What type would you recommend?
This one is a bit more tricky, and more questions are necessary to establish your needs. The type of humidifier you need will be contingent on your individual needs, the room size or house size in the case of a whole house humidifier, and the conditions it will be operating in.
Warm or cold Humidifier?
Is a warm or cold mist humidifier safer around kids?
Again this will be contingent on your requirements, most people agree that a warm mist humidifier can be more beneficial for people with breathing problems, but I would say this. in the event you find it simpler to breath in a sauna then a warm mist humidifier may be the one for you. in the event you find it more difficult to breathe in a sauna then a cold mist humidifier may suite your neds better.
A cold mist humidifier makes use of cold water.
A warm mist humidifier works by boiling the water to produce steam, as long as you take the basic precautions like ensuring that the humidifier is out of reach of kids then you ought to have no problems.
Wooden furniture and musical instruments prefer to be kept in cool moist surroundings to prevent cracking of the wood and finishes. A humidifier with a built in humidistat will help you maintain a constant atmospheric humidity.
Warm mist ( Steam ) humidifiers operate like a kettle, boiling the water using an element and as such are more costly to run. normally they have no changeable filters.
What's the difference in operating costs between a cool mist humidifier,and a steam ( warm mist ) humidifier?
In the event you are more energy conscious an evaporative unit would be ideal, as they do not have to heat up an element, but the filter mats will want to get replaced regularly.
All evaporative humidifiers use a filter that absorbs the water from the tank; the air is then drawn through the filter and expelled through the top of the unit.
what is an Ultrasonic humidifier?
Ultrasonic mist humidifiers use high frequency (beyond human hearing) signals to vibrate water so fast, that it turns the water in to a extremely small droplets. It also causes minerals (white dust) to deposit themselves in the air which has been known to irritate people with chest complaints unless the unit has a built in demineralisation cartridge to eliminate it.
If you want a quiet humidifier.
Look for a decibel rating of less than 25 decibels in the humidifiers description. Ratings of less than 25 are extremely quiet.
All humidifiers need cleaning and maintenance on a regular basis to prevent the build up of bacteria. Check the manufacturers operating instructions.
I want a humidifier that is simple to maintain.
I want a humidifier for a little / sizable area.
There's lots of sizes to pick from and my advice would be to pick one that is either over-rated for the area, with a built in humidistat, or under-rated in the event you have one without a humidistat. Too much moisture in the air can lead to damp problems and be as bad as too little.
I want a humidifier and air purifier as well.
That's Fine, humidifiers are obtainable with built in purifiers, check in the manufacturer's product description.
I suffer from breathing difficulties/stuffy nose, what humidifier would be best?
Ideally a warm mist humidifier would suite you best from the reports i have seen (but keep in mind I am no doctor) and in the event you are worried you ought to seek proper medical advice from your physician. Warm mist humidifiers have been proven over many years to help with relief from sore throats, dry skin, and coughs. Some warm mist humidifiers have the choice to add essential oils, such as eucalyptus oil which will evaporate with the steam and can aid your breathing.
I hope this short Q&A has answered most of your questions.
Humidifiers are normally sold by capacity but this does not refer to the water tank capacity, it relates to the amount of moisture output over a 24-hour duration. So in the event you have a mist humidifier that has an output of say 10 gallons a day on high output and a water tank capacity of 5 gallons, then you would have to refill the storage tank after 12 hours. Most humidifiers have an automatic cut out when the tank is empty.
