Humidity is one of the most important air parameters. The optimum humidity for humans is 40%. If the level of humidity "does not reach" this indicator, dry air "draws" moisture from the human body, plants and wooden things. As a result, even in completely healthy people, there is a deterioration in well-being - absent-mindedness, drowsiness appear, immunity and performance decrease, and fatigue increases.
choose a humidifierLack of moisture leads to dryness of the skin, as a result of which its early aging occurs, the mucous membrane is irritated, which opens the way for the penetration of various kinds of infections. It is extremely important to maintain optimal humidity levels in the rooms where children live. The fact is that small children (especially babies) have very sensitive skin, so dry air is very dangerous for their health.
In addition, the lack of moisture adversely affects musical instruments, paintings, parquet floors, and wooden furniture. When they dry up, they begin to crack, which significantly reduces their service life. In addition, dry air causes static electricity to accumulate and prevents room dust from settling, which literally hangs in the air.
Lack of moisture is also harmful to indoor plants and pets. To eliminate all these unpleasant phenomena, the air in the room must be saturated with moisture vapor. Humidifiers are used to maintain a comfortable level of humidity in the room. Some of these humidifiers additionally purify the air and even ionize it.
Technical features of humidifiers
The purpose of air humidifiers is to work in one closed room, for example, in a room. In the matter of choosing air humidifiers, the volume of the room for which such a humidifier is selected plays an important role. Therefore, a preliminary calculation of the required performance of the device is necessary. Some manufacturers immediately indicate in the technical specifications the maximum value of the volume of the room for which the device is designed (cubic meter). The most common are humidifiers, which are designed for a room volume not exceeding 150 cubic meters. meters. In addition, there are air humidifiers on sale designed for rooms up to 200, up to 60 and up to 35 cubic meters. meters.
Installation and operation of humidifiers is simple. They do not need special installation, and during their use, the main thing that needs to be done is to fill the tank with water and plug in the humidifier. All models of humidifiers are designed for round-the-clock operation. A working humidifier has a very low noise level, which is almost audible on most models.
Air humidifiers designed for domestic use are quite compact, and some of them are specially mounted on the wall. This can be extremely important for a children's room, in which children arrange constant games with the objects that surround them. The humidifier must be installed close to the battery in order for the moisture to spread faster under the influence of heat. Recently, one can often find humidifiers produced by manufacturers, which have in their design an element made of silver that disinfects water.
At the moment, such types of air humidifiers as steam (hot steam), traditional (cold steam), "air washers" and ultrasonic humidifiers are widely used. To determine which humidifier to purchase, it is necessary to consider their operating mechanisms and principles of action.
Steam humidifiers
Steam humidifiersFrom the name itself, it can be concluded that the basis of the principle of operation of these devices is the evaporation of water. There is nothing new in this - the water boils, then turns into steam and saturates the air with moisture. The role of the evaporating element is played by two electrodes immersed in water. A voltage is applied to the electrodes, a current passes through the water, as a result of which the water heats up, boils and evaporates. After the water has evaporated completely, the circuit is opened and the device is automatically turned off. The very design of the humidifier is based on the safety of its operation. The power cord can only be connected to the device that is in the assembled state, which excludes the possibility of contact between bare electrodes and human hands.
It should be noted that the equipment of steam humidifiers must include a hydrostat - an air humidity sensor. When the set humidity is reached, this sensor automatically turns off the device. Steam humidifiers have a daily capacity of 7-16 liters. The only drawback of this type of humidifier, perhaps, is the high power consumption of 300-600 watts.
Traditional humidifiers
They are also called "cold steam humidifiers". In terms of its structure, this humidifier is perhaps the simplest. Its principle of operation is based on the fact that water molecules evaporate and saturate the air with moisture. In other words, cold water evaporates. In such a humidifier, water is poured into special tanks, after which it is fed into a sump and from there it enters the evaporating elements, which can be discs, filters or cartridges. The simplest humidifiers work on replaceable paper cartridges, in which water, rising like capillaries from top to bottom, soaks the paper.
Traditional humidifiersIn more expensive systems, the evaporator has plastic discs. Running water through the evaporating elements, the built-in fan humidifies it in a natural way. Such humidifiers, so to speak, "adjust" to the environment of the room that surrounds them - the higher the air humidity, the lower the rate of evaporation. The humidification process here is regulated independently, which is to some extent their advantage - they are not difficult to operate, and due to the lack of additional working regulation systems, they are cheaper than others.
It should be noted right away that “cold” humidifiers require the use of distilled water. Otherwise, the humidifying cartridge will quickly become clogged with salts of water hardness, which will lead to the need for frequent replacement. If this is not possible, it is necessary to use an additional softening cartridge, which reduces the hardness of the water. Replacement filter cartridges are sold separately in some cases. Cold humidifiers have a daily output of 3.5–8 liters, with a power consumption of 20 to 50 watts.
"Air washers"
In their structure, these humidifiers are similar to traditional humidifiers. The peculiarity of "air washer" is that it combines a humidifier and an air purifier to get rid of dust, allergens and unpleasant odors, as well as for high levels of air humidification. These humidifiers provide great help in matters related to furniture and home care. "Gentle" humidification is achieved by dampening discs located on a slowly rotating shaft that passes through the water in the device.
Air washersAt the same time, as in the previous case, the principle of humidification is independently regulated and depends on the air temperature, as well as the level of humidity in the room. Air purification is based on the fact that through a system of plastic discs, water is converted into fine "dust". A variety of microorganisms that can cause allergic reactions (animal hair, pollen, house dust) are removed from the air.
These humidifiers-air purifiers have an ionizing silver rod that is used to biologically purify the evaporated water. Ionization destroys more than 650 types of viruses and bacteria. Among other things, "air washers" can be characterized by the aromatization function. The productivity of such humidifiers is 3.5-8 liters per day, and the power consumption is 20-40 W.
Ultrasonic humidifiers
These are currently the most effective and widespread humidifiers. They are characterized by small size, low power consumption and high performance. Unlike traditional and steam humidifiers, ultrasonic humidifiers have a normal outlet steam temperature (not exceeding 40 ° C), precise humidity control and low noise levels, which, of course, can be attributed to their advantages.
Ultrasonic humidifiersThe principle of operation of these humidifiers is as follows: water from the tank is supplied to a plate vibrating with an ultrasonic (high) frequency, where the water is broken into a finely dispersed water suspension. It is best to use distilled water in ultrasonic humidifiers. The air flow created by the fan brings water into the room, where it turns into steam. Externally, the vapors released are similar to hot fog. In fact, the vapors are cold and absolutely safe for human health.
Ion filter humidifiers are now available from many manufacturers. Here there is a preliminary saturation of the sprayed water with silver ions, which disinfect this water. As a result, various pathogenic viruses, bacteria are destroyed in the atmosphere and all possible conditions are created for the prevention of acute respiratory infections, colds, flu, and other diseases that are associated with an uncomfortable living environment. With low power consumption values of 40-50 W, ultrasonic humidifiers have a capacity of 7-12 liters per day.
Many humidifiers have a remote control. Therefore, in order to create favorable weather in the house, you do not even need to get up from the sofa. Additional functions that facilitate operation are several power modes, a built-in thermometer, a water disinfection system, a cable winding device, etc. The equipment of the most advanced models includes an LCD display with visual indication of operating modes.
Happy choice!