Humidifiers - Warm Moisture or Cool Moisture?
Humidifiers are often categorized as either Warm Moisture (Warm Mist) or Cool Moisture (Cool Mist). While they each work in different ways, the end result is the same - that is, they both increase the humidity level in the air. Ultimately, the choice between warm or cool comes down to a matter of personal preference.
How they work:
Warm moisture humidifiers use a heating element to heat up the water inside the humidifier, causing a warm steam to rise into the room. Some warm moisture humidifiers also add an optional mineral absorption pad, which sits inside the heating element and collects mineral deposits left behind from the heated water. The level of mineral deposits will vary depending on how hard your water is. Other than this very inexpensive and optional replacement pad, there are no other filters that need replacing with a warm moisture humidifier. The heating element uses more electricity than a cool moisture humidifier, but overall the long term costs are low. Some pediatricians caution against using a warm humidifier in a baby's room, as the water inside the humidifier is very hot, and could become a burn risk if the humidifier were to be accidentally tipped over during use.
Cool moisture humidifiers can be broken down into two subcategories: Evaporative Humidifiers and Ultrasonic Humidifiers.
- Evaporative Humidifiers use a fan to blow dry room air through an evaporative wick filter, usually made of a special absorbent paper-based material. This wick filter sits inside the base of the humidifier, absorbing the water inside. When the fan blows air through the wick filter, the water in the wick filter evaporates and is distributed into the room in the form of humidified air. While this method uses no heating element, and therefore uses very little electricity to run, it does require regular replacement of the wick filters. There is also a possibility of mold, bacteria and fungi to grow on the paper-based wick as it sits in the water. There are bacteria treatments and antibacterial cartridges available which can be added to the water tanks to help prevent the growth of bacteria, but eventually the wick needs to be replaced with a new one. How often you need to replace the wick filter depends on many factors, including water hardness and frequency of use, but in general wick filters should be replaced at least every two months.
- Ultrasonic Humidifiers are another form of cool mist humidifier, but instead of using a fan to blow air through a wick filter, a small metal diaphragm vibrates at an ultrasonic frequency, which breaks the water down into tiny water droplets and becomes a fine vapor mist. Ultrasonic humidifiers are the quietest humidifiers around, and they use very little electricity. They do emit minerals that are present in the water, which take the form of a fine dust, called "white dust", which can settle on furniture near the humidifier. White dust, while not harmful, can be reduced with the use of demineralization cartridges, or by using distilled water. Other than these cartridges, ultrasonic humidifiers require no other replacement filters. Some higher end ultrasonic models have a warm mist option in addition to cool mist. By using the warm mist option, the mist exiting the humidifier is heated up before entering the room, which helps keep the room from feeling cooler than it actually is.
So, which one should I get?
For the most part, it comes down to personal preference. But here are some additional pros and cons to help you decide:
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