Product Description

Quick humidification for large rooms

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #2029 in Kitchen & Housewares
• Brand: Honeywell
• Model: HWM450
• Dimensions: 15.55" h x 10.24" w x 14.57" l, 6.50 pounds

Features

• Warm steam humidifier reduces static electricity and prevents drying in indoor environments; manufactured by Honeywell
• Heats water with a stainless-steel heater; easy to fill, clean, and carry water tank; digital controls and LCD display
• Outputs 4 gallons of moist steam per tank; best employed in rooms up to 1400 square feet in size
• Medicine cup provided for dispensing vapors; clean regularly to prevent mold and germs from festering
• Humidifier measures 15.55 by 14.57 by 10.24 inches and weighs 6 pounds upon shipping; no filter needed for this item

Amazon.com Review
For arid climates or the dry cold days of winter, running a steam humidifier indoors often protects the inhabitants' skin from chapping or itching, allows stressed lungs to breathe with comfort, and infuses moisture into the room to the benefit wooden furniture, upholstery, and houseplants to prevent them from becoming brittle or parched. Honeywell created their Quick Steam Warm Moisture Humidifier for all of these purposes and more, enhancing a room's humidity in record speed.

Best suited for rooms up to 1400 square feet in size, the humidifier's heater is crafted in stainless steel for quick heat production and trouble-free cleaning. The compact humidifier outputs 4 gallons of warm steam for each full tank of water. This humidifier offers users a timer function for running the unit for preset periods, ranging from an hour to the maximum 18-hour setting. Digital controls and the easy-to-read LCD screen enable users to alter or monitor current preference settings. A medicine cup allows users to run the humidifier as a vaporizer for stuffed noses, sore throats and other respiratory illnesses. An automatic shutdown feature reduces safety hazards. Humidifier water should be changed frequently and the tank washed well each week to prevent bacteria, mold, and other impurities from developing, though the heating process should kill many of these unhealthy particles. As with any electrical home device, read all manufacturer guidelines and instructions prior to use. This humidifier measures 15.55 by 14.57 by 10.24 inches and weighs 6 pounds upon shipping. --Jessica Reuling

Customer Reviews

Very Good - High Tech Humidifier
Don't mean to be a humidifier geek but researched A LOT of them before settling on this one so maybe the reviewer before me should have given it another chance before returning it. At night if you set it to low there is no loud gurgling/boiling noise, and if you have the tank reasonably full there are never any distracting noises. Also wanted a "pure" clean mist, easy maintenance, and of course effectiveness. I liked the features, functionality, and design of this one over the others, so I paid a bit more and got it even though the size and all the features are gravy as far as I'm concerned.

What sets this system apart from the others is the following: A large LCD display shows the current humidity level and there are three separate digital controls - output level, moisture, timer - each of which you can set exactly. What makes this efficient is you can DIGITALLY set the humidity to your EXACT preference - anywhere from 25 to 65. If you want it to shut off when you leave for work, set the timer - 1 to 18 hours. A four gallon output and 1400 square foot range makes it convenient.

It's warm mist so no filters ever need to be puchased but in due course you'll need to get new mineral pads which sit over the stainless steal heating element. I think Honeywell has or is getting a patent for the heating element. Humidifiers are almost always used during winter so why did they invent cool mist ones anyway?

It looks good, works well, is compact, and so far satisfied with the operation and paying a bit more for this model. Maybe Honeywell is trying to be serious about the quality of its products *shrug* who knows. The only non-critical issue is a light indicator should turn on when the desired humidity level is reached but it doesn't. Don't like when I buy something and even the simplest stated feature doesn't work, but in this case will let it slide as no other functionality is affected.

Bottom line - even if all you need is a simple, small humidifier, with few features, you might be happier getting this one instead.

UPDATE, November 28, 2005
Reviewer: B. Ahmed "lazer30" (Mars) - See all my reviews

Just an update to my previous review. Exchanged the unit since the indicator was not turning on when the desired humidity level was reached. Seems it was a burnt out bulb. When the desired humidity is reached the indicatior does in fact go on, the humidifier stops discharging, then when the room falls below the desired humidity level the unit starts back up again.

Another thing: it's a good idea to clean this unit regularly - perhaps once a week. I read another guy's post where he used CLR in the cleaning routine. Might try that as the heating element can never be cleaned to look like brand new without using something. Honeywell writes in the manual there will be some stains left on the heating element but this should not affect performance.

Fairly pleased so far
I researched humidifiers extensively before settling on this one by Honeywell. I've had it a week so far, and here are my thoughts.

It is very well made, easy to assemble, clean, and digitally program. In four days my face went from dry, cracked flaky and bumpy to buttery soft, smooth and bump-free, which to me is a priceless benefit. I have extremely parched sensitive skin and live in a condo with forced hot air heating, and figured I needed to invest in a humidifer but never got around to it until now.

So why the four star rating? The first two nights the unit reflected 20% humidity in the house and couldn't seem to raise the moisture level beyond that. It did not make a dent in the environment or my skin. The third night it rained, and since then the unit has been getting closer to hitting the 55% humidity setting I have it on, but so far hasn't gotten there yet. Not sure why. I have just under 1200 sq feet and it's a four gallon output which is supposed to be adequate to humidify my living space. It's been sunny outside for the past few days, and my fear is that if it doesn't rain again soon and the temperature drops, the humidifer may not be able to continue to raise the indoor humidity level. But perhaps the humidifying effects will turn out to be cumulative if I run it every night while sleeping as I've been doing.

Another con - the water only lasts a couple of hours, not the whole night through, on the high setting. I will have to experiment with the medium and low ouput levels as this seems the likeliest culprit.

A word about the noise - does not bother me at all and I am extremely sensitive to and easily irritated by various noises. I find the quiet bubbling sort of sound rather soothing actually.

I would strongly recommend the unit for people with dry parched skin. If performance falters, I will update this review.

A final note on what I learned while researching humidifers, for what it's worth -

supersonic units apparently have a problem with spewing white mineral dust into the atmosphere; cool mist is a bad choice for the winter months and no one is sure why you'd need a humidifer in warmer months, so the reason for making these is a bit of a mystery; evaporative types are a playground for bacteria and a pain to keep clean; and warm mist seeemed the easiest to clean and operate (which is why I selected this model).

1 Month Update - Still going strong. Easily reaches desired humidity level with one of the doors to my master bedroom shut. Note about cleaning - in the manual they say to set the water tray aside and fill it with a cup of vinegar. What they MEAN is - dump any water out of the water tray, put it back in the unit, and THEN fill it with vinegar. The cleaning instructions leave a lot to be desired. The way it's stated in the manual, since the water tray is an empty funnel on one side with a shallow tray on the other, there is NO capability for it to hold the vinegar unless you put it back in the unit, which is NOT stated in the manual. They leave you hanging with your water tray "set aside". Honeywell- take note. Learn to write step-by-step instructions correctly, especially in areas where you note that adherence to them is critical!

Also, NOWHERE in the cleaning manual does it say to rinse the heating pads thoroughly. I find that doing so keeps them clean, white and fluffy. This is another major oversight in the manual's instructions on cleaning. They were just plain careless at guiding you through the process. Also very important - if after a cleaning your unit won't start - it may be because the scent of bleach or vinegar is still clinging to the parts. This has happened to me. With additional heavy rinsing, the unit operates again with no problems. I run it at nighttime when the air is dry, and have been cleaning it every other week. The longer the vinegar stays in the water tray, the more the gunk on the heating element lifts. Note to K. Seeley - that reviewer more than likely has extremely hard water. Try rinsing the heating pads for longer life.

A very temperamental, fully-featured humidifier
Akin to other reviewers, I performed extensive research on humidifers before concluding on the HWM450. A Consumer's Report 'Best Buy' + strong feedback ratings on multiple price comparison sites led me to what appeared to be an 'obvious' purchase on Amazon.

Egads. As the old adage goes, you get what you pay for.

To be fair, I love the multiple output settings, humidity on/off feature, not to mention the handy, hourly shutoff option. Moreover, a big water tank allows for 1.5 nights of full use without a refill. Finally, the HWM450 is also extremely quiet, and does quite well with Vicks Humidifer Vapor Fluid poured into its medicine cup.

The downsides...equally as obvious. The digusting yellowish-orange, mineral deposits + algae buildup after only 3-4 days of use are both eyesores and difficult to clean. The humidifier's 'mineral reservoir' [actually] promotes this buildup by storing this gunk until emptied. Worse of all, the gunk burns on and into the heating plate rather quickly in an almost cement-like fashion. (Why the HWM450 doesn't burn off such deposits as part of the humidification process is beyond me. Lower tier, Honeywell humidifers operate under this premise.) Related, the mineral deposit pads become equally tainted rather quickly.

The good news is, the HWM450 is easy to clean...if you know how. Trial and error produced the knowledge -- alluded elsewhere in reviews -- that the cleaning pads can simply be rinsed clean with cold water (don't waste your money on new pads). Second, the mineral reservoir can easily be rinsed clean, likewise the humidifier's removable components. The mineral plate is a little feistier. Not feisty enough, however, for a 1/8th inch layer of CLR left on it for a good 30 minutes. Breaks everything down for an easy clean/rinse off.

My first HWM450 began to emit a strong burning odor after its first cleaning cycle. I returned it to Kaz (Honeywell's parent company) -- excellent customer service -- who replaced it at no cost (minus my shipping to send it there). The second unit has a buggy hygrometer, echoed by others here who have it stuck on 20 percent.

Moral of the story? If you can get past its shortcomings, a decent short-term humidification solution. I remain on the lookout, however, for a pricier, more reliable unit.