Surround Air XJ-3800 Intelli-Pro Air Purifier

Post date: September 25th, 2011

If you are looking for a lot of technology at a reasonable price, then check out this Surround Air XJ-3800 Intelli-Pro air purifier review. It includes a total of seven different methods for cleaning the air! You don’t find a HEPA filter, photocatalytic oxidation, ionization and ultraviolet light together in most air purifiers.

It also has indicators to tell you everything you need to know – when the filters need replacing, when the electrostatic plate needs cleaning, when the UV unit is working, how clean the air is, whether it detects dust particles, allergens or odors.

As you can see on the left, it looks very high tech. It’s also a very quiet model when on the lower fan speeds. In fact, its lowest setting is called “quiet”.

Read the rest of the Surround Air XJ-3800 Intelli-Pro Air Purifier review below:

Table of Contents (click ahead!)
Filter Type           Coverage Area   Clean Air Delivery Rate
Features           Noise Level   Dimensions
Fan Speeds         Customer Reviews   Pros & Cons

Surround Air XJ-3800 Intelli-Pro Air Purifier Filter Type

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Surround Air XJ-3800 Intelli-Pro Air Purifier Technologies

The Surround Air XJ-3800 has seven different cleaning methods as outlined below

Permanent washable pre-filter
Electrostatically charged dust collection grid – an indicator lights up when it’s time to clean it
Activated carbon filter which removes chemicals, odors and cigarette smoke. An indicator lights up when it’s time to replace it
Long-lasting HEPA filter which captures 99.97% of airborne particles down to 0.3 microns. An indicator lights up when it’s time to replace it
Photocatalytic (titanium dioxide) filter – when UV rays shine on the TiO2 coated filter, hydroxyl radicals and super-oxide ions are created which are highly reactive. They oxidise VOCs and bacteria and other contaminants. This effectively breaks them down into harmless carbon dioxide and water molecules.
Germicidal UV lamp which destroys germs, viruses, bacteria and fungi like molds
Ionizer produces negative ions and causes particles to sick together and fall to ground. It reduces the number of bacteria in the air.

There are indicator lights which show:

when the HEPA filter needs changing
when the carbon filter needs replacing
when the electrostatic plate needs cleaning
when the UV light is working
when the ionizer is working.

As you can see, there is a very comprehensive system attacking pollutants from all angles. It is a reasonably priced model under $300 for what you get. In fact, it’s much closer to the $200 end. However, don’t expect it to have the level of cleaning of a unit twice its price.

Fan Speed

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The model has four fan speeds: quiet, low, medium and high. When the purifier is set to auto mode, it will adjust the fan speed according to the level of impurities in the air detected by the three sensors for dust, allergens and odors.

Coverage Area

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The Surround Air XJ-3800 Intelli-Pro Air Purifier is suitable for large rooms up to 600 square feet or around 24 feet by 24 feet according to the manufacturer. This means it’s suitable for most rooms. If you have it in a smaller room than the maximum size, it will be more efficient and do a better job on lower fan speeds.

Clean Air Delivery Rate

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The Clean Air Delivery Rate is certified by the Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers after testing in independent third party laboratories. I usually give the AHAM results in this section for each model. Unfortunately, Surround Air have not submitted their range for AHAM certification.

Not all manufacturers agree with the way AHAM do their testing. Even IQAir one of the most expensive and top of the range air purifier manufacturers don’t subscribe to AHAM.

Surround Air state that AHAM don’t take all factors into account. They also state that their room size figure is only a guide since many factors such as air flow in the room, pollution level and shape of the room affect how effective the air purifier is. You can read Surround Air’s comparison of their own testing with AHAM’s here.

The room size of 600 square feet that I have given is according to the manufacturer.

According to the manufacturer’s figures, this model also satisfies the required ozone limits of 50 part per billion. In fact it produces less than 11 parts per billion only two inches away from the unit.

Features

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Here are some of the features of the Surround Air XJ-3800:

Sensor technology (odor, dust and allergen sensors) monitors the air quality. There are three indicators which light up showing which of the three pollutants are present: dust, allergens (like pollen, pet dander, ragweed or mold) or odors (volatile organic compounds) are present.
4 LED indicators show the quality of the air. The dirtier the air, the more lights show up. One light means very clean.
Indicator light shows when to replace HEPA filter
Indicator light shows when to replace carbon filter
Indicator light shows when to clean the electrostatic plate
Indicator light shows when ionizer is working
Indicator light shows when UV light is working
Quiet setting
Energy efficient.

Noise Level

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One of the great points about this model is that it is very quiet on on all except the highest setting. So, you just use the high setting when you are out of the room or you need something clearing up fast. The noise levels specified by the manufacturer are quiet (20 decibels), low (35 decibels), medium (45 decibels) and high (52 decibels)

Dimensions

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The dimensions are 19 by 9.8 by 24 inches. The air purifier weighs 19 pounds.

Customer Reviews

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As of this date, there are 100 reviews on Amazon. 80 reviews are 4 or 5 star and only 20 reviews are 1 to 3 star. This means the response to this Winix model has been overwhelmingly positive.

“Have had it two months with a smoker, a hairy dog, and allergy season in full bloom. Reduced allergies and no breathing problems at home since we got it. Noticable quick removal of odors and smoke … (read more here: Surround Air XJ-3800 Intelli-Pro Air Purifier Review)”

“For example if I’m 15ft away, and I use hand sanitizer, this thing picks it up about 30 seconds later and kicks into high mode (as a detected smell) – it always makes me chuckle. Depending how well the room is ventilated and size, it also detects smoke very similarly – although … (read more here: Surround Air XJ-3800 Intelli-Pro Air Purifier Review)”

Average Amazon Rating: 4.2

Pros & Cons

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Pros:

Three year warranty
Seven different technologies for removing pollutants
Reasonable price for the amount of technology
Suitable for a large room
Energy efficient

Cons:

Some have reported that for them the sensors did not sense some odors and that the unit was not effective in removing them. I can only assume their models were faulty because other people said the sensors worked very well and that it was effective in removing odors.

For current pricing information on the Surround Air XJ-3800 Intelli-Pro air purifier, follow this link:

Features Overview: