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the alternative to tVOC sensors are specific sensors for each VOC, which are expensive and cumbersome.

Sensors like the Bosch BME680/8, or the Sensirion SGP41 are useful for detecting changes to the norm, and persistent changes to the norm. The fart or the beer spike will be not come back after airing the room, but the spikes from new chinese toys, new (ikea) furniture, new curtains, will be back immediately.

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I don’t know, having had one in my home for four years I don’t think I’d really be able to tell if I bought some bad furniture or something, there’s just so much noise. The levels are all over the map hour to hour. Could be some banana peels in the kitchen garbage or a loosely capped bottle of shampoo or something? Noisy data with a shifting baseline telling you that you might be exposed to some kind of nasty stuff is more just anxiety provoking than actionable, in my opinion.

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