I spent about three hours reading reviews and trying to learn all the pros and cons of humidifiers. This is because I really HATE wasting time with returns, certainly hate wasting money on things that don't last, and always want the lowest-maintenance alternative.
And I'm willing to pay more to avoid hassles.
This arrived just two days ago, and so far so good. I hesitated about giving it 5 stars, but then realized it seems to be exactly as advertised.
However, if it dies or has problems, I will be returning to edit this review accordingly.
***
SETUP:
Pretty much easy as pie. The water tank is quite easy to fill and carry. (A large 5 inch cap is involved that must be screwed on quite tightly, which may be a slight issue for an elderly person. If so, something like the Evriholder EasiTwist Jar Opener, Assorted Colors would be a good thing to have.)
For refilling at very shallow sinks, it might also be helpful to get something like the Univ Repl Fill Hose, which will fit over any faucet. It would be nice if they included something like this in the box with the humidifier.
OPERATION:
Also quite easy. The directions are very good, and include helpful photos. The manual frequently says that, if you have any problems or questions, to call their tech support line -good to know.
FEATURES:
It has them all: warm or cool mist; digital settings to cut the guesswork; a built-in humidity sensor (I haven't tested the room humidity with a separate instrument yet); negative ion generator; timer; translucent tank to see the water level; auto shutoff when tank is empty; settings to go from LOTS of mist volume to light mist, or just set the mist volume to Auto. And, of course, a tiny remote control.
And it is very quiet. What little noise you hear is actually pleasant.
MAINTENANCE:
Having read a lot about how other brands require regular cartridge replacement, frequent cleanings, and various other forms of fussing, I am impressed with the system they have engineered: chemically treated beads in a cage that pre-treat the water, and which they say will not need periodic replacement.
The user manual says to spot-clean with vinegar once a week (if you're using it every day). It also says to soak the bead cage for 10 minutes, but does not say how often. Surely ALL of this depends on how hard your water is (i.e., how much calcium and other minerals it contains). I am lucky to have very good city water, and plan to clean only when I start to see some evidence of white film in the basin where you put the water tank.
(Some may find their water is so hard that a) it has to be boiled first, or b) they have to use bottled water. But this is a water problem that affects all humidifiers. I think some reviewers of other products don't understand that.)
The big question most will ask: how often do you fill the tank? I don't have a good answer yet, but will update. Their printed brochure in the box claims "up to 7 nights" of use per tank at the lowest settings. Their web site claims "up to 14 nights". (Hmmm... where's the salt?) But I can say: even if you had to fill the tank every night it would be no great hardship.
RESULTS:
This was purchased for a household member who has been having real problems with the dryness of winter heating, including bad sinus issues, in a 200 sq ft bedroom. She reports that symptoms are clearing up after the first night of use. She doesn't notice it at all when it's operating and forgets it's there.
Final advice for now: the corny brand name. I almost didn't buy it because I thought "How can anything named 'Heaven Fresh' be any good?" Well, it does appear to be very good technology, well-made too, and a rather attractive design.
Like I said, if anything bad happens, I'll be back. But all the signs are quite good so far. Plus they are standing behind their product with a 3-year warranty (parts & labor), and if anything goes wrong in the first 90 days, they'll ship you a new machine.
Seems unlikely to turn into a "disposable" that I've read about in other product reviews, the ones that cost less than half and seem to be one whole lotta trouble. But, we'll see.
I love this humidifier.... We live in northern montana, so the forced air furnace runs all the time in the winter creating bone dry air. Most of the winter, I would usually cough a lot and have nose bleeds from dry nasal passages. Have tried just about every humidifier to keep the bedroom air moist, but they were all ineffective.... With the vaporizer types, there would be so much moisture we'd get tons of condensation on the windows and mold and frost in the corners, the evaporative types with the wicks or pads just couldn't put out enough and the wicks would clog up and get yucky at the base. The smaller ultrasonic models wouldn't put out nearly enough to keep the air moist and sprayed more calcium particles than moisture.
This one WORKS!!!! I can set it for 50 percent humidity and it gives me just that...... All night long ... With refilling the tank about every other day. No more waking up coughing!!!! It gives a wonderful mist, and I haven't had calcification issues yet... I fully expect to have to de-scale the water holding areas because I'm using tap water.... But it doesn't spray white powder all over everything, even with high calcium water... And the silver beads keep the water smelling fresh, so there's no musty moldy yuck like the evaporative ones had.
Addressing some of the other concerns reviewers had voiced..... I had absolutely no problem with the light intensity from the display, It's a nice soft blue that is just bright enough so that I can look over and see that it's working ok.. Not intrusive or overly bright . As far as filling the tank.. There's a drop or two when you lift it up.... It is water on water at the inlet... But we're talking a couple of drops. The tank isn't that heavy when filled.... Maybe 10 pounds...it's no different than lifting a watering can with a gallon and a half of water. The hardest part is that the cap on the base can get a bit of a vacuum in it... And if you are older with small hands, it can be a little hard to break the seal on the vacuum, but the same handy device you use to open a jar works just fine to open the cap.... Or if you're Betty white, you can get your cute pool boy to do it. I've had no problem with white dust,even with hard water... The beads in the infuser seem to be very effective. As far as too much moisture..... You've got to set it to what you need, I started at 25 percent, too low, Went up to 67 and got too much moisture in the area surrounding the device, went down to 50 and it was perfect for our bedroom. Not much different than adjusting a thermostat. And it is quiet.. If I'm awake I can hear it cycle as a slight whoosh if the room is quiet. If I'm asleep,I never even notice, And I'm a light sleeper. Overall, More satisfied than I ever have been on a product of this type...
Buy Heaven Fresh HF 707 Digital Ultrasonica Cool and Warm Mist Humidifier and Ionizer - Color Black Now
Love the white noise background it offers. The adjustable vapor is awesome. The only negative (if it can be called that) is the noise made to alert a water empty shut off. When this occurs in the middle of the night it is alarming.
Read Best Reviews of Heaven Fresh HF 707 Digital Ultrasonica Cool and Warm Mist Humidifier and Ionizer - Color Black Here
It is quiet enough to work with it in the room with it and not be distracted. It holds enough water to last most of the day, even on a high setting. It does raise the humidity, but only on the floor where it is being used. My brother has three in his house and has better results. Dislike the filling of water from the bottom of the water container. It is consistently messy and always gets water on our hardwood flooring. If I had known about this in the beginning, I might not have purchased it, but now that I have, I find it doesn't matter as much as having a quiet, efficient machine. Since I am an engineer, I imagine the trade off to produce less vibration, and less sound, is probably required of the water filling, but it is a dislike anyway. For us, it is only 3 months out of the year.
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I did a lot of research on these before I bought one. I have paid too much money for humidifiers I have not been happy with. Usually the tank is too small, they are hard to clean, they get dirty too fast, etc. I liked the reviews on this machine so I purchased it and I have not been disappointed. This device works very well and does a great job. There are enough settings that I have lots of control but not so many that it becomes complicated. The tank is the perfect size; it lasts through the night on the max setting while still putting out a lot of moisture. I also like the reading of the current humidity so you can gauge (or let it automatically) when to shut off or lower the mist. This has been a great product and is very well made. We have had it for a month now and used it every single night. It has worked great, is easy to clean, and keeps the water very clean in the tank and reservoirs. We have very hard water and I am impressed at how well this machine handles it. We do get some white dust from it, but that is to be expected with as hard as our water is. Overall we love this product and will probably get another one for our family as well.
As noted by a previous reviewer, this unit shuts down its air conditioning function when the condensate reservoir fills up. The unit then goes into fan mode. To get air conditioning back, the user empties the reservoir using a little, almost-flat plastic pan (LAF pan) that, even with its low sides, just barely fits below the reservoir exit, which, itself, is situated under the heat exhaust hose and just a little above the floor. If you're on a rug, the reservoir exit has even less clearance, or none. In addition to the LAF pan, you must also bring a pail to the job, so you can repeatedly empty the LAF pan into the pail. Of course, if you tip the LAF pan slightly on its way to the pail, you spill some of its contents onto your floor or rug in the process.
