Low ambient humidity (below 30%) is both uncomfortable and unhealthy it dries out my sinuses, gives me a dry cough, make me more prone to respiratory infections, and it also gives me dermatitis & dander in my beard and scalp (which further exacerbates my cough). For that reason, I prefer to humidify my bedroom in wintertime. Why wintertime and not year round ? Because when the temperature outside drops, it's ability to hold moisture decreases very significantly. Anyway, for optimum comfort, I try to prevent my bedroom's humidity from dropping below 40% ... better still, 45%.
I recently purchased a BCM645.
PROs:
* Digital Hygrometer/Humidistat: This unit has a convenient and easy to read digital LCD display connected to a built-in hygrometer (to detect ambient humidity level), and a hydrostat (that allows you to set a desired minimum humidity for the unit to maintain ... sort of like a dehumidifier only in reverse). The fan can be set to low med or high on manual, or low med or high on automatic; and the target humidity can be set in increments of 1%.
* Humidification Method: This uses the wick (essentially a big filter sponge) + fan method, rather than a mister. The former is superior to the latter, because misters don't fully disperse their water into the air which can cause the floor below it to become damp (and eventually damaged by) settling/condensing mist.
* Quiet: The fan on this is surprisingly quiet.
* Footprint: It's vertical tower design gives this unit a small footprint.
CONS:
* WICKS WITH SHORT LIFESPAN: My model has 2 disposeable wicks. In my case, my first pair has only been in use for less than 2 weeks, and they're already working far less well and are signaling "change", and because they're fragile they can only be partially rinsed they need to be replaced. Supposedly, the 657 has "permanent" wicks which are sturdier and can be reused more times ... I'll look into whether or not my 645 can use the 657's wicks, otherwise it's going to be a big headache and expense constantly replacing them.
* AWKWARD REFILLING: In order to refill the 1.3 gal tank, you must lift the tank out, carry it to a sink, hold it upside down, unscrew the refill/dispensing port, and hold it at an angle under a faucet until it's full ... then you have to clutch it against your chest with one hand while you use the other to turn off the faucet and reapply the fill cap and no, it cant stand upside down on it's own, you MUST hold it during refilling, or it'll fall over and break. IMO, this is needlessly awkward, and if your sink lacks a deep basin equipped with a high-top faucet, you have to clutch the thing to your chest with one arm while ladling in water with the other. Two very simple design improvements would solve this problem: (1) recess the dispensing port (located on the bottom of the tank), so that when the tank is lifted out of the base, it can be stood upright on a counter without opening the dispenser valve on the bottom that'd allow hands-free refilling; obviously the number (2) improvement would then be to relocate the refill port from the bottom of the unit to the top. With both improvements, you could then carry the tank to a sink, put it down where ever's convenient, and refill it ... no need to cradle it like a baby, or lift/support anything heavy. Doing that would also enable the manufacturer to increase the tank capacity (and runtime) and improve ergonomics (especially for older users, children, and amputees) at the same time.
* LACKS A TANK EMPTY SENSOR. Because this model lacks a tank-empty sensor, and because the hydrostat only cycles off the unit when the desired humidity level is reached, this unit FAILS to shut off if the tank runs out when the ambient humidity is below the set point. That's poor design and a waste of power. The manufacturer needs to add a tank empty sensor, and integrate it with the humidistat.
* CAPACITY: The manufacturer overstates this unit's capacity, claiming it can handle a 700sq foot room. It works well in small and mid-sized rooms, but to be realistic, you'd need 2-3 of these units to handle 700 sq feet on a really dry day. Also, 1.3 gals sounds like a lot, but on a really dry day (humidity% in the low/mid 20's), it'll exhaust that in under 10 hours, and because humid air sinks and dry air rises, you'd better keep the door of the room closed or it'll struggle to humidify the entire floor of your house, rather than just the one room you put it in.
* SPEED: This unit would benefit from a slightly larger wick, because on a really dry day, even in a 250 sq ft room, it has trouble maintaining 40% if the door is even a little bit ajar, or if the room is slightly drafty. Having a larger wick would also help to reduce the frequency it must be cleaned. I'm not looking forward to having to dismantle this unit weekly (to clean the wick and chamber), much less daily (as the manual suggests).
* Lacks UV: It'd be nice if the unit had a small UV bulb to kill bacteria in its evaporation reservoir.
Bottom line: Not recommended. I like the digital readout and controls, but this unit has too many ergonomic problems to recommend it definitely look for the models that list reusable wick/filters. I got the wrong one ... don't make the same mistake.
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TIPS REGARDING WICKS:
* PRICE This unit uses 2 sponge/wicks. The BWF-100 and HWF-100 are identical and interchangeble when buying replacements, grab whichever brand is cheaper. I've seen prices for a 3pack (3 pairs of wicks) range from $5 to $16.
* RINSING: These wicks are rather fragile resist the urge to wring them out when rinsing them, or you'll damage them. Instead, fill a sink with body-temperature water, let them soak for 5-10 mins (to let the deposits soften & par-dissolve), then gently press them flat (while submerged) 2-3 times. Then drain them (dont wring them) and reinstall. That should extend their performance by a few more days. Each subsequent rinse will yeild only half the benefit though. Evdentually, as the weave loses integrity, and deposits build, they'll just stop wicking and only get wet at the bottom, and they'll stay dry, shriveled and discolored up top.
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THIS IS GOT TO BE THE WORST DESIGH OF A HUMIDIFIER ON THE MARKET. FILLING IT IS BY FAR THE BIGGEST PROBLEM OTHER THAN TRYING TO FIND A REPLACEMENT TANK. I'M TRYING TO ORDER MY 3RD ONE AND NO ONE SEEMS TO HAVE ANY. HMMMM! I WONDER WHY......
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I followed the instructions to the letter, filling the reservoir with cool water, not warm. Filling the reservoir is easy.
When I put the reservoir into the housing, some of the water emptied into the base, as it is supposed to do. But it never stopped. The water started flowing out of the unit onto the floor, and didn't stop until I pulled out the reservoir.
I checked everything, over and over. I checked the instructions for troubleshooting, but this problem was not addressed. There were no cracks in the unit that I could see.
Maybe I just got a bad one, but I'm not willing to give this model another chance. I'm going to get something different.
Honest reviews on Bionaire BCM645-U Digital Cool Mist Humidifier
It seemed like this product was never able to get enough humidity in the room and was always running. Also, it isn't the best to fill. Your only option is the bathtub and when I went to fill it and tried to stand it under the faucet it slipped and cracked. I can't find a replacement reservoir and now the whole thing is is worthless. On a positive not it looks good!
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I have two complaints about the unit. The reservoir IS very awkward to fill and after a week I dropped it in the kitchen sink and cracked it. Fortunately the crack was superficial and it did not cause the reservoir to leak. Your best bet is to bear hug the thing as you fill it and hope you don't get water all over yourself in the process.
The second complaint is the hygrometer that displays the relative humidity. The hygrometer measures substantially lower while the unit is running then when the unit is not running. As such, when the unit finally reaches your desired humidity it will shut off as it should. But then because the humidity shoots up, it won't turn on again for quite a while. I have witnessed a 10% difference between the humidity reported when the unit is running and when it is not. Obviously there is a flaw in the placement of the hygrometer.
Since I use the humidifier intermittently I don't consider either of these issues major, hence 3 stars.
