Lasko Replacement Filter THF 8 for Lasko Humidifier Review

Customer Ratings:

These filters hold up well...well enough that I just replace it once a year. I toss the old one when I put it away in the spring and start with a fresh one in the fall. I'm not sure why, but they are much cheaper ($4.50 + a few dollars s/h depending on quantity) through the Lasko's online store at than Amazon's current price of $20.22.

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Reviews of The Protégé 25-50 Cigar Glasstop Humidor

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List Price: $52.49
Sale Price: $34.72
Today's Bonus: 34% Off

I gave this humidor as a gift, and he loved it. The quality is nice, the glass cover is an attractive element, but the hydrometer does not work.

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This is my first humidor. As far as appearance, it looks great, nice and elegant. The wood smells great and looks like good quality. I'm having a hard time seasoning it but that could just be due to inexperience. Overall it's a good first humidor buy.

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The box itself is very nice but like other reviews I agree the hrygrometer does not work. Still overall it is not a bad price for what you get.

Honest reviews on The Protégé 25-50 Cigar Glasstop Humidor

this item is great and it looks great. However the problem about the hygrometer is not the problem like most are saying in this review. The main problem i have solved is that the crystal humidifier that it comes with is not good enough for the humidore. You need another humidifier in inside it to get optimum humidity. I added the gel humidifier inside with the one it came with and by the next day when i checked it it had exactly 70% humidity on the hygrometer.

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I bought this product and its looks great. The outer finish is clean and elegant. However, the hygrometer didn't worked. I solved the problem very instantly because i purchased a digital hygrometer with the order. I just placed it in and that was it. I reached my humidity level, now all that's left is smoking one to see the results.

I strongly suggest you buy a digital hygromter with most of your humidors.

Cheap Oasis XL Electronic Humidifier

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The oasis is simple to use and a great value for the price. this is my fourth one four humidors because i like the product and not because they have failed me.

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Buy Aprilaire Humidifier, 24V Whole House Humidifier w/ Auto Digital

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List Price: $275.00
Sale Price: $166.95
Today's Bonus: 39% Off

This is my 3rd Aprilaire 600 and they were all worth every penny. (The 600 used to be called the 600A, now both are automatic and the 600's electronics are slightly updated.) The 600 can be switched to manual mode, if desired.

My first unit was in my last house and was run for 2 years with no issues, then we moved. I just installed 2 in my current house (since I have 2 furnaces, 1 for each floor). I set it to humidity level #5 out of 7, which sets the relative humidity to 35% when the outdoor temperature is about 20 degrees F (details in the manual). The unit automatically turns on when the furnace is running and there is a call for more humidity. The unit can turn on your furnace blower in order to add humidity even when the furnace is not running, but I didn't want that option, so I didn't wire it in. If you do wire it in, there is a switch on the control unit so that you can turn it on or off.

Pros

* It's automatic and comes with an outdoor temperature sensor. This allows the unit to automatically adjust the humidity level so that you don't get condensation on your windows (condensation and the associated mold growth are why some home inspectors do not recommend humidifiers.)

* For us, it reduces nose bleeds and sinus infections.

* No standing water for mold to grow in. No individual room units to clean and refill.

* Works great, turn it on as the weather starts to get cold (also turn on the water to it and turn the lever to open the built in damper) and turn it off as the weather warms up.

* Low maintenance: Replace the water panel 1 time per year

* Low repair costs: There's no fan or extraneous parts. The only moving part is the valve that turns on and off the water. The value is quick and cheap to replace if it ever builds up enough sediment or mineralization to impede function.

* Low upkeep: The manual says to replace the water distribution tray and valve solenoid every ~5 years. All the parts are easy to access and relatively cheap. After 2 years my original water distribution tray showed no wear and I don't think it will really need to be replaced.

* Integrates with the electrical power in your furnace, so there's no extra wiring (assuming your furnace is new enough to have the jumpers.)

* Completely silent.

* Uses almost no electricity

* I did not notice a decrease in air flow coming out of vents throughout the house.

* Easy to install if you are handy. Our local Heating guys charge about $450 to install these and it only takes them 2 hours. I did it myself in about 4-6 hours. All the tools you really need are sheet metal snips, a good drill to put in sheet metal screws, a wrench for tightening plumbing connections, wire strippers, and ideally a 3/4" metal drill bit to install the electronic control. Installation instructions are included in the box, including wiring instructions. The instructions aren't idiot proof, but they're easy to follow for a handy person.

Cons

* Some water is wasted as unevaporated water does drain out the bottom. While I don't want water wasted, I actually think this is a preferable design. I don't want to waste electricity heating the water to create steam and I don't want a tray of standing water for mold or bacteria to grow in (the 400 model has a tray of standing water and no drain, but is otherwise the same as the 600.) I haven't noticed a change in my water bill since installing these units.

* A drain is required. I directed mine into my air conditioner's condensation drain which feeds to the sump pump. No problem. It it's a problem for you, try the 400 model.

Function

The unit works by taking air that has been heated by your furnace and passes it through a panel that has a small amount of water running across it. The water panel looks a bit like a radiator. The water on the panel evaporates into the hot air and gets distributed through your existing ductwork. That's it, nothing fancy. Note that, just like any humidifier, the unit is more efficient if you connect it to hot water rather than cold.

If you decide to install it yourself and go against the recommendation to have a professional do it, you'll also need the following:

#8 sheet metal screws

1/4" copper water line

1/2" ID clear vinyl tubing for drain

Clamp to attach the vinyl drain tubing to the humidifier

Small wire nuts

6" start collar for bypass connection

6" 90 degree elbow(s) for bypass connection

6" pipe for bypass connection

18-2 thermostat wire (a few feet of 18-5 may be helpful to go between the humidifier and your furnace, but 18-2 will work there as well)

Depending on your furnace, 2 quick disconnect electrical plugs may be needed to connect the included transformer to your furnace's power.

If furnace circuit board does not include humidifier accessory terminals an Aprilaire #50 Current Sensing Relay will be needed.

Optional Duct tape (don't use fabric tape, UL rated foil backed tape will last much longer and won't burn) or mastic will improve heating efficiency.

Optional you may want to feed the vinyl drain tubing inside a 3/4" PVC drain to make sure if doesn't get damaged or knocked out of your drain.

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Aprilaire Model 600 Automatic Whole-house Bypass Humidifier with Digital ControlThis is a highly sophisticated humidifier. I consider myself to be a fairly handy homeowner but after receiving the item and reading the directions I opted to pay a professional for the install. I am glad that I did. I had estimates in my area to do the install between $250 and $350 over the cost of the unit.

Everything on this unit is automatic. A hard wire runs outside of the house to monitor the outside air temperature.

The only question that I had before I bought the unit was weather the 3 gallons per hour of water ran 24/7 or not. The answer is that it does not. A solenoid only lets the water run when the unit needs to add humidity.

I am more satisfied with this product than I expected to be.

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It's a great product and it works extremely well when set to full automatic. The outdoor temperature sensor needs to be installed for automatic mode for proper relative humidity and to avoid window condensation. Yeah it takes some time to install it properly but well worth it. When it's set to automatic it will actually kick on your blower periodically even without a call for heat to get an accurate check of the humidity levels and stay on if they are low. The automatic mode helps tremendously after the heat runs and it needs to stay on for a bit to keep the levels accurate. I also found this setup to be useful in reducing cold spots in the house and to help maintain even temperatures kind of like a 2-stage furnace would. With a flip of a switch it can be set to manual and will only run if there is a call for heat and humidity is required. If you're going to spend the time to install one of these, I wouldn't settle for a unit that is not automatic. The 24vac transformer that was sent with the unit was pretty cheap; I tried to loosen one of the terminals and it broke the lead. Not worth a phone call so I just picked up one at the hardware store for $13. If you plan on using this for automatic purposes, then the transformer should be powered with constant power. I ran power down from the furnace power switch to the blower compartment where I mounted the transformer. That's also nice because when you shut down the furnace via the switch it also shuts down the humidifier and adds protection with the onboard furnace fuse. You will want to wire the transformer at the switch and not from any wires or furnace electronics after the switch (excluding a designed HUM accessory power lead). Like many others my furnace's Honeywell circuit board is equipped with a HUM accessory power lead and on my unit it is 120V so don't think you can bypass the use of a transformer if that's the case. But if your board is similar to mine the HUM power lead will only work if you plan on using it in manual mode as it's only powered when there is a call for heat; it is not powered when there is only a call for the blower or no call at all. Obviously the unit will be more efficient when supplied with heated air; as will be the case most of the time. But there are several studies that show a sufficient amount of humidity will be applied by just the blower moving ambient air through the unit. The manual does state that when set to automatic mode then the unit should be supplied with hot water and in general that is a good practice for the MOST efficient way to evaporate water and help keep the impurities from building up over time. But I couldn't justify the usage of energy that it takes to make that water hot and watch it go down the drain. Some studies show that the benefit is insignificant in supplying hot water over cold water. It's going to be up to you but I couldn't do it and the unit still works very well when supplied with cold water. Hope this helps some of you out in the decision process and I posted a few pictures of the install.

Honest reviews on Aprilaire Humidifier, 24V Whole House Humidifier w/ Auto Digital

So like others mentioned... the install guide(s) are a bit crude. Install took me just over 3hrs to do. I piggy backed of the 24v supply already there for the furnace. Used the hot water line for best performance. The tough spots were tin snipping the openings (now i have increadible grip strength) and fitting the 6" flex duct hose (must be a trick to it i don't know) to the unit and the flange. Make sure your sheet metal screws are long enough as mounting holes on the unit are raised. I used an earlier review which had a check list of supplies needed for this project and for once didn't have to make two trips to the hardware store (thanks!).

Some tips: To get the unit to work without the temp sensor in place make sure you select manual on the Digital controller (otherwise water won't flow and error message will show). Make sure you get enough wire (@ $.23 a foot better to have extra then to waste gas and time going back). Finally make sure you are at least 6" upstream from your unit with the Control mounting otherwise you will get higher moisture readings.

I was able to turn down the temp in the house 2 degrees and still felt it was too hot in the house (2,500sqft). I am sure i will be getting returns on this for a long time not to mention how pleasant the house feels.

Aprilaire Model 600 Automatic Whole-house Bypass Humidifier with Digital Control

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The humidity hasn't been low enough yet to actually run this yet so I can't comment on its effectiveness (will update review later). However, installation was fairly easy if you are somewhat handy. Wiring in to furnace was a breeze with included wiring diagram. I mounted the 24VAC transformer in a junction box on the side of the furnace. I installed the unit on the cold air return due to concerns raised in other reviews about water dripping down in to the furnace. I opted to not use the saddle valve and chop my hot water pipe and solder in a T with a ball valve instead (not a fan of saddle valves).

Cheap 30 Pt. Dehumidifier

Customer Ratings:

Noisy but works great!

Small, portable, efficient, but way too noisy.

Dry air only goes straight up, needs an adjustable deflector to keep air circulating.

Good drain hose included.

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BestAir A35W Aprilaire 35 Paper Wickl Waterpad Reviews

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This BestAir pad solved a problem that was making me an unhappy Aprilaire user.

My Aprilaire system could not keep up with my home's humidity needs, but it sure did run through the hot water. With this pad, there's much more moisture transfer to the air supply. Now instead of most of the hot water going down the drain, it goes into the air (where I want it to go).

I won't even buy the standard water pad anymore. This BestAir version is the only one I will buy. In fact, if somebody gave me a stack of standard pads I would throw those away and still buy this one. The savings in hot water cost alone would justify that. With the BestAir, I get the increased comfort I am really after.

I have verified the huge performance increase by using humidity meters. Of course, the numbers vary with the amount of heating required. But here's an example of a sort of side by side test I ran in 2010. The outside temperature was consistently around zero degrees for several days (with the forecast, I saw this coming so decided to run tests).

I have a Trane heat pump system, with variable speed blower to provide a constant (but minimal) flow of air when heat or AC isn't running. This constant flow means my Aprilaire is always running also (I removed Aprilaire's original controls, which essentially render the system pointless, and installed my own system and yes I am an engineer with a significant controls background).

With the standard pad, the humidity dropped to 37%. That is well below the recommended minimum. Even the morning warmup furnace blast, which gives you the best humidification with this system, couldn't nudge it much past 40.

I changed to the BestAir before going to bed, noting a humidity of 38%. I got up just before the furnace kicked on and the humidity was at 41%. After the initial warmup blast, the humidity was 45%. It dropped back to 42% under normal low demand.

Then I reversed the situation by installing the standard pad, and the previous condition resumed. I already knew how the standard pad ran from previous, pre-test conditions of the previous couple of years. And that's what I got upon going back to it. So then I reversed again, and again got the better results with the BestAir. Even over several days, these results were consistent.

Then it warmed up outside, and the humidity hit 47%. I put the old pad back in, and the humidity slowly dropped to 39%. Changed pads, and it went up again.

I use supplemental humidifiers to get the humidity up to 48% to 52% (50% is recommended), but can stay above the low-H danger zone using just the Aprilaire but only if it has this BestAir pad installed.

If you have an Aprilaire system, this BestAir pad is the only one you should be using.

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I have a larger house, but built in 2008 so I expected humidity to never be an issue. However, my house really struggled with the Michigan winters. After replacing my usual wire mesh drip filter with this paper pad style, I'm better able to maintain a 30% humidity level. Before I was having problems keeping it at 20%!

It does say to change them more often, so we'll see. But they are around the same price as the mesh so really it's not that bad.

If you need more humidity, try these before you spend more money on alternatives!

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The BestAir box states, "For best performance, change at least twice per season, maybe more depending on water conditions and frequency of use." In my case, this pad failed badly, decomposing and gathering algae/mildew within 3 months of heavy mid-winter use in a heat pump system that runs frequently. I've placed two photos of failed pad in the user photos section here. I think that when it was working properly, the paper panel increased humidification over the all metal panel, but it has a very short lifespan compared to the 1 year recommended change interval for the metal panel (see Aprilaire website). I would not recommend this pad for heat pump systems, since they run much more frequently than a gas/oil system. This pad may be a good upgrade for a fossil fuel-based system, but make sure to check and change it frequently.

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The whole point of a humidifier is to add water to the air. The regular metal mesh media pads just don't work as well as these paper media ones. Sure, you need to replace them 2-3x/season .. but a ton less water will go down the drain, unused.

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The only difference i noticed was the extra few bucks missing out of my pocket!! Made no significant changes in the house. Also lasts less then the original pads. Not worth it in my eyes!!

Discount Cigar Oasis XL Plus Electronic Humidifier Refill Water Cartridge

Customer Ratings:

I have owned an Oasis XL for over a year and am on the third cartridge, I like the product it works perfectly!

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As advertised, my cartridges old cartridges needed replacing, this work perfectly. Humidity, has improved over the old cartridges. Highly recommend.

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I have had the Cigar Oasis humidifier in my guitar cabinet and wanted a replacement. The foam in the original unit started to get moldy (from the constant moisture) despite using distilled water. I figure I'll have to replace it every 6 months or so and this was the exact replacement part, so it fits perfectly.

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This might do better in a balanced atmosphere but here in AK it runs empty in about a week and one half. I use this with my 300 cigar capacity end table humidor.

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I am replacing my old cartridge that is at least 4 years old. I have a large humidor and it has been working flawlessly for years. It well exceeded the manufacturers replacement recommendation.

Sunbeam 702 Ultrasonic Baby Nursery Humidifier Medium / Large Room Review

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I've always had the "filter" himidifiers, and they are just so aggrivating to clean and plus the money it takes to replace those filters every 30 days! this humidifier has been such a breath of fresh air! No filters to mess with, just rinse with bleach once a week and your done!!! Plus, it has a night light feature, which is so nice for your little ones room! They can still see the fish while their going to sleep. I would highly recommend this to anyone!

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Edited: Review was 5 stars originally, but unit died right after I posted review. It held up for 2 seasons, about 6 months total use, then died.

original review:

Because it's cool mist, you need a DC-51 demineralization filter/cartridge, and it will fit if you seat it properly. Also recommend a ProTec Humidifier Tank Cleaning Cartridge (drop-in). Both are available here on Amazon or at many drugstores and large discount stores. 1 set lasts me a season.

We have very hard water, and without the DC-51 installed, the humidifier did throw white dust everywhere, as all cool mist humidifiers do.

Maintenance is really easy, all we've done is run it until completely dry at the end of the season.

If you leave it wet, it will get musty smelling. Any calcium/lime buildup can be removed with a bit of vinegar on a rag. Mine needs a wipe right now as I didn't replace the filter early this season and it got overloaded.

Buy La Crosse Technology WS-9630U-IT Wireless Forecast Station

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List Price: $54.95
Sale Price: $42.99
Today's Bonus: 22% Off

This is the first wireless weather station that we've found to read through steel siding. We tried 2 others with no luck. This is a great product and we love Oscar. Even my husband looks to see what he is wearing or if he's carrying an umbrella.

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This is a fairly accurate weather Station. It is the second one of the same brand and model that I have purchased. The first one worked well for about 2 years before the sensor began malfunctioning and began requiring a change of batteries every 2 weeks. For the price it is a decent La Crosse Technology The Weather Channel WS-9630TWC-IT Wireless Forecast Station with Advanced Iconweather station.

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I got this for my mother and installed the sensor for her. I put the sensor in a relatively shaded area on a tree just outside her house. It was easy to put up, came with 2 screws.

She says she puts the main unit in whatever room she wants to and gets a reading from out side. She also likes the humidity reading for inside. Highly recommended.

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I love the the graphics that gives you a clue what kind of clothing you need for the day. The Weather Man (who most people call Oscar) changes his clothes depending on the temperature outside. He will start to wear long sleeves when temperature goes down to 66 degrees F. At 50 degrees Fahrenheit he will wear a hat and a coat. When it supposed to rain, you will see him holding an umbrella.

I got this unit from Woot, another online discount retailer owned by Amazon. Opening the package is such a pill though. I muttered a few words that I haven't used for a long long time. I almost got poked by the sharp plastic trying to pry it apart. There are two units in the package, an indoor unit where it has the large LCD panel, and the outdoor unit that you attach outside to monitor the outside temperature. Both units requires two double As batteries not included. You will need to follow a pattern when putting the batteries. First put the batteries on the smaller stick that you will place outside the house. Then put the batteries on the main unit. In about several seconds to a minute, you will see the temperature on the LCD screen appear on top. This tells you that the wireless is functioning right. If not, repeat the process of putting the batteries. Make sure to have both units close to each other during the wireless synching. After it synched, you can now place it outside anywhere you like as long as you don't place it too far. 300 ft. is the max according to the label.

It also shows humidity, date and time. The weather tendency indicator, shown with an arrow inside a rectangle on the upper left of Oscar, tells whether the air pressure is going up or down. Going up means the weather is expected to improve.

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Picked this up for Christmas. So far it is working fine, even down to 29.7 degrees BELOW zero Fahrenheit. It did lose the connection with the outdoor wireless sensor one time, but a quick battery removal/replace of the main unit reestablished connection. I would buy it again.