Air quality monitoring · South Africa

Know what's
in your air. Outside in your town. Inside your building.

Free pollution readings for your town. An indoor Air Check for your home, clinic, office or school, and the equipment to fix what we find.

Check my area — free Indoor Air Check
01Check your town Free. 235 towns, updated daily. 02Check indoors Our monitors in your rooms, then a clear report. 03Fix it Free steps, and the Air Kit when you need equipment.
Town readings live · Now booking first buildings
Photo: Jacques Nel / Unsplash
Why it matters

On many days of the year, South Africans breathe heavily polluted air that can be deadly.

Air pollution was linked to an estimated 42,000 deaths in South Africa in 2023 (CREA and Greenpeace Africa, 2025). Here’s what’s been reported.

Photo: Niklas Liniger / Unsplash
Johannesburg · March 2026

The city smelled
of rotten eggs.
Again.

Hydrogen sulphide hit 36 ppb in Buccleuch and Alexandra — the second time this year. Not one building nearby had a record of what its people breathed.

36 ppb
hydrogen sulphide confirmed at city monitoring stations
Daily Maverick · 11 March 2026
2
separate episodes across Johannesburg in 2026 alone
City monitoring records
0
buildings able to say what their own occupants were exposed to
No indoor monitoring requirement exists in SA
Photo: Jakub Żerdzicki / Unsplash
The source · Still unnamed

Nobody could say
where it came from.
That is the problem.

The episodes were measured, never explained — and most South Africans live far from any monitoring station.

40%
of South Africans live more than 25 km from any air quality monitoring station
SA Department of Environment
2022
High Court ruled Highveld air violates the constitutional right to a healthy environment
Centre for Environmental Rights
Photo: Jacques Nel / Unsplash
The smell is the warning

Your nose
gets used to it.
Your body doesn’t.

After a while you stop noticing the smell. Your body keeps reacting: headaches, nausea, sore eyes.

~5 ppb
where most people start to smell H₂S. WHO odour guideline: 7 µg/m³ over 30 minutes
WHO Air Quality Guidelines for Europe, 2000
Days
of repeated smell episodes are linked to headaches, nausea and eye and throat irritation
US ATSDR · Toxicological Profile for Hydrogen Sulfide
Photo: Jan Antonín Kolář / Unsplash
Beyond Johannesburg

It is not one city,
and it is not
one bad week.

The Vaal has recorded the world’s highest PM2.5. All 13 Mpumalanga preschools tested were over the WHO limit.

54
deaths a day in Johannesburg attributed to outdoor air pollution
IQAir / Clean Air Fund · 2023
1.7m
people living beside the most polluted air measured on Earth, in the Vaal
Bloomberg / Daily Maverick · 2024
13/13
Mpumalanga preschools measured over the WHO threshold. Every one.
Public Health Challenges · peer-reviewed

Check my area.
Be responsible. Know what you are breathing.

Live · updated daily

Pick your town. See today’s pollution level. Free.

What the satellite saw
235 towns, latest pass
LowModerateElevatedHigh
Each dot is a town. Bigger and brighter means more pollution than that town's own clean days. Tap a dot to see its last 60 days.
Last 60 days
Secunda

This is the air outside. To know what you breathe inside, book an indoor Air Check. Terms.

Indoor
Air Check.

We measure · you get the answers

The town score tells you about the air outside. Most of your day is spent indoors. We put monitors in your rooms and tell you exactly what you are breathing.

1Measure

Our monitors in your rooms, recording CO₂, fine dust, chemical fumes, temperature and humidity every minute.

14–30 days
2Report

What’s wrong, in which room, at what time, and whether it comes from inside or outside.

Plain language
3Fix

A fix list for your rooms: free changes first, then the equipment that solves the rest.

Only what you need
4Monitor

Keep the monitors and get a phone alert with clear steps whenever the air turns bad.

Month to month
Home Air CheckFor your house or flatSee sensors & price
R1,499
2 monitors · 14 days
  • Sensors: CO₂, fine dust (PM2.5), chemical fumes (VOCs), temperature, humidity
  • Bedroom and living area, day and night
  • Report and fix list for your home
  • Then: monitoring from R99 a month
Book a Home Check
School & Office Air CheckClassrooms, offices, meeting roomsSee sensors & price
R6,500
Up to 5 monitors · 30 days
  • Sensors: CO₂, fine dust (PM2.5), chemical fumes (VOCs), temperature, humidity
  • Report for the principal, manager or landlord
  • Fix list with ventilation advice
  • Then: monitoring from R1,200 a month
Book a School or Office Check
Built for clinicsClinic Air CheckWaiting, consult and treatment roomsSee sensors & price
R8,500
Up to 5 monitors · 30 days
  • Sensors: CO₂, fine dust (PM2.5), chemical fumes (VOCs), temperature, humidity
  • Ventilation log for your infection-control file
  • Fix list, including staff routines
  • Then: monitoring from R2,500 a month
Book a Clinic Check

50% deposit to book, the rest when you get your report. Why CO₂ matters in clinics: in a South African study of health workers, the odds of TB infection rose about 1.8× for every 100 ppm more CO₂ in the air they breathed (Clinical Infectious Diseases, 2022).

The Air
Kit.

Self-install equipment · delivered to you

Prefer to do it yourself? Tap a photo to see it up close, or open the details. We help you choose the right size for your room.

Measure Air quality monitor

See CO₂, fine dust, fumes, temperature and humidity on your phone.

One per room you want to watch. Battery or plug-in. We set it up and show you what the numbers mean.

Price on request · delivered
Ask about this
Fresh air Ventilation

Window vents and extractor fans that bring stuffy rooms back to fresh air.

The fix for high CO₂ and stuffy rooms; a purifier can’t do this. Larger fans need an installer, and we can arrange one.

Price on request · delivered
Ask about this
Clean the air HEPA air purifier

Takes smoke, dust and pollen out of the air, from bedrooms to classrooms.

For smoke, dust and coughing at night. We size it to your room so it actually keeps up.

Price on request · delivered
Ask about this
Clean the air Carbon-filter purifier

Heavy activated carbon that removes gases and smells as well as dust.

For rotten-egg days, chemical smells and cooking. Ordinary filters let gases straight through.

Price on request · delivered
Ask about this
Keep it working Replacement filters

Fresh HEPA and carbon filters, delivered when they’re due.

Most filters last 6–12 months, less on smoky or rotten-egg days. Your monitor tells us when.

Price on request · delivered
Ask about this
Damp Dehumidifier

Pulls damp out of the air and stops mould and condensation.

Meaco Arete Two: 12, 20 or 25 litres a day, with a HEPA filter, app control and a 5-year warranty. For rooms that stay above 60% humidity.

Price on request · delivered
Ask about this

Photos show the type of equipment; exact brands and prices follow as South African suppliers confirm. Photo credits appear when you open a photo.

Solution
guides.

Free steps first · equipment if you need it

Tap the problem you have. Do the free steps today.

Do it now, free

Open windows on opposite sides for 10 minutes every hour. Leave bedroom doors ajar at night.

Fix it for good

Fresh-air ventilation: window vents or an extractor fan. A purifier will not fix this.

See it in the Air Kit →
Do it now, free

Use the extractor when cooking. Close windows when outdoor smoke is heavy. Damp-dust instead of sweeping.

Fix it for good

A HEPA air purifier sized to the room, starting with the bedroom.

See it in the Air Kit →
Do it now, free

Close windows on the windy side, set the aircon to recirculate, avoid hard exercise outdoors until it passes.

Fix it for good

A purifier with a heavy activated-carbon filter. Normal filters let gases straight through.

See it in the Air Kit →
Do it now, free

Air the room for 10 minutes after cleaning. Use wipes instead of sprays. Store chemicals outside living areas.

Fix it for good

A carbon-filter purifier in the rooms that are cleaned most.

See it in the Air Kit →
Do it now, free

Open windows after showers and cooking. Dry washing outside. Move furniture a little away from cold walls.

Fix it for good

A dehumidifier, plus ventilation so the damp doesn’t come back.

See it in the Air Kit →

Not sure which it is? That’s what the Air Check is for: two weeks of readings tell you which of these you have, in which room, and when.

Johannesburg · Pretoria · Vaal · Durban · Cape Town

Get started Tell us your town and your building. We’ll set you up.

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