Customer Rating:  
Summary: Different but not better
Comment: I chose this humidifier because it was different than most others and promised to be "ultra-quiet". I already had a Holmes console humidifier but the fan noise provoked complaints from my neighbor (thin-walled apartment) and forced me to turn my TV louder than I like. The other alternative was an ultrasonic model but I heard that those have trouble with white dust from mineral-rich water like mine.
This humidifier is different than either wick or ultrasonic ones. It siphons water from a pan and spins it off a disperser to get a mist into the air. The fan draws air down through the center of the water tank and out around the perimeter.
Well unfortunately it's not very quiet. The noise from the fan is slightly quieter than the Holmes model. But there is also a whine from the motor that seems to be amplified by the shape of the water tank. It seems to be a matter of resonance so I stuffed a glove between the tank and the control column to slightly reduce the whine, but it's still annoying and continues to make it hard to hear the TV.
The water tank is very strange, with a hollow center and a very long cap that would be easy to break off while carrying. The tank holds surprisingly little water for the size of the humidifier. But at least it doesn't run out in under 24 hours because the output is so meager.
If a future model reduces the motor whine and improves the tank design then it might be okay, but for now I'd pass on this design.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Good for smaller rooms
Comment: This is my first humidifier and I've had it just for 2 months. I was just surprised by three things. (1) I only run it in the evenings and have found it is only sufficient for my 12x14 ft bedroom. (2) In the beginning, I though it was very quite, but when I did move it to the bedroom, I noticed that its fan has a humming noise (I guess normal for humidifiers). Moreover, it guts out huge bubbles in its water tank after every 20-25 minutes which can startle a light sleeper like myself. (3) The only thing I do not like is, it doesn't shut off when its out of water, the fan keep running.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Great product! Very happy
Comment: I had a humidifier before which needed a filter. I hated it so got rid of it. This DOES NOT need one, so its fantastic.
I shopped around for 3 months before purchasing this particular humidifier.
I've used this product for a month now and really like it. The Niteglo feature is nice, but nothing fancy. I would say the features are:
- easy cleaning
- easy to fill water
- great display
Over all very happy and highly recommended.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Easy to Clean - Best on the Market!!
Comment: HELLO ALL.
OTHERS HAVE COMPLAINED ABOUT THE DIFFICULTY OF CLEANING THIS MACHINE...NOT!!!
YES, THE FAN BLADES DO GET MINERAL DEPOSITS, BUT ALL YOU HAVE TO DO IS RINSE IT OFF WITH HOT WATER USING THE SHOWER HOSE (CAREFUL NOT TO GET THE MOTOR UNIT SOPPING WET - SPLASHED IS OKAY). ANYWAY, WE PUT SOME DE-SCALER (FOUND AND ANY STORE) INTO THE WATER TANK. THIS IS MUCH MUCH CHEAPER THAN GETTING FILTERS FOR THE CONVENTIONAL MACHINES. REMOVING THE SCALE, WITH THIS, IS VERY EASY. ANOTHER TRICK - AS THE UNIT IS RUNNING, GET A CUP OF WARM WATER AND SLOWLY POUR IT INTO THE FAN BLADES - INSTANT CLEANING!
AS FAR AS WATER OUTPUT - YOU WON'T FIND ANYTHING BETTER. WE LIVE IN ARIZONA AND REALLY NEED THE MOISTURE - MY KIDS GET CROUP A LOT. THIS MACHINE HAS HIGH OUTPUT - A NOTICEABLE DIFFERENCE. I HATE USING FILTERS FROM CONVENTIONAL MACHINES - THEY ARE INCREDIBLY EXPENSIVE AND BUILD UP A LOT OF BACTERIA. THIS MACHINE CIRCUMVENTS ALL OF THE NASTY STUFF - IT IS A GREAT MACHINE THAT IS EASY TO CLEAN WHEN YOU USE THE INSTRUCTIONS ABOVE.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Best Yet for Hi-Mineral Water
Comment: Out of the half dozen humidifiers we've owned, this Hunter comes the closest to being ideal. It may have it's faults, but compared to every other type of humidifier we've tried, it's head and shoulders above the rest...
If you have minerals in your tap water, &/or dust from your heating system, the wicks get clogged in humidifiers that use them. We've found the only way to live with these units is to have extra wicks on-hand, swapping them out and soaking the clogged wicks in vinegar & water, which depending on the size of the wicks, can take days to come clean. This year we tried 1 of the Lasko waterfall units, & found another problem: if the humidifier uses a pump and hoses, those get clogged - a few times some of that build-up broke loose, plugging something else and causing a mini-flood! And that's even with using chemical additives from day one.
We also have an ultrasonic humidifier that we tried one season... It saved us from a lot of time and trouble fooling with clogged wicks, and we used anti-microbial cartridges [the gov says that's a problem with ultrasonics], but whatever hassle it saved us from was more than paid for by constantly having to clean house to get rid of the never-ending white dust it produced.
The Hunter is large & tall - it'll be harder to find a place to store in the off-season. It isn't as efficient at getting moisture in the air as the wick-type humidifier it replaced, though adjusting the cycle time helps by keeping it running longer. It's taller, thinner design means a small fan, which has to spin faster to move the same amount of air as a bigger fan (with larger diameter). It is noisier as some reviewers have pointed out.
The water tank is short enough to fill in the kitchen sink (YEA!), & the very long fill cap is easy to twist loose for filling - with arthritis I had to use a strap wrench on the Lasko! As mentioned by others it can be a hassle to turn over & carry back to the humidifier, but after the third or fourth time you start to figure it out and it's not too bad at all.
Cleaning - & yes they all have to be cleaned regularly - is easier than any humidifier we've ever seen! Can put some bleach water (or similar disinfectant) in the upper reservoir (where the water sits) for a few minutes & rinse it out. The atomizer is dishwasher safe, &/or soak it in vinegar water for half an hour if mineral deposits have started to form. There's a part that snaps off below the fan (it picks up the water), & that can be wiped off & rinsed easily. The fan itself comes off after removing a *reverse threaded* 10mm nut. Any mineral build-up comes off pretty easily with a vinegar and water solution, and I love being able to wipe off the fan blades without taking everything apart.
All in all the only thing better than this Hunter humidifier would be to move back to Florida where we didn't need one!
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