I have forced hot air heat, and the old Humidor humidifier (installed near the furnace) is no longer working. I never liked it all that much, anyway, it was the old type with the rotating sponge, etc. So, now I am looking for a new humidifier. Any recommendations? Are the "mist spray" type better than the rotating sponge one (I don't know the precise term).
I suggest neither. I suggest the Aprilaire models. Not only do I have one, but I chose it since so many people here and elsewhere have recommended them.
Thanks. I took a quick look, and they have a few different models. 400,
550, 600, 700, 760A Other that the ratings, in terms of sq. ft., and the fact that the 550 is manual, is the 700 series with the fan, better or just different? Which one did you get?April air has a model with an outside thermostat, you basicly set it once , just below where your windows condense and it maintains the proper humidity all winter. I have one but forgot the model #
Sorry to hear it did not work well for you. It works fine for me.
Don't buy either! The water wheel type humidifiers are just a breeding ground for mold. The mist units can cause problems with mosture rusting the ductwork, plus the nozzles clog.
Aprilaire makes good units. Greg
The 550 and 600 are bypass models, a duct runs from the humidifier to the return air duct, some people have a problem with these, bypassing some of the heated air to the return. The 600 has the control with outdoor air temp reset, good unit. The 700 is a powered unit, needs a 120 volt outlet nearby to run the fan. It does not bypass air to the return.It also comes with the outdoor reset.
All that said, we install allot of the 550 and 600's. Very few 700's. Greg
Get the 700 (with the fan). You'll love it.
Units are sized acording to sq ft needed to humidify. I have 1850 sq ft with the april air without a fan and it does not work to capacity. Also the tightness of a house is most critical, You may be fine without a fan and the extra cost of runnibg a fan. Talk to a competant installer, all houses are different, in construction, tightness and the amount of humidity needed, determined by location-low winter temps , the amount of people living there and style of living.
I have 2300 sq ft and the no fan with sensor (Model 650?) also is not maxing out.
I have the Aprilaire 760 and its been super. Just clean it once a season, which is a snap, as the whole thing just pops off, don't even need a screwdriver. I went with it because of the fan and I preferred not to bypass the air. I'm not real sure how much of a difference it makes, but I can see two issues:
1 - Loss of some blower efficiency2 - Now you have hot very humid air going directly back through the heat exchanger. One would think this might lead to rusting of the heat exchanger.
I used to have an Aprilaire bypass unit at our previous house. I liked it very much, but they are only available through contractors. Our last one cost about $450 installed.
I just purchased a Honeywell HE260 from Home Depot for $199 (there is a $30 rebate offer in effect until Nov.). It's quite similar to the Aprilaire in styling etc. I've got it bolted to the furnace (Lennox G2
- I believe) and the water supply connected.
Problem: The HE260 comes with a big honking 30VA transformer and a kludgey "sail switch" (relay with a big "sail" that floats in the cold air return and closes when air is flowing...Honeywell's way of sensing blower activity). I want to avoid installing the transformer (24V) and sail switch and, instead, just power the 24V solenoid water valve from the furnace itself.
I doubt the solenoid draws more than about 500 mA. Is there any reason I should NOT try to power it from the Y/T terminals (compressor contactor) at the furnace's low-voltage terminal strip, which provides
24VAC when the blower is on?-Pat
Chet Hayes wrote:
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