Humidifier Buying Guide
Who needs a humidifier? Anyone who has uncomfortably dry or itchy eyes, throat or skin, or whose asthma is a problem indoors
during the heating season. In addition to the health benefits, a humidifier can also reduce static electricity, peeling wallpaper,
and cracks in paint and furniture.
- Getting started
- Types
- Features
- Brands
Types
Choosing among the three major types of humidifiers-tabletop, console, and in duct-involves trade-offs in efficiency, noise, and convenience. Primary considerations include the size of the space you need to humidify and how much you're willing to spend.
Tabletop humidifiers
These portable models cost the least and are fine for humidifying a single room, but their small tank requires frequent refills. Evaporative tabletops use a fan to blow air over a wet wick, while warm-mist models use a heating unit to boil water before cooling the steam. Evaporative models are much cheaper to run, but their fan is noisy.
Console humidifiers
Although console models are larger than tabletops, they can still be moved from room to room. Their large, powerful fan blows a strong air stream across water, generating lots of moist air. Since a console can humidify more than one room, it allows more options for unobtrusive placement wherever an electric outlet is available. A console's larger tank needs less frequent refills, but it's more cumbersome to handle. All console models use evaporative technology, which is noisy. If noise is an issue, run your console for several hours until bedtime and then turn it off, or use two or more warm-mist portable models.
In-duct humidifiers
These humidifiers are the ideal choice if you have a forced-air heating system and want to humidify the whole house. They tap into the air ducts and are plumbed into the water supply. Most are evaporative-bypass units, which blow air over a wet wick. Some emit a warm mist. Others are nebulizers, which use a spray technology-and which may produce deposits of white dust from minerals in the water. In-duct humidifiers are quiet and require minimal maintenance. They're also the least expensive to run: about $30 or so per year, compared with as much as $350 or more for four tabletop models. But they generally require professional installation.
