Evap40 Evaporative Humidifier, 4-Gal Capacity, 1,000 Sq Ft Coverage | Adjustable Humidistat, 3 Speed Settings, Easy to Clean Dual Tank, Large Room Coverage

Living in central Indiana, I have traditionally used mist humidifiers or warm air humidifiers like the simple Vicks (still made in Mexico and not China unless I am mistaken). Mist humidifiers are just a pain to clean and put too many minerals in the air that are attached to the atomized air droplets and by Spring, it (layers of deposited minerals) comes off my furniture when cleaning. So you probably breathe this in. If using distilled water, not an issue and if your tap water is clean, also not an issue....BUT, if you have questionable water or well water, extremely hard, think of your lungs/throat and if you have infants in the house, which I do). So I chose this humidifier for several reasons, like Made in USA and alleged ease of use. Well, it is definitely easy to use. I love the side tanks and how you just place them and gently flip up...no splashing, no overspill, just easy. Add a few drops of antibacterial solution and slap em in. I do wish it had a digital display so I could measure the exact humidity and have an auto-turnoff. However, I use one upstairs (smaller 1 gallon Tornado version...wish I had just bought 2 of the larger units, but that one does have a digital display, is quieter at high fan setting and has auto shut off) and downstairs and bought 2 Abbeon HTAB-176 Hygrometer and Temperature devices, one for each floor, so use those to measure temp and humidity. My whole house furnace humidifier has never worked and wastes a lot of water, so I chose this route. Is this unit perfect, nope. But it does the job...over the past few months, it runs nonstop and keeps the relative humidity about 35-37% downstairs and about 52% in our bedroom using the 1 gallon model, but a smaller room. I use a small fan downstairs to help spread the humidity. The larger unit fan is a bit louder than the smaller 1 gallon unit, but not obnoxious, so if you keep it near a TV as I do, out of necessity, you might need to turn it to a lower fan setting in order to hear the TV at your normal volume. I also love the ease of cleaning....just pop off the top, then take to sink, remove filters and takes about 2 minutes to clean! I just replace filter every 2 months instead of soaking in vinegar as some do as filters in my opinion are cheap and not worth time and money for a gallon of vinegar to clean. I don't recommend products typically, just write reviews if I really like a product or hate it. I like the function and look of this Vornado and would buy it again, UNLESS it breaks in a short time. ;)

This is by far the longest, most detailed review that I have ever written for a product. But, I would like people to know what to expect from this unit, and to learn a bit about humidity and what affects it. So, here we go. OK, I've read at least 100 reviews of different humidifiers on Amazon and other sites before I settled on buying this unit. And, I'm glad -- and sad -- that I did. MOST negative reviews come from people whose expectations can not be met by any humidifier currently on the market. There are undoubtedly bad humidifiers out there, but this is not one of them. Also, some people buy a product with unrealistic expectations as to what that product will actually do, or what care it will require. This is unfair to the product, although the makers do put out some fantastic claims without giving us all the background necessary to understand the claims. So, what are some of the unrealistic expectations I see people complain about? I'll address a few here and give my view of them. (1)The humidifier should make absolutely no noise whatsoever. Really? If the unit operates on electricity with some part that moves, you WILL get some noise - period. How much is dependent on how fast those parts move and/or the type of movement. In the case of this humidifier, it has 3 fan speeds, and off. On the lowest fan setting, placed on a carpeted floor 5 feet from our bed, you can not hear the fan on low. On medium speed (which is where we keep it to sleep), you can hear it a little when you are awake, but it does not keep us from getting to sleep or staying asleep. On high speed, where it will humidify a room the fastest, you can definitely hear it, and we can not sleep with it at this speed. On the lowest speed it will not raise the humidity very much. We use high speed only in the daytime to humidify the air and objects in the room as much as possible. In addition to the fan, you will have the occasional gurgle of water from one of the plastic jugs as it refills the reservoir as water in the reservoir gets evaporated away. Want to know what that sounds like before you buy? Fill a gallon plastic milk jug with water, then pour it out faster than air will enter the jug opening. You will hear and see the water glug and gurgle as the air enters behind the water that empties. Our unit does not "glug", it "gurgles" (a softer sound for only 3 or 4 seconds). If this wakes you from a sleep, then you a VERY light sleeper, you have the unit on a sound resonating object (like a hard nightstand or wooden floor), or it it simply too close to your bed and at too high a height. Try placing it on the floor on a carpeted surface away from your bed. You'll be amazed at what a difference in noise level this makes. 2) The unit should require absolutely no maintenance. REALLY people, do you ever buy anything that requires no maintenance? Do you run your car without doing maintenance on it? What you WILL have to do to keep this humidifier operating in tip-top shape are the following: (A) Refill one or both of the plastic jugs that supply water to the unit as they get used up (evaporated). The jugs have a handle on one side, and are flat on the other side. I lay mine down in a laundry sink, aim the spout over the opening, and then fill it. It takes exactly 1 minute and 15 seconds for me to fill one of the 2 gallon jugs in this fashion (once it is positioned in the sink). 2 gallons is a lot of water, and it weighs 16.72 pounds. So count on having to carry that much weight with the handle provided on the jug if you fill it all the way. Can't carry that much weight? Don't fill it all the way! I bought a bottle of the BestAir Humidifier Bacteriostatic additive to put in the water. I don't know if it works or not, as I have always used it, and have no problems with algae so far. I gave up measuring capfulls of the product, and just guess at the amount as it can't be rocket science. It does NOT prevent my water softener softened water from building up as a deposit on the filter (see B below). The jugs tip into place extremely easily whether the top is on the unit or off the unit. They never spill for me. Do NOT try to tip them slowly -- just set them against the unit at the bottom, and tip them quickly upward into place. Nothing to it. You can remove them one at a time, with the top on the unit, even if the other jug still has water in it. This is a nice feature, as you can simply refill the unit one jug at a time. You can even remove a jug that still has some water in it without any of it spilling out. (YES, for "safety", I keep an aluminum baster/roaster under the unit in case any water were to spill out, but to date none ever has.) B) The filters (they are really wicks) will develop a crusty edge at the top on the outside portion after running a few days. In my case, this is due to my water softener water that I use. I never tried store bought water as my water works just fine in the unit. Whatever water you use, if it has ANY impurities in it, regardless if you can see the impurities or not, then you WILL get a residue on the wicks as the water evaporates. Where else would these impurities go? A pan of water on the stove that is evaporated will also leave behind the same impurities! To ameliorate this issue, I simply turn the wicks upside down and over every other time I fill the jugs! That is, if the yellow/tan buildup is on the top edge outside, rotate the wick until that edge is on the bottom to the inside of the unit. It will re-soften and disappear (only to reappear on the top edge outside later). Then, once a week, or whenever I feel like it, I take these wicks out, take them to my laundry sink, lay them flat on the bottom, fill the sink until the water is about 1" over the top of the wicks, then add a cup of white vinegar. Let the wicks soak in this for about an hour, rinse them in clean water, stand them against inside of the sink on edge to drain and then reinstall them in the humidifier. Voila, the vinegar dissolves the salts that have accumulated, and rinsing them flushes them away. At the same time, I empty out the reservoir of the unit and flush it well with clean water. It is like starting over again. This process takes maybe 15 minutes of time to do once a week or so. BE CAREFUL WITH THE WICKS, as they are easily destroyed. Handle them gently, NEVER try to wring them out or press dry, just stand them on edge against the empty sink when you are done for about 20 minutes, and they will drain on their own. I did buy a second (spare) set, but after 3 weeks, I have not even taken them out of the package. I see no reason why the wicks won't last at least 2 months with proper care -- maybe even a full winter season. C) Other maintenance? I don't know of any, but then I haven't had my unit except for 3 weeks. An old adage my father taught me: It is far easier to spend a little time keeping something clean and operating well than to have to repair it due to neglect. It is true. So, how well does it work, and what is my environment like? First, I live in a 2 story house, with a bedroom and large living room that have very high cathedral ceilings. My bedrooms are all carpeted, and most of the main house (foyer, dining room, dinette, kitchen and laundry room) are tiled. I bought the humidifier to raise the humidity in our master bedroom at night to alieve mild symptoms of difficulty breathing, and getting some blood in our noses at night. It WORKS for doing this. Based on the hygrometer readings, the unit keeps our bedroom (15' x 20') and attached master bath and master closet a full 8% relative humidity higher than in the rest of the house. This despite the fact that we have central heating with LP gas that disperses the air from the bedroom into other parts of the house when it runs (even with the door to the bedroom closed). Hence, some of the additional humidity gets distributed to the rest of the house through the heating system. Note, if you turn your heat down at night (we turn ours down 10 degrees at night), then the bedroom with the door closed will be sealed off from the rest of the house and humidify more quickly until the temp drops the full 10 degrees and the heating system kicks back in. This 10 degree drop also helps increase the relative humidity level at night because cooler air holds less real moisture than warmer air; hence, with the same amount of water in the air, the relative humidity goes up until that water vapor gets absorbed by other things. Note that I just mentioned that water vapor gets absorbed by things. Those things include anything that is soft, including carpeting, bedding, blankets, pillows, wood (Yes, wood does absorb moisture), drywall, etc.. My point is that when you start up any humidifier, all of the objects in the space are very close to the same relative humidity as the air in the room. As you try to increase the relative humidity in the room, the "soft" objects will absorb this same moisture. So, you are humidifying NOT ONLY THE AIR, but all soft objects in that room. That takes a LOT of water to move the relative humidity a little bit! So, do NOT expect ANY humidifier to instantly raise your humidity level any appreciable amount quickly. It will rise slowly, but should rise consistently unless you have a lot of air leaks in your home. In my case, my unit with outside air at about 32 degrees and inside air kept at 60 at night, 70 in the daytime keeps my bedroom at a full 8% relative humidity increase over the rest of the house (53% in the bedroom versus 45% in the rest of the house). That's pretty damn good in my view, and helps us tremendously in sleeping. It also helps any valuable furniture you might have in that room. About the built-in humidistat in this unit. It does work, but as has already been pointed out, there are no settings etched or printed into the dial. If you turn the dial all the way up, the unit will run constantly without ever shutting off. This is for all intents and purposes an "infinite" (100%) setting. After humidifying your room for about a week, try turning down the dial slowly with the unit running. It will likely turn off at some point. Whatever your relative humidity level is in the room, this is the point on the dial where this humidity level will be maintained. If you have a separate hygrometer to read your relative humidity level (I bought the ThermoPro TP50 unit which works very well), then you could mark the dial on your Vornado humidifier with this number to get some relative point of reference for the future, but don't count on that setting continuing to be accurate. Want more info? Check out the photos that will show you that this is a SIMPLE machine with only 6 parts: A top half that contains the fan and all the controls, a bottom half which is nothing but a molded plastic tray that acts as a reservoir to hold the water, 2 wicks that rest against the outside slated portions of the bottom with one edge sitting in the water, and 2 plastic 2-gallon jugs that provide the water to be evaporated. All parts simply slip-fit together without use of any screws, pegs, nails or anything, and they stay together well. Very easy to lift each part away. NOTE: When this unit has water in it, do NOT attempt to pick it up and move it, as it can and will fall apart since all parts simply slip-fit together, and the water is HEAVY. The top can be lifted off without unplugging or turning off the fan, and set aside, as it is self-contained. This reveals the 2 water jugs on either end, and the 2 wicks in the center. Easy as pie! In the photos you will see the hardened residue that I get on the wicks after 4 gallons of water have been evaporated. I have already turned one of the wicks over and around and put it back in one of the photos, which is why it shows on the inside bottom, rather than the outside top where it actually accumulates from the drying action of the unit. How fast does it evaporate water for me? Remember, I'm starting at about 45% relative humidity (not too bad), so the water does not evaporate that fast at this high a humidity level. The unit on medium will evaporate about 2 gallons of water a day into my bedroom raising that humidity level to 53%. If I kept my temperature higher, and/or my air was drier to start with, then the unit will evaporate water into the air at a faster rate. Remember, it is RELATIVE humidity, not absolute moisture in the air that you are measuring. Good luck with your unit, and sleep/live well!

For us, and likely most others, a relative humidity level between 40% and 50% is not too dry and not too wet. We’ve used various humidifier types, brands, and sizes and few deliver on performance claims. Many rely instead on various “bells and whistles” and gimmicks to sell their under-performing products. A solid performer generates both sufficient moistened air and circulation to raise and maintain optimal humidity for the square footage (ft2) claimed, particularly when outside temps plummet and so does indoor humidity. For rooms/areas up to 1000 ft2, it’s hard to find one that lives up to its performance claims better than the EVAP40, especially at this price point, which is 1/3 the cost of some under-performing competitors. THE GOOD: The EVAP40 is thoughtfully designed and reasonably priced, and checks off the most important boxes. It’s equipped with large dual wicks and a powerful, relatively quiet vertical vortex fan that generate ample moist air and circulation. Large, transparent tanks with horizontal filling and handles allow fewer refills, easy monitoring of water levels, easy filling at the tap, and easier transport. The wicks (sometimes called “filters”), by capturing the bulk of hard water minerals, avoids the fine chalky “white dust” phenomenon of other types, while also reducing the frequency and difficulty of cleaning the unit’s interior. THE BAD: Like many printers, air purifiers, etc. that appear to be a good deal, they can be costly to maintain with over-priced, limited-life consumables. You may even regret purchasing the product, but likely not until you use up the consumables that came with it which, perhaps by design, seem to last just beyond the unit’s return window. The EVAP40 folks seem to have taken this process to the next level: 1) The simple, paper-based wicks are overpriced at around $12 or more plus tax for a set of 2, and for us last about 3 weeks during the coldest part of IL winters. Mineral scale gradually builds up on the wicks, reducing both wick absorption and airflow through them. Your results may vary based on how you use it and how hard your water is (ours is very hard at 250 ppm TDS). 2) Although the unit comes with 1½" wicks, the AMZ product page (for the EVAP40 sold by the company) lists the thinner 1" MD1-0034 as replacements—not the 1½" MD1-0002 wicks also sold by the company. Thinner wicks have less surface area, so mineral saturation (scaling) occurs faster, requiring more frequent replacement. You may assume the thinner wicks cost less, but they sell for about the same price as the MD1-0002. Despite AMZ reviewers’ questions and complaints over time, the company remains curiously silent on this topic. And strangely, "comparable” wick refills sold by other sellers are also the thin variety and no bargain. (Note: AMZ recently took notice and established a separate product page for the EVAP40 they sell directly along with a refill of the appropriate MD1-0002 wicks. Just type EVAP40 in the AMZ search window, and you will find it. ) 3) As other reviewers indicate, we also found the 1½" wicks that came with the unit lasted longer than the replacement wicks, inc. the 1½" MD1-0002 we use. No company comment on this issue either. TIPS (for Operating Wick Evaporative Units): 1) Type of Water Used: Wicks can last longer if tap water is not very “hard,” or the water is distilled or demineralized (e.g., by reverse osmosis (RO)). But unless you have a RO system at home, the cost and trouble of store-bought jugs exceed the benefit of extended wick life. Our EVAP40 can go through 4 gal/24 Hrs. For water “softened” by ion exchange (replacing hard minerals with salt), salt also does not evaporate and will saturate wicks, reducing performance. Also, magnetic "salt-free" water conditioners do not prevent mineral scale on wicks (or within other types of humidifiers, or coffee makers, showers, etc.). We were duped a few years back into buying one of these systems, and their scientific-sounding marketing is simply gobbledygook. 2) Cleaning Wicks: We found soaking used wicks for a few hours in a vinegar/water solution (1 cup/1 gal), then wringing out, rinsing, and wringing again can extend their life a couple weeks or so. A 2nd cleaning is iffy because the wick material is fragile and deteriorates. 3) Troubleshooting: If you feel the unit is not, or is no longer performing effectively: A. Check the wicks. Mineral scaling begins on day one, gradually reducing performance. B. Crank up the unit’s humidistat and/or fan speed. C. Ensure the unit is relatively level to ensure tanks gravity-feed the bottom tray properly. D. Fully wet (or, “prime”) wicks before use, whether new or cleaned. E. Keep doors in the room closed as much as possible. F. Try relocating the unit. G. Cut your losses and replace the unit with one that better generates and circulates humidified air. H. Move to the Gulf coast. TIPS (Before Purchasing any Humidifier): 1) Major Types/Designs include Mist (warm or cool), Ultrasonic, and Evaporative (wicks or impellers). They all come with their own pros and cons, with some of the most important outlined below. A. Mist and ultrasonic units are generally cheaper to buy and operate, but are typically limited to small, enclosed rooms as they don’t generate or circulate moistened air that well. Some don’t vaporize well, with much of the moisture falling to the surrounding floor instead of mixing with the air. If using hard water, these units can quickly cover everything nearby with a fine, chalky white dust. In our experience, products added to the water claiming to eliminate this problem do not work. These humidifiers also require more frequent internal cleaning and are more difficult to clean than evaporative wick units. B. With no wicks to replace or clean, evaporative units with Rotating Impellers can look appealing. A German brand we purchased also claimed to clean the air (“air washing”). But despite costing roughly 3 times more than our wick unit, it was less efficient at both producing and circulating humidified air. It was also more difficult to monitor the water level, refill and clean, it's noisier, and requires a specific additive (presently a whopping $13 per 8.5 oz bottle). And for “air washing” claims, Consumer Reports found “Both models we tested proved no better at removing dust and smoke than no air purifier at all.” Though the company quickly moved on from these models, the “air washing” process (and claims) have not changed for their newer models. Most any humidifier will trap some air particles as it pulls or pushes air through the unit—just not enough to make any significant difference. C. Be wary of portable/console evaporative units advertised as “Whole House” humidifiers, even if the claimed ft2 meets or exceeds that of your entire home. Unless it’s for an RV, one of those “tiny homes,” or your floor plan resembles a jail cell—even the largest models cannot possibly circulate sufficient humidified air throughout traditional multi-room homes or apartments. Legitimate whole house humidifiers connect directly to the home’s HVAC and water system, and typically require more expertise to install than the average DIY. And of course, they are very costly. 2) Consider Additional Costs that can include consumables (wicks, water additives), electricity, water, and vinegar. Also, for effective/efficient operation—one or more humidity meters (hygrometers) to monitor humidity where you spend most of your time (e.g., couch, recliner, desk, table, bed, etc.). Use the readings to make adjustments to maintain desired levels. (You can buy 2-3 good hygrometers on AMZ for less than $25 total). You may also want a tray (e.g., boot/shoe or food tray) to place under the unit to catch potential spills and leaks. Depending on unit design, you may also need a separate container to haul water, and perhaps a funnel as well. 3) Be aware of unnecessary Add-Ons (bells and whistles) that increase unit cost and provide questionable benefit. One of the biggest add-on/gimmick is a digital hygrometer (humidity meter) on the unit itself, which (if accurate) indicates the relative humidity at the unit, but not other locations in the room, where levels may actually be 20-30% lower even in a smallish room. It's really just a fancy humidistat that controls the fan, vs. a dial that costs less and does the same thing. Example: If the onboard hygrometer is set at 50%, it doesn't represent the humidity level where you spend most of your time, unless you use the humidifier as a footrest, or the area is the size of a doghouse. Whether your unit comes with a digital or dial humidistat, you will still have to readjust it as natural humidity conditions in the room change. We find it easier to just set the humidistat on its highest level, and adjust the fan speed (low, med, hi, or off) as necessary, which isn't often. 4) Consider Ongoing Maintenance, e.g., monitoring humidity levels, readjusting humidistat and fan settings, checking water levels, refilling one or more times/day, adding water treatment, replacing/cleaning wicks (if equipped), and cleaning the unit’s interior. 5) When determining a Right Size Unit based on your area’s square footage (L x W = ft2) you should include any adjoining, openly-connected areas, e.g., kitchen, dining, hallway, etc. As a rule of thumb, consider units that claim 50% more ft2 than your room or combined area, and for raised ceilings consider going higher. We found claims are often unreliable, likely to one-up the competition and/or because they are based on optimum, controlled conditions unlikely to resemble your situation. If you live in an area where outside temps often fall below freezing, you will need a unit that can consistently raise and maintain humidity levels 20-30% or more. This level of performance may not be reflected in product claims. 6) When turning on a humidifier in a room/area with very dry air, it can take up to 24 hours before you see a notable rise in humidity throughout the area. Everything in it is as dry as the air including curtains, flooring, furniture, etc., and they will absorb moisture from the air until the room and everything in it reaches equilibrium. The bottom line is, for our needs and knowing what we know now, we would still purchase the EVAP40, until a better option comes available. Right now we don't know of any.

This vornado humidifier is truly a life saver. I had a levoit tower $150 humidifier that didn't make a dent in my extremely dry room. We have old radiator heating and a lot of exposed pipes and it gets extremely dry 20% humidity dry. For some reason the dryness was worse this year and I was struggling to breathe, wheezing, I couldn't get my Levoit humidifier to go above 30%-35% even running 24/7 on the highest setting. I decided to try an evaporative humidifier and after a few days of research settled on this one because of the fan and I thought it would reach a better range with my tall ceilings. Within a few hours of using it got my humidity up by 25%. I finally was reaching comfortable levels of humidity and could breathe like normal. I use distilled water as I have a water distilled machine, totally worth it, I haven't had to change the filters yet or dealt with any grossness. I fill 2 gallons at a time usually, and if I want to use less for a shorter amount of time I usually just fill one side instead of both. There is a learning curve to get the containers on without spilling. Instinctively we want to go slow especially because it's full of water, but you have to just lay the containers down on the grove and quickly put them in in one fast movement. Don't need to use force just go quick otherwise water will spill. Once I realized that I haven't spilled it at all or had any leaking issues. I keep it running once the water is done to dry out and dry the wicks. It does make a "glug glug" noise every few hours depending on how high you're running it but I don't think it's loud or bothersome, I barely noticed it at first. The fan sounds like a fan, not sure why it seems people expect it to be quiet, any fan on max is going to make some noise, it's no louder than any other fan I have really. It's not quiet but I don't think it's unreasonably loud, could take some getting used to if you're sensitive to these types of sounds. There was a smell initially, it was off-putting but I was prepared based on reviews. It was the wicks not the decide itself so think it's unavoidable with any wicks. It took a few days to go away but eventually did completely. I'm impressed and surprised by the simplicity of the whole thing really. I'm used to the Levoits that's a bunch of pieces and is a pain to clean, this thing is really simple but functions great. I'm so glad I made the switch. No hate on the Levoit it wasn't the only humidifier I've had but was the fanciest most expensive one and I definitely had higher hopes and expectations for it. Thankfully, this one succeeded where the other failed Photos are 1) the humidity level in my room after this current humidifier was off for a few hours when I wasn't home 2) humidity level within 2 hours of turning on the vornado humidifier 3) my Levoit humidifier, and even when it was running for hours on high I couldn't get above 34% humidity at most

My biggest gripe about this thing is that the build quality does not live up to Vornado's standards considering the price. The housing is cheap, thin, sharp-edged plastic (not sure what kind) and the jugs are HDPE - the same stuff they make milk jugs out of. They lack any kind of valve, only an open spout. You basically have to drop the jugs into place to avoid spilling everywhere, which is especially annoying when each one is full of 15 pounds of water. Filling them is a royal pain in the ass since the spouts are very small. You either have to fill them under a sink faucet (which gets them about halfway full in my case due to the angle) or hold them up to a halfway-on bathtub faucet for two straight minutes (which, again, 15 pounds). Your only way to remove them is to grab onto the slight bulge molded into the top, which is completely useless when it has water in it. The amount of water it puts into the air is satisfactory. I've found that it goes through four gallons of water in about 36 hours on high in room temperature, low-to-moderate humidity air. One gallon of water is plenty to run it on high overnight. It is noisy but tolerable on high, acceptable on medium, and whisper-quiet on low. The noise isn't particularly unpleasant, just loud on high. The humidistat is basically useless. As some other reviews have noted, it is wildly inaccurate. I wish they had just left it out and dropped the price five bucks. That, or replace it with something that actually works. I just crank it to the max and pretend it doesn't exist. As a brute force humidifier, it does the job. It just happens to be the cheapest-feeling, ugliest Vornado product I've ever owned.

If you want a good reliable humidifier for your space this is the one to buy. I wanted an evaporative humidifier for a number of reasons: they don't produce a residue like the ultrasonic humidifiers and cool/warm mist humidifiers can. They won't over-humidify a space like the other types can -- air will only take on as much humidity as it can hold, and evaporation slows the closer the air gets its potential saturation level. And to ensure that over-humidification doesn't happen this humidifier also features a humidistat that will switch the unit off if the humidity exceeds the level where you set it. I bought my Vornado three years ago because it's such a simple design. The top fan unit, 2 water supply jugs, the reservoir pan, and wicks. Nothing fancy at all, just like the best evaporative humidifiers I've used in the past. As far as I'm concerned the simpler the design the less chance of something breaking. At the lowest two fan speeds the unit makes hardly any noise. Even the highest fan speed I don't think it is overly loud -- I sleep fine with it running in my bedroom. My recommendations for this humidifier: Purchase a humidity meter to monitor the levels in the room so you can better dial-in the Vornado's humidistat to your preference. Use distilled water. You don't have to, the humidifier works fine with regular tap water. But in the long run distilled water will give much better and consistent results. Have at least one if not two new wick sets sitting in reserve. That way when you have to replace them you can do so right away, then order another replacement. To combat/prevent bacterial growth -- use copper. Don't waste money on additives to combat bacteria. Copper works great as an antimicrobial and keeps bacterial growth in check (that is, zero). Preferably copper mesh (usually available through garden stores), but pennies will work fine (wash them clean before using them). The problem with pennies is, over time, the copper plating will get 'used up' and then it'll be the zinc core exposed to the water (this took about a year when I first used them). Zinc is supposedly antimicrobial as well, but I didn't want to chance it, and copper-less pennies look disgusting :) . I have a six-inch strip of copper mesh in each water jug. I have never had issues with bacterial growth in the jugs nor in the reservoir nor on the wicks while using copper as an antimicrobial. Regularly clean your Vornado, including vacuuming off any accumulated dust. Be especially diligent if you use only tap water and not distilled water because limescale will accumulate in the pan and on the outer surfaces of the water jugs. I run mine 24/7, except when its humidistat setting shuts it down or while cleaning the unit. The humidistat is sort of finicky, it's not really "exact" so much as the best way to set it is if the room is too humid, turn the humidistat until the unit powers down, then wait. I realized I had to finesse the setting over a period of days, fiddling between shutting down and turning on, until I got it set just right. Once I did get it dialed in I never had to worry about it again. I recommend purchasing a humidity monitor if you really want to watch those levels. For those first three years I used tap water, which works fine. However my tap water has a high mineral content, which means the evaporative wicks harden with limescale rather quickly -- as in a matter of days. At first I was rotating wicks once a week -- I'd have one pair of wicks working, then swap it out and soak the wick in vinegar water to disperse the minerals, rinse it out, then swap it back in the following week while I de-scaled the second wick pair. Problem is, over time, the wicks deteriorate from the vinegar soak cycles. As in they start falling apart. They re-mineralize quicker the older they get. And the ability to control mineralization continues to deteriorate over time. I purchased new wicks every three months just to keep up with the deterioration. I finally decided to switch to distilled water. The humidifier uses about 2 gallons of water a day so purchasing distilled water off-the-shelf is not an option, that's too expensive. I purchased a home distiller and distill 2 gallons of water a day. I also purchased an empty 2.5 gallon jug to have 2 gallons of distilled water ready for when one of the Vornado jugs empties. I fill the Vornado jug, then distill more water into the 2.5 gallon jug. Sure, it's a little extra work, but the benefits outweigh the inconvenience. One month after the switch to distilled water the humidifier wicks have remained supple, they are not mineralizing at all. To be honest I'm not sure when I'm going to have to replace the wicks, I've been running the same filter set for a month and they're doing great. I'm sure, over time, I'll figure it out. Already I can see I'm on track to saving a lot of $$ not having to replace two pairs of wicks every three months. Home-distilled water is a lot cheaper than purchasing it off-the-shelf. It is definitely worth the added cost to purchase a small home distiller. I know my distiller will pay for itself in less than a year compared to what I was paying for replacement wicks and vinegar. I am on my second Vornado EVAP40. The first one died after three years of constant use. The power-cord wire corroded with oxidation inside the unit which increased the resistance on the AC wire until it cooked its insulation and the unit quit working. I contacted Vornado customer service and explained the situation. I sent them the pictures they requested. Vornado honored their 5-year warranty and sent me a brand-new unit. Vornado is amazing and stands by their product, I have nothing but good things to say about them, their customer service, and this humidifier. If my unit had been out of warranty I would have purchased another one anyhow because it is that good compared to all the other humidifiers I've tried over the years.

This review contains an original and a revised posting. The original rating was 4. The revised rating is 1. The original post: These things work pretty well, but they run through more filters than a chain smoker, and replacement filters are absurdly expensive. Pros: it works, disassembles nicely for cleaning, comes with two huge holding tanks, has a stylish contemporary look. Cons: must run on high speed for good evaporative output, high speed is disturbingly loud, you'll need lots of filters unless you have pure water and nobody has pure water unless they distill it, expensive filters. Disclosure: I just bought my second unit. It seems essentially unchanged from the old unit. Haven't hooked it up yet. Hope it's quieter. The old unit is still running but threatens to die every day. It's given 5+ yrs of service, but even when new was too loud for bedroom use. The revised post: 2/27/24 The old unit finally died (the motor), so I unboxed the new unit. It looked much like the old one so I expected no problems operating it. I filled both tanks with water and inverted the first. As you may know, when the tank is inverted water flows into the holding tray until it is about half full, then the water stops. On my old unit the water flowed in with a familiar "glub glug" sound, but on this new unit the sound was missing. Instead, the water rushed into the holding tray. And rushed, and rushed, and ... rushed some more. Until it came streaming over the top of the holding tray. And then it just kept on coming. As I looked on incredulously it spilled in seconds onto my bookcase, down its sides, down its front and back and onto the floor. I snatched off the tank and examined it. It seemed absolutely normal. No holes, no malformations, no sign of mistreatment. I refilled it and tried it on the opposite side of the unit. Only to flood the floor again. By now the corner of my office was a swamp. I moved everything to the garage and repeated the experience two more times, successfully flooding my work bench and everything in its vicinity. I felt compelled to get to the bottom of the mystery. I discovered that one tank works perfectly, when loaded onto either side of the unit, and it even has the old familiar "glug, glug" sound effect as it feeds in the water. The other tank, however, is a complete disaster. It forcefully flushes its contents into the holding tray until the tray fills and then it keeps flushing, forcing water over the top edges of the open holding tray, creating an absolute disaster of a mess. I'll make a video of the flooding process and post it in case anyone thinks I'm making up any part of this deplorable story.

--Background-- I have had issues with allergies and a congested nose for years, and the Evap40 has resolved them entirely. I underwent an extensive allergy shot program that significantly reduced my reaction to environmental allergens, had multiple surgeries to reduce my nasal turbinates as well as correct my deviated septum. Despite these treatments, I still continued to have "allergy attack" days where I would be almost entirely incapacitated by constant sneezing and a a runny nose. Benadryl could significantly reduce the symptoms, but would nearly put me to sleep. Eventually, I thought dry air may be causing my symptoms, as my symptoms varied significantly from location to location. After owning the Evap40 for a few months, I can say that it has completely resolved my non-allergic rhinitis. I no longer need tissues on standby at all times, and don't need Benadryl every other day to keep me up. To anyone else with persistent non-allergic rhinitis, consider purchasing a humidifier, it may be dry air in your home that is irritating your nose. --The Evap40-- As for the humidifier itself, the Evap40 is an excellent unit. It is comprised of two main sections: the upper half, which houses the fan and the control panel, and the bottom half, which holds the wicks, the two water tanks, and holds the water for the wicks. The unit is easily capable of humidifying my two bedroom apartment on its lowest setting. It is mostly made of plastic, but is well built, and if it is taken care of well, the Evap40 will probably last a very long time. There are two controls on the face of the unit. The right, larger knob controls fan speeds and shuts the unit off. Low is quiet, but you will be able to hear it if it is in your room. At this setting, it is a pleasant white noise and is not distracting. Medium and High are louder than I am comfortable sleeping with, but this isn't a problem if the humidifier is not located in your room. The left, smaller knob sets the desired level of humidity. Once you turn it past 9 o'clock, it keeps the unit on continuously. The time it takes to empty the tanks will vary depending on the ambient humidity level and the fan speed. Cleaning is very simple, I let mine run until it is completely dry, remove the wicks, and wash out the bottom half with soap and water. The tanks I clean briefly with a bleach solution and wash thoroughly before reusing. I boil the water I use in the tanks first. The wicks start to smell quite quickly, due to bacteria or minerals in the water. I use a Bacteriostatic solution from Essick which should slow things down, but it seems unable to prevent the wicks themselves from starting to smell after a 8 gallons or so. To combat bacteria and odors, you can clean them with bleach, which eliminates the odor, and kills any bacteria. By doing this, you can essentially make the wicks last indefinitely, until mechanical wear and tear finally breaks them down, as they fall apart quite easily when wet. Make sure to let the wicks sit in water (I use the boiled water that I use for my tanks to avoid introducing new bacteria) to remove any of the excess bleach afterwards. After the tanks, wicks, and bottom half of the humidifier have been cleaned, you can reassemble the unit. --Final Thoughts-- The Evap40 was my first humidifier, and it has met all my expectations. Evaporative humidifiers lack many of the significant downfalls of other types of humidifiers (such as ultrasonic units), are easily maintained, mechanically simple, and work very well. The Evap40's high capacity, robust mechanical parts, and ease-of-cleaning make it an excellent unit for anyone looking for a portable residential humidifier.

Humidificador lo estaba utilizando en mi recámara. Los resultados fueron muy malos. Terminé regalándolo.

There is really no assembly. After you remove the packaging it is already assembled in the box. Because it is evaporative rather than cool mist, it does a much better job, and no risk of white deposits all over your furniture. Filling is easy, and I have been running it continuously with only the need to fill one of the two tanks daily. It preferentially depletes one tank before starting on the other. There is a fan, so there is some noise, but it’s white noise and I don’t notice it. (Same level of noise as my Honeywell air purifier.) It is twice the size of a cool mist humidifier, so it is about as big as anyone would stand for as a tabletop item. But, being evaporative, it does not need to produce a directed stream, so you can actually put it anywhere and get the health effect you need. My only (minor) issue is that the construction means that all four sides need to be about 6 to 12 inches from a wall in order to permit filling and proper air circulation without having to be constantly moving it. I love this thing.

I did a lot of research before replacing my 4 year old dead humidifier. I find it very annoying that things are built to fail after the warranty is up. We love our Vornado humidifier. No LEDs to fizzle out after a year. No lugging jugs of water to pour down a spout. This product is easy to use and easy to clean. It is far quieter than our last dud. I love the two large containers that are easy to remove and fill. We have no trouble placing the containers back in, no spilling. It does glug now and then. A non issue for us. The fan is quiet. On the first level I can hardly hear the fan. On the third setting the fan is noticeable but not interfering with the T.V. or conversations. Also the wicks (filters) aren't expensive to replace. This humidifier is far and above our favorite. Love it!

I've been using mine for about 6 months now in my apartment & it works great. The simple yet smart design makes cleaning & maintenance a breeze. You don't have to worry about what's in the water ending up in your air like ultrasonic humidifiers & there's no heat/steam/condensation like you get with older evaporative designs. For the first day or two of use, it might seem like it's running constantly as it builds up humidity. Afterwards (depending on weather) it runs about half the day to hardly at all. If, after a few months of use, it seems like it's running more than usual, it's probably time to replace the wicks as they become saturated with mineral deposits. On that note, the wick replacement is the main downside to this design, however it's not a huge expense. From the one replacement pack I've had to buy so far, I estimate the cost of wicks to be roughly $7🇨🇦 a month. This will probably vary depending on your water hardness. My tap water has very high mineral content so I need to replace mine a little more often (once every 2.5 months). Also there's no digital display, only a knob that doesn't show % humidity. There's a good digital monitor on here from Thermopro which is relatively inexpensive that I'd also recommend. I subtracted 1 star just for these added expenses but in terms of functionality I give it 5/5.

I hardly ever write reviews, but humidifiers are such a gong show to decide on. This thing is probably overpriced for what it is - a plastic tray, 2 water tanks, a fan and a plastic fan holder. Oh and 2 wicking filters you’ll have to change once in a while. But that’s the beauty. It’s easy to clean, it just works, it doesn’t spew white “stuff” everywhere. It’s very effective, humidity is right where I want it. One con - it’s big, but that’s life given the water capacity. I’ve bought 3 humidifiers this year. This is a keeper.