# Warm mist humidifier



## Duck Slipper (Mar 14, 2019)

About 6 weeks ago I purchased a "Warm Mist Humidifier". It cost $28 dollars at WalMart. When it is cold and the furnace runs in the house humidity gets down to 40% or so. After using this humidifier for 6 weeks, it works great. I basically have orchids growing in two rooms, so I went and bought another one. It has 2 settings low and high. On high if doors are closed The humidity will get up over 80%. It will fog the windows. But run it on low with doors closed or high with doors vented open and keep it 65-70%. It has a heating element that periodically needs to be cleaned, but I prefer the steam it emits to a cool mist humidifier. Little humidifier does a good job and I haven't noticed an increase in electric bill. Duck


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## CarlG (Mar 14, 2019)

It'll last longer if you use distilled or reverse osmosis water.


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## Duck Slipper (Mar 14, 2019)

CarlG said:


> It'll last longer if you use distilled or reverse osmosis water.



Certainly true, it puts over a gallon of water in the air in 12 hours on high, distilled would be a expense in a months time. I've been thinking about an RO unit though.


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## spujr (Mar 16, 2019)

I've started using the same thing (Also putting in RO water) in my orchid grow tent in my garage. It's a bit cool (62f) all year round where I am so the little extra heat from the mister I think helps. With it I get the RH up to 98% from 60%. So much easier to setup, manage, and use than a pressurised misting system, but obviously good in small growing environments.


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## abax (Mar 16, 2019)

I keep three humidifiers in my greenhouse and a small fountain as well (just
for the sound of running water really) and my Rh stays at about 90% 24-7
and my Phrags. love it.


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## masaccio (Mar 24, 2019)

I love my warm mist humidifier. The cool mist was a disaster with the white dust. The warm mist needs weekly (more or less) maintenance which I don't mind doing at all, given the benefits. Just takes a gallon of vinegar every now and then, which lasts for several cleanings. As you mentioned, sometimes the problem is too much humidity, window fogging, condensation. This is much more easily managed than not enough humidity. I guess my success story is keeping a miltoniopsis happy for the several weeks involved in spike development and a beautiful blooming. It's been in bloom at least for three weeks, no stress at all. I can hardly believe it. And moist air carries fragrance wonderfully so when I open that door it's like a little bit of heaven. My only caveat with my model is that it needs filling 2-3 times day (I go between high and low depending on the time of day, and run it at night too - it's in my bedroom and I like not having super dry air in winter). All that is okay, but I imagine doing this with two units and I'm a little hesitant. RO water would be nice, but if you're hesitant about the waste (I'm on a well and don't like the waste ratio), the weekly vinegar treatment does the job. I guess if you love loving your orchids, it would be okay.


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## Ray (Mar 25, 2019)

masaccio said:


> My only caveat with my model is that it needs filling 2-3 times day (I go between high and low depending on the time of day, and run it at night too - it's in my bedroom and I like not having super dry air in winter). All that is okay, but I imagine doing this with two units and I'm a little hesitant.


I had a similar issues with a cool-mist humidifier and there was no way to install a float valve to automate it, so I did so indirectly:

I removed the tank from the humidifier, and using some epoxy putty, made walls to contain a pool of water around the transducer while allowing an overflow hose that drained into a 5-gallon bucket. The bucket had the float valve in it, so refilled automatically when the water level was reduced. Also in the bucket was a small submersible pump that moved water up to the humidifier constantly, which overflowed right back into it.



> RO water would be nice, but if you're hesitant about the waste (I'm on a well and don't like the waste ratio).


why not have the flush water go back in the well? Water in a well is not static, but dynamic, being a tap into the constantly flowing aquifer. The couple-of-cups-per-minute addition of 25% higher dissolved solids water is NOTHING.


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## xiphius (Mar 25, 2019)

masaccio said:


> RO water would be nice, but if you're hesitant about the waste (I'm on a well and don't like the waste ratio)





Ray said:


> why not have the flush water go back in the well? Water in a well is not static, but dynamic, being a tap into the constantly flowing aquifer. The couple-of-cups-per-minute addition of 25% higher dissolved solids water is NOTHING.



If your well water isn't _too_ terrible, another possibility (or possible combination with Ray's suggestion) could be to pass your flush water from the first RO membrane over a second membrane. This would effectively double your output for the same amount of waste, usually without much of a reduction in terms of the RO water quality.


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## Duck Slipper (Mar 25, 2019)

On low setting I get 24 hours before refilling, but high is less than 12 hours.
More in house orchid enthusiasts haven’t tried these “Warm Air Humidifiers”!
Really work great, I would like to rig up a 5 gallon auxiliary tank though...


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## naoki (Mar 25, 2019)

I prefer Ultrasonic humidifiers over warm mist since much lower energy consumption (1/2 or less for a given amount of water evaporated). Some of ultrasonic humidifiers appear to be prone to break down, but Crane's tear-drop models appear to last for a long time. For a room-level humidification, Dayton 1UHG3 humidistat works pretty well.


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## Junglejewel (Mar 25, 2019)

I have a cool mist humidifier that comes on day and night to the humidity I have it set at. This time of year, 60% RH and, I have no problem whatsoever with "white dust" that you guys mention.... I use distilled water in it and have to refill it about every 5 days. It holds 1.3 gallons I believe.


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## xiphius (Mar 26, 2019)

Junglejewel said:


> I have a cool mist humidifier that comes on day and night to the humidity I have it set at. This time of year, 60% RH and, I have no problem whatsoever with "white dust" that you guys mention.... I use distilled water in it and have to refill it about every 5 days. It holds 1.3 gallons I believe.



If you use distilled (or RO) water, you wouldn't have the "white dust" problem. If your tap water is very soft, you probably wouldn't see it either. The infamous "white dust" is basically just salt crystals that form from hard water as the micro droplets evaporate. These settle and look "dusty."


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## masaccio (Mar 31, 2019)

Ray said:


> I had a similar issues with a cool-mist humidifier and there was no way to install a float valve to automate it, so I did so indirectly:
> 
> I removed the tank from the humidifier, and using some epoxy putty, made walls to contain a pool of water around the transducer while allowing an overflow hose that drained into a 5-gallon bucket. The bucket had the float valve in it, so refilled automatically when the water level was reduced. Also in the bucket was a small submersible pump that moved water up to the humidifier constantly, which overflowed right back into it.
> 
> why not have the flush water go back in the well? Water in a well is not static, but dynamic, being a tap into the constantly flowing aquifer. The couple-of-cups-per-minute addition of 25% higher dissolved solids water is NOTHING.



I meant to get back to this post sooner. I have no idea how to put the flush water back into the well. Interesting idea.


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## Ray (Apr 1, 2019)

Long tube?


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## masaccio (May 1, 2019)

Now have added a second warm mist humidifier for another room. I thought it would be a pain to keep two of these going, but it's not much harder than one. This, however, is the opinion of a single man who has more or less complete command over every hour in his day. That said, you can't beat these for reliability and convenience these days (given the exclusion of cool mist due to hard water). The only other household humidifier I've ever used successfully is the evaporative type, but that was several decades ago in Tallahassee, city water. The relatively compact unit held several gallons of water, ran on a small, quiet fan with a washable foam absorbent tube. One end stretched around the circular housing that contained a small quiet fan; the lower end was n contact with the water reservoir. This was too simple and efficient for the good ole USA. The ones available now with the replaceable waffle textured paper filters are ridiculous. Even in NYC, which has some of the best tap water in the country for orchids, these "filters" became gunky and useless in a few days. And somehow I escaped an early, untimely death due to bacterial lung infection. [Enter sarcasm.} Sure, the inside of the older unit eventually became gunky, but it still operated, and with reasonable care it functioned perfectly and lasted for years with no replaced parts. These days,the Honeywell warm mist model works well for a room that can be closed off or opened up depending on the weather and time of year. When I was growing under warm HID bulbs in NYC, I used an auto-fill hydro-fogger. The humidity level was gratifyingly high, but the mist seemed too heavy, too readily condensable, and not appropriate for residential use. The room where I was using it was already a mess so it was okay until time to remodel. But in retrospect, I feel this choice was misguided. I would have done better with a couple of warm mist humidifiers.


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