This product is easy to use, easy to clean, and very effective. I use it in the baby's room and it makes the whole room a lot more comfortable than the usual california dry environment. The unit has a blue light, which you can turn off if you don't want it bright. The humidifier is relatively quiet, except you'll hear dripping sound as the water is transported within. I like the sound because it put me to sleep. The fog is cool, and very concentrated. If you are using hard water, you might find the white dust residue nearby, but not a big deal at all. So far I have had this unit for a year, and it's one of the best humidifiers I have ever used.
A few notes about the product's claims & obvious potential flaws (based on reading some other reviews for humidifiers on Amazon).
1. The box claims that the water tank lasts for 27 hours. It may last a day or so on the lowest setting, but on higher settings (which you may not need) it will only last 12 hours. It turns itself off (the humidifier turns off, but the fan stays on it's pretty quiet) when the water gets too low.
2. It will leave a "wet spot" on the floor in front of it, but I just point it at the radiator, and the heat from the radiator takes care of any dampness that might appear. I do this on the theory that heating the mist will help saturate the air with moisture, I'm not sure if it does or not... but that's my theory and I'm sticking to it.
3. The light is kinda neat, it'll cast a blue light on the ceiling if you turn the light on, and when the water drops (giving that typical humidifier gurgling sound), the light on the ceiling shimmers. It's worth about 5 minutes of entertainment on the first night you own it.
4. I don't have particularly hard water where I live, but it does leave a bit of a crust on the radiator. Minerals probably, I just wipe it with a damp cloth. If you have hard water where you live, you may want to use filtered water, as recommended. Plus there's a bit of scale that builds up, which is normal for any humidifier, but cleaning it is relatively easy with the included brush that stays with the base. You can't submerse it in water because of the fan, but you can fill it with water in the shower for cleaning just so long as you keep it angled away from the fan.
After a few days, the previously smooth radiator had a rough feeling to it, but if you dampen your fingers (with the mist coming out of the humidifier), you'll see it wipes right off. But, I point it directly at the radiator (electric radiator), so this is sort of an extreme case. Use filtered/bottled water if you think this will be a problem.
5. Regarding the other comment about having to flip the tank over to fill it that's how all humidifiers are, except for the hot/steam ones. The top is clear, molded plastic and not strong enough to fit the cap. Plus, the mechanism depends on the vacuum in the bottle keeping the water in there. It works on the same principle as those soda bottle cat water dishes. You can try this at home take any soda bottle, fill it with water, and then put it over a soup bowl. Do this in the sink, because it will splash, but once the level of water in the bowl covers the bottom of the soda bottle, the water will stop coming out, defying gravity. Raise the bottle a bit and water will come out, but only until the bottom is covered again.
A previous humidifier I had had the handle on the bottom and the top, which was nice and made it easier to fill, but this humidifier is so much smaller that I can see why they only have the handle at the top.
6. Yes, there's a constant "running water" noise that can be disconerting. It gets louder on the higher settings, but you get used to it. If you don't think you'll get used to it, don't get this humidifier. I think better engineering could have somehow mitigated this sound, but it really doesn't bother me anymore.
Okay, on to the rest of the review.
The whole ultrasonic mechanism is pretty cool. There's a metal plate that vibrates and sends water into the air, the fan blows the air up a chimney and a little dial at the top that lets you direct the mist in any direction you want. The dial also lets you open it close it to different degrees, which is how you control the intensity.
Mist floats up about 4 feet into the air before dissipating & returning to the floor. Hopefully more of it dissipates than reaches the floor, but there will be a damp spot on the floor unless you did as I do and point it at the radiator. I was tempted to use a fan to blow the mist over the rest of the room, but that seems to defeat the purpose (wouldn't a fan blowing cool mist cool off the room more than you want in the winter?). Pointing it at the radiator works great.
The mist is visible, and if you remove the cap, you feel like you can make a science fiction movie, it's that kind of effect. On the higher settings if you close the door, dew will appear on the windows in a few hours.
On the higher settings, it can get pretty misty feeling in the room, like on a cool summer morning or during a fog, or like a sauna if it's warm.
For a while I was afraid that it was too misty and I'd get a sore throat, but now we use it only on the lower settings and it's great. It adds just the right amount of humidity for my 15 x 15 x 10 room with the door closed.
I left it off the other night and woke up with my nose completely dry. I hadn't realized how much of a difference it made until that point.
Plus the cats love it, it really is an entertaining little blue thing. The mist is a lot of fun to play with.
The wicking humidifier was a pain. The wicks only lasted a week or two before it needed to be replaced, and there was a constant fight against bacteria. I would take this humidifier over the wicking one any day. The wick was a 6" x 6" x 2" pad that brought the moisture up & a fan ran over it to distribute the moisture into the air.
This one is easy to clean, and has no wick, and is extraordinarily entertaining.
4 stars as a humidifier/easing the winter dryness and for causing a wet spot on the floor.
1 star for being so darn entertaining and easy to use.
1 star for initial cost (cheap) & maintenance cost (free + water) and relative ease of maintenance.
I'd recommend this humidifier to anyone. There's a humidifier on Amazon that costs 3 or 4 times as much, and I just don't see how, if it's an ultrasonic humidifier, it can be that much better it's the same mechanism. Maybe it adds a hygrometer or some fancy device, but you don't really need it. Just set the level with the dial. I might pay more for quieter or holds more water, but not 4 times more. Save your money, or buy 4 of these for your big house.
Buy Sunbeam 701 Ultrasonic Humidifier Now
I just ran out and bought this humidifier at 11pm at night because my daughter seems to have come down with croup. I filled it up and plugged it in, it immediately started misting, and you can control the amount of mist that comes out by turning the knob. It is super quiet! Nice little glowing light that can be turned on or off. I have been through a few humidifiers, the Halls cool mist did nothing but blow cold air for hours, not one drop of moisture! I owned another one that fell apart, plastic cracked etc.
I've read other reviews about the ultrasonic humidifiers giving off a white dust? It say right in the directions that if you use unfiltered tap water which usually has a high mineral count than there is a possibility of white dust which will get on furniture. I have a 5 stage reverse osmosis system and used the filtered water, if I see any white dust etc. I will be sure to update my opinion!
So far this one seems to be doing its job, the baby is sleeping. I guess I'll have to give it a few more days to see if it's still working.
I gave it four stars because it is currently doing its job.....to be continued.....
Read Best Reviews of Sunbeam 701 Ultrasonic Humidifier Here
My building recently turned on the heat for the winter. My hands and face were dry, and I would wake up in the middle of the night from the dry heat! I wanted to find a very simple, mid-sized humidifier that wasn't difficult to clean and was quiet.
This Sunbeam product is perfect! It is not too bulky, has a good sized tank, and is an attractive design. The humidifier is surprisingly quiet (you only hear a trickle of water, which is very soothing). It releases a cool for of water that is nice and not overpowering. A great find!
Two things to note:
1) There are no "wicks" or "filters" like some of other humidifiers, so you don't need to buy replacement parts. But that means if you have hard water, the steam can leave a white dust on the furniture. You can solve this problem by using filtered water or just keeping it away from things. I'd much rather deal with white dust than deal with expensive and moldy filters!
2) This product also exists in Walgreens as a Walgreens brand, made by Sunbeam. It is a little different (clear plastic tub instead of blue, one setting only, no light), but it is basically the same model. Even the instruction manuals are the same! Good to know if you need a humidifier immediately. Enjoy!
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My doctor recommended that I purchase a humidifier for my bedroom to help with my eczema. I researched many of them on amazon.com, and it seemed like this had the best rating from other customers. After using it several nights, I agree with the positive rating. It is almost silent, except for the periodic sound of water trickling, which is very relaxing. It is also very easy to refill and leaves no water either under or on the unit as many other reviewers complained with other humidifiers. The water reservoir holds more than enough water to run through the night. Overall, all of the features I was looking for have delivered: ultrasonic for quiet operation, no replaceable filter, and no moisture accumulation on or around the unit. The only improvement that could be made is an auto shutoff when the reservoir is empty, but if only using at night, this is not an issue.
I have used this for over a year and this is a wonderful product. It has a humidifier control that lets you vary the room humidity between 35 and 80% ... this number is the machine's goal for the room. It gives you the relative humidity in the room. It can be set for cool or warm mist, it has a sleep timer and cool blue 'mood light'. It puts out alot of mist, almost like a smoke machine in a club. My only complaint is the filters are next to impossible to find. They are Nano Silver SF-400 filters, and they need to be changed every 6 months. I can't find them anywhere other than H-Mart.
