Lasko? Natural Cascade Humidifier Review

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(More customer reviews)I have had several Holmes humidifiers and Lasko humidifiers since getting rid of the last of the old permanent console Sears belt humidifiers that clogged and put mineral dust into the air.

The Laskos just run and run season after season (clean them out at the end of each season) and replace the paper cascade with a metal Honeywell cascade once and forget it.Do not attempt to clean the aluminum cascade (or just replace the polymer cascades every year - they're really not filters, per se).

BTW - You cannot fill these in the sink, they are too tall; you must use the faucet in the bath tub or shower.The flow there is much faster and you can fill it up faster there, anyway!

I used to be able to get both Lasko and Holmes at Wal-Mart, but they seem to only carry the Holmes now.That does increase filter/wick sales since you are supposed to (and HAVE TO because they no longer wick water properly with mineral build up) replace that every month on the Holmes units.

On the other hand I pitched one Holmes whose wick clogged in 1 month and am keeping another in the bedroom as a back-up to the primary living room Lasko when it cannot maintain proper humidity during the coldest weather.The wicks constantly clog with minerals and quit working and the water valves on the containers never seem to open properly. (I have now re-engineered the valve openers so they always work, but why should the customer have to do this?)

I am tired of replacing Holmes filters or having the unit fail to operateand metal Honeywell filters will not "wick" water to keep this type working.I have even added spacers to solve the Holmes valve failure problem, but they have to be centered perfectly or the valves cock to the side and still fail to open!

Winter 2008 ADDENDUM:
After 4 years of operation I finally had to replace the metal cascade.
We also have noticed that these units do a pretty good job of cleaning the dust and cat hair out of the air (we have 3 cats).It does this in two ways, first, the filter catches most of the cat hair and can be backflushed every 2-3 months, secondly, the dust gets knocked down with the waterfall cascade and collected in the bottom of the container where there is a foam filter to prevent these particles from being recycled back to the pump.Wash out the bottom every couple of months and you have a pretty good air filter.
NOTE,: As an engineer, I modified the distribution tray on mine with larger holes so more water goes through the cascade and less is dumped over the overflow dam.Also put an orifice in the visual flow indicator to divert more back to the distribution tray.

ADDENDUM #2:Just had the motor die on another humidifier and just purchased a Lasko 1120.Small, compact, unobtrusive in the living room, lowest initial price and just RUN forever!This may be my last humidifier I'll ever have to purchase!

Winter 2009/10 ADDENDUM: The motor finally died in my last Lasko unit.I removed the dead motor/pump and installed an aquarium pump for the waterfall and a small fan from Rite-Aid Pharmacy, that fits perfectly into the cone and it is running like a champ.
Our humidity is running around 45% at 10 to 20 degrees and we can breathe again without waking up with a sore throat, dry eyes and dried out nose in the AM!!Lasko? Natural Cascade Humidifier

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Product Description:
You won't dry out with the Lasko Natural Cascade Humidifier. SAVE BIG BUCKS! Forced air heating can leave you a little dehydrated. Lasko's Natural Cascade technology produces cool, unseen moisture through a constantly flowing stream of water. Whisper quiet and very clean, without the algae and mold build-up found in standing water systems. Reduce static electricity, keep your pets and plants hydrated and relieve dry and itchy skin, as well as the effects of allergies. Add comfort to your home heating: Constantly moving, high-output water pumping system; Treated, self-cleaning filter lasts the entire season; Adjustable power and humidity settings; Powerful system humidifies up to 1,800 sq. ft.! 120V, UL-listed. Measures 15 3/4 x 11 7/8 x 15" h. Weighs 9 lbs., 10 ozs. Don't wait! Order Today! Lasko Natural Cascade Humidifier

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Essick Air H12-400 3-Speed Evaporative Console Humidifier, Oak Burl Review

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(More customer reviews)I like the design and operation of this humidifier. In fact, I have two of them. Ace Hardware gave me extra-fast delivery -- no complaints with Ace. The machines humidify very efficiently, put out a lot of moisture, and (unlike many others) are reasonably easy to maintain. Normally it will run fine on low or medium fan settings. Forget about the high fan speed; it sounds like a helicopter taking off.

The first one I bought worked fine some of the time, but generally would not start up again after the humidistat controller automatically shut it off. Through much trial and error, I figured out that you have to center the wick precisely on its hanger rail that runs along the inside of the water chamber so the float aligns correctly. Great -- problem solved, although poorly explained in the brief instruction sheet.

Then, at the beginning of the second winter dry season here on the high plains, the motor began to squeal, seize, and stop, especially at low speeds. On high, it would slowly start and then scream for a while and finally run -- except it practically shook the unit apart and made it dance along the floor. After a day or so, it would no longer start at all. Clearly the bearings in the motor were shot.

I was about to junk it, when I thought to check the warranty. Sure enough, the warranty ran for a year. I had eight days left!!

I contacted Essick Air via email and a very nice customer service rep put me onto the person in charge of the warranty work. This second person sent form emails that were curt and blunt, but, in fairness, did address my problem. Getting the return papers could not be done via email, and took about two weeks to arrive by snail mail.

Alas, I would have to return the fan power head (they call it the "chassis") to them for repair. This, even though an authorized repair shop here in Denver is less than a half-mile from my condo.

I bought a large shipping box, packed the unit well, and lugged it on my back five blocks to UPS. $33.00 to send it to the factory (in Georgia, I think?), but they promised to reimburse me (and did).

About a month later, with no communication, the chassis arrives back here in my original packing, repaired with a new motor. However, I open the carton, take out the chassis, and it falls apart in my hands! Yup, it's repaired, but not screwed back together. The screws are lying loose in the bottom of the box and all four screw holes are stripped. The electronics have fallen out and are dangling from their wires.

The prospect of sending it back yet again is now so daunting that I take it into my little work closet and actually reassemble it myself, more or less, and screw it together with larger screws. It was one of those two-hour deals where you wish you were four-handed with long, narrow, double-jointed fingers. I have no idea if all the inside pieces are back in their actual slots or not, but it seems to work OK for now. Pray it does not catch on fire some day.

I contacted Essick Air's customer service rep just to tell them about the poor repair and got a very passionate apology and a promise to take it up with higher-ups and get back to me. I did not ask for it, but thought I might actually get a new "chassis" out of the deal. I'm not really comfortable with my backyard repair job.

Of course, after that I heard nothing ever again. The higher ups had obviously ducked the problem.

Maybe it's the fact that I am a retired marketing executive and know better myself, but it amazes me that a national company with a famous brand name would not treat me a little better when fulfilling the terms of a warranty. The customer service person could not have been nicer, but after that the treatment was suspicious, curt, abrupt, and, well, unsophisticated.

The documents I was sent were full of warnings and self-protective disclaimers, but showed little concern for my broken product or my work returning it: if they found that I did not really have a warranty claim, I would have to pay for shipping both ways ($33.00 out, and, were I so foolish to want a broken fan unit, another $33.00 back). Or I could pay for repairs in advance.

All this "attitude" and they had not even looked at my problem yet. The unit as I described it to them was pretty clearly broken, it was obviously a burnt out motor bearing, it must have happened more than once. I felt strongly that they were trying to get me to give up on the warranty. The whole approach implied that I was nuts for even bothering them and probably trying to cheat them. All this for a $10 motor!

From my point of view, of course, it's about a $150 item that ought to last longer than a year. Much longer.

Oh, yeah, that second one I bought? It arrived, brand new, with a squeak in the fan that even I can hear -- and I'm partly deaf. Not quite loud enough to send back though, so we use it on a lower floor. Could never use it in the bedroom. Other than the squeak, it works great. Will it last a year? Stay tuned!

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Product Description:
Console style whole house evaporative humidifier, contemporary style, full-size performance in a midsize humidifier.Midsize makes this humidifier popular, automatic humidistate maintains optimun humidity level, refill light, automatic shutoff, 12 gallons of output per day, humidifies 2500 sq ft.3-speed fan ,5.0 gal water-holding capacity, easy-fill water bottle with refill hose, Bemis patented super wick, removebale power pack for easy cleaning, ez-roll casters, 24x131/2x22, 22.5lbs. Color-Oak Burl

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Honeywell HCM-800 QuietCare PermaFilter Humidifier Review

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(More customer reviews)After years of replacing cool-mist filters, I wanted to try a humidifier with a so-called permanent filter. The noise is not really any more bothersome than other cool-mist humidifiers on the market. The problem with this product is the filter system. For the first month or so, I was able to keep the filter clean per the product instructions. But then, as with all cool mist humidifiers, the filter accumulates dust from the air intake and other mineral deposits. Unfortunately, it is absoultely impossible to clean the deposits and debris out of the interior wicking of the filter. The manufacturer's instructions say (in fact warn) only to clean the unit using vinegar...well, that method only works for some of the mineral deposits for the first 4 weeks or so. Plus, even with the vinegar method, you can't get the particles washed out of the interior of the filter! So after 3 months, the perma-filter doesn't retain sufficient moisture to effectively humidify the air. You are better off buying a regular cool-mist humidifier with a filter that can be replaced every few months. It will save you time, money and frustration. I have never written a review of any product before but this product is so poor that I felt compelled to do so at this time and warn others not to make the same mistake I made. This is truly one of the worst products I have ever purchased.

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Product Description:
Honeywell HCM-800 QuietCare PermaFilter Cool Moisture Humidifier with Washable Permanent Filter.

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