of possible HCHO sources).
thanks for the overview. very handy as these monitors are a bit of the leap of faith otherwise.
Unfortunately I think you are right. There are so many fake ones out that it is almost a gamble which one to buy, and because some fake monitors are getting more expensive, it is harder to know that more expensive means real... Kinda like where AI is going - - soon it will be hard to tell the difference between a fake photo or video from a real one??...
Got M2000 2nd and it seems to work just right as your M10
calypsocat thanks for the information on the M2000 2nd edition. That is good to know that they fixed problems with the 2nd edition. Happy to hear it is working fine for you.
Perhaps if you make a vaccuum box you can calibrate it to 0 by putting the sensor in a vaccuum box or bag.
Talk about Ironic... I am in the process now of building a new case for testing monitors, and am building it so I can create a vacuum inside to more precisely test monitors. I couldn't afford to get 1/2 inch acrylic, but am using 1/4 inch, but it should be strong enough to create a good enough vacuum for testing purposes. I just want to create a case that won't let anything out or let any contaminants in while testing.
Great idea though, and thanks for the comment - much appreciated. 👍👍
I saw the user guide in the box. I see first time use Temtop M10 is leave it at outside for 6 hours. It's mean leave it at room or outside the house? I'm sorry, little silly here
Yes Stephan, leave it outside in fresh air for 6 hours for calibration. I think what it is for is to clear the device of any fumes accumulated during manufacturing. Once you have opened the package for the first time - step 1 is to leave it powered off, place it outside in fresh air for 6 hours. Step 2 is to turn it on (while still outside) and leave it for about 30 minutes before bringing it inside. You should only have to do the 6 hour thing once after purchasing or storing it for any length of time. Hope this helps Stephan. Before performing the above procedure, make sure it is fully charged before you start. Myself, I connected it to a power bank and set it outside so that the initial charge acted as part of the 6 hour calibration/clearing of unit.
I love this video! I bought a used FFU hepa filter unit to do some at home microbiology.
I want to test the unit by buying a budget P2.5 tester. All I care about is accurate particulate readings so my agar plates aren't contaminated.
Do you have any recommendations?
Yes. If you only care about Particulates* I recommend the HotKrem for sure. The HotKrem is quite accurate.
Sir do you have idea if TUYA Wifi 15 in 1 Air Quality detector App Control Portable is Accurate, please consider to evaluate if time permits. Thank your video is really amazing help other people in choosing gatgets
If that is what I just saw on Ali-express for around 30 or 40 dollars. Absolutely NOT. Do not purchase any monitor that claims 10 or more readings for 20 bucks or 30 or 50 or even 100 dollars. If you could add a link or send me one via email to the device you are talking about, I could get a better assessment of what it is.
I have an idea, once it arrive ill try to open unit and probably count the sensor just like what you did 😊
@@LakbayDrone It will be interesting to hear what you find inside... The listing says 15 in 1, but they only show 9 in the description?, very suspect. I did not know you had purchased one. If I were you, I would not trust it for safety. If might be cool to look at, watching the numbers dance around, but please don't trust it for anything even close to accuracy or honesty.
We have an internal air quality monitor within each of us, and all we have to do is open a window when we get the urge to do so - (the urge is our alarm going off) :)...
So my neighbor burns in a barrel and he smoked out my cabin, I am very concerned on the, me going to sleep and not waking up, he burns treated wood, copper wire and so on. what would you recommend for an air monitoring device for my home it's a small place 24' by 16' with vaulted ceilings but I woke up with a headache and nausea from the smoke alone and I was down stairs inside
My biggest recommendation for anyone is to have a CO and CO2 detector. If you are waking up with a headache, it more than likely is too much smoke which adds CO in your environment. Get yourself a CO detector - there is a lot of CO in smoke. Make sure you have plenty of ventilation. If this happens a lot, you should have a fan in a window venting out, and a CO monitor (I recommend the Smart Sensor handheld meter, it is very accurate and sensitive. ALWAYS keep an eye on your CO levels inside your cabin. It should NEVER go above 0 ppm. If CO goes up to 5ppm and stays there for more than a minute, something is wrong and needs to be addressed. Please get yourself a CO monitor if your neighbor burns wood a lot, as the smoke will produce Carbon Monoxide (CO). Hope this helps.
you have an awesome grandpa laugh.. made me crack up, ur review is the best from all i have seen on UA-cam and yes that includes the ones that come on top...
Thank you Neil for the kind words it is much appreciated. I love to laugh - as it cures many ailments... Thank you also for the comment on the review and am glad you liked it.
@@Outside-In. my pleasure :)
@@neilaleksandrov2655 :)
Awesome! Thank you for the comprehensive review!
You are very welcome TrueDamageKieran, and thank you for your comment - much appreciated. 👍
Thanks for the video im glad i could see whats inside of that cheap one i was going to buy one now im not! Are there any you would recommend that i can record the data and check it later? btw i skipped to 43 mins in the video i didnt see the earlier parts so sorry if i missed something.
I have fibromyalgia i have sleep issues and tiredness i want to find out if its my fibromyalgia or if there is actually a problem with the air quality in my home. of course, if there is a problem in my home id like a unit that would alert me and i can do something about the issues.
i looked at the airgradient one looks good however the shipping to the uk is $55 which to me is ridiculous! i wouldnt mind getting a few pcb's made and soldering but im more of a through hole solderer i am not sure if there is much surface mount components so i cant tell if i could do it or not. ive done a couple bits of surface mount but not anything too small.
id like to monitor what that cheap one "supposedly" (but not really) monitors. anything more than that would be a bonus.
Thanks, Toto, for the comment. If you are having a problem with sleeping that is not caused by your condition, what you would want to check for would be CO and CO2, and my recommendation first of all would be the Smart Sensor handheld CO meter. If there is a problem with carbon monoxide, you will know pretty quickly. As far as. CO2, I recommend Smart Sensor CO2 handheld meter. The AiKnight with CO2 detection would also be a great choice, but would also need to get the Smart Sensor CO handheld meter for checking carbon monoxide, but those two together would be all you would need for air quality testing. I hope this information has been helpful. I would have gone more in depth, but I am at the garage right now getting my truck worked on, and writing on my phone is not the easiest thing to do, LOL..
@@Outside-In. Thanks for the information my fibro comes with sleep issues but I wanted to check if it was just that or if there is any air quality issues in my home that could be making it worse. Sleep is very important and rem sleep is the most important and I don't seem to get enough of that some nights I'm waking up 10 or more times. It would be nice to find out if there is anything like air quality causing issues then maybe if there is I can do something about it
@@TotoGuy-Original Thanks Toto. I am starting to wonder if there is another issue related to not sleeping well, such as - stress will cause one not to be able to sleep very well, eating just before lying down will also be a factor in a bad nights sleep (waking up throughout the night), anxiety (not feeling happy, worry etc..) is a big reason why someone is up and down all night. I don't think that PM or TVOC's would cause a person to be up all throughout the night, as there would be some symptoms after waking up like coughing or sneezing, itchy eyes etc.. If CO or CO2 was an issue, there would be symptoms such as headaches, dizziness, euphoria, a sick feeling in the stomach (nausea), and as the symptoms progress, there would be convulsions, and walking around like someone intoxicated, - I know - that is what happened to me, so why I am so familiar with CO and CO2 poisoning.
Drinking allot of coffee (like I do) will cause you to get up many times throughout the night, but I guess that makes sense anyhow right??? LOL. Just trying to think of anything that could cause having to get up many times at night.
I don't know anything about your fibro condition, so can't speak intelligently on the subject. wish I could be more help, but I feel your problem doesn't stem from air quality, I feel it is either the fibro or something personal in your life that is causing undue stress and or anxiety.
To me, defective is a term for a product that could work, but does not, due to some unusual issue in manufacturing. That is not the case with some of these monitors, which appear to be deliberate frauds. I know amazon can't police their entire platform, but this goes beyond just bad manufacturing.
I would have to agree that defective is just an issue with quality control. With that said, TemTop has recently reached out to me to ask for my help and collaboration on a new monitor they are developing, and they have been pleasantly appreciative of my help and suggestions. They will be sending out their new device to me by the end of the month for beta testing it before it goes public, so they can fix any last minute issues that there may be. They have been watching the channel for some time now (and I had no idea of course until they contacted me), and also apologized for the customer service experience that I had, and that they are working on fixing that issue, so hopefully their customer service will get better. They also sent me a new M2000 2nd edition to make good on the two defective units I had received, and I will be doing a video review of that one soon.
I am close to finishing my new case for better testing of monitors, so have a few monitors to catch up on once that is complete. I am excited to use this new case, as it is bigger and is going to also be more air tight so I can be more precise of testing monitors. I have a busy road ahead once the case is complete, because I have been getting some pretty cool ideas from viewers to try out in the new case, so that is also going to be exciting to do.
Thanks for your comment and thoughts - they are much appreciated. Just don't give up on TemTop yet, as I really do want to give them the benefit of the doubt, as they didn't have to reach out to me since Outside In is so small, but they genuinely seem to want to get better with their quality, so only time will tell of course.
For now, let's just take it one step at a time, and if they are not being honest with me, that too will show itself just as quickly.
@@Outside-In. That's great to hear, thanks
@@paynetyler4173 👍
Thanks for this very helpful video! I am looking into air quality monitors after a recent search for a radon detector/monitor. (I am currently running two different continuous radon monitors side by side and trying to figure out which one is giving me the accurate reading...that's another story). But in reading up on radon, I started reading up on air quality. I searched the internet for reviews for AQ monitors and the Temtop M10 kept coming up. I then searched UA-cam for Temtop M10 reviews and I saw your video among several reviews. I am glad to see that you are pretty happy with it. It's appalling that manufacturers would made devices that display fake data. There really should be independent testing labs that can certify these devices (because even if I opened it up I wouldn't know what to look for). Thanks for going through all you did to compare these monitors.
Thank you Mary Ann for the comment and input. Yes I agree - there should definitely be testing done to prove there are these fake meters out there - especially when people are counting on them for safety... I am glad this video helped in your search for an AQ meter - and if you should get the M10, it would be nice to hear how it works for you. I am always on the lookout for a cool meter, so maybe I should look into a radon detector\meter and see what that is all about.
@@Outside-In. I did wind up purchasing the M10 Temtop. After airing it out overnight, I brought it in and was happy to see each room of the house everything was in range (except the formaldehyde....it doesn't "zero out" but only zero is good...I will have to try it outside). I wasn't sure if the readings were accurate since they were all low, and then I decided to make dinner using the air fryer. Well, the readings went very high (PM, TVOC and AQ)....all through the first floor of the house. Well, that was pretty educational! Our kitchen has poor ventilation so I will pay more attention to that while cooking. I would say this meter is going to be helpful.
I just wanted to amend my comment to say that I'm not sure how low the formaldehyde levels need to be to be safe, whether that's zero or ....? It was the one reading that didn't change with cooking.
@@maryann6365 Thank you Mary. Wow - again UA-cam didn't notify me of a comment. Sorry I didn't respond to this incredible information, but it is truly appreciated to hear others' experiences with the M10.
@@maryann6365 Formaldehyde is (I believe) mostly associated with smoking. Overall, there is a growing consensus that indoor air concentrations in the range of 0.08-0.1 ppm (100-120 μg/m3) represent safe exposure level for most people. So yes, if your levels are 0 or about there, I would say that you are in good shape Mary... Thanks again for the information and again sorry I didn't know your comment was made....
You should compare these to a Dylos DC 1100. Even with the Dylos DC 1100 it only detects down to .5micron. Ultrafine particles are not detected. Many particles (ultrafine) are unfiltered even with a HEPA grade filter.
Thank you Josh for the comment and suggestion. I love doing comparison videos, but the cost is killing me to keep reviewing Air Quality products as they can be very expensive... That said...
I looked into this monitor, and it would be something very very interesting for me to create a comparison video that I would absolutely love to do, so I contacted Dylos directly, and spoke with a woman there, and told her what I had in mind, and that I had gotten a request from a viewer to do a review of their product. Nicole told me that the owner Roger would be the best person to speak to, so she took down my information, and said that she would have Roger get in touch with me.
I am looking forward to talking with Roger, and hopefully he will be interested in sending me their pro version so that I can do a review and comparison to the other monitors I have already tested. That would surely be a fun video for sure. I just don't have 260.00 right now to purchase this device or even 200.00 to purchase the standard version, and am not sure Roger would want to send one to Outside In since we are so small - Not enough subscribers yet LOL...
I will do my best to convince Roger that he will get a great review if their product is what they say, and after much research, I am positive this device is capable of what is claimed, but unfortunately for now, I just don't have the money available to make a purchase.
The only company to send me a product for review was the AirKnight 9 in 1 monitor, and after the video, they cut ties with me because of my honesty, so not sure what will happen with this one. I hope and pray that it is in God's plan that you contacted me, and if it was, then I see no problem why Dylos would not send a device for me to review, or allow me the finances to make the purchase...
Let's keep our fingers crossed, and prayers going, as I would be excited to do a video review of the Dylos 1100 Pro. The Pro is the same as the standard, but the Pro is more sensitive to smaller particulates which would be the better one for testing against my other monitors.
Thanks again Josh for your comment, and let's hope that Dylos will be happy to send their device to us for a review and comparison video...
Will let you know of the outcome.
Hey Josh, just thought I would let you know that Roger from Dylos contacted me, and we had a great conversation about their DC 1100 Pro PC, and this will be great for those that want to record a history of air quality for review. Dylos is sending me their DC 1100 Pro PC version for review. The PC version allows you to record unlimited data using your Computer. It is going to be fun to test, teardown, and review this monitor.
Thanks again for the suggestion, and it will work out that I can in fact do a test & review using the DC 1100 Pro PC air quality monitor.
@Outside-In. That is fantastic! Kudos to reaching out to Dylos and speaking with Roger. I will be looking forward to future test. As noted, the DC 1100 will only detect down to a .5micron level. This .5 to 2.5 micron range should be the left display of the unit while the right display is calibrated for particles 2.5 micron and above.
Fine particles as defined by pm2.5 include particles less than or equal to 2.5 microns in diameter. (Not even a Dylos DC 1100 is giving a true representation of the true pm2.5 level as it only detects down to a .5 micron range) These fine particles account for roughly 9% of the air we breath.
This topic is of vast interest to myself, and I am no expert by any means.
Although i beleive The Dylos DC 1100 to be a superior test instrument to those previously tested it would still be an insufficient test instrument for even HEPA level filtration as hepa is 99.97% down to .3 microns. Smaller than the .5 micron range of the DC 1100). Another point with HEPA as it stops at the .3 micron range for testing/certification purposes is that you still have the potential for airborne pollutants to be present 100 times smaller down to the .003 micron range than HEPA is rated to filter.
What stands out the most to myself is that ultrafine particles in the .003 to .1 micron range account for 90% of all airborne pollutants. These ultrafine particles when inhaled are deposited into the lungs, can penetrate tissue, absorb into the bloodstream, and reach any organ. These non visable particles can include but not limited to cooking, smoke (including wood, cigarette, candle, incense), pet dander, soot, and viruses.
I think more emphasis is needed on these ultrafine particles, the filtration needed that exceeds HEPA standard, as well as testing equipment capable to detect at these sensitive ranges.
@@JSATI Thank you Josh for that detailed and deep dive look into particulates. I love to learn, and why talking with someone like you is a pleasure.
I understand your interest in understanding these small tiny contaminates as I do as well, and my interest has grown since starting these comparison videos, but what everyone needs to understand, - is that we do not want to be able to filter out all particulates that invade our lives, as doing so would surely lead to an early death, and I say that because, our bodies are built specifically to protect itself from sickness and disease, and therefore in our young years we need sickness and disease to invade us so that our bodies can build the appropriate anti-bodies to fight off infections and sickness later on in life as we get older...
When I was a child, my brothers and myself would play very hard outside, get cut, get sick from sweating in the winter months, breath in all kinds of contaminates etc., but what happened as a result is that our bodes built up such protection, that we nearly never got sick, and even today at a much higher age, still don't get sick as much as others, but today, people are so worried about the "floaters" out there, that they do everything possible to get rid of those, and ultimately create a (as near as possible) sanitary environment to live in, and that is why so many young people are dying today from a simple sickness, and that is because their bodies are not strong enough to fight off the simplest of invasions to their body.
Being conscious of our environment is a great thing to help protect ourselves, but if some becomes paranoid about what we breath, it can and will lead to over-protecting ourselves - ultimately leading to our undoing... Just my two cents LOL.
I am going to have to look into a way to inject smaller particulates into a closed space with the monitors to see which one detects and which ones don't. Do you have any suggestions on how I can get a hold of the smallest particles possible to use in a test?.
By the way - I do hope that your interest is purely scientific, as it does seem to be, because we definitely don't want to live in a bubble LOL, or at least I don't...
Being paranoid about air quality, can in itself be very dangerous to our state of mind, health and well-being, leading to sickness from nothing more than anxiety and stress. ...We can be our own source of disease and sickness - using nothing but our mind...
@Outside-In. @Outside-In. solely scientific purposes. We do not do anything out of the normal for home filtration. However, I am looking to improve our current air quality as we are utilizing two Corsi Rosenthal style designs equivalent to about a merv 13 rating. I agree that exposure allows our bodies to use its natural defense system day to day outside, at work, etc
I am currently unaware of a source for ultrafine particles that could be used in a test setting. I would think a commercial grade air quality device capable of detecting those ultrafine particles would be a starting point. As normal air carries many ultrafine particles. I do understand this is most likely cost prohibitive for the channel.
Very helpful video, I had that fake monitor in my cart when I went to go do further research. There really isn't that much quality information / reviewing on these products out there, it's very difficult to ascertain whether people's opinions (good or bad) are accurate or just influenced by user error and misunderstanding. Having a clear comparison of multiple models is really the only way, so it was very helpful.
Any chance you had any thoughts on the Airknight 9 in 1? It's a bit more expensive, but after understanding why the fake single sensor unit is so much more expensive, I figure maybe it's worth spending what the sensors would actually cost. I like the display a bit better, but I couldn't find anyone do a teardown, all the video reviews I could find were just the typical youtube bloat spam. Reviews say the support is good though, so it seems promising.
Thank you so much Justin for the comment and thumbs up - much appreciated. I am so happy to hear that you didn't get stuck with the "fake" monitor... The Airknight you speak of is one that I looked at before, and now that you mentioned it, causing me to go see it again. I believe that I am going to make the purchase because I actually have another monitor on the way made by my favorite company "Smart Sensor" - I love Smart Sensor products. I thought that maybe I could purchase the Airknight monitor and do another video comparison. This should be another fun video to do. If there is anything specific you would like for me to do in the test comparison - please let me know and I will try an implement that into the video. I am very much liking the Airknight, and am so glad that you brought it to my attention as I had nearly forgotten about that one. The Smart Sensor 5 in 1 monitor should be here in a couple weeks, and I will try and get the Airknight so I will have it to use in the video. Thanks again Justin for your question and suggestion for sure. Am excited to get to do another air quality video for sure my friend.
@@Outside-In. Thanks! I'll be looking forward to a video on the Airknight 9 in 1. I've occasionally experienced some minor breathing issues so I'm just trying to determine if it's an issue with air quality in the home as I live next to an airport and a highway. I also got a higher MERV furnace filter and I want to see if I can quantify the difference in any way. I'm still pretty new to the idea of monitoring air quality, so I'll look forward to your input on the device. Thanks again
@@Lightja_ Always happy to help in any way I can. I enjoy doing these tear-down and comparison videos, so this should be exciting. If you live near an Airport and highway and are starting to have breathing issues - it may be that you have an elevated co2 in your home, so yes a co2 monitor would be good. Also a co monitor would be a good thing also since there are all those fumes of different kind roaming around... Using cleaning supplies that have concentrations of Ammonia will also be a super huge reason for breathing related problems, and allot of people don't realize that ammonia is very very dangerous even in small doses. I am looking into getting an Ammonia meter, but I have to get devices one at a time when I can afford them. So you may also want to look into your cleaning supplies for products that contain ammonia - and also how often you use them. For high strength cleaners that use ammonia, you may consider getting a respirator to wear while cleaning.
Thank you so so much. Your video helps me a lot!
Thank you Minh for the comment, and you are very welcome. I am glad I could help.
Great content! Thank you for putting out this information. I was looking for an air quality monitor but now I may just upgrade to a particulate counter when I can afford one! As you say you can't put a price on health.
As far as I understand it, all the sub-$200 devices measure air quality relative to what they were calibrated to in the factory and is therefore not a true representation. This seems to be fine for most people as the laser particulate counters are just too expensive at $1-2k at a minimum (except maybe the Dylos).
Thank you for your comment - much appreciated, and am glad it helped you in making the right decision for yourself, and your family. There are a great many things that we can be "less expensive" about, but when it comes to health and awareness of our environment, cost should really not be too much a consideration, - after all, we get these devices because we want or even need to know our environment, so if we accidentally purchase a fake monitor to save money, then what do we really have in our possession?... Doom... ...And that is why I create these videos, to try and let someone know that the "cheap" monitor they own - may very well be fake or misleading.
I did a test/review of two Dylos monitors, but I am at a loss for recommending them as they are not programmed to give information in the correct way (the numbers don't match air quality charts that most monitors show) - in other words - you have to do math (using the Dylos readings) to get legitimate information from them, and I wish they hadn't made them the way they did, and if you watch the video, you will see exactly what I am saying. The only reason I am keeping them around, is because I am hoping they can fix the calculation they do, and then hopefully do a firmware update so I can use these with future videos. The Dylos monitors are very confusing which can and will cause undue paranoia and stress for the end user.
Thank you Nayib for the comment, it is much appreciated. As far as particulates, we don't need lab results, we just need a general idea of our environment, so that we know when it is time to open a window to let in some fresh air. Lab results are (like you say) very very expensive, and less expensive particulate meters that are legitimate, is really all we need. BUT knowing our CO levels and CO2 levels are an absolute must, so spending more in these situations is Paramount for sure. CO and CO2 is what is way more deadly than the rest, and CO is the most deadly of the two, and so that is why, if spending a bit more money, then spending more for these types of monitors/meters, is much more important, but that is only in my humble opinion of course.
I have spoken to companies about CO sensors in their devices (namely AirKnight), and they say that adding CO sensors in their device is not only very expensive, but also there is allot of legal paperwork that they must go through to implement it, and so, (in my opinion) that is why you don't see too many monitors that incorporate CO sensors into their devices, and also to be sure that any device that incorporates CO readings at a cheap price, is more than likely giving fake/false information.
@@Outside-In. Thanks for the response! I've been researching this subject because I want to build a woodworking shop that can filter out things to create a safe breathing environment. I was mostly interested in monitoring the formaldehyde levels and the very fine PM sizes.
I didn't mean lab tested, just tested with the handheld particulate counter devices (a step up from air quality monitors and a step down from laboratory equipment). I've been looking mostly at the Trotec PC 220, Temtop PMD331 and CEM DT-9883M but these devices don't get a lot of reviews by independent UA-camrs since they cost upwards of $1k haha so I am holding off on my purchase and collecting information for now.
In the UK, carbon monxide monitors are pretty standard in homes near boilers. They are indeed a life saver and cost just $15-30 for a standalone device. I would also suggest everyone have one of those standalone CO monitors. Having an all in one device that monitors absolutely everything is probably not the way to go!
@@nayib5145 My experience with TemTop has not been good at all for customer service. If you did get something made by TemTop, I would recommend getting straight from Amazon, as their costumer service is much better if you have a problem.
My suggestion (after reading what you want to do), is to build your wood - workshop, but make sure to implement a good circulation/exhaust system, either into the ceiling through the roof, or a window will do as well - inserting an exhaust fan (a genuine exhaust fan), and not just a box fan. A genuine exhaust fan will ensure that you have the best possible opportunity to expel all particulates and smells that you would encounter. Also a ceiling mounted Air Purifier would be a consideration as well, and I have seen them for around 400.00 industrial size, so you should be able to have the safest environment to work in.
If you can set up an environment as described above, something like the AirKnight would be a good choice for knowing that your setup is working. With the AirKnight, you could also have a CO meter with digital readout to keep an eye on those levels. I am with you that 1k for a monitor/meter is a crazy amount of money to have to spend, but I really like the AirKnight because it is pretty close to accurate, and the best thing about it is it is so easy to read from across a room. AirKnight said they are working on a fix for the alarm and buttons, but I guess we will just have to wait and see... Unfortunately, after my video review of the AirKnight, AirKnight don't talk to me any more, so I guess the negative remarks I made, turned them off which is unfortunate, because I really do like their product, it just needs a little tweaking to make it better.
@@Outside-In. Thanks for the advice. I have a HEPA vacuum, HEPA air filtration system and commercial/exhaust fan all on my wish list! I was planning on having a big window on one side of the shop and an opening on the other side to run a big commercial fan that way I can get some good air changes when using high VOCs products. Perhaps I could have a dedicated exhaust fan but then you create negative pressure… the air replacing the exhausted air has to come from somewhere (cracks, windows, underside of the door etc).
I'll consider the Air Knight then as being able to glance at the monitor’s screen and get approximate results in real time seems more productive/efficient compared to taking air samples and waiting for results to load on the screen.
I’ll watch the review you did on that next! Cheers
@@nayib5145 Yes, an Exhaust fan on one side of the shop, and an open window on the other side, would be perfect for constantly pulling fresh air through the whole shop, and you are right, the air has to come from somewhere, so yes, the air will come through any available crack or opening in the walls/floor/roof, but the important thing is that the air coming in through those areas, would definitely be cleaner than the air it would be replacing.
One of the viewers said that the AirKnight she purchased was way off in temp and humidity readings, but mine is pretty much spot on with my dedicated temp and humidity monitors, so either she got a defective unit, or she didn't wait and let the
AirKnight settle into the environment before shipping it back, as she said she had just received it in the mail. Any new monitor that you purchase needs a day or even two sometimes, to adjust to the environment that you are putting it into.
...Also, I don't personally purchase an air quality monitor for the temp and humidity readings, as there are allot of monitors that have inaccurate temp and humidity readings, and I believe the reason for that mostly is because of all the other sensors in the monitor, are causing additional heat and or humidity to be created inside the device, causing a faulty reading for temp & Humidity, and is why I don't think having those sensors in a device (with so many other sensors that could interfere), is a good idea, but just my opinion of course.
Just make sure that whatever monitor you choose to purchase, you do a manual and factory calibration, and also, allow the device a couple days to completely adjust to the environment that you are going to be placing it into, to fully put trust in those readings. You probably already know this, but I go over how to not only complete, but also the importance of completing a manual and factory calibration with any new or stored air quality monitor in a number of my videos.
I do believe you will find the AirKnight to be a valuable monitor simply because of the screen size and the ease of reading the display from a distance. There are a few issues with the AirKnight, but you will see those if you watch the video review, but these issues would probably not be too much of an issue with allot of people (except for the alarm thing), and I hope they will fix that as they said they would.
Thank you for the video. It helps a lot.
You are very welcome and am happy that it helped. Have a Happy New Year
@@Outside-In. Happy New Year 🎉 to you, too.
@@Mickimoss 👍
Great video, thanks for going through all the details and for doing the teardown of the cheap meter that I bought and reviewed. I was particularly interested in seeing what the particulate sensor looked like. The top lid didn't contain anything, but I think I saw that the part connected to the board did have the required led type infrared emitter/detector in the holders. So that actually looks legitimate. It also clearly reacted to the smoke and around the 20 minute mark it is showing just about the same readings as the M10. The meter seems to never go below 24, so obviously not useful below that range, but not completely fake. I'll have to wait for the wildfire season to kick up next summer to see if it has any practical usefulness. That was the only thing I was really looking for in a meter, so your tests seem to show that it roughly shows the same as the other meters when the readings are fairly high. Of course, no one should rely on the CO readings on this, as I was waving it around an automobile exhaust and it showed nothing and the rest of the readings are suspect, but as a particulate only meter, it may be OK for $25.
They do such a good job building these cheap meters making them look so legitimate. I looked thoroughly at this meter Franklin and there are no sensors except for the voc sensor. There are no lasers or infrared led's to pick up particles. I would not do anything with that meter except throw it in the garbage. It doesn't even give legitimate voc readings. I do believe it is just a lot of calculations based on the voc sensor. I really thought the other meter (that I show the guy taking two of them apart in his video) was real, but somehow they make the numbers change in such a way that makes them look legitimate. Please Franklin don't trust that meter. If you want a decent meter for smoke, get the HOTKREM PM2.5, PM1.0, PM10 with AQI. That seems to be a great little meter and it has a legitimate Particle sensor in it (you can see the sensor without taking it apart). The one you have is definitely a fake and I wouldn't trust it with any degree of accuracy at all. Yes the numbers for awhile stayed pretty close but that is why these can fool people so easily. If you also noticed that even when the other meters were well over 100, the cheap meter had settled to well below 100. if you watch the other video where the guy takes two of them apart, you will see that both of them have the same exact and only the one voc sensor inside as this one does, and if you watch the meters in action - they appear (just like this one) to be legitimate but they are not. There is nothing at all about this cheap meter that is legitimate except that it legitimately gives false information. I care about you as much as I would care about anyone else and why I ask that you please do not put your trust in any of the readings this fake meter shows. The only way to know for sure - is to get the HOTKREM meter and during a smoky few days, compare the two meters and see which one gives better and more consistent readings.
...Ok - I wanted to be sure - so I went back and reviewed the original video (before editing) and watched the part about taking this apart. I did see inside the plastic housing there was a small board inside. I unfortunately already threw this away but there may have been an led on that board that may have been a infrared led that would pick up particles, but still would not buy another one of these and trust it for accuracy. The fact that is does not have a legitimate CO sensor or Formaldehyde sensor or even a CO2 sensor makes this fake and not to be trusted...
@@Outside-In. 48:28: the top view is not clearly shown, too blurry and dark. But the back of the PCB shows the soldered vias of the LED transmitter and receiver at the corners of the PCB, in 45° angle. Seems you did not look close enough.
The laser sensors only average they dont actually measure co2. The chinese are sneeky bastards a co2 sensor is in a little rectangle metal box, but they are even putting light sensors in those now to make them look legit. Your right they just guess or average. they are meant to be calibrated in a factory to give a good ballpark indication. Id hazard a guess that none of the meters on amazon can tell co2
@@Steve211Ucdhihifvshi The TemTop meters sold on Amazon do actually register CO2 but unfortunately the two I got had defective particle and formaldehyde sensors and why I couldn't recommend them. I am going to show (without any doubt) what the sensors actually are in allot of these fake co2 monitors and it is not what you are guessing they are. I was shocked when I discovered what they are as they have nothing to do with air quality - it is registering something else. I don't want to say too much as to not give away the punch line, but I promise, you will find the video quite interesting and entertaining as I have purchased a couple more tools to be able to accurately show that sensors are actually showing what they claim to show, ultimately proving to people that a fake is still a fake no matter how the numbers randomly jump around, - and are not to be trusted.
@@horstsauer9089 Sorry about that, I just noticed this comment - usually I am notified, but I guess this got missed... You may have seen I did another video to prove once again the monitor at 48:28 is fake, so hopefully my second attempt was enough to stop people from wasting good money on a lie. Thank you very much for your comment - it is much appreciated, and again, sorry it took so long for me to see it.
Thank you sir! Great work and appreciate it!
You are very welcome Zaki, and thank you for the comment - much appreciated 👍
You are wrong about the particulate sensor. It is real, the PCB is a light scattering sensor with a small led (probably IR) and a receiver at a right angle with some lenses which you can see. The light scattered off the particles is read to determine the reading.
It’s likely without a fan to move air it would take longer to respond though, you probably should give it more time or have burned the smoke underneath the holes to let thhe particles in quickly
The purpose was to show that this monitor is fake, and fake is fake no matter what may be inside - that may be real - period. This fake monitor is not to be trusted by anyone that values honesty, and the need to know actual data. This monitor is so fake, that the legit particulate sensor inside doesn't even register correctly. I have done other videos on this fake monitor just to keep proving that it is fake, no matter how many times someone tries to make excuses for it.
I am getting ready to do a video on another possible fake monitor, and yet another one on the way that is more than likely fake. I keep making videos about fake monitors to prove that there are many on the market, and one must be Leary of any monitor that sounds too good to be true.
Thanks for your comment and thoughts, they are much appreciated and welcomed. I just wish that people would stop trying to find reasons to make this fake monitor seem legit, because that - I simply do not understand.
What detector would you recommend for Mold and allergies
Thank you for the question.
What temperature has to do with Mold:
Most molds cannot grow below 40° F. This is why food is typically refrigerated at 39° F. Mold grows best between 77° F and 86° F, - Especially if the air is humid.
What water has to do with Mold:
Molds thrive in damp, humid, and wet conditions.
There are no detectors for mold currently on the market, but you can purchase a mold test kit on Amazon, that you can use to test your home in different areas, following all instructions, and send the test kit back to the manufacturer, and they will analyze the results and let you know if your home is at risk of mold contamination, and also steps you could take to keep future contamination from occurring.
You may also consider a dedicated Temperature and Humidity monitor, so you can keep an eye on levels, and if the humidity is high and stays high, that can be a danger for spores to multiply and turn into mold. If you have high humidity on a consistent basis, you may consider a de-humidifier to keep your humidity in check.
As far as allergies, a PM monitor would be good to have, as high particulates in the air along with high humidity can aggravate allergies. It would also be safe to say that pollen in the air will cause a PM monitor to go high in readings, but as for a specific monitor to detect pollen, I have not heard of one, so not sure if such a device exists.
Allergies are a hard one to tie down as there are many things that can induce an allergic reaction or cause existing allergies to flare up, but these are ONLY my opinions of course. Just keep an eye on humidity, and particulate levels and your body's reaction to them, and for the extent of my knowledge, that would be the best way to go.
If you decide to use a mold test kit, please let us know here your results, and how it goes - it would be nice to know. I only hope that I have been able to help, and thank you for your questions and comments, as the answers may help others as well in their search for peace of mind.
Thank you so much for this video. I might get both of the temptops or just the m10. Just to clarify, I know they detect famaldahyde, but can they also detect O3 gas molecules like from an ozone generator? Just used one and want to make sure the home is safe to breathe in, since my mother & I have asthma. Also VOCs...been airing out the house with fans past few days. Thanks!!!
Some air purifiers use ozone to eliminate VOC's, so I would say that that eliminates ozone as being a VOC itself, but is that true????. The ridiculous thing is that there is no one who will say yes or no to that question - is ozone a voc?... Every time the question is asked - the answer is a multitude of dances around the subject, and I think that is because no one wants to take the risk of being wrong LOL.. When I read some articles on the subject, I think, ok, then ozone must be a voc, and then I read another article, and say, ok, then ozone is not a voc, but there is absolutely no one that will say definitively whether or not ozone is a voc - yes or no, so your guess is as good as mine. I will do a test with my ozone generator to see if that makes the VOC go up, and maybe that will say that ozone is a voc, but then there will still be others that would argue it is not, so there ya go, pulling out the rest of your hair LOL...
From my understanding of ozone after much research, ozone is a result of the reactions of many different VOC's, so that would tell me that ozone is in fact a VOC, but then I read another article that states that ozone is a by-product of VOC's, so I would still think that ozone gas is a VOC, so do you see the confusion?. I guess we could take humans as an example... Two humans get together and after many different reactions - end up with a child, - Is that child a human? - yes, so maybe that is the answer... Ozone is a VOC because it is a result of many different reactions from VOC's, so therefore is has to be a VOC itself... hmmmmm 🤪
On a side note however... Ozone is some very very nasty stuff, so be very careful messing around with it. Ozone generators are a great way of eliminating VOC's (especially odors), but the result of using ozone is very dangerous. After you run an ozone generator, make sure you allow your home to ventilate for at least 12 hours before returning into the home, and then run fans like you are doing for an additional 24 hours to make sure that all the ozone is gone. The human body reaction to ozone is allot like the reaction you would get from using Ammonia, - it is very very uncomfortable, and will cause you to feel like you are being suffocated. Ozone can and will kill you, and it would not be a very easy way to go, and as a matter of fact, it would be an excruciatingly painful way to die.
@@Outside-In. thank you so much for your time & patience for replying! If I can go back in time I would def not have used the ozone generator for cat odor and black mold/mildew smell. Apparently I bought an ozone on Amazon that gave off 40000 mg/h & that is way too much! The "safer" ones give off 1000 - 3000 mg/h you can run it for like 4 - 8 hours & be ok...depending on your square footage! My mother's home is only 1300 - 1600 square footage! I was told by a ozone generator company that I did a little too much & get this...I only did it for 30 min! I was told that for 40000 mg/h, I would've been fine running it for 5 min! Thank God I didn't listen to people who said run it for 3 - 4 hours!!! Anyways If you can test the m10 or even all those air quality monitors for ozone that would be a life saver for me! I'm going in the house for just 3 - 5 min & getting dizzy & headaches very quickly...not good! I have some hope with the ventilation process but to speed it up...I heard air purifiers with activated carbon/charcoal filters in them work great with eliminating 60 - 70% of O3 molecules & VOCs...it's called the shark filter for 1400 square feet...I'll highly appreciate it if you can make a video or at least respond to this comment with your results on ozone detection. I heard there're ozone meters, but they are so expensive! I am going to Lowe's now to pick up the air purifier. Thank you!!!!
@@ElliotCS1.6 I was thinking about using my generator in my new case for a video, but my generator is a DIY generator I built, and it is much too powerful for use in a case, as also an ozone generator will have an adverse reaction to plastics in your car or home (or in my case), and why allot of people don't use them, as they will also break down any rubber seals in devices that may be in your home or car (ozone is very toxic stuff for sure).
If your ozone generator is powerful, it will only take a couple of minutes for you to start feeling the effects of the ozone it is putting off. When I use my generator, I have a timer on mine that I set to turn on at a specific time, and run for up to 4 hours, and then it shuts down, and then I stay away for an additional 12 hours before returning home. If I am going to use it, I set it for a specific run-time, and then I immediately leave my house. I usually do this when I am going to be gone for a day or at least 20 hours, so that when I return home, the ozone is gone, but still I turn on a fan for a while anyhow just to be sure that all ozone is gone and not going to effect me.
The 3000-4000 is still not at all a very good thing to do while you are in the environment while it is running. One of the biggest symptoms of being in ozone too long, is your throat will start to feel scratchy and irritated, and you will also either start coughing or feel as though you want to cough, and that is one of the best ways to know that you have been around ozone too long. The longer you stay in that environment, the more you will begin to feel as though you can't breath, and that is when you know it is time to get out and away from it. I know this from personal experience, and there is no better teacher than the I have been there kind of experience...
A study found that the Sharper Image Ionic Breeze Quadra puts out (ONLY) 2.2 milligrams of ozone per hour -- far below the lowest limit California is likely to set., so in my opinion you do NOT want to be in the environment where a ozone generator is putting out 3000-4000 milligrams of ozone per hour for very long. Most of these purifiers that put off ozone to help eliminate VOC's, are only putting out a very very small amount - around maybe 2-5 milligrams of ozone per hour, and anything above that will have adverse effects on your health, so just be very careful messing around with any ozone generator that puts off more than 50 mg/hr while you are in that same environment. You also (very very important) DO NOT want to leave any pets in the environment while the ozone generator is running, as when you get home, your pets will be dead or suffering greatly from the exposure. People sometimes use ozone generators to kills bugs or bedbugs in a hotel, - just thought I would throw that in...
I will see what I can do to create a video about using an ozone generator and seeing if a VOC monitor will pick it up as using a TVOC monitor. Great idea, and will see what I can do. I just don't want to create a bad situation for myself even for a video, as from personal experience, ozone is very very nasty stuff, and extremely uncomfortable, and also it takes a while to get over it, as a throat problem can exist for quite some time after exposure to ozone.
@@ElliotCS1.6 Elliot, I just checked by using my TemTop M10 set to TVOC mode, and turned on my ozone generator, and it did not react to the ozone it put off, so I am assuming that a ozone detector would be what you would need for knowing how much ozone was in your environment. I found an ozone detector for 100.00, but right now I just can't afford to get it, but definitely will be something that I put on my bucket list for a next monitor to invest in. I hope this information is helpful. Once I get a detector, yes, a video would be good to do about ozone, but until I can get a monitor to show the results of what an ozone generator putts off, it would probably not be a very informative video.
Very interesting video! Thank you. Do you have an opinion on the GAIA air quality monitors offered by the aqicn organization or Sensor community project ?
I don't see anything by that name. Maybe you could add a link to the monitor your talking about. Thanks for the comment and question.
@@Outside-In. I sent them to you by email since UA-cam does not allow me to post links.
@@LouiseAnthes Thanks for the reply, I will check it out and let you know.
@Louise Anthes I went to the website and read with great interest about this product. I sense that these are mainly for knowing air quality in your area outdoors. It says it can be used indoors, but they say nothing about using them indoors, only showing photos of them mounted on the outside of buildings. Hmmm... sounds reasonable for as low as 200.00, but like I have mentioned to others who ask about specific monitors, I would not feel comfortable recommending anything that I personally have not physically have touched, did a teardown and tested. If I could afford to purchase one of these units, I would love to do a review and teardown. I have another video coming up in a couple weeks of another monitor review and teardown that is going to be quite interesting for sure, but it has drained me financially to get all the items that I will be using in the review, so no finance left to be able to test this device. ...BUT I will be adding it to my list of possible future videos. I would love to dedicate Outside In to testing different air quality meters, but it can get quite expensive purchasing so many monitors. I spend my own money to purchase everything for my videos to help people to make informed decisions, so the little that I make from my job, just isn't enough it seems to do a much as I would like LOL... I will keep this information however so that when I can save enough to review this - I will. There are so many companies that claim to have the latest and greatest, but I am finding too often fake monitors and why I would not be comfortable recommending anything I haven't personally used. I hope this helps. I am sorry I can't give a recommendation about this monitor - YET anyhow, but maybe some day I can and I look forward to that day.
@@Outside-In. No need to apologize. You are doing a superb job comparing all these fake monitors and stuff on your personal money. Thank you for your long answer and good continuation! You have gained a subscriber ;)
Hi is there a brand to the carbon monoxide sensor shown here? I did a search and there seems to be various listing all under seeming generic brand names. Not sure if there are fakes? Or they are just rebrands of the same product? Thank you!
Thank you for the question. Yes it is hard to tell. The Brand is "Smart Sensor", the one I purchased on Amazon turned out to be legitimate - Just look at the photo of the packaging, and it is branded with the Smart Sensor Logo, even though the other photos don't bare the Logo, and I wish they would change those photos, as yes, it can be quite confusing. The following is the link to the one I purchased: www.amazon.com/Cheffort-Handheld-Professional-Grade-0-1000PPM-Industrial/dp/B091DRT5DN/ref=pd_ybh_a_sccl_8/136-3484219-7714427?pd_rd_i=B091DRT5DN&psc=1
You may want to contact the seller, and ask concerning the confusion because most of the photos do not bare the Smart Sensor Logo, and hopefully the seller will update the photos. I suspect that most of these sellers are using stock photos, and unfortunately, the stock photos are of copies, and not the actual meter, - which is unfortunate, as I am sure they are loosing sales because of the incorrect photos...
Could you do a video about diy air meters. I have seen some on UA-cam made with raspberry pi boards
Thank you Milky Smokes for the question, and I have looked a little into DIY monitors, but they can be more expensive than just buying one already made - unless I missed something. Do you have anything specific in mind?.
Amazing work! Thank you for the review! God bless your family! :)
And God bless your family as well. Thanks for the comment - much appreciated.
Good analysis. Thanks
Glad you liked iit 👍
Thanks for your video it really helped ❤
I am glad it helped, and thank you for the heart - much appreciated.
Which one is "standard"?)) You should borrow a fluke airmeter for this test
Fluke is a particulate meter only, and I don't know anyone with a 7,000.00 meter that would let me borrow it. If I had to choose a "standard" for testing, it would be the Hotkrem, as that seems to be the most accurate and consistent so far that I own. I will soon be putting it up against a TemTop M2000 2nd edition.
Thankyou for the informative information! I purchased the m10 but how accurate is it to detect tvoc
And would you happen to know about airthings products
Unfortunately, the TemTop M10 uses the HCHO reading to get aTVOC reading (through a calculation), so I wouldn't trust the TVOC at all on the M10. TemTop verified (after sending them an email) that the M10 does not have a VOC sensor and uses the HCHO sensor instead. Weird for sure. Sorry that I did not know that when I did the video., as I told TemTop that I would not have recommended the M10 of I had known that, and why now I will not be recommending the M10 any longer.
TemTop told me that the M10+ does have a VOC sensor but does not have an HCHO sensor any longer, which again is weird and nuts that they would do that.
@rowelquero No, I do not have an airthings monitor, so I don't know if they are any good.
What do you recommend to detect tvoc?
@@rowelquero TemTop was supposed to send me their M10+ for review, but decided not too. Other companies that I have contacted to test and review their monitors, stop communication with me as soon as they check out he channel, so not sure quite what to think of that... I always tell companies that I am completely un-biased and honest, and that is when I don't ever hear from them again, accept from AirKnight. AirKnight is getting closer to their new monitor, so hopefully that will be out soon. Jim will let me know when it is ready. Other than that, I simply can't recommend anything that I have not tested, and I just can't afford to purchase any more monitors for now.
Thanks for your interest. I would like to do more but the cost is way too high, and Outside In is just too small for companies to take serious - not enough subscribers yet, but I am sure we will get there some day - just not today...
Thanks a lot. Very good job 🙂 Greetings from Poland.
Thank you Vee-Bo for your comment - much appreciated. 👍👍👍
My wife wants a tester that will check accurately for formaldehyde and other VOC's. Whats a good tester for outside/inside. thanks
Thank you Fred for the question. I am trying to find a indoor/outdoor monitor as that would be something I would really like to review, but until I can find a monitor like that, the M10 is a good choice in the interim. Also the AirKnight 9 in 1 also gives great information and more so than the M10, but I reviewed the AirKnight in my latest video - however, there are a few issues I found with it and it may be that I am a bit picky. The issues to some will be minor, but the readings are very good, and it is also portable so you could take it outside from time to time to check for outdoor air quality. I did find and indoor/outdoor monitor but it only does PM2.5 and AQI so don't think it would be good for your wife as it doesn't read HCHO or TVOC.
I would love to see a review on Amazon's new air quality tester! I'm sure it would help a lot of other people too. It is quickly becoming the most popular consumer monitor.
Hello Devon, and thanks so much for the comment and question. I did receive your email, but would like to know if you could email a link to the specific Air Quality tester you are talking about. I will look into it and let you know whether or not I could do this. I love testing monitors, but the expense has gotten too much to handle LOL. I am currently working on another project and it has maxed out my ability right now to make further purchases, but will see what I can do. Look forward to hearing from you with a link in an email.
It’s literally called Smart Air Quality Monitor. No link necessary. By Amazon of course. Not one of a million. The only one made by Amazon.
Hi, I'm considering getting into resin 3d printing which is notorious for creating rather harmful VOCs, most people put the printer inside an enclosure of some kind with a vent fan and a tube leading either out a window or to a carbon filter that they change frequently, I've heard conflicting information on wether this kind of diy setup is actually effective for safety, I want to do everything I can but I have no way of testing it, do you think one of these meters would allow me to make sure I'm printing as safely as possible?
I also plan on using "eco resin" which supposedly creates less VOCs while printing.
I have heard the same thing, but have not built an enclosure to test that, but it does make sense that it would be good to do. You would want to keep an eye of VOC's, so the AirKnight would be good for that. I found out that the TemTop M10 does not have a VOC sensor, so I would not be able to recommend it any longer, but TemTop is developing a new monitor - the M10+ which does have a dedicated VOC sensor. TemTop told me it should be available in April, so that will be a good monitor to test. TemTop is supposed to be sending me one for a video review and test, but I guess I will just have to wait and see....
Thanks for the video good sir.
I have HCHO suspicion after kitchen remodeling, would you kindly test your specimen specifically for HCHO (with some glue I guess?) and cross-test with pinching orange zest to rule out very broad gas response?
Thanks
Ok, I don't have any orange zest to try, but I did try breathing into the meter with Kingbond Wood Glue, CLR grease cleaner, Windex, Goo Gone, Simple Green Concentrated cleaner, and the levels didn't go above 0.12, but when I breathed Venigar into the meter, it jumped to 0.18 - so Vinegar had the biggest effect on HCHO (Formaldehyde).
I also did some research and found (among other things) the following - based on questions posed that would cause high levels of HCHO: Sources of formaldehyde in the home include building materials, smoking, household products, and the use of un-vented, fuel-burning appliances, like gas stoves or kerosene space heaters. Formaldehyde, by itself or in combination with other chemicals, serves a number of purposes in manufactured products.
I also tested HCHO with a cigarette, and it rose to about 0.69. Mostly - HCHO (Formaldehyde) monitors are primarily used to detect smoking or smoke from burning building materials or Forest fires. I hope this helps you out with some information, and am glad I could offer assistance to you sir.
@@Outside-In. Thanks for the clarification, I could swear I wrote a reply before but *poof youtube magic* I guess?
Anyways just ordered the monoxide sensor you endorsed and an M10 from ebay.
Will post the results, I think if I close the room with lots of particle boards during midday it should pretty much show if any HCHO is being emitted.
@marakll yes, particle boards should do the trick very nicely, LOL. You are going to love Smart Sensor meters. There are a couple more I would really like to get, but 500.00 is way more than I have, so I guess I will have to wait. And yes, I myself have left replies that did not get posted as well, so don't feel bad. Thanks for getting back with some pretty cool information. And yes, also, let us know how it goes with the meters for sure.
@@Outside-In. Hello again good sir, the sensors are finally here and here are the early results:
CO basically 0 everywhere, except right above the gas stove on very low flickery fire, it jumped 35+ there and started beeping.
HCHO: 0.01-0.02 anywhere except the room with leftover particle boards, 0.06 there.
TVOC: 0.02-0.04 anywhere except that room, almost 0.3 there.
PM2.5: 5 to 7 around.
I'm going to leave the kitchen door and windows fully closed overnight and test levels tomorrow when it's heated by the sun.
Guess at least I didn't get dummies and prolly my nose did just as good of a job.
Taking the sensors to the office tomorrow for... scientific purposes.
@marakll Thanks Marakll for the update. Sounds like your levels are pretty good. However, you may want to be careful how low you have the flame, as the flame being too low will create CO and even CO2. If the co should jump to 35 or more around 3 feet away from the stove, you may want to check things out. To anyone using a stove with a wick, make sure you keep the wick trimmed to get the cleanest burn. If a wick gets charred, that is when it will start putting off co or even co2. It would be good to hear how it goes at the office with your scientific tests. I have another air quality video coming up by the end of the week, so if you could tell me the scientific tests you are doing, maybe I could use the technique for my up coming video...
Great video, thank you.
Thanks for the comment, and you are welcome.
The board was a sensor. You ignored the IR LED and IR detector facing each other at 90-degrees . It shines light on dust and measured the reflection. More reflection, more dust. The worse way to do it though. Pure crap. The "proper" version of that sensor use a laser diode at least. That ways they can actually count the individual number of particles that intersect the laser beams, which creates a relatively bright flash.
It doesn't really matter - Fake is Fake is Fake, no matter what they put in it - it can't be trusted. Good points though. I was new at sensors when doing that video, and I was just focused on the Fake aspects.
A monitor that has just one fake reading, (and this one has several) - is all fake and can't be trusted no matter what's inside that may be legitimate. 👍
@@Outside-In. Yeah, totally agree. I was being OCD due to being AS, purely on the comment "There is no sensor." It doesn't matter indeed. That product is a total scam.
@@gruvinnz Exactly 👍
Which one is the most budget friendly sir?
Thanks for the question. The Hotkrem is the most budget friendly if you are looking for PM readings. If you need HCHO also;, the TemTop M10 would be the way to go.
@@Outside-In. thank you sir🙏
Nice video. It seems I have ok level measurement device. it was those 140e handheld "black boxes".
When looking that sensor in tear-down part. It looked like those sensors in optical fire alarms. So it can give basically analog signal back to MCU of detected smoke levels.
Edit: in my meter TVOC stays in "waiting" mode for few minutes after all other readings are fine. it seems those sensors just take to time to get operation temperature.
Actually the sensor in the fake monitor was an alcohol sensor, and not CO. Thanks for your comment, and glad you have one that works.
Yes, TVOC takes a few moments to heat up before they start working.
Hi got any recommendations for one that detects mold spores?
There are no monitors on the market yet that detect mold. You can get a kit on Amazon. You buy the kit, follow the directions, send in the data, and they send you back a breakdown of your environment and possibility of mold or not. So far that is the only thing you can do for mold detection. You will want to make sure you keep your humidity in check as that is where mold comes from - high humidity on a regular basis. Hope this helps.
@@Outside-In. I recently had friends over and they have been saying my room smells bad when my Aircon is turned on but I don't smell anything so maybe I've already gotten used to the smell. I have called someone and he washed my Aircon but the smell is still there and my friends said that judging from the smell it's probably mold. I have just looked up a test kit and found one called mold armour and I'm thinking of buying it. Saw a video of a guy saying I could just put a petri dish with some solution in a room then just wait a few days to see if mold grows on it.
I'm not sure if I saw this on a trusted site but I think I saw them said that the particles detector could detect mold spores.
Anyways great video. Saw the fake meter online and was planning to buy it. Thanks for saving me a few bucks
@@idkname007 If you can keep your humidity at between 40 to 60%, you should be fine from mold beginning. Make sure also your filter/s for the AC is changed out to clean ones. Did your friends say the odor smelled like mold?, if so, you need to check your humidity in all your rooms and especially the basement as that is where mold is most likely to begin. The mold test will help, but just keep your humidity throughout the home at a good level so mold doesn't start.
thank you so much for your video! I was hoping maybe you could help me. my aunt lives nearby an airport that sometimes during the day lets a very horrible smell in the air, something chemical and toxic, and her health is decreasing, but I'm not sure what I should be measuring, since not all meters have the same parameters.
I was thinking about buying one to measure and find out if it's the air, but I would only have money for one, so I don't know which one to choose
The first thing I would guess being that near an airport - definitely invest in a CO (Carbon Monoxide) detector, as that sounds like that is what you Aunt is experiencing. There may also be co2 mixed in with that as well because spent fuel can also cause co2 off-gassing, but because you can smell a significant odor - it is more likely Carbon Monoxide as Carbon Dioxide has no odor or smell - so you don't know that it is present in your environment.
@@ck.campos The Smart Sensor CO handheld detector I show in this video is extremely useful for detecting co very quickly and is very reasonable in price - here is a link to the one I use in this video: www.amazon.com/dp/B091DRT5DN?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details
@@Outside-In. thank you so much for being so kind and so quick in your answer!! all the best to you!!
I am also uploading a new video in the next couple days showing a co2 monitor that is 66.00 which is also another monitor that people should have. I believe the two most important monitors to have would be a co monitor and co2 monitor as those are the most deadly gases that can exist in a home and of those two - co2 being the most deadly simply because you don't know it is even present due to the lack of odor or smell. A link to the co2 monitor I am getting ready to review: www.amazon.com/dp/B0BBG9DZHB?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details
I hope these responses have helped.
Perhaps God led me to this channel. I recently moved to the mountains of western North Carolina (of all places!) and we just got the wood-burning furnace system started. Concerned about PM2.5, I found your channel as you seem to have the best air-quality testing videos. Later in the day, I began feeling light-headed and nau·seous ( I work from home and have been in the house all day with the stove burning). I reached out to you and you provided excellent information on testers. I'm ordering the Smart Sensor tonight (and sleeping with the window open!)
"Perhaps God led me to this channel" - Thank you for saying that - God does work in mysterious ways doesn't He?...
"I began feeling light-headed and nau·seous" - one of the MOST important effects of CO or CO2 poisoning - NOT PM, so very happy our discussions have led you too not look so hard at Particulates, but rather gasses like CO or CO2...
"I'm ordering the Smart Sensor tonight (and sleeping with the window open!)" - Priceless
I can sleep a little better myself tonight as well, knowing that all of this was not for nothing, and thank you for allowing me the peace of mind, that as long as we speak up, speak out - there will be someone who will listen, and thank you for listening.
Hope you fared well from the tragic storm.
Hi ,I am looking to buy an accurate air quality monitors ,can you also review some of the popular air quality monitors like "airwair element ",
" airthings wave plus " and EG Egress Air quality montior ?
Thank you PKD for the question. I am looking on Amazon and there is nothing for the airwair element, so maybe you spelled it wrong. Also I find nothing for EG Egress monitor either, so maybe that also is spelled wrong. Or if you have a website these are sold on, I could look there. As far as the Airthings wave plus monitors. I would not review a product that I would not buy myself. The Airthings and some of the other monitors require Alexa or a subscription based app to view the data. There are plenty enough air quality monitors that have actual displays without the need of an app. An actual display in the device that I am using is what I want - not another app to have to install. The Airwair Element, and EG EGress you mention, since I can't find those, I don't know if I would be interested or not. Also some of these monitors are getting very expensive, and so far I am getting no help from anyone, and simply can't afford to purchase any monitors at the moment for testing and review, but like I say, I would not purchase or test anything that I would not buy and use myself.
I definitely thank you for your question - it is much appreciated.
@@Outside-In. Hi ,Thankyou for replying .Yes I had mis spelled it ,it is "Awair element" not airwair ,also another is "EG air quality monitor" exclude egress and search it in Google you will find it .I am specially looking for a air quality monitor which uses sensirion sensors because they make dedicatedly environmentle sensors.Please let me know if you are aware about any air quality monitor that uses sensirion lastest sensors.Thankyou
@@pkd2411 The Awair unfortunately is not one that I would be interested in purchasing so couldn't recommend or test it. The EG is however a good monitor, just like the Hofun in the video. The EG (unlike the Hofun) has a calibration function that I really like and wish the Hofun had. I will look into the Sinsirion Sensor and let you know if I can find any specific monitor that uses this sensor. Hope that I was able to help.
@@Outside-In. yes that help thankyou very much for your suggestions
@@pkd2411 👍
Thank you very much for such an informative video! I'm currently looking for an air quality monitor. Could you tell me if it is worth buying a board with a screen for measuring 7 in 1
SM300D2? Maybe you've heard of her. How accurate does it measure?
Thank you for the comment and question. I can't find the sm300d2 so not sure what you are talking about. Maybe a link to what you are talking about would be helpful. I have seen a couple DIY air quality monitors, and they look fine. I can't speak on how accurate they are as I have not had the opportunity to build one to try out. The Hokrem in this video is a DIY air quality monitor that is pre-assembled - and it works just fine.
@@Outside-In. yes, this is a board with a screen without a case for home-made assembly. I now choose on aliexpress, unfortunately there are no reviews there, and there are no video reviews either. Given your professionalism and experience, I decided to consult with you. And what is better to take, what will work more accurately. Board for DIY or ready-made device. I have a limited budget, so I'm very afraid of making a mistake.
@@kolyakolya922 could you provide a link to this diy monitor on Aliexpress?, I would like to see the listing. Thank you.
I went on Aliexpress and found this module sm300d2. After looking at this, I would not take a chance that this actually has the seven senors, because I only see one sensor (PM Particle sensor). I don't even see a temp & humidity sensor on this board. I do see what looks like a breathalyzer sensor which has nothing to do with the claimed sensors on this board. I would not take a chance on this for more than $60.00. If you would like a good monitor, I would look at the TemTop M10.
@@Outside-In. I will be very grateful if you can tell me if it is worth buying. Since it's quite pricey for me, I don't want to make a mistake. What can you say about its measurement accuracy. And the main question that the seller of aliexpress does not answer me. Does it need to be calibrated, or can you just turn it on and it will already measure accurately?
@@kolyakolya922 I went on Aliexpress and found this module sm300d2. After looking at this, I would not take a chance that this actually has the seven senors it says it has, because I only see two sensors a PM Particle sensor, and possibly a breathalyzer sensor. I don't even see a temp & humidity sensor on this board. I do see what looks like a breathalyzer sensor which has nothing to do with the claimed sensors on this board. I would not take a chance on this for more than $60.00. If you would like a good monitor, I would look at the TemTop M10. I would love to be able to purchase the sm300d2 board for testing, but unfortunately I don't have the money to do that right now.
Any models you recommend that also do PM2.5?
For PM 2.5, I recommend the Hotkrem
The Hotkrem registers...
PM 0.3
PM 0.5
PM 1
PM 2.5
PM 5
PM 10
Hotkrem also has an inexpensive CO2 monitor, so check them out. Thanks for the comment - much appreciated.
I need a co2 and tvoc measurement instrument for LEED or WELL certification. Could you recommend me an instrument that does at least these two measurements and I could rely on them for commercial purposes in an office environment?
In a couple weeks I am creating another Air Quality comparison and tear-down video of the Smart Sensor 5 in 1, and the AirKnight 9 in 1 air quality monitors. If you are looking for something for commercial use - I am not sure the monitors I review would cover that, as monitors for highly accurate and pin-point data are very very expensive and not in my budget to purchase by any means. I review these monitors for people that need an inexpensive solution - that gives very very good readings, but not scientific lab results.
@@Outside-In. Thank you for the quick response! When I read the prescriptions for LEED for co2 sensor it is needed to be nadir and compliant with EPA standards. As I am reviewing the Temtop M2000 from the original site it says that covers these requirements. The problem is that there isnt available instrument with co2 plus tvoc sensors combined. If i have to purchase 2 instrument from Temtop will go over my budget. Are you familiar with the instruments you tear down if they have such sensors like co2 nadir Sensair and for the tvoc just to have any type of sensor in it?
@@silviahristiyandraganovi3289 I can not and would not recommend the M2000 because I received two in a row that were defective (the second one more defective than the first), and the company would not help except to encourage me to spend more money on a more expensive model. If however, you intend on buying TemTop handheld, I would go with the M2000 2nd edition - as it has very good reviews and it is an upgrade to the M2000 (which TemTop told me it resolved issues with the M2000). The M2000 2nd edition also has the ability to record a history of data and connected to a pc for analysis. I hope this helps. ...Also the Hotkrem in this video I can recommend for TVOC. Finding a handheld or monitor that does Co2 AND TVOC is proving to be a problem, as I just realized that the M2000 2nd edition also does not show TVOC - just Particle Matter only (which is were most of your TVOC comes from), but I guess the other parts of TVOC is important as well, and the reason for the need for TVOC - not just PM...
Silvia, I thought I would reply again with additional information on your question. I wrote the AirKnight 9 in 1 company asking them specifically about their monitor's co2 sensor and this was their response: "Thank you for contacting us and yes, we use the NDIR sensor for the CO2 monitoring of the AirKnight AK1000.". In a couple weeks, I will be doing a comparison, review and tear-down of the AirKnight monitor, and until then I can only go by what the company tells me, so I won't be able to recommend the monitor until I have done the review. I hope this gives you the possibility that I may have found a monitor that you can use for your purposes, and look forward to confirming AirKnights claim.
Great video Sir. What about the Amazon Smart Air Quality Monitor ?
Which monitor are you speaking of - all these monitors except for one was purchased on Amazon...?
@@Outside-In. tks for your reply. I was asking about Amazon Smart Air Quality Monitor - Know your air, Works with Alexa- A Certified for Humans Device
@@claudiogobber Sorry Claudio I don't know anything about that monitor, I will have to look into that one. Do you have a link to the one you are talking about?. Thanks
...Never mind Claudio - I found it and yes it looks quite interesting and would love to test that one and do a tear-down especially since it has a carbon monoxide sensor - would love to know if it is real or not... Unfortunately I don't have the finances to make a purchase like this right now as I spent all I had on doing this video. Hopefully some day I will be able to buy multiple devices at a time, so that I would be able to do more of these side-by-side comparisons and tear-downs - so people will know (without a doubt) what they are getting instead of just hoping they are getting a legit product....
Can I use the HOTKREM outdoors?
Only if it is not raining
thank you for making this video.
You are very welcome Eric Davies - thank you for the feedback.
So what is the best air quality meter to buy???
Well Denise - that would be a very hard thing to do without testing every single monitor made, and that would take more money than I could earn in a lifetime LOL...
I was being a bit sarcastic there, but if I were to recommend the best of all the monitors I have tested to date?... It would be as follows...
1. Smart Sensor CO meter
2. Smart Sensor CO2 meter
3. Hotkrem CO2 monitor
4. Hotkrem PM monitor
5 TemTop M10
6. TemTop C10
Also here is something else to consider pertaining to your question... The best air quality monitor to buy, would cost 10's of thousands of dollars, and is also one that I will never be able to get in my lifetime I am sure.
"The best", is subjective of course, so I guess we could say - the best in a certain price bracket, so my list above is based on what I have tested personally, and also in the more budget friendly market.
Hope this helps, and thanks for the question Denise - it is much appreciated. I am getting ready to do two more videos very soon, so maybe we will find a new "best" of all that I have reviewed to date - who knows right?...