9 ms·

Ultrasonic humidifiers (the ones that generate the fog) generate huge amounts of particulate matter to the point I'd argue they are a health hazard and shouldnt

Ultrasonic humidifiers (the ones that generate the fog) generate huge amounts of particulate matter to the point I'd argue they are a health hazard and shouldnt even be sold. If you have any ultrasonic humidifiers replace them with evaporative humidifiers. I actually discovered this independently when I used my air quality monitor to check the humidity in my house after buying a humidifier and saw PM was in the unhealthy range despite having my very large HEPA filter running in the same room. After some googling I discovered why. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0160412020318572 https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S016041202... https://www2.purpleair.com/blogs/blog-home/ultrasonic-humidifiers-a-source-of-pm2-5 https://www2.purpleair.com/blogs/blog-home/ultrasonic-humidi...

s0rce 3y ago
You just need to use distilled/deionized water in ultrasonic humidifiers. You should not be using tap water as that creates hazardous particles, and you'll pretty soon notice dust over everything. They should come with more clear warnings regarding this issue as its severe and not everyone knows. Additionally the systems could have a simple conductivity sensor to stop running if the conductivity (ie. the TDS is too high).
- amluto 3y ago
  You also need to sterilize them. Frequently. So frequently that you shouldn’t be using them in the first place.
  - s0rce 3y ago
    I've never experienced this issue, I assume the symptoms are mold growth or odors?
    - amluto 3y ago
      Or just tiny little potential pathogens being aerosolized very efficiently. If you take a plastic container and keep it wet for a while, it will grow biofilm.