Many of us love having houseplants in our living areas, but giving them the proper amount of humidity to help them grow is often overlooked. In this Honeywell cool mist humidifier review, we’ll look at humidifiers with different features that can improve the air quality in your home and the growing environment for your favorite houseplants.
What Is A Honeywell Cool Mist Humidifier?
Honeywell cool mist humidifiers are a series of humidifiers offered by the company Honeywell. These humidifiers don’t have a heating element, so the mist created comes out at about the same temperature as the room.
If you use freezing water, the temperature of the mist may be slightly colder than if you used room temperature water, but there isn’t a cooling component in the unit itself. The properties of warm mist and cool mist have varying effects on human health, but cool mist can significantly improve the environment for your houseplants by helping them maintain higher moisture levels.
By keeping a higher level of moisture in the room, plants like ferns will thrive as their leaves won’t dry out, and their soil will stay wet longer. Plants such as orchids are also used to higher levels of moisture in their natural habitat, and a humidifier can help raise the humidity in a safe way that is also comfortable for humans.
The cool mist humidifiers in our reviews use some kind of filter so that the water is purified before being released into the room as mist. There are also some standard features among these units as they are all produced by the same company.
Product Specifications
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Honeywell cool mist humidifiers have a few key specifications that make them work well in a variety of different home environments. By humidifying your air, you are also making the area a more comfortable place for both humans and plants.
Here is a list of critical specifications found in Honeywell cool mist humidifiers:
Room Coverage
- Multiple speed settings on some units
- Units typically run anywhere from 10- 18 hours
- A single unit can do a medium to large-sized room
Safety and Health
- Cool mist deters bacteria and mold growth
- Some units have additional UV technology to kill germs
- Low energy usage and auto-shutoff feature
- Not possible to over-humidify when using an evaporative unit
- Water levels can be checked visually
- The filters wick up minerals from the water
Design and Features
- Easy to remove the water tank
- Unit is easy to clean
- Attractive designs that blend into the decor
- Multiple color options available
- Break-resistant water tanks
Pricing
Honeywell makes a variety of different cool mist humidifiers at different prices, and it’s easy to find these units at multiple stores. To find the units in this Honeywell cool mist humidifier review, you can look on Amazon, and at stores like Target, The Home Depot, and Bed Bath & Beyond.
Many of these stores will have occasional sales and coupons for products like the Honeywell humidifiers, and this can be a great way to get a fully-featured humidifier at a lower price.
How It Compares
This Honeywell cool mist humidifier review would be incomplete if we didn’t look at a few humidifiers made by Honeywell to see how they work, and what features are available. Below are three Honeywell cool mist humidifiers that are good examples of what you can expect, and more information about each device.
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Honeywell HCM350W Germ-Free Cool Mist Humidifier
| Ease of Use | 4/5 Stars |
| Assembly Time | 4.7/5 Stars |
| Build Quality | 4/5 Stars |
| Warranty | 5/5 Stars |
The Honeywell Germ-Free cool mist humidifier is a larger unit that uses UV technology to kill germs found in the 1.1-gallon water tank. This device has an easy to carry water tank, with a recessed handle, that is transparent and easy to clean.
If you are looking to increase the humidity in your home for your houseplants, this unit is large enough to cover a medium-sized room and provides germ-free humidification, so you don’t have to worry about your plants getting infected with mold, bacteria, or fungus.
This humidifier comes in white and black, and both units have a transparent blue water tank so you can visually check the water levels instantly. The mist on this humidifier blows upwards, and there isn’t a nozzle to direct the flow like there commonly are on other units.
It takes 60 watts to power this unit, and a single gallon of water can last up to 24 hours when the machine runs on its lowest setting. The dial for controlling the mist is on the top of the device which some users report causes them to get a face full of mist before they can turn off the machine.
One flaw in this machine is that the device requires new filters every so often and the company notes that the filters need replacing when they are visibly very crusty, or when they begin to smell. The water tank is dishwasher safe, which can cut down on handwashing.
Many users will not like finding out their filters need changing when the humidifier begins to smell, and some may worry that this smell could mean bacteria or mold are spreading in their home. Changing a crusty or smelly filter may also be unpleasant, and how quickly a filter needs to be changed is largely dependent on the kind of water used.
If you use hard water or plain tap water, you can expect there to be scale build-up, and some of this will become fine dust that gets spread around the room. Filters on these kinds of humidifiers claim to eliminate this entirely, but users still find at least a little dust.
One thing to keep in mind is that these humidifiers will need cleaning regularly in addition to needing new filters. They also don’t have a humidity control option, but that is available as a separate accessory. The warranty on this product is three years, which is slightly longer than average.
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Honeywell HUL520W Mistmate Cool Mist Humidifier
| Ease of Use | 4.4/5 Stars |
| Assembly Time | 4.6/5 Stars |
| Build Quality | 4/5 Stars |
| Warranty | 5/5 Stars |
The Honeywell Mistmate cool mist humidifier comes in four different colors, including:
- Black
- Blue
- Red
- White
This humidifier is smaller than other units and has a 0.5-gallon tank and a rounded orb-shaped design. The water tank is easy to clean by hand using the wide opening, and the sides are transparent so you can quickly check the water level.
The front of this unit has a single dial that controls the flow of mist, and one full tank of water can last for up to 20 hours. This humidifier is for small rooms, and it is super quiet when it runs partially due to its size.
This unit has an auto-shutoff feature like many other humidifiers, so it turns off when it’s out of water, and the small size means it can easily fit on a side table or shelf. If you are using this humidifier to improve the environment around your plants, it’s the perfect size to nestle out of sight without losing the benefit of the humidity.
Unlike other evaporative units, this one doesn’t use a filter, which is both good and bad. Without a screen, the device may require more cleaning, but it also means you don’t have to purchase filters and routinely replace them. This unit uses ultrasonic sound to create a mist, which means that the room you use this device in will become dusty over time.
There are many different ultrasonic humidifiers available, but this one makes our list of recommended products due to its size, affordability, and how easy it is to use. There should also be less scale build up inside of the machine because of the high-frequency sound waves it uses to make mist.
Another added benefit is that this unit is ultra-quiet, and virtually silent since it’s ultrasonic and not evaporative. This unit also has a two-year warranty, which is pretty standard for this type of device.
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Honeywell Cool Moisture Humidifier
| Ease of Use | 4.6/5 Stars |
| Assembly Time | 4.6/5 Stars |
| Build Quality | 4.4/5 Stars |
| Warranty | 5/5 Stars |
The Honeywell Mistmate cool mist humidifier comes in four different colors, including:
- Black
- Blue
- Red
- White
The Honeywell Cool Moisture Humidifier is another larger device that is ideal for small to medium-sized rooms and has a water tank that can hold 0.8 gallons. The water tank can last for up to 18 hours when the humidifier runs on its lowest setting, and it comes with a three-year limited warranty which is somewhat generous.
This unit only comes in white and black, but it’s up to 30% quieter than other evaporative humidifiers on the market. The packaging also includes one filter, but after that, you’ll need to purchase additional filters.
The mist on this device can’t adjust in a specific direction like other humidifiers, but it has a very accessible water tank that is easy to remove and fill. The filter wicks away minerals and other debris in the water to ensure that there isn’t dust or germs spread around your room.
This humidifier is also stylish and can easily blend into the decor of any room. It doesn’t need to be placed directly next to your plants either as it can powerfully push mist away from itself so that the air circulates and humidifies evenly.
The single dial on the front allows for two-speed settings that adjust both the noise and moisture output. The water tank is break-resistant like the others on our list, but this unit is somewhat more straightforward to use and easier to clean
Pros And Cons
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Before deciding on a cool-mist humidifier, you’ll want to know the pros and cons that you can expect from this type of device. There are other kinds of humidifiers available, but evaporative and ultrasonic humidifiers are very common and reliable units. Here is our list of pros and cons to expect:
Pros
- Less dust with evaporative units than with ultrasonic humidifiers
- Shuts off when the water tank is empty
- Mist is adjustable
- Compact sizes fit easily on side tables, or in the corner of a room
- Multiple color options available to match the decor
- Relatively inexpensive compared to ultrasonic units
- No heating element so less power is consumed
Cons
- Cannot be used with essential oils mixed in the water
- Units need new filters every so often, particularly when they get crusty or smelly
- Humidifiers will need regular cleaning to remove scale and other debris
- Humidifiers don’t have humidity controls built-in
- Control panels are straightforward
Conclusion
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Overall Rating: 4.5/5 Stars
When it comes to finding a cool-mist humidifier, our top pick is the Honeywell HUL520W Mistmate Cool Mist Humidifier. This small device runs as long as other larger units, but it’s quieter due to it being an ultrasonic humidifier.
Ultrasonic humidifiers have the potential to cause more dust, but this can be averted by using distilled or purified water. These types of humidifiers also don’t require a filter and are somewhat less complicated and overall easier to clean.
There are no complex components like UV lights or filters that need replacing with this unit, and the water levels are easy to see with just a glance. If you plan to use this around your plants, the directional nozzle for adjusting the flow of mist is a bonus that can ensure humidity flows where it’s needed.
This unit is also small enough to fit on a side table or to be nestled amongst plant pots. The color options also make it more able to blend into the decor of the room, and it’s silent enough to be suitable for a bedroom or other area where you spend a lot of your time.
This humidifier may have a small tank, but it can last up to 20 hours and is quiet enough to have on your desk while you work. The assembly also requires no tools and can be completed in under a minute.
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