Essick Air 826-800 2-Speed Evaporative Console Humidifier

Great product, at least in comparison. I've tried many smaller units that should have kept my two room apt. (according to claims) here in the remote northeast satisfactorily humid, i.e. 35% or so. None of them did; in fact they all sent the gauge to unreadably low levels, below 20%. This Bemis 800 space saver keeps humidty at about 40% for at least 2 months, after which the it slowly declines as the wick deteriorates. I replaced the wick for the first time this winter on Jan 22. Not bad. Seems as if it will be a two wick winter.

As to noise. I keep the Bemis on low, and it runs 24/24 during the driest months. It is quieter than any of the other units I've used. It's not silent but it is certainly not disturbingly loud. I'm picky about noise and humidity as I play guitars. I've never turned it on high so I can't comment on the noise at that setting.

I fill it once a day with about 4 gallons of water. It comes with a 3 or 4 foot hose that attaches to a sink faucet. I keep the Bemis in the kitchen. Sometimes I roll it to the sink, sometimes I fill it with a pitcher. It is much easier to fill than the smaller units I've owned.

I have only one minor nit to pick with the unit. The fan housing is a little tricky to remove (or rather to put back correctly). One needs to remove it to change the wick. Tricky because the base is basically one large square bowl and the plastic sidewalls bow when the top is removed. When replacing the top, it is essential that it fits snugly into the base and placement becomes the tricky part due to the bowed in sides. It's not a terribly big deal but it's a bit of a pain. (When not placed correctly the unit rattles and the suction through the wick isn't as good).

By the way, my unit is the non digital version. I've had trouble with other digital humidifiers so I went for the less expensive mechanical version this time. The digital units cycle on and off constantly when the humidity reaches your chosen setting. Annoying, and can't be good for the motor.

The Bemis is definitely worthy, I'm very happy with it.

I use it on the lowest setting and cannot hear it at all.

If you do not purchase bacteria inhibitor, the wick will grow mold in just a few days, so stock up on that too. There was no mention of it when I purchased it and was very disappointed.

It's not a very well made machine, and the display no longer works after one year, but it does the job and is certainly a great value for the price.

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I just received this humidifier a few days ago. Setting it up is a cinch. Filling it up takes a while-many trips from the sink to the unit. I found that so far, the humidity in our home is just right. We keep in on the low settingThe low setting is very quiet and the high is quite loud. I must warn you, however, that the first few days of the humidifier running gives off a very strong/powerful Sharpie marker-type smell. We woke up the first few mornings with that taste even in our mouths! I called the customer service line and they said it was normal-that it should go away in a few days. That it just needs to run it's course to get the industrial smell off of it. It's now 4 days later and it indeed is much less smell-able.

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I bought this to help with the exceptionally dry winter air here in Colorado. With the heater running, it's not uncommon for my hygrometer to read 20% or less humidity during the winter. This leads to cracked skin and huge amounts of static electricity from just walking across the carpet.

After reading a bunch of reviews, I ended-up purchasing this Essick 826-800 model. I specifically chose it because it had simple controls and being an electronics guy, I didn't want the potential reliability hassles of digital controls on something filled with water (and doesn't really need digital controls!)

The unit unboxes easily enough. I didn't have much trouble getting the fan portion attached to the base. Like some other reviewers stated, it's not a high-precision fit, but just take a minute and look at thing, and it goes together easily enough. The filter just slides into place as well. Overall, it didn't take more than a couple minutes to get put together once I was done inspecting everything.

As for actual use, the Essick doesn't disappoint at least on low speed. At low speed, the unit provides a nice drone/white noise but is nothing intrusive at all. I'd compare it to sounding like one of those small 8 inch clip-on fans. BUT, when you turn the knob to high... wow. It gets about four time louder. It's still not ear-splitting by any means, but it's no longer in the "quiet" category. Fortunately, I don't plan to (or need to) run it on high.

The performance is good. I have to put about four gallons per 24 hour period in, so it's definitely getting water into my home's ~1600 sqft. My hygrometer currently reads 36% as I'm writing this. I not longer get the massive static discharges with every move I make, nor do I have to smear lotion all over my hands (I'm a guy I don't like that!)

One additional note for those who watch their electricity: I ran the Essick 826-200 with my Kill-A-Watt and it consumes about 0.80 kilowatts per day. At my rates, that works-out to about $3 per month in electricity use.

Overall, this unit works quite well and is worth purchasing if you need a humidifier that can handle a middle-sized house. It could be a bit cheaper in price for what you get, but I still find it an OK deal.

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This product works. It was able to raise the humidity in the large open area of my house from 33% to 60% no problem. It could have raised it more but that is the point I was shooting for.

5 stars for performance.

5 stars for easy filling.

5 stars for easy maintenance.

3 stars for control features.

3 stars for construction.

3 stars for noise.

The plastic is thin, so if it were ever to be dropped accidently it would certainly break.

It is reasonably quiet on the low fan speed. I can sleep with the fan noise at that level no problem. It is loud on the high fan speed. Too loud for listening to music or watching TV.

I am satisfied with this product because it meets my need when other units failed to perform. I recommend it for its performance and easy maintenance at a lower cost than other large capacity units.