Humidifier Ratings

Humidifiers are an important part of your house in the winter. The weather turns bitterly cold – and the air gets amazingly dry. This causes skin cracking, chapped lips, and can even cause breathing to become labored. On this site I’ll cover humidfier ratings and reviews for several top brands of humidifiers so you can make the best choice for your home (and all the rooms in your home.)

It’s important to first understand the differences between different types of humidifiers. There are three major variations – the cool mist humidifier, the warm mist variety, and ultrasonic humidifiers.

A cool mist machine can win in the humidifier ratings simply because it’s always safe. If you’re in an adult-only environment this may not be as important, but if you have young children a cool mist humidifier is a solid choice because it presents no possibility of burns.

The downside to the cool mist is that it can chill a room, or cause a room to feel cooler than it actually is. Since you’ll be using your humidifier in the winter this could be an effect you’d rather not have! Many people do find a cool mist to be soothing as they’re falling asleep at night, so if you like that or if you have small children, consider the cool mist humidifer ratings.

A warm mist humidifier (or a warm mist vaporizer) has a built in heating element that’s partially submerged into the water. This causes the unit to steam and adds a measure of warmth to a room.

This warm steam is very good during times of illness when you may be congested. Units that allow for a medication to be added at the steam opening are useful. You can add Eucalyptus essential oil as a decongestant and anti-microbial oil. The steam racing over it will pull the essential elements into the air where you can experience the soothing and healing effects.

The steam from a warm mist humidifier is hot. If you need to use this kind of unit with small children in the home it’s best to keep it out of reach. The steam can and will burn.

Ultrasonic humidifiers work by turning water into a very fine mist (they do this through vibrating componenents.) They are very quiet because they have smaller fans than other units. You also won’t hear water gurgling through them – which some people like and some people don’t.

Ultrasonic models are some of the highest priced among all the humidifier ratings presented, but they can also be the most versatile. They often offer both warm and cool mist options so you’ll be able to adjust your humidifier to meet your needs.

Now that you have a grasp on the basics, feel free to explore the brand ratings in detail for more on specific brands and models.