Fighting Dry Winter Air: Which Humidifier is Right for You?

In the winter, dry air causes many irritating problems. Skin becomes dry, throats become hoarse, and nasal passages can become congested simply because of dry winter air. To help combat these problems, many people invest in small room humidifiers to help keep the air moist while they sleep at night.

Humidifiers come in two basic types: cool air mist, and warm air mist. On the surface, it may seem like it doesn't make any difference which kind you buy, but there are some important differences to be aware of before deciding which one is right for you and your needs.

The first thing that most people consider whenever buying a product is price. In this case, both cool air mist and warm air mist humidifiers start around $25 at stores like Wal-mart or Target. The difference comes in the form of hidden costs. The biggest difference is that a cool air mist humidifier almost always requires a filter. These filters last about 30 days and then they must be replaced. They usually start at $10 and go up from there. If you are planning on using your humidifier all winter, you will need to replace your filter a few times. So, by the end of the first winter, you will have spent almost as much on filters as you have on the humidifier itself. You can also buy special solutions that are supposed to help prolong the life of the filter (these cost $3-5 per bottle), but I have found that these will only prolong the filter use for a week or two at best.

The extra cost of filter replacements is the first downfall of the cool air mist humidifier. The second is the noise that it makes. Because it uses a fan to blow water through the filter and into the air, it can be considerably loud, unlike the warm air mist humidifier, which uses heat to create steam that naturally rises into the air.