The Corsi-Rosenthal Cube (sometimes called a Comparetto Cube) is an inexpensive, do-it-yourself air cleaner that can be easily constructed out of a box fan and MERV furnace filters. The Corsi-Rosenthal Cube can give whole-room air cleaning performance comparable to commercial HEPA air cleaners that are 10x or more the cost. Total cost is around $100.
Construction guide
Goes here
Variations
5-filter version
Rather than placing a piece of cardboard on the bottom side of the cube, another filter can be added in place of the cardboard. In this case, you would want to raise the cube off the ground (without blocking the entire bottom filter) so that the bottom filter could be utilized. This would in theory lead to even less resistance on each of the filters, potentially prolonging the life of the cube or increasing the air output.
Two filter "wedge" design.
A variation of the air cleaner can be made using two MERV filters (add details). This version is slightly less expensive (2 less filters are needed) and has a slightly smaller footprint.
History
As discussed in his original blog post, the design for the Corsi-Rosenthal Cube was detailed by Jim Rosenthal, CEO of Tex-Air Filters, and was dedicated to Dr. Richard Corsi. Neil Comparetto also detailed a similar design in a popular YouTube video, which he called a "Comparetto Cube."
See also
- High Quality DIY Box Fan Air Purifier "Comparetto Cube" - video showing how to construct a simple air cleaner cube.
News / media stories
- Could a Janky, Jury-Rigged Air Purifier Help Fight Covid-19? - Wired article on a simple, earlier version of the DIY air cleaner which uses a single filter taped directly to the back of the fan.
