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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
121 of 122 found the following review helpful:
 Well-Built Ultrasonic Humidifier. But for Small Rooms Only. Feb 09, 2007
By mirasreviews
The Germ Guardian H-2000 is the best ultrasonic humidifier I've seen in a decade. But that only means that it works. The humidifier is well-crafted but thoughtlessly designed. I was pleased with a couple of ultrasonics that I had years ago. When their motors eventually died and I needed replacements, I found that ultrasonic humidifiers had all but disappeared from the market by the mid-1990s. So I bought evaporative humidifiers instead. The trouble with evaporatives is that they require a wick, which molds easily and pervasively and must be replaced at least every two weeks. That's expensive. It costs me $150 per year to run each of my evaporative humidifiers. I'd rather have ultrasonics, which are less prone to mold, less expensive to operate, and quieter. When ultrasonic humidifiers reappeared on the market a few years ago, I bought some....and returned them all. They broke within weeks and left puddles on the floor.
This brings me to the Germ Guardian H-2000. If you want an ultrasonic humidifier that isn't fit for the trash, you have to pay more than $100. This H-2000 seems to be well-made. Happily, you can set it directly on the floor if you like. I have run it for days sitting on hardwood, and the floor is not even damp. There are little compartments for storing the power cord and for the air filter. A small brush is provided for cleaning the inside of the unit, though I don't know what use it would be. The humidifier barely makes a sound. The controls are straightforward. You choose cool or warm mist, then turn the humidity dial to the level of output you desire. A blue LED lights when the power is on, and a red LED indicates when the tank needs refilling. I've never had any trouble with white dust from this humidifier.
On the downside, the 1.4 gallon tank has a handle only on top, so it is difficult to balance the tank to fill it from the bottom. It's also rounded on top, so you can't set the tank down to fill it either. Remember the days when all humidifier tanks were flat on both ends and had a handle on each for ease of filling? No more. Usually ultrasonic humidifiers are easy to clean if they should mold, because all the innards are exposed. But the H-2000 has an optional warm mist, so water passes through a concealed channel as it goes from the tank to the vibrating disc, where it is presumably exposed to heating coils. You could run ammonia through the channel to kill mold, but there would be no way to remove slime. The tank is infused with silver nanoparticles to retard microbe growth, but machine's body isn't. Strange, because mold growth in humidifiers never starts in the tank. The on/off knob would benefit from some ridges. It's so smooth that I can't grip it unless my hands are perfectly dry.
The Germ Guardian H-2000 takes 30 hours to empty the 1.4 gallon tank with the humidifier set on its highest output. That's an output of 0.047 gallons of water per hour. My evaporative humidifiers put 0.083 gallons per hour into the air, nearly twice as much. For this reason, the H-2000 is best suited to a small bedroom, placed close to the bed. In the "warm" mode, the water is heated to 80 degrees F. The mist is warm in the base, the column (spout guide), and where it comes out of the spout. But by the time it gets a couple of inches from the machine, the mist is cool. So I see little point in the warm mist feature. If you want an ultrasonic humidifier, I won't try to dissuade you from this one. In spite of its deficiencies, it's the best one I've found in recent years. But it's only suitable for small rooms.
38 of 40 found the following review helpful:
 Good, but not great...... Nov 16, 2007
By Morley Dotes
"morleydotes"
First, let me say that mirasreviews review was extremely accurate. With that said, I give this machine 3 stars because there is no warm mist. As already mentioned, by the time the mist is one inch away from the machine it is cold, so, what's the point? Basically, this is a cold mist machine, and you should know that before you buy it. If you have anything within a foot of the spray, it will get soaked, especially if if you have selected the max setting. The directional spray is pretty good, however, I find it works best if the machine is a couple of feet off of the ground. It does not seem to force the humidified air far enough, so I set it on a table, and that does the trick. So far, we have not had any puddles or leaks of any kind. It is very quiet. Water capacity is good at 1.4 gallons, and does run for a long time if it is not on its maximum setting. We bought this because my daughter has croup and our pediatrician recommended trying a dehumidifier. We bought this one without much recommendation, mostly because the others (evaporative) we had broke. We have not had to give our daughter any of the steroid the doctor had prescribed, and she seems to be getting better (though we also let the steam build up with a hot shower running, and stay with her in there for 10-20 minutes). I do think this machine helps. My main reasons for only three stars are the lack of a true warm mist and the price. Oh, I should also note that it starts right away, no waiting. If I could, I would give it 3.5 stars. Again, I have to agree with another review, this is probably the best out there. I am satisfied (I have not been able to say that about other brands), however, I am not thrilled.
13 of 14 found the following review helpful:
 Greatly disappointed by this overpriced and mediocre humidifier Feb 12, 2009
By East Coast Reader
I have asthma and allergies and have been looking high and low for a humidifier that does not breed mold, as so many of them do. So I splurged on this expensive digital model. I also wanted a reliable humidifier for my toddler's room, in order to prevent wintertime coughs and colds.
Unfortunately, this humidifier is a great disappointment. It does not live up to its claims of being mold-free; quite to the contrary, the long air passage tube grew reddish mold very quickly. Water also inexplicably collects in the bottom white basin. I called the company to resolve the numerous problems with the humidifier, yet they did not give me satisfactory explanations (e.g., they told me that the water collection is normal, yet why should water collect in the basin of the humidifier? Isn't that a prescription for mold growth?) Plus, as a previous poster noted, the screw holding one of the major components quickly rusted. I wish I had not spent so much money on this humidifier. I have returned to using the Vicks Warm Mist humidifier, which I used last winter and really liked, and only costs around $40.
4 of 4 found the following review helpful:
 Easy to clean Jan 06, 2009
By DSE
I like this humidifier because you can get your whole hand into the tank to wipe off any mold that accumulates. My previous humidifier had a tank with a tiny hole, so once mold got in there the whole thing had to be thrown in the garbage.
3 of 3 found the following review helpful:
Humidifies well, but beware of mold on carpeted floors. Apr 08, 2010
By Marxy
"Brett"
I bought this when my wife was very sick, as our old humidifier wasn't doing the job. This thing sure does... perhaps too well.
The first night we used it on 75%, and it felt nice in our room (a small bedroom - about 15' x 15'. However, when we woke up, the floor near it was soaking wet. Fair enough, we thought, we had it too high. Tried again at 50%, still soaking wet. Too close to the ground, maybe? We put it on a table in our room, about 2.5 feet off the ground, and put it at 75%. Still soaked. 50% elevated? Still soaked. 25%? Not quite soaked, but still damp, and the humidity in the room was noticeably less than before. At that point, there is little point to even having it on, as it was not putting out enough humidity to get the job done without absolutely soaking the floor. After 7 days of that we decided to discontinue use for the time being. That's when we noticed the smell...
Our carpet had begun to mold where it was getting soaked. We had to rent a professional carpet shampooer to get rid of the mold and the smell.
So beware if you plan on using this in a carpeted room, but it does do a very good job at humidifying... perhaps too good?
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