Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I really like this humidifier! I used it in both my 1,200 sq ft condo and girlfriends 2,000 sq ft house. In my condo it was always reading 8-10% humidity to much then a dedicated humidity monitor (I bought the AcuRite 613 Indoor Humidity Monitor). So I would place my Humidity on the Essick Air on 55% so I would have a true condo humidity of 45-47%. This comparison was done by letting the AcuRite be right next to the Essick Air Sensor so I knew it was off slightly. FYI that the AcuRite Humidity Sensor I bought was within 1% calibrated when bought. [...] [...] Some Notes to remember: 1.) The further you get away from the Humidifier, the less humidity we be in the air. Take this into consideration when setting your humidity levels and placement of the humidifier. 2.) I have found that mold/mildew can be nearly completely eliminated by using a cap of the BestAir 3BT-6 Original BT Humidifier Bacteriostatic Water Treatment 32 oz. per refill. 3.) You can greatly minimize the calcium/lime/scale deposits on your filter and make the filter last longer by using a cap of Holmes S1708PDQ-U Humidifier Bacteriostat. 4.) Clean your tank often. The EPA recommends you clean your humidifier every 3 days with 3% hydrogen peroxide solution. I don't go to this extreme but cleaning it once every 2 weeks with dish soap seems more than enough for me. I use a mixture of 1 part White distilled vinegar to 5 parts water and swirl it in the tank/bottom of humidifier, let it sit for 30 minutes, pour it out and then scrub with water/dish washer soap. Finally I rinse thoroughly. 5.) Some say using distilled or filtered water is the best way to minimize and eliminate lime/calcium/scale deposits. This may be the case but this costs so much money for me in the winter months that I would rather buy another filter as going through gallons of filtered/distilled water isn't economical for me. Maybe if I had a humidifier in a child's bedroom, but not a whole house humidifier. Using #2 and #3 have increased the life of my filters during from ~3 weeks to ~10 weeks. Just use that plan instead as it's a lot cheaper. 6.) The first time the humidifier runs, it could be a long time before it turns off and will use lots of water. Remember it has to humidify an immense amount of sq ft and it takes time for humidity to incorporate itself into all your belongings that were most likely lacking humidity until now (carpet, drapes, etc). My girlfriends house started at 28% and during the January cold month, took 7 days to finally only run rarely. Otherwise it was on literally all the time. 7.) This will affect your energy bill positively is used correctly. Remember that higher humidity means higher temperature. For example, 75 degrees with 0 percent humidity feels like 69 degrees. 75 degrees with 100% humidity feels like 80 degrees. In the winter months raising your humidity with this humidifier will allow you to feel the same temperature a few degrees lower on your thermostat. 8.) Depending who you ask, "Optimal" humidity levels range greatly (from 35% - 60%). I always aim for Humidity levels about 45%. 9.) Having a whole house humidifier will certainly help folks that live in an otherwise dry environment with dry skin. Before this I would generally also suffer from dry skin no matter what moisturizer I used. Now with this my humidity in my condo and girlfriends house rose from mid 20's to 45% and I have healthier skin (as does my girlfriend). ************************************************************************************************************************************************************* UPDATE: I no longer use BestAir 3BT-6 Original BT Humidifier Bacteriostatic Water Treatment 32 oz. or Holmes S1708PDQ-U Humidifier Bacteriostat for Calcium/Lime and Bacteria build-up. I now use BestAir 246 Golden Solution II Combination Water & Bacteriostatic Treatment 64 oz. as it's a single product that does what the other 2 products do.