Carbon filtration is NOT 100%. Far from it. The carbon is an adsorber, not and ABsorber. It works by trapping the little organic molecules in the little holes on the surface of the carbon particles. In normal use, a carbon bed is put into hte return air path, where the room air is recycled through it constantly. It takes several passes to reduce odors to acceptable levels.

It is NEVER 100% effective. The effectiveness is a function of the residence time, or that time it takes the air (you breathe) to get from one side of the little filter to the other. Several seconds is necessary for good efficiency, and the little filter is nowhere near that thickness. In breathing, you only get one pass.

The bottom line is, even if the carbon does get 99% of the organics (and I bet not - do they post efficiency ratings?) that 1% is still damaging.

I use judicious amounts of fresh air.

: You can't go wrong by wearing a respirator. Make that
: a real one, with activated charcoal "Organic Vapor" cartridges,
: the black ones.