3 Reasons Why A Hydroxyl Radical Generator Is Better Suited For Removing Smoke Odors From Your Basement Than An Ozone Generator
If you've had a fire in your basement, it can take a very long time for the lingering odor of smoke to go away. Basements have poor ventilation, so there's very little air coming in to push the smoke odor out. Since you can't rely on ventilation to get rid of the odors in your basement, you'll have to take a more active approach. Ozone generators and hydroxyl radical generators can both destroy the volatile organic compounds in the air that are responsible for the smoke odor. To learn three reasons why it's a good idea to use a hydroxyl radical to get rid of your basement smoke odor instead of an ozone generator, read on.
1. Ozone Generators Can Potentially Harm Your Health
One of the downsides of using an ozone generator to get rid of odors is that ozone gas can be harmful to your health if it's inhaled in high enough quantities. Ozone gas gets rid of volatile organic compounds in the air by rapidly oxidizing them. However, it also oxidizes any organic material that it comes into contact with, which can include the tissue in your lungs.
Hydroxyl radical generators are much safer in comparison. Hydroxyl radicals also eliminate volatile organic compounds in the air by oxidizing them. However, hydroxyl radicals are very unstable and only exist for a few seconds after the generator creates them. They won't build up in an enclosed space like a basement, which makes using a hydroxyl radical generator a safer choice.
2. Hydroxyl Radical Generators Won't Damage Your Basement Appliances
In addition to potentially posing a hazard to your health, ozone generators can damage the appliances in your basement. Ozone generators are very effective at eliminating odors because the ozone gas that they create spreads throughout the entire room. Unfortunately, this means that it can attack organic compounds in the basement, like rubber, and cause them to degrade. If you have a sump pump in your basement, for example, ozone gas can damage the rubber seals inside the pump.
Since hydroxyl radicals only exist for a few seconds after they're created, they're safe for common basement appliances like furnaces and sump pumps. When a hydroxyl radical generator is operating, a fan blows in air from around the room so that the organic compounds in the air are destroyed by the hydroxyl radicals.
3. You Can Use Your Basement While a Hydroxyl Radical Generator Is Running
Finally, you'll be able to continue using your basement when you select a hydroxyl radical generator to eliminate the smoke odors. Since ozone gas can be harmful to your health, you can't be in the basement at all while it's running, and you won't be able to return until all of the gas has dissipated. If you need to go down into your basement, you'll be able to do so when you're using a hydroxyl radical generator instead.
Contact a local fire damage deodorization service to learn more.
