I have COPD and am wondering what is my best approach to breathing clean air. Seems many have gone with the 3M product (about $1500) yet I have also seen the SR500 from Sundsrom (about $1200-1400. I just don't want my hobby causing additional problems. Any feedback would be appreciated.
You may not have seen my reply to your question in the Dust Concerns thread so I will post it here as well. But first I need to mention that the SR-500 is only half of the system. You also need to choose which headgear you want to go along with it, That will bump the price up considerably unless the price you mentioned includes headgear. If you want the Sundstrom then peruse the
Sundstrom website to get the right headgear.
Here is my reply in the other thread:
There are numerous configurations of both the 3M Versaflo series and the Sundstrom respirators so you would need to know what specific configurations of each to compare. The SR500 is only the part worn on the waist that contains the fan, filters, and battery. You might want to consider the SR700 instead which is for particles only and probably costs less although the SR700 has lower air flow. There are numerous options for the headgear and the SR540 headgear is somewhat comparable to the Versaflo units except that it is not a full helmet and lacks side protection unlike the Versaflo that I have.
The SR500 blower has two speeds ... Standard delivers up to 6.2 CFM and Maximum delivers up to 8.5 CFM. My Versaflo helmet is being used used with a BreatheEasy turbo unit and when used together is rated at a minimum of 10 CFM. The BreatheEasy turbo unit is bulky compared to other options, but it can be used with a number of different filters whereas the Versaflo blower unit is for HEPA particulate filters only.
The Australian certification standards are different from US standards so it would be impossible to say how the impact and filtration test results line up against each other, but I assume they are reasonably close.
I was able to put my system together for a fraction of the retail price by perusing eBay and everything was new. Here is a long thread about the
Versaflo M-407 and the BreatheEasy turbo unit that would be worth reading if you are thinking about the Versaflo. The only reason that I bought the M-407 was the great price ... otherwise the M-200 series or M-300 series would be my choice.
The performance of the Versaflo units are a known quantity and the HEPA filter certification is more likely to be something that your doctor can relate to if you plan to discuss this with him/her. Don't forget to think about how you plan to clean up afterwards because that can also stir up a lot of dust.
It's just my opinion, but I think that air flow of the Sundstrom is a bit weak.
