Humidifier Reviews

Works OK, but doesn't last - and costs a bit much.

I own the Hamilton Beach humidifier and have to purchase these from time to time. They last about two or three weeks, and I have the humidifier going constantly. They are very easy to replace - just lift the unit up and drop it in (after taking out the old soggy one first). Not only do these filter the air, they draw the water up out of the pan in the bottom of the unit so can be transferred to the air moving through. If you leave it in too long it will begin to smell, like anything you leave in water too long. I buy four or five at once, so I always have one on hand.

A very good filter - easy to install - and lasts for a few weeks with constant use.

Be careful though - make sure you turn it over at least once a day and if you can, leave it to air dry for 2 hrs - it really extends the life of these filters.

Order a couple at once ( save yourself the shipping!!) as amazon can run out in the winter - a definite buy for the HB humidifier

What ever happened to the vaporizors we had when I was a kid? The kind where a big puff of mist came out over your head while you were sleeping? I bought this machine to use at night with menthol vapors for colds. This vaporizor takes 10 minutes to even start working, and when it does, a tiny thin line of smoke-style vapor that is barely visible comes rising up--but only a few inches before falling. Not enough to fill a room, let alone a sleeping area. You have to put your face directly over the machine to even get the effects. You can put menthol liquid in the reservoir, but it holds only a very small amount and the reservor it is slanted in a way that makes it drip all over the place and run down the machine. It is a very quiet machine--can't really hear it run at all. I don't know if this is how they are all made now, but it sure wasn't what I expected.

We've been using Sunbeam vaporizers around our house for years, with EXCELLENT results. Our softened well water contains too many minerals for a whole-house evaporative humidifer to work, so we have several vaporizers in CONSTANT 24-HOUR use every winter.

A vaporizer only works well if the mineral content in your water is "ideal", so you may have to make simple adjustments if the water doesn't boil (add salt), or if it boils too rapidly (add distilled water). This will prevent "spurting", boiling over and overheated reservoirs.

I recommend the 2-gallon reservoir because it keeps the water outside the heating chamber cooler than the 1-gallon model does. You can always underfill the reservoir for shorter running times.

Pro's:
- No filters to get clogged or replace (expensive)
- Runs over 12 hours on one filling
- Lid secured onto base so pets won't get inside
- Kills bacteria
- Minimal cleaning, no chemicals needed
- Minerals stay in reservoir; no mineral dust in your house
- Quiet, except for boiling water noise
- Easy to fill & carry
- Reservoir glows in the dark at night
- Inexpensive to purchase/replace

Con's:
- Hot steam! Wouldn't recommend for households with young children (pets learn to stay away)
- If there are too many minerals in your water, it will boil too hard and spurt water onto the floor (add distilled water to weaken the mineralization)
- If there are too few minerals, it won't work (adding table salt will correct this problem).
- Electrode chamber tricky to open (this may be a good thing...)
- Electrodes can be hard to clean, depending on water conditions. Our water literally "eats away" one electrode, making it shorter every year, until it has to be replaced.

Sunbeam vaporizers seem to put out more vapor than the brand with the blue top (V***S).

Amazon.com should stock this item during the winter months.

I bought this recently and set it up right away. The high setting is loud for sensitive sleepers but if you need white noise to fall asleep the humidifier can double as a sleep machine. It puts out a nice cool mist on both high and low. PROS: It has a nice design -- It is a solid performer -- It is easy to fill CONS: The tank and the wick cover sometimes are easily disturbed -- it is a little clunky -- the grill on the fan cover disperses the mist mainly in one direction when it looks as if it would be omni-directional. FINAL THOUGHTS: I recommend it highly but wish the wick was cheaper to replace (around 5 bucks 2 times a year) but considering the other ones on the market it is still a good buy.

We've been using our humidifier ever since our newborn started getting a dry, stuffy nose. I was reluctant to get one because I had heard of all the problems associated with humidifiers (water stains, moldy smells, etc.), but it has worked wonders. The air in our home was so dry from the furnace, but this product has corrected this and made it much more comfortable. Our baby's nose is no longer dry or stuffy, and the white noise that the humidifier emits is wonderful to lull her back to sleep. We actually noticed a difference in our breathing in just the few nights we hadn't used it. I've not noticed any mold/mildew smells, but I think that if this unit is properly maintained, those issues can be avoided, and we've never had any issues with the water...it's always just evaporated unnoticed. I would recommend this unit highly.

We registered for this humidifier and started using it in our room when our son was first born back in November. It works great. There is no white dust and when filled completely, I think it could run for 24 hours straight (depending on the speed). There are 3 speeds to choose from and the slowest one is very quiet, however, the fastest one is pretty loud. We keep it on the middle one and it acts as a white noise machine which we don't mind. When we moved our son to his own room, we bought a cheaper $20 Vicks model and were so disappointed with it, we threw it out. It not only spit water and was noisy, it created that awful white dust that ruins mirrors and glass. This humidifier is wonderful and very easy to clean., it's worth the extra $20. We ended up buying one for our room, too!

I bought this and hoped to use it the same night because my daughter had a cold and my last humidifier broke down literally the day before she came down with this cold. SO I unwrapped it and followed all the instructions and plugged it in and nothing but LOUD noise came out, even on the lowest setting. No mist at all. Then I read the pamphlet and apparently, even though it didn't state so on the box, it was an evaporative humidifier which meant I wasn't going to see any mist because the water passes through the filter and then moist air, not water, is blown out the vent. SO the only way to tell if it iss working is to watch to see if the water level goes down. I let it run all day and when I checked again, the water level moved about an 8th of an inch and we had to shut if off at night because it was so loud we couldn't sleep. Sadly, that is when we needed it most but it hardly mattered. It did not work at all. I felt no difference in the room whatsoever even with it running all day. Maybe I had a defective one but I returned it anyway because even if it worked, that noise level was too much to handle.

I bought this and plugged it in and NO vapor came out at all. Then I read further and thought it may be an evaporative humidifier (although it didn't say so on the box or anywhere else but the pamphlet). But apprently that means there is no mist that you can see visibly but the water goes through the filter and emits moist air and the only way you know it is working is when the water level goes down and the room feels moister. Well I had it on all day and the water level went down like an 18th of an inch if that and the noise on the lowest setting was so loud we had to shut it off at night when we needed it most. Didn't notice any difference in the moisture level in my kids room even after running all day. MAybe mine was defective but I won't try it again.

This Vicks humidifier really does what it is intended for, and more - it even cools the room (I have a small room, however). Ever since I used this, my nose have not dried and have slept well. I have only one problem with it, it is a bit noisier than my previous humidifiers, hence the 4 stars, instead of 5.

I had this humidifier for about a year, and it recently stopped running. I took it apart and found that the wires had corroded. I practically had to break the thing to get it open, and you can't get the calcium deposits out of the inside except through this microscopic hole, so I ended up banging it against my kitchen sink every few nights to get it out. It does work--it's warm mist, and it's not too loud. It'll last you one or two nights if you turn it off in the morning. If you can't spend a lot of money, go ahead and get this one because it does the job--better than not having one at all.

Our family has purchased several Sunbeam Vaporizers over the years and have had good luck with these units. The Larger-tank unit is a better deal as it holds more water.
The unit produces steam which is why we buy them--steam helps to warm the air as it adds moisture and also kills any organisms in the water. More expensive cool-mist humidifiers do NOT kill bacteria and fungus and their cool mist cools the room temperature.
This unit requires regular cleaning to keep it working well--our water has much calcium so we clean the electrodes after every 2 or 3 uses. Simply scrape the scale from the electrodes and put the unit back in service. As the electrodes wear down, a replacement head unit for the device can be purchased direct from the manufacturer--no need to keep buying the water tank.

We've had this unit for 3 years. It has never leaked or broke or started an electrical fire. We've been pretty happy with it. We have a large home so this was used for one of the smaller rooms. We have several different humidifiers throughout the house and it has worked well.

Difficult to clean. It worked fine originally. Now it generated strange smell.

Does the job. Must be refilled everyday, noisy fan and a large footprint.

This is a no frills humidifier. It has worked well for our family for over two years now, and we use it most nights during the winter months. It is a bit loud (about as loud as a rotating table top fan) but it can get louder if it is not cleaned out regularly, or if the lid/top is not placed on properly. It does need to be cleaned regularly, otherwise it is unsanitary. The glow in the dark feature is useful. It will make a difference in how well you can breathe, as well as help to leave your skin feeling less dry. For the money, this one has worked well for us with many months of use.