Really?  Paint me skeptical.  I’m not kidding.  When I first received the opportunity to review a refrigerator air purifier, it smacked a little bit of a bad infomercial.  I just couldn’t wrap my mind around it being something that worked.  Always the researcher, though, I did take the time to study their website and read the supplied information.  Hmmm….okay — so now, don’t paint me skeptical — just color me intrigued.  I replied to the offer and accepted the review because I just had to see it for myself.  I still wasn’t sure it could be possible, but on the off chance that it was, I did not want to be left out of this phenomenon.

See, I really didn’t believe that it could work in a real-life fridge with real-life people making real-life refrigerator mistakes; like slicing or chopping a whole onion, using only 1/2 of it and then throwing the rest in a ziptop bag on the counter, only to find that their well-meaning husband has tossed it into the refrigerator to infuse all the ice and any other open containers with that distinctive onion smell.  That’s actually one of my biggest pet peeves.  Onions happen at my house.  We use A LOT of them, so not having some bagged up somewhere just isn’t going to happen.  I find the bag in the fridge in the morning, pull it out, and by nightfall, that bag of onions is always back where I found it a few hours before.  Aaaarrgghh!  I’ve even tried double or triple bagging them to seal the smell in tight.  Not so much.  Have you ever come in from working outside, poured a tall glass of  iced tea to cool off, taken that first refreshing swallow only to be slapped in the face by the pungent aroma and taste of onion?  It sort of takes the yummy out of tea and definitely isn’t the thirst-quenching experience I’m hoping for.  The Oransi Ionic Fridge Air Purifier has allowed me to have crystal clear, aroma free ice cubes for almost a month, now.  The truly most amazing part?  There’s still a  bag of onion in my fridge!  Needless, to say, I love this little machine.  What a blessing that I was contacted to review it!  I’m a groupie, now, and so you can tie dye me convinced! 

Hard at work in my fridge. See how small it is?

When the Oransi Refrigerator Air Purifier arrived, my first surprise was the size of it.  It’s tiny.  For a short time, a few years ago, we had one of those home air purifiers.  It was the size of an over-sized stereo speaker, noisy and left a strange smell in our house.  I guess that was more what I was expecting.  What I actually got was:

• quiet – Actually, it’s silent.  It makes no sound whatsoever.
• small – It fits in any small space available in my fridge.  It is probably about 4 inches tall, 2 to 2 1/2 inches deep and 2 inches wide.  That’s a guesstimate, but I believe it’s close.
• budget-friendly – It costs $29.  That’s a one time purchase.  It requires no filters, so you never have to buy a replacement.  It doesn’t increase my electricity bill, because it uses 2 AA batteries that need to be replaced only every 90 days – that’s just four times per year!
• No strange odor – The beautiful thing is that since we’ve had it, there is literally NO odor in the fridge — just clean.
• automatic – I don’t have to think about it or remember anything.  Once the batteries were installed and the unit turned on, I just placed it in the refrigerator and forgot about it.

How does it work?  According to Oransi, the unit contains pantented Piezo-electric technology.  I looked it up and piezoelectricity means electricity resulting from pressure.  It’s used in things like the push-start button on your gas grill or the lighter in your car.  In the case of the air purifier, it produces a high negative ion effect without the harmful side affects of ozone.  According to Oransi’s website, the unit was tested by the Industrial Research Technology Institute for ozone output and was found to be 78% below FDA established limits. All I know is that the unit cycles every 5 minutes to clean the air in the fridge and after using it for several weeks, I can say, without a doubt, it DOES work.

Apparently, those negative ions don’t just eliminate odors.  They get rid of bacteria, as well.  I’m not a scientist, so I’m not going to pretend to explain how it happens, but my produce (especially lettuce) is staying fresher longer than I could have ever kept it before.  Twice since having the purifier, I have had one of those, “Uh oh, I totally spaced those strawberries we bought last week.” moments, only to go to the fridge and find them fine.  I haven’t had any brown, slimy lettuce remnants, melting away in the crisper drawer either.  Obviously, this effect would not be unending, but what it has done is given our family the time to use up fresh produce before it goes bad.  That saves a huge chunk of the grocery budget, when food isn’t going to waste.

We’ve only been using the unit for about a month, but at this point, I’m a believer and if I could put one in every smelly sneaker and laundry hamper in the house, I would.  — lol — My guess is that they would also be great in closets or any small space where odors could be an issue.

One lucky Busy-at-Home reader is going to get the chance to have yummy, perfect ice and an odor-free fridge, too!  Oransi has generously agreed to sponsor a giveaway for one of the refrigerator purifiers.

Giveaway Rules:

You must be 18 or older to enter and a resident of the U.S.  The mandatory entry must be completed before any optional entries will count.  Winner will be selected in a random drawing using random.org.  Deadline for entry is midnight (CST), Sunday, June 5, 2011.

Mandatory Entry: In a comment below, tell me your worst refrigerator disaster.  Am I the only one who suffers from onion ice cubes, forgotten and fermented veggies or unidentified containers on the back of the bottom shelf that I’m afraid to open, but would probably be a really cool science experiment?  Please, tell me I’m not the only one with a disorganized and aromatic fridge!  What’s your story?  Spill it and make me feel better about myself. 

Additional Optional Entries:

1. Visit the Oransi website and in a comment below, tell me one thing you learned about them or their products.
2. Follow Busy-at-Home on Twitter.  Leave a comment letting me know you’ve done it.
3. Like Busy-at-Home on Facebook. Leave a comment letting me know you’ve done it.
4. Follow Busy-at-Home on Google Friends Connect.   Or click the Join Button in the right-hand side bar.  Leave a comment letting me know you’ve done it.
   
5. Subscribe to the Busy-at-Home Newsletter with this link or in the right-hand sidebar.  You will receive an email confirmation with a link that must be clicked to confirm your subscription.  Once you click the email link to confirm your subscription, leave me a comment to let me know you’ve done it.
6. Tweet this giveaway (maximum of 1x per day, please).  Win an Oransi Fridge Air Purifier! Have crystal clear, odor-free ice cubes and longer lasting produce!  @busyathome  http://ow.ly/4XY85 Leave a comment below with a link to your tweet.
7. Post this giveaway on your Facebook page.  Win an Oransi Fridge Air Purifier at Busy-at-Home! Experience crystal clear, odor-free ice cubes, a smell-free fridge and longer lasting produce! http://ow.ly/4XY85 Leave a comment below with a link to your post.

I received an Oransi Ionic Fridge Air Purifier in order to test it and conduct this review.  No monetary compensation was received and a positive review was not required.  As with all Busy-at-Home reviews, the views and opinions expressed are wholly my own.