Reddit reviews AIRCARE MA1201 Whole-House Console-Style Evaporative Humidifier, White

A whole house humidifier.

For the last two years my hands have been so dry in the winter the skin has started peeling.

I bought a bluetooth humidity/temperature monitor (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01AEQ9X9I), which showed me a low of 12% humidity in my and my wife's bedroom during winter. I bought this humidifer https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004S34ISA/ which raised the whole apartment's humidity to ~35%. Requires daily water refills and a biweekly filter change. I use it from Jan-April. When I buy a house I will buy a humidifier that hooks up directly to the house's heater.



Since buying the humidifier I have experienced no dry skin problems during the winter.

Well, I have an enormous console one, because the humidity in my apartment goes to about 33% without a humidifier running. It will happily humidify most of the place to 55% humidity with a fill every 24-36 hours (depending how dry I let it get before I refill it). It holds just shy of 5 gallons, I think, compared to the 1 gallon ultrasonic I used in the bedroom before I got this one, which needed to be filled about every 18 hours for one room. It has a side mounted container for water, so you don't have to shut it off to go fill it, and it holds about two containers worth (one flows down to the bottom with the wick, then you fill it again), so you don't have to haul 5 gallons from the sink to the humidifier.

The wicks are about $12-14 on amazon, depending what the price variation of the day is. It's really easy to install, it's only really noisy when the humidity is way below where it's set to (you can set it anywhere from 35 to 60% if I recall correctly, 50% is best of both worlds for protecting you from flu and mold), and honestly, you can set what the fan speed is at if you don't like auto.

I've been running this almost constantly since Christmas (there was a week that we turned it off 'cause I was trying to dry a bunch of sand), and I've replaced the wick once. I may not have had to replace it if I had emptied it out for that week, but I stupidly left it sitting in the wet chamber, so it got gross.

TL;DR: I apparently have lengthy opinions on humidifiers.

I would leave the closet slightly open, then close the guest room door. Keep all heaters/AC/dehumidifiers/humidifiers in that room. You don't want applications like that in a closet or small tent with the plants. Air coming out of a humidifier might be closer to 100% humidity which isnt good blowing on your plants, same with a space heater blowing out hot air. We want consistent temps and humidity. That's why we want in the same room but not the same tent. Just make sure the conditions are similar in the closet vs the room. That may affect how open the door needs to be to the closet.

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I have a similar setup and just keep the humidifier/dehumidier in the room along with the tent.
I use these:

AMAZON LINKS

Humidifier

Dehumidifer

I would recommend them both. Obviously I use the humidifer in the winter and switch em in the summer. Just get the treatment/bateriostatic fluid for when you fill the humidifier. It will prevent algae or mold from growing. Like this

When you get to summer and switch to a dehumidifier, you'll see that unless you feel like emptying it every 12 hours, you'll need to plug it a hose and have it drain outside, or at least into a 5 gallon bucket. If not, the unit will turn off once it's full, which means you'll get home and see your room has skyrocketed to 70% humidity and the dehumidifier is beeping to be emptied. Been there. Those internal tanks are way too small. I can empty the 5 gallon bucket every few days, so less maintenance required.

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Aim for 60% in veg, 50% in early flowering, 40-45% in late flowering. Try not to drop below 50% in veg, and definitely not over 50% in mid-late flowering. That last bit is the most important to prevent bud rot and other mold related issues. Don't underestimate the importance of humidity. Keeping an optimal humidity level for the plant will directly correlate to their overall health.

"High humidity is a problem because water usage by the plant is too slow and compromises quality, even though the stomates are constantly open. Likewise, if humidity is very low and subsequent transpiration is too high, the plant closes its stomatal openings to minimize water loss and wilting. Unfortunately this also means photosynthesis is slowed and subsequently, so is plant growth."


/thread

Funny thing, I used that exact one for a while till I got sick of it. Small reservoir needed filling constantly, and white stuff everywhere. I switched to this and I've been pretty happy. But I had a larger space and needed to replace two of the ones you linked. You can probably get a cheaper one in the same style.

The comments about the humidity censor through me off, but I didn't have any of those problems. Either there's enough of a draft it didn't matter or they fixed it.

When I lived in a two story 2200 sq ft townhouse I had a whole house humidifier (Honeywell) and changed the filters every 3-4 mos. It worked great! Also had an air cleaner attached to the furnace. That cut way down on dust. Now I'm in a 1200' loft with a heat pump and whole building broiler for heat. I got this, which is sufficient for a one story place, but would not be enough for you.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004S34ISA/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I also recommend the whole house humidifier! I got this one a few weeks ago and have been pleased. It does take up floor space and requires some maintenance (cleaning, refilling), but my dogs/door knobs/cages don't zap me anymore and I don't wake up with that terrible dry winter air induced stuffy nose and scratchy throat nonsense. I set it up near the air intake for the house and it does a decent job of circulating some humidity around the house. It varies by about 5% by the time it gets to the farthest places in the house from the humidifier, but it sure beats life without it! My house is fairly small, so mileage may vary for larger homes.

This one I use for my living room and office: https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B004S34ISA/ref=mp_s_a_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1521206041&sr=8-4&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_FMwebp_QL65&keywords=aircare+humidifier&dpPl=1&dpID=41HVijlwa7L&ref=plSrch



This one I have in my grow closet: https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00H1LBJJM/ref=mp_s_a_1_24?ie=UTF8&qid=1521206136&sr=8-24&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=aircare+humidifier&dpPl=1&dpID=41CdP3plQKL&ref=plSrch



The larger one is fantastic and definitely puts more moisture in the air. Noticable change in RH in about 1500sq ft of space. The smaller on I have in my closet set at 40% and my grow room stays perfectly at that level. The larger one is easier to fill and just generally nicer but the smaller one is also pretty great, just harder to fill.

Yeah it's a necessity living in the desert but it has been raining here non stop so it hasn't kicked on all week.

I use this:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004S34ISA/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

You’ll want a whole house console humidifier, more like one like this.

I live in Chicago and have tried all three types of humidifiers. One thing to consider is the size of your space. I've listed the pros & cons below based on my experience.

1. Ultrasonic: PROS: ultra quiet, humidifies quickly. CONS: potential to leave a fine white film over surfaces - unless you use distilled water, pricey & tends to only last a couple of seasons (ultrasonic mechanism breaks due to hard water. - Things may have changed with build quality over the years but a few years back this was my experience). Uses ultrasonic waves to turn water into vapor.
   
2. Warm Mist: PROS: longer life, white noise. CONS: white noise, hard water will scale the heating element - maintenance required, typically only good for smaller spaces. Boils the water to create steam.
   
3. Cool Mist/Evaporative: PROS: large reservoir models available, ideal for whole house humidification. CONS: need to purchase disposable wick - typically lasts one season, reservoir can develop mold & bacteria so need to use a bacteriostatic treatment in the water. Air is pulled through a wet wick to disperse water molecules in the air.
   
   Out of all three, I use the Cool Mist/Evaporative only because I got tired to having to constantly fill the water chambers of the other types multiple times a day. Also with the ultrasonic, I've had white powdery film develop on surfaces near the humidifier's stream.
   
   The Cool Mist/Evaporative takes care of my entire apartment and I only have to mess with filling it once a day. The disposable wick becomes covered in calcium over time, its nice to be able to toss it after the winter is over. The only downside is that with each water filling, I need to add a small cap full of bacteriostatic treatment to prevent the wick from becoming a breeding ground for bacteria.
   
   Hope this helps!
   
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Maybe less industrial and more... belongs in a hotel or something.

But this one is a good evaporative one, meaning it won't leave the mineral dust like Ultrasonic ones will: https://www.amazon.com/Essick-Air-MA1201-Whole-House-Console-Style/dp/B004S34ISA/ref=mp_s_a_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1550085331&sr=8-6&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_FMwebp_QL65&keywords=humidifier+whole+house&dpPl=1&dpID=41HVijlwa7L&ref=plSrch

However this one is much easier to work into the design of a room, while still functioning as funiture: https://www.amazon.com/AirCare-EP9-500-Whole-House-Pedestal-Style/dp/B00B5U8GJ6/ref=mp_s_a_1_12?ie=UTF8&qid=1550085331&sr=8-12&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_FMwebp_QL65&keywords=humidifier%2Bwhole%2Bhouse&th=1&psc=1

AIRCARE MA1201 Whole-House Console-Style Evaporative Humidifier, White https://www.amazon.com/dp/B004S34ISA/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_IN0BybHSHSVJB

Or something like it. Get cool mist. Warm is too hard to maintain.

The one in the link above is ugly, but it's big enough to really get the humidity you want (30-40%) when it's really dry.

I had to scrap mine and ended up trying others - now I have to have 2 to replace the work of that one.

This one also rated well, but I don't have personal experience with it.
Honeywell HCM350W Germ Free Cool Mist Humidifier, White https://www.amazon.com/dp/B002QAYJPO/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_NP0Byb48FZVET


Dampits CAN make a tiny difference if you use them properly and with a cover. But, generally, that's only for a little extra protection. Drop the money on a real humidifier especially with all your other instruments.

Lastly, don't overhumidify - you'll get mold.