Choose the Right Humidifier

We all know that moist air is healthier for our families and good for our homes but most of us don’t know what kind of humidifier to use according to our living environment.

Buying a humidifier isn’t as simple as it used to be, there are several kinds of humidifiers available in stores. There are also humidifying systems that you can add to your heating or cooling system to pump moist air to your entire home.

Before you spend your money, you should know that you may not need a humidifier in the first place. Most people buy humidifiers because they have forced air heating systems that dry out the air in their home. If you have hot water or steam heat, you probably don’t need a humidifier. If you use a swamp or evaporative cooler as an air conditioner, you definitely don’t need a humidifier mainly because the cooling devices cool the home by adding moisture to the air.

Most people use a standalone humidifier because these don’t require any form of professional installation. There are four excellent kinds of standalone humidifier available in the stores.

The most common humidifier is a vaporizer or hot water humidifier. A vaporizer heats up the water in order to create a blast of steam that moistens the air. Since they heat water, vaporizers do kill some germs but the steam from the vaporizer can burn children and pets, so this could be a health/safety risk. An advantage to a vaporizer is that they can be used to disperse medicine in the air. These humidifiers may have to be cleaned with vinegar weekly to eliminate mineral build. Vaporizers use a lot of water so they have to be filled everyday.

An ultrasonic humidifier doesn’t use sound to create a mist. A drawback to these is that they can leave a white dust in your home if you don’t use distilled water. In areas with hard water, ultrasonic humidifiers can be ruined by mineral build up.

An evaporative unit blows water throw wicking material to moisten the air. These models can provide moisture for several days so water doesn’t have to be changed so regularly. Evaporative units have filters that have to be replaced. Some of them are equipped with germ killing UV lights. The big fancy humidifiers sold at department and kitchen stores are usually evaporative units.

A cool mist or impeller humidifier moistens air by spinning water and blowing it into the air. These are the cheapest humidifiers and they are often used in children’s rooms because they are safe. Unfortunately, cool mist humidifiers can create puddles of water and damage furniture and floors with water build up.