REVIEW – I own a small 3D printing business and run my printers 16 to 18 hours daily. I’ve wanted to get an air quality monitor for a while, but never got around to it. When the AirGradient ONE Air Quality Monitor review item came around, I knew this was the time to do it. What I learned was eye-opening.
What is it?
The AirGradient ONE is an indoor air quality monitor. It measures PM1, PM2.5, PM10, CO2, TVOCs, NOX, Temperature and Humidity and has a built-in color LED bar and small display.
What’s included?
- AirGradient ONE Air Quality Monitor
- USB Cable
- Stand Feet
Tech specs
- Sensors for CO2, PM, TVOCs, NOX, Temperature and Humidity
- 2m USB C cable (w/o power plug)
- 12 months data platform / dashboard and API access (or connect it to your own server, e.g. home assistant)
- Local Home Assistant support with auto discovery
- Certified: CE, FCC, RoHS, REACH, RESET Air
Design and features
I have fifteen 3D printers, 12 of which run 16 to 18 hours per day in my 650 sq ft home office, or the “office factory” as my grandchildren call it. I print mostly PLA, which is considered the most “friendly” of plastics, but I also print some ABS, which can be a little less friendly on the air quality.
I also have three resin 3D printers and an alcohol wash station. The resin printers don’t have much of a smell, but the alcohol surely does. However, harmful things in the air don’t always have a smell, so you don’t know unless you can measure the air quality.
I also use my enclosed laser machines to cut and engrave. Even though I have an exhaust system that vents to the outside, there is a small amount of smoke/fumes that escape into the room when the laser cover is opened. I also cut foam and use a liquid spray glue. I’ve been pretty busy since I moved into this new place, so I haven’t had time to address some of the ventilation issues – until now.
One of my main goals was to monitor my activities while monitoring the air quality to see what effect they had on the air quality. Once I identify problematic activities, I can address them one at a time.
The AirGradient ONE Air Quality Sensor monitors PM1, PM2.5, PM10, CO2, TVOCs, NOX, Temperature and Humidity. My main focus is VOCs (Volatile Organic Compounds). Some VOCs are harmless, some are extremely harmful. PM (Particulate Matter) is also a small concern as my office has some residue from some old flooring that seems to be turning into dust as I walk on it (it’s a new-to-me home, so I’m still getting it fixed up).
The AirGradient ONE is a small device that is powered by a simple USB cable. Measuring just about 5″x5″x1.5″ (130 x 130 x 35mm) it can be placed just about anywhere. The unit has 4 screw mounts in the back for wall mounting and comes with 2 feet to hold the unit in an upright position.
Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity enable the device to communicate with the AirGradient server (web app). The web app shows the current readings from the monitors and can even show a chart of the readings over various time periods.
I did have some trouble connecting the unit to my Wi-Fi. After trying many times, it finally connected. I’m not exactly sure what the issue was, but I think I may have not been waiting long enough for it to connect.
Once connected to the Wi-Fi I logged onto the AirGradient Dashboard and found that everything was working as expected. The dashboard displays the current readings and clicking on one pops up a graph of the readings over time. The time period is selectable, from the last 8 hours to 1 year. It would be nice if the Dashboard could be configured to show any monitor at the top instead of just PM2.5 and CO2 levels.
I found that my alcohol wash and glue caused a rise in VOCs much more than 3D printing does. I’ve been running an air filter in conjunction with the monitor to see how it lowers the VOCs. So far, it has worked well.
I ran the AirGradient ONE air purifier for a couple of days before making these screenshots, but I was able to tell immediately some of the sources of pollutants in my office. I kept track of when I did certain things, here’s how that went:
The AirGradient Dashboard also has alarm and notification features, but unfortunately, it does not include VOCs in the actionable things to monitor. The alarms also
I was relieved that running air purifiers helped manage the VOCs, however, I do need to get a larger one for this space. The AirGradient ONE immediately shows me if something I’m doing is causing the air quality in my office to go down.
What I like about The AirGradient ONE air purifier
- Measures a variety of air quality parameters
What needs to be improved?
- Wi-Fi setup needs to be easier
- Dashboard needs to be more configurable
- It would be nice to be able to add notes to the timeline in the web app
Final thoughts
The AirGradient ONE Air Quality Sensor has helped me identify the causes of poor air quality in my home office. Although I’m still exploring more air purifier options, the AirGradient One takes the guesswork out and provides real-time data. It will certainly make the job easier.
Price: $195.00
Where to buy: AirGradient
Source: The sample of this product was provided for free by AirGradient . AirGradient did not have a final say on the review and did not preview the review before it was published.
