When most people think about air pollution, they picture the brown skies hanging over a metropolitan area on stagnant days, or perhaps images of industrial smoke stacks spewing out clouds of airborne waste may come to mind.

But generally speaking, people don't realize that the air inside of their homes is anywhere from five to twenty times as dirty and polluted as the air just outside their front door.

Taking into consideration the little-known information about indoor air pollution, and also in light of the fact that most Americans will spend 90 percent of their year inside, it should be clear to see why home air purifier systems are becoming one of the most important appliances in which to invest.

But it can be confusing, time consuming and frustrating to shop for the right home air purifier. There are many choices in air purifiers on the market. There is also much conflicting information about what is the best way to clean and purify the air in your home. Some of the considerations to have in mind while shopping for clean air purifiers are as follows:

Different home air cleaners target different types of air pollutants, so before beginning it is important to know what pollutants are common in your home so that you know what system will be the most effective for you.

Some of the airborne particulates you may find in your home are: pet allergens and dander, dust mite allergens, plant and mold spores, pollen, fungi and tobacco smoke. These are the most common culprits that trigger indoor allergic reactions and asthma attacks. A HEPA air purifier is best suited for eliminating such airborne allergens.

If you are primarily dealing with household odors and gases such as cooking odors, kitty litter or other animal related odors, tobacco smoke, various chemicals and toxins, or gaseous pollutants such as aerosols and inside pesticides, then air purifiers with activated carbon filters will be best for your situation.

Since the different home air purifier technologies inherently have different weak areas and strong points, many of the current air purifiers combine these two main filtering methods into one unit. This is beneficial since most home environments are dealing with the need to reduce allergens and toxic particulates, but also have odors and gases that need to be controlled.

While HEPA air cleaners and activated charcoal, or a combination of the two, are the most common home air purifier you will find, there are other technologies for air purification you will see as well.

These technologies include: ion generators and ozone generators, electrostatic precipitators, charged media filters, and antibacterial and germicidal filters.

Getting a home air purifier for your abode is a good way to increase your peace of mind regarding the safety of the environment for everyone in your household and making sure that the air they breath is as healthy for them as possible.

When shopping for air purifiers, be sure to take the time to learn about the various technologies available and to understand the cleaning capacity of each model.