Air-O-Swiss AOS 7146 Travel Ultrasonic Humidifier - Cool Mist Review

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List Price: $49.99
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PROs: operates very quietly and very compact great for travel and personal use by bedside at home. Bottle neck adapter has two (2) size fittings for use with standard plastic bottle. Adapter is very tight inside bottle's neck so water does not leak out. When turned upside down, metal ball stopper is water tight. Fold out 'feet' to mitigate tipping though it may not be sufficient to prevent tipping with larger bottles eg: one liter bottles. Has variable humidity adjustment which works reasonably well too.

CONs: bottle neck adapter fits into inside of bottle mouth it is not a 'screw on' adapter. A positive about this is that it'll work with standard sized bottles (supports two sizes) however removal and insertion of adapter into bottle neck is VERY tight. Some plastic bottles are very thin walled. Press fitting the adapter can be problematic as bottle's wall may collapse from applied pressure during insertion. Therefore thicker walled plastic is recommended esp. if/when larger bottle is being used. Seniors with limited hand mobility may also find it difficult to manipulate due to tight fit. NOTE: though unit comes with stabilizing pullout feet, filled bottle is simply inserted into receptor there is nothing to 'clamp' adapter and bottle to hold it in place ergo care should be taken as bottle can be knocked off unit easily. The water tight adapter will prevent the water escaping from the bottle however weight from falling bottle can/might cause damage to surrounding objects.

WARNing: Due to relative ease with which unit might tip, use of glass bottle is not recommended. Use in child's room may also not be recommended.

SUM: at price point and intended use, pros out weigh cons and therefore worthwhile purchase. Had adapter come with rubber 'O' rings for easier insertion and if adapter could have been clamped in more securely, it would have deserved 5 stars. CONs however only earns it 4 stars IMHO.

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This unit is the original travel/portable humidifier. I shopped around and looked at the several imitators, but decided to go with the Air-O-Swiss name/reputation that I know and love.

This unit is tiny, and comes with a power adapter with both US and European plugs and a soft cloth carry bag.

I use it at McMurdo Station, Antarctica where the average humidity is in the single digits. It puts out less water than my full-size Air-O-Swiss unit at home, but a remarkable amount for a unit this size.

The blue light that others have complained about is fairly bright as most blue LEDs are but it's no brighter than most night-lights, and hasn't bothered my sleep. The blue light switches to a red light when the water runs out... kind of a nice heads-up feature if you don't have the output set high enough to see the "steam" coming from the spout.

Overall, I wouldn't hesitate to make this purchase again, and I'd replace this unit with the same if needed (unless or until Air-O-Swiss comes out with their own new replacement/upgrade). There are a couple other copies that are less expensive, but I haven't tried them I went with the quality/service that I trusted at the cost of the higher price tag.

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This review is for the Air-O-Swiss Portable Travel Humdifier (7146).

I bought this unit to help when I travel as I often have troubles with overly dry air. The unit comes with a nice felt carry bag, the nebulizer, the power supply, cleaning brush, and bottle adapter, all of which easily fit in the bag.

I have tried this unit out a few times, and it works well, but, you have to remember that it is a very small unit, and will not turn a large room into a steamy sauna. It is however enough to make a regular sized (300-400 sq foot) hotel room or office comfortable and "take the edge off." It will do about 500 mls in roughly 4-5 hours of time on full output.

It is very quiet, with more noise being made by the occasionaly "burp" of air into the bottle (kind of like a mini water dispenser) than anything else. The mist output is very fine, and evaporates rapidly into the air without leaving a soggy mess beneath it, (though I still wouldn't place it on any important papers).

Assembly is easy, plug the wall wart in to your power source, and then into the back of the unit and flip the legs out on the bottom. Get a small 500ml (17-20oz) water bottle, fill it with water, firmly push/twist the adapter into the open top, and then gently invert onto the unit, flip open the mist output, and turn it on. The output control knob is on the same side as the power cord, which is opposite the mist output.

There's no latches or anything to hold the bottle in place so make sure the unit is on something flat and stable. The adapter has a steel ball valve in it to keep the water from rushing out uncontrolled, but still allow it to "burp" as the unit needs more water.

The only thing I did not like about the unit was that while on it has a *very* bright blue LED on it that lights up the mist output to show you it's working. Unfortunately it lights up the room as well. If you're sensitive to such things, it may make it difficult to sleep as it is really bright, however some black electrical tape or a sharpie could easily fix that issue. The LED will turn red when the unit is out of water, and of course the output will cease.

Pros: Small, relatively lightweight, quiet, very fine mist output.

Cons: Bright LED lighting.

Edit: May 2011

Just came back from a long weekend in Las Vegas where it was very windy and dry. I had set up the unit to run while I was out of the hotel room, and when I came back I could easily notice the humidity in the room when walked in a few hours later. Again, not a steamy sauna, but definitely a noticeable difference from the dry desert air and the air-conditioned casino air. It's currently in my office at work in SD where we are having a very dry and windy few days, and the small hygrometer I have in my office shows about a 10% increase (from ~35% to ~45%) from when I turned it on a couple of hours ago.

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After my government issued ID and money, this amazing gadget is the third key thing I would take on a trip to a dry place. After three miserable trips to Phoenix where my eyes were dry and red and I felt tired and miserable, I brought this portable humidifier for the fourth trip (in as many months). What a difference it makes to sleep with the thing lacing the air with balmy droplets of water. I wish I had had it on other trips to other arid places (including, incidentally, Beijing), but also the many arid places in the Middle East, such as Riyadh. I also plan on taking it to any place cold enough to require forced air heating in winter. I really like shoes, but will leave a pair behind to accommodate this humidifier in my usual complement of carry-on baggage. It's that good!

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I bought this for travel about a year ago, but find that I use it at home as well despite having 3 full-size humidifers I could use instead.

I have two full size air-o-swiss ultrasonic humidifiers and a vicks ultrasonic at home. However, this unit is so easy to use and takes up such a tiny bit of space that I have been using it at home as well as traveling. My other big units are just collecting dust in the garage now.

Part of the beauty of this unit is how easy it is to fill you just use one of your empty water bottles. No big heavy container to lug to the sink and hope you don't spill on the way back. In addition, it is super easy to keep clean because it is so tiny. you just need to brush the small chamber where the ultrasonic membrane is located and it comes with a little cleaning brush. The large humidifiers have so many nooks and crannies that they're a real pain to keep clean. Even those with the ionic silver that supposedly retards microbe growth still get gross inside.

I highly recommend this as both a night time at home and travel humidifier. If you live somewhere dry and need a humidifier 24/7,then perhaps it's not the right one for you. But for intermittant use it is perfect!

NOTE: I first tried the similar unit by sunpentown and it had very poor performance so I returned it for this one. Perhaps I just had a bad unit, but based on that experience I cannot recommend the sunpentown unit despite the similar look and size to this one.Sunpentown SU-1051W Travel-Size Personal Humidifier, White

Cool Mist Nursery Humidifier - Pig Reviews

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This is a cute humidifier. I have found that it preforms well. I have not had any problems with it and I run it constantly. It has to be completely cleaned (top and bottom) two or three times a week to keep ot from smelling musty, but that is to be expected. I recommend it to anyone.

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This thing buzzes like you wouldn't believe. So it was OUT as a solution for my daughter's bedroom. The plastic is cheap and brittle, and it came dirty. It doesn't even create a good mist.

Did I mention that in the photo, it looks purple, but it came pink? My daughter wanted purple. So even that little detail was wrong.

Horrible all-round.

When I tried to contact their customer service for a refund, I was ignored, and continue to be ignored (not amazon, another company). A complete waste of $ and will never buy from this merchant again.

I wish it were possible to give 0 stars.

Buy XtemePower 1500W Quartz Infrared Heater Humidifier Plasma Inverter

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I have three brands of these types of heater. I like this unit best for heat plus the purifier and humidifier are a bonus. Only negative is that it is somewhat noisy. Problem would be solved if had wood case, not metal, as do my other brands.

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This product works exactly as described. I have the unit in a 500 sf +/area and it barely runs even while it is -0 outside. The humidifier is easy to fill and there is a noticeable diference in the air quality when the purifier is running.

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Ive had this xtreme heater for a few weeks now and ever since I got it, we havent ran the oil heat at all. Heats most of the house in no time. Can tell a difference in air quality from air purifier. I haven't noticed it being noisy at all it very quiet I thought. For the price, it's really a great product.

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Very good choice with several features not found on other brands. Excellent choice for the the same/less money.

Only disappointment was noise level which is acceptable but louder than wooden models, and the "Quiet Mode" does drop sound level to about the same.

To me, the sound level was no reason not to buy.

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This heater arrived in record time, works well and you can use tap water for the humidifier! The fan is a bit noisy but has a quiet setting that reduces the noise. Worth the price.

Vornado HU1-0012-11 Standard 2.8 Gallon Vortex Humidifier Review

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I've come to trust the Vornado brand, so I had no qualms about purchasing this humidifier. I generally keep it on the "low" setting and it is more than adequate for humidifying my bedroom. However, as others have noted when water is being fed into the main unit, it is loud. I can't say I've been woken up by it, but more than once I've been laying (awake) in bed and have been startled by it. The cat has become accustomed to it though. The filters do start turning brown relatively quickly, but I've not had any problems continuing to use them. The manual suggests you empty everything out if you're not going to use the humidifier for 12 hours, but I only use it at night and am too lazy to empty it out every single morning. Initially I was also concerned that the construction seemed a little flimsy, but I haven't had any problems. I would make sure to put it somewhere where it won't get bumped into though. Despite the "quirks", I would still recommend this product.

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We have tried just about every style and brand of humidifier, trying to find one that is NOT a giant hassle to maintain and is quiet enough that it doesn't keep me awake all night. To make a long story short, the Vortex evaporative humidifiers are the best. They are perfect for the humidity boost we need in winter.

The highest speed does sound like a small box fan, but we just turn the fan speed to the "low" setting at night, which makes it virtually silent. The Vortex does make a "glug" sound (3-6 glugs in a row, in my experience) when water from the bottle(s) periodically discharges (a couple times each night?) into the bottom of the unit. However, I found that my husband and I quickly got used to this. I can tolerate and sleep through this sound MUCH better than the continuous and louder giant-pot-of-boiling-pasta noise made by other humidifiers.

No doubt, how much cleaning and wick replacement you need to do depends on your water quality. I'm on municipal water, which I assume is about average, and my wicks last for at least 2 months of continuous operation. I occasionally use the wick life extension method of soaking them in water with 2 tsp of vinegar, but I don't think it helps all that much. The filters are easy to find and not terribly expensive. There is no complicated disassembly involved to clean the unit and change the wicks, since you just lift off the top and wipe out the base. I do this once a season, no problems. The accumulation of mineral deposits that need to be scraped and scrubbed off is WAY LESS than we had with any of the other humidifiers we tried. That is, we have NO scraping and scrubbing whatsoever with these units.

Trying to find a solution, we went so far as to have a built-in humidifier installed with our HVAC system (forced air). That system boosted the humidity 2% max, wasted water, and had an expensive filter/wick that was painful to change. Just TWO strategically placed Vortex humidifiers do an excellent job of humidifying for less money and hassle. We've had the built-in system deactivated for years now, relying only on the Vortexes ... or "Vortices", if you are a nerd such as myself. (-:

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Pros:

If you want to humidify a small to medium-sized room quietly and efficiently this is definitely the humidifier for you! I have owned other brands of humidifiers that are as loud or louder on their low speeds then the Vornado is at high speed. I found there to be No Loud Gurgling Sound from this humidifier when filling itself from the water tank. With the fan set on medium you can barley hear it & it does a fantastic job of maintaining a very comfotable humidity level.

Cons:

Removing the water tank from the humidifier is a bit awkward. Instead of placing a handle at the top of the tank (which would be easy to grab) the manufacturer opted to only put a slight bump there. You have to be careful carrying & then loading the water tank into the humidifier if it is filled to capacity; or else you might spill water all over the place. The control knob is hard to grab & turn. Anyone that has difficulty using their hands will find this feature very hard to deal with.

Over all the humidifier does what it is meant to do very well & very quietly. The problems are design flaws that Vornado can easily fix on future models if they so choose to do. I would not hesitate to recommend this humidifier to other people. Filter life is about 60 days.

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Okay, this humidifier is good as all previous reviewer said. But one thing is deceptive about this humidifier. Manufacture claim that filter will sustain its use during 60 to 90 days. How come? I had my filter for 15 days and it begin to smell a little. Of course, you can use some water treatment solutions with your water and I guess this will prolong life of your humidifier to say 25 days. But I wouldn't imagine it last for more than 30 days. Of course, everyone has different water in their home, but it seems to me Manufacture used totally distilled without any impurities or mineral content water, in order, to claim one filter to work for a such long time. One more thing, if your house have some smells, they will somewhat diminish, but your filter will be smelling funny faster than usual. So, I think, in one sense, this filter acts as a cleaner of your surrounding air as well. In any case, I bought two of them (humidifiers) some extra filters and I am happy with it.

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We found the gurgling sound of the air going into the tank to be noticeable while we slept, but our brains learned to "tune out" that sound, as it does with all other sounds normal to one's environment. The fan is virtually noiseless, as this is the trademark of Vornado fans. Very simple and clean design.

Discount Slant/Fin Replacement Mineral Absorption Pads for SF211 and UV Bulb

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I bought my Slant Fin Humidifier at Bed Bath & Beyond over 3 years ago. Of course the no longer carry the product or the replacement filters/ bulbs. Thanks to Amazon, I was able to stock up on these essential items.

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Cheap Graco Cool Mist 1.5 Gallon Humidifier

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As a child growing up, I always had the impeller type humidifiers in which a spinning tube would draw water inside of it and then toss it out in a visible mist. While these could be quite effective, they had the drawback of being loud and soaking everything around them.

When my daughter was born, we got an ultrasonic humidifier. The mist was a little finer, but again, it had the tendency to soak everything around it, and created scale on itself and its surroundings with tap water.

So this time I decided to go with the evaporative type of humidifier. With these, a fan draws moisture out of a wick filter that is then disbursed about the room. These types of humidifiers have the advantage of being self-regulating because evaporation is quicker in a dry room, slower in a moist room. They also trap the minerals and bacteria that may be in the water in the filter instead of spraying them in the room. The disadvantages are that they require costly filters, and you have to treat the water to keep bacteria, mold, and scale from building up on the filter and components. Both of these can be achieved with the addition of a few drops of humidifier treatments that can be found at your local Wal-Mart.

With all this in mind, I did lots of comparison shopping and finally turned to the Graco 1.5 Gallon Cool Mist Humidifier. This compact unit appears to be much more durable than other brands at a similar price point, and since its components are dishwasher safe, it is much easier to give it a thorough cleaning. Although the unit could be considered loud, especially on its high setting, the low setting is quite pleasant to me, and provides a nice white noise to counteract background sounds. Most importantly, it does a good job of raising the humidity into comfortable levels during the winter. And with the water appropriately treated, there is NO mold on my filter and minimal mineral deposits.

Note: this is advertised as a "baby" humidifier, but its shape and design fit as well as any other humidifier in any room of your house. We bought two. One for our bedroom, the other for my daughter.

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This is the one. I have searched awhile for a humidifier that would meet all my needs. I needed one that efficiently put moisture in the air without leaving pools of water. I needed one that did not leave a white residue on everything near to it. I need one that was not much trouble to maintain. Graco met my requirements.

I needed a humidifier because members of my family had very dry nasal passages. Sometimes it was so dry that we would have nosebleeds from the dry membranes. Dry nasal passages would result in breathing difficulty.

To add to our problems, we live in a dry climate. This is true for much of the rural areas in America especially west of the Mississippi. We have central air conditioning to keep cool in the summer and a furnace for warmth in the winter. Both of those appliances take moisture out of the air.

This Graco uses the "evaporative" moisture system. Essentially it blows air through a moist "wick", raising the humidity in the air.

I purchased some additives to prevent bacteria from breedingKaz Humidifier Bacteriostatic Treatment (8 oz.)

I also purchased some additives to prevent mold: Kaz KWT-8 Humidifier and Vaporizer Water Treatment

With these additives (just a few drops each time I fill the reservoir), and a weekly cleaning in my dishwasher, and I get exactly what my family needs.

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I found this product to work great. This only downside being that it's loud, though this does make great white noise for our son. If you're looking for a unit that emits a cloud of mist you can see, you're looking in the wrong place. This is a cold air humidifier, NOT a hot steam humidifier.

The main reason I posted this review is because of the main negative review I saw regarding mold....The instructions state clearly to rinse the unit daily and wash it something like every week or so. If you let the unit run for a few weeks without washing it and it got mold, that's user error, not a problem with the product. I've run the unit for weeks straight rinsing the filter every few days and never noticed a spot of mold.

All in all, great product that performs exactly how a cool mist humidifier should.

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I have used this humidifier several times and it is terrible. It leaks, is very loud, and the filter begins to get moldy after a day. I am now going to purchase a different humidifier.

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We have gone through about 4 humidifiers for our 13 month old. This one is easy to clean and easy to change the filter. The other humidifiers we had would get very moldy and nasty very fast. This humidifier does not get that way. The only reason I would give this 4 stars instead of 5 is the fact the the filter does need replaced about every 2 months. It cost about $7 each.

Best Evaporative Humidifier Stainless Steel 15 Gallon Deals

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In my quest to replace the fake woodgrain 1970s-vintage Sears whole house humidifier that we've used for years, I first purchased an EssickAir (Bemis) TD6-710. The unit had all the looks, size, and features we wanted a really slick machine. The only problem was that it was severely design-flawed.

There is nothing on the market as sleek-looking as that unit. It's sad that it is so flawed. The hardware store was gracious to take it back used and unboxed, and they decided to return all 3 units they still had back to the manufacturer.

Wal-Mart had the Boston Innovative Products EH-01-342 for $109, so we picked one up. This unit doesn't have the electronic humidity meters, out-of-water indicator, or super-easy refill of the EssickAir, but it is solidly built and so far does not overflow the water basin like the EssickAir. There are 2 two-gallon containers in it for water. Each has a handle for ease of carrying. Getting them out involves removal of a pop-out screen in the back of the unit, so you don't have the convenience of frontfill. The 3-speed evaporator fan in typically noisy, even on the lowest setting. Cold air blows out the front of the unit, making placement of it in the room a concern of comfort. The unit is taller but narrower that those boxy larger units, making it a little less invasive. Time will tell how it fits into our home. I may update this in a few weeks with further experience.

2-1-07 Update

After using this machine for a little while, one thing I cannot understand. Why doesn't it have an out-of-water indicator? It seems crazy that you have to attune your ear to the mild grating noise that indicates a water refill is necessary. Why put the water pump through all that excessive wear? Another thing that can be annoying is the short cycle time. I don't know how the humidity sensor is set up, but the unit turns on for a few minutes, turns off for a few minutes, turns on for a few minutes... why not design a delay in the timing so that it wouldn't be so jarring with all this cycling? I'm thinking now that a 3-star rating is more appropriate, although it still beats most of the competition that I have tried.

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We purchased this humidifier at WalMart when they were clearanced last year and got them out of the attic for this winter. First of all I don't understand how it can be called a "15 gallon" humidifier when it really only holds 4 gallons can anyone explain this? Also, we have also had problems with knowing when to refill it until the humidifier starts making a funny noise (and this surely isn't good on the machine to constantly let it run out of water). Also, we have had a funny substance running out of the machine almost from the beginning of use, and today while wiping up the "junk" I noticed that it is green now. ???? Anyway the reason I rated it a '2' is because it is nice looking and does run 'fairly' quietly when it is full of water. Overall, our family has been very disappointed in this humidifier.