Houseplants for oxygen regeneration?
 

Hey guys,
Well, winter is upon us, and that means i cant really keep my windows open without running up a big heating bill (im not in the arctic, but its dropped below freezing last few nights). Now, it may be my imagination, but i feel like the air in my apartment is getting depleted of oxygen. I have no plants right now, but am considering buying a bunch of them to help produce nice air for me to consume.

What kind of plants are the best for this? My guess is that the quicker a plant is growing, the more CO2 it is consuming, but im no botanist, so i really dont know. AM i looking for any specific kind of plant? Also, I doubt any individual plants could do much by themselves, so i'll probably be needing quite a few? Would, say, 3 or 4 be enough to make a noticable difference?

I know that 95% of you must be as clueless as me on this, but hopefully somebody has good insight. Please share!
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Re: Houseplants for oxygen regeneration?
 

Unless you live in a hyperbaric chamber, I don't think you have to worry about your apartment having a depleted oxygen supply. That said, plants are nice to have around.

Re: Houseplants for oxygen regeneration?
 

Granted, you're not going to suffocate the way things are, but don't plants help with regards to air-quality/concentration of oxygen in the air, etc? Like the OP, I wonder about the same thing. How many plants does it take to really make a difference with air quality, etc?

Re: Houseplants for oxygen regeneration?
 

Would you notice that you feel better with lots of plants in the house raising the oxygen levels? Would it make any difference in any of your vital signs?

My houseplant is big and dying. Its a cane/palm style thingy I got at Ikea. Think its the low humidity?

Re: Houseplants for oxygen regeneration?
 

[ QUOTE ]
Granted, you're not going to suffocate the way things are, but don't plants help with regards to air-quality/concentration of oxygen in the air, etc? Like the OP, I wonder about the same thing. How many plants does it take to really make a difference with air quality, etc?

[/ QUOTE ]

I believe that a single plant pumps out such an infentesimal amount of oxygen that it could not possibly make a detectable difference in the physical sense. But, as I said before, plants can do wonders for you in the mental sense.

Re: Houseplants for oxygen regeneration?
 

Plants don't photosynthesise at night, and continue respiring, so use up oxygen at this time. But it's tiny amounts either way.

Re: Houseplants for oxygen regeneration?
 

Most plants will provide some oxygenation to a room, but they will also remove some airborne toxins like formaldehyde, toluene, and other volatile organic compounds. These are exuded from most modern furniture, rugs, and electronics, and in the winter can become concentrated past their usual levels b/c windows and doors are not opened as often. This may be making more of a difference for indoor air quality than the actual production of O2.

Plants rated best for this property are as follows:

* Dracaena (aka "corn" plant)
* Spathiphyllum (aka peace lily)
* Dieffenbachia (aka dumb cane)
* Ficus elastica (aka rubber tree)
* Chlorophytum (aka spider plant)
* Aglaeonema (aka Chinese evergreen)
* Philodenderon and pothos

You've probably seen most or all of these in lobbies or malls. You can get them in garden centers in varying sizes, or from Home Depot (though their plants tend to be crummy). All of these are tolerant of moderate neglect (i.e., they won't die if you take a long weekend away w/o watering them). Most of these can get fairly big if given good treatment, and you can take cuttings of many of them to make new plants.