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What Are the Different Types of Humidifiers?

Are you experiencing cracked skin, chapped lips or nosebleeds from dry air? Adding water vapor into your home’s air through a whole house humidifier will help prevent dry and itchy skin, sore throats, static electricity and more. While viruses thrive in dry air, using a humidifier can help stop the spread of flu and colds in your home.

What Types of Humidifiers Does Star Offer?

Carrier Bypass Humidifiers

Bypass humidifiers from Carrier attach to your existing furnace, distributing a vapor output of up to 17 gallons of water per day.

Carrier Performance Steam Humidifiers

Best for larger homes or owners wanting more control over humidity, a Carrier steam humidifier can add up to 34 gallons of water vapor per day into your indoor air. Nearly silent during use and able to tolerate a wide range of water conditions, a Carrier steam humidifier can be installed anywhere on an indoor unit, duct or wall.

Carrier Fan-Powered Humidifiers

Designed for homes with heat pump applications, fan-powered humidifiers from Carrier blow water vapor into your home’s ductwork using an internal and electric-powered fan and can disperse up to 18 gallons of water vapor through your home per day.

Aprilaire Humidifiers

Bypass and fan-powered humidifiers from Aprilaire offer economical solutions for maintaining comfortable humidity levels in your home while operating almost silently and requiring minimal annual maintenance. Aprilaire offers a five-year limited warranty for its selection of humidifiers, which can service homes up to 4,200 square feet with evaporation capacities as high as 0.75 gallons of water vapor per hour — among the highest on the market.

Top 10 Guidelines For The Best Humidifier 

What to Look For When Buying a Humidifier

  • 1. Coverage area stated by the manufacturer is often overstated. It’s best to choose a humidifier that exceeds the area you are needing to cover.
  • 2. Size: small humidifiers will definitely add moisture to the air, but if you attempt to use one for a larger area than it can handle, you will not achieve the comfortable 30 to 40% humidity level that you’re looking for.
  • 3. 40% humidity level is the best option. Dust mites and mold spores thrive on humidity levels over 50%.
  • 4. Outdoor humidity levels influence the level of home humidity that you can achieve. If it’s very dry outside, the humidifier will need refilling more often.
  • 5. Noise Level: some noise is natural in all humidifiers. Humidifiers all have some level of “gurgling” sound when the water in the tanks is drawn into the base.
  • 6. Location: think about where you are going to put it. If the gurgles are bothersome, you can place the humidifier out of earshot.
  • 7. The best water is distilled in a humidifier, but it will cost you unless you have a free source. Hard water: means more filter changes.  Also, filtered water that removes common impurities works well. Softened water: can be used in cool mist humidifiers but may not work well with ultrasonic humidifiers, as it would cause white dust to be dispersed. However, many of our ultrasonic humidifiers are equipped with some type of anti-calcium cartridge which can reduce the risk of white mineral dust.
  • 8. Running Cost: depending on your needs, a whole house humidifier is more energy efficient provided you have forced hot air heating and your furnace can accommodate this type of solution. This kind of humidification solution benefits the whole family and your furniture, too.
  • 9. Maintenance costs are normal. All humidifiers have some maintenance costs associated with them. You should expect to change filters, cartridges and other accessories annually and clean your machine. If you don’t clean your humidifier or change its filters after a year, throw it away and start over because running a dirty humidifier is not a good idea.
  • 10. Type of humidifier: the type of humidifier makes a big difference for cost of operation, humidity level and what kind of moisture it puts in the air.

Contact Star For Whole House Humidifier Installation

Humidifiers help relieve cold symptoms, respiratory conditions, dry skin and so much more. Star’s expert technicians would be happy to educate you on the various models and options and the advantages they can provide. Let us know your home’s needs and schedule a free in-home consultation and estimate to help find the perfect comfort enhancements for you.