Why You Shouldn’t Build an Ozone Generator at Home

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do-it-yourself ozone generator

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An ozone generator removes odors like no other machine can, so it's a useful tool. There are also ways to build an ozone generator at home, of course.

It’s extremely complicated, though. Even looking for information on building an ozone generator for hunting or a cold plasma ozone generator can be complicated!

The bottom line is that you shouldn’t try to create one yourself. Making an ozone generator at home may be cheap, but many things can go wrong.

While ozone generators can be expensive, bypassing them and making your own is not a good idea.

It might seem like a good idea and cheaper, but many things can go wrong if you try to build your ozone generator at home.

Whenever it comes to ozone, there must be electrical charges involved. Because of the electricity, you can easily get shocked by it.

Not only does it become dangerous through electricity, it is also a fire hazard. On top of that, ozone is harmful enough as is. Although it's completely safe if used correctly, bad outcomes will follow if you fail to follow the safety rules.

The thing with ozone generators is that you usually have to leave them on for a half hour or more at a time. Without following electrical codes or fire safety, you could see a dangerous fire around your homemade ozone generator.

Although it's unlikely you'll start a fire, it is possible.

Why is Ozone Dangerous?

ozone molecule

There are many reasons why ozone is dangerous, but the main reason is that it is highly reactive to organic material. “Organic” is another way of saying “living” or at least “formerly living”.

This means that it affects humans, animals, plants, and microbes.

There are real businesses that use huge commercial units to kill off insects such as bed bugs and other slower-moving critters lurking in your home.

Ozone comprises charged molecules with oxygen atoms, containing three instead of two.

Because of this electric charge, ozone molecules will try to eliminate that unstable third atom.

Whenever it interacts with organic material, it will shove itself along the cells and have it attach to those cells. This damages the cell and can cause problems for anyone breathing it in.

For humans and animals, it will cause the lungs to become inflamed and respiratory systems to get damaged. Plants will wilt and die if exposed to ozone.

This is why you should never breathe in ozone, concentrated or otherwise. People with lung diseases will also have a harder time with it.

Make sure you run an ozone generator in an unoccupied area. If you use one, take all pets, plants, and other people from the room. However, this should only be done with a retail-manufactured ozone generator.

Making one yourself is not recommended, but there are plenty of ways to use an ozone generator safely.

Homemade Ozone Generator Dangers

Many dangers come with making a homemade ozone generator. Ozone generators are not expensive.

You should buy one if you’re concerned about an odor or killing mold and other microbes. Now, that statement about killing mold needs to be clarified. It kills the spores in the air, but it will not get rid of an existing colony.

We sometimes use them in the mold remediation process once complete to ensure we've eliminated the spores in the air and on surfaces and the odors that may linger, but we never use them to eliminate visible mold. As you can see, we do mold remediation as one of our most critical services.

The ones who state you should never own or use them have not done ample research and likely have no practical, real experience with Ozone or the generators that produce it.

It's safe to purchase and use if you use common sense. The one you built yourself is a shot in the dark. It's not a wise move.

Fire Hazards

The main thing you must worry about with homemade ozone generators is that a hard spark has to be created. This hard spark will cause oxygen molecules to become charged to gain that extra oxygen atom.

High voltage is required to make this hard spark, so it can easily start a fire if not contained properly.

This is especially true since you may leave it running for 30 minutes to 4 hours.

The second part is ozone is somewhat unstable. Some firefighters think the instability of the transition from O2 or O3 and back may spark a flash fire as a machine is converting it.

I could not find any occurrences of this happening, but it is still something to consider. No record of it happening… ever. It's all air castles based on unwarranted fear.

With readily available engineered generators, you reduce the odds of having something unforeseen happen.

Complicated Construction

pile of machine parts Image source: istockphoto.com

Along with fire hazards, there is the actual construction. There are specific materials that are needed to create an ozone generator.

For example, you need Plexiglas, corona plates, cathode kits, microchips, and more. You also need things to transfer electricity, like wires, batteries, or a transformer, to produce hard sparks to create ozone.

There’s a lot of science behind it, and it simply isn’t worth your time. If you have a degree in engineering, you're probably good to go, but the average person should shun the idea of taking on such a DIY project.

May Not Cover the Entire Room

When you’re looking for an ozone generator, consider the size of the room in which you will use it.

They can produce different amounts of ozone, and bigger rooms need more powerful generators.

A homemade ozone generator will likely not produce enough ozone to cover an entire room. This means an odor or microbe you want to kill will survive the expelled ozone.

Conclusion

Ozone generators are one of the few eco-friendly disinfection techniques you can employ in your home to remove odors and help with mold and pests. It won’t replace a professional, but will help in the long run.

You may think you can make one at home, but they are much more dangerous than a regular ozone generator.

Not only are they extremely difficult to make, they can also cause fires, and they may not be as effective as you’re hoping.

If you want to remove odors from a room, buy an ozone generator. Ozone is dangerous enough as it is, so you don’t want to add additional hazards to the operation.

There are many options out there when it comes to ozone generators. You can always rent an ozone generator if you don’t want to buy one or hire a professional.

Many options exist, so don’t use a dangerous homemade generator to eliminate those pesky odors!

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