Evaporative Humidifiers

An evaporative humidifier works by blowing warm air over or through some type of media, and thus evaporating the water that is held by the media. Often times the media will be a foam drum or foam pad, but some companies like Desert Spring have new technology which does not require a foam pad or drum. The theory behind evaporative humidifiers is that they use much hotter air than that in the rest of your home. Since the hotter air can hold more moisture, it picks up water from the humidifier and then mixes that humidified air with the cooler air in the rest of your home, and provides a humid environment.

Pros of Evaporative Humidifiers

Since evaporative humidifiers actually evaporate the moisture rather than simply blowing a mist into your air or ductwork there is little chance of condensation unless the humidity gets too high. This is very important in furnace humidifiers as condensation building up in your duct work can cause all sorts of nasty side effects such as mold and bacteria growth.

Cons of Evaporative Humidifiers

Older styles of evaporative humidifiers use a foam pad or foam drum as an evaporative media. Depending on the hardness of your water supply, this pad or drum often needs replacing due to mineral build-up. Also, with older technology, minerals can build up on the outside of the foam, trapping water inside. This warm stagnant water is a perfect breeding ground for bacteria. Newer technology evaporative units do away with the foam pad or foam drum so hard water is not nearly the same issue as before.