Customer Reviews

Holmes HM3500 8-Gallon Console Humidifier

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

When we bought a five bedroom house in 1998, winter was fast approaching. I hate a house with low humidity. Petting the cat turns into animal torture, and walking across carpet and touching a metal doorknob always ends with a nasty surprise. Then there's the lousy feeling when you wake up with a plugged nose, crusty eyes and a sore throat from breathing dry air in a cold house.

We keep our Holmes 3500 on the ground floor in the entryway next to the living room where we have a wood burning stove. Rated to handle homes up to 1700 square feet, this model easily handles our 2400 sq feet. With three speed settings and large capacity twin tanks, the 3500 goes 24 hours between refills even with the woodstove running in the dead of winter. (The woodstove removes air from the home, which pulls dry outside air into the house.)

At the highest fan setting, the 3500 is a little noisy, but it pumps out the moisture. We typically run it on low or medium during the day, and then use high at night to saturate the air.

A small plastic humidistat was included with our unit, and we keep it at the other end of the house to be sure we're getting an accurate reading. For us, the comfort level is simple to determine. If the cat sparks when we pet him, we need more moisture. No question, using a quality unit like this results in fewer colds, better sleep and lower heating bills. Our thermostat stayed at 67 degrees all winter, and even lower at night, and we were comfortable.

What impresses me most is the durability of the unit, with one exception: the plastic handles on the tank of our unit were loose when we unpacked it, so we used superglue under both handles to bolster their adhesion to the tank. It might not have been necessary, but I didn't like the way the handles flexed when carrying a full load of water across a Pergo floor.

Our city water is on the hard side, so we usually replace the wicks every two weeks in peak season to maintain efficiency and comfort. BTW, Amazon has the best price I've ever found on wicks for this unit, so look no further.

This is my fourth winter using this product and I can't say enough good things about it. This unit has made it through 2 moves without any malfunction or damage. I do use a little bactriastat in the water to cut down on cleaning. I simply wash it all out in the spring and dust it off in the fall.

Contrary to some of the reviews below, I only change my filter once a year. I've noticed that the filter indicator gague takes a while to register so if you let the unit run for a half hour or so, you can get an accurate reading but again, I don't see the need replace more than once a season with city water. The tanks are heavy so if you can't lift 20lbs or so you should get a smaller unit but I love the fact I don't have to fill this more than twice or week or so. I have never had any problem with tanks sealing, although I do leave the caps off when I store it for the summer to make sure the tanks get good and dry. They can be a little tricky to thread but once you get the hang of it it's quick and simple.

As for control, I usually set it somewhere in the middle and leave it on medium, no scientific meters here. If it feels dry, I crank it up. If the windows get a little condensation, I crank it down. It keeps us comfortable all winter...even in Minnesota. In short, It is a little noisy and you'll need to get used to the occasional glug-glug sounds it makes but for my money, I'd buy this unit again at twice the price I paid.

One other tip, look to stock up on filters in the spring. Many retailers clear-out this merchendice in the spring and you can often find filters at 50% off or more if you're looking.

This is real good one , except the fact that the filters needs to be replaced every 4 to 5 weeks , which is almost 12 dollars . I have used some humidifers in the past and all of them never needed have the filter changed for weeks.

This humidifier is great. I've had it for about a month. I knew when I saw it that it was going to put out a lot of moisture - it has an output area that is about 6 inches in diameter. Got back from a vacation last weekend and the humidity in the house was about 15% - after running this on low fan, high humidity for half a day it was up to 40% - based on a humidistat on the other side of a 15x20 room. It's loud on anything but low fan, but low works well unless you need to humidify a room really fast.

This thing holds a *ton* of water. Between the tanks and the base I'd estimate at least 7 gallons. In addition to that, it can really pump out the humidity in dry environments -- at least the 8 gallons/day that it is rated at, and more in extremely dry settings (this type of humidifier increases in humidification capacity as humidity decreases).

A word about the Filter Check meter -

This is actually a very small hygrometer integrated into the grill of the unit. It works great when the humidity of the surrounding area is in the normal range (35-45%), but becomes less accurate in extremely low humidity. In dry environments, the humidifier will be unable to fully saturate the exhaust air (due to the shear volume of the water that would need to be evaporated & heat that must be absorbed from the surrounding environment to do so), so the meter will read low no matter what the condition of the filter is. It's a nice idea to have the meter, because in a normal setting it will tell you the saturation level of the water that is exhausted from the unit, but in an extremely dry environment, just ignore it. For example, in my office, the humidity level is approxmately 25%, and on the high setting, the humidifier cannot evaporate enough water to put the meter into the "good" range. On the low setting, where the air spends more time in contact with the wick, the meter will swing to "good", but the overall volume of water that is evaporated is lower on this setting, so I never use it. If you live in a dry environment, use common sense - Has the wick turned to a pile of goo? Is it so full of minerals large portions of it are no longer moist? Is it growing mold? Is the wick hard to the touch (from minerals)? Does the humidifier go through less water than it should (< 6+ gal/day in a dry environment on high)? If the answer to all of these is "no", then you probably don't need a new filter.

Good points--this unit can go 24-36 hours without refilling the tanks, and seems to crank out decent moist air. Bad points--each 2+ gallon tank when full, weighs about 20#. Handling a filled tank is not for the arthritic or weak-armed;it's good for building biceps. Tank "handle" allows only fingers in it. Fan on high is a bit noisey. Also the occasional glug-glug, glug as the reservoir fills is, at first, disconcerting--sounds like a drain backing up, or if you've a cat--the cat is about to dislodge a hairball! Overall though, it seems to do its job. Filters are cheaper on the Holmes website, in quantity.

I did a lot of online research before buying this model and brand and thought this would be good for a large house.(if i was happy with it I would buy another one). Everything went fine until I refilled the tanks for the first time. The yellow (low water) light came on and would not shut off even with the unit FULL of water. It seemed to be putting out the moisture fine so I ignored it. I checked to see if something was obstrucing the off switch arm, etc. to no avail. I called holmes cust. support????????.The lady said their computers were down that day, took my phone # and said someone would get back to me within the next 24 hrs.(that was about 3 weeks ago), no response yet!!!!! Also, this unit only puts out about 6 gallons a day--probably because it keeps shutting off, weather the fan is on high or medium and with the humidistat all the way up. It is noisy on high, but I expected that if its going to put out that much moisture. I keep this unit in a large open room and have not been able to raise the humidity above 35% in a months time ( I check it with a reliable dig. hygrometer). I believe the problem is where the shut-off limit switch is located-- should be on the OUTSIDE of the unit !!! The only other negative I have is the wick filter. Besides being somewhat expensive, it seems to disintegrate after about 3-4 weeks. I don't see much of a plug-up problem , but gets sloppy and saggy and leaves a gap that lets in non-moist outside air!! Seems they could have designed a better system than this. But then we woulden't have to buy their filters as often ,would we??. I would love to hear from one of the tecs at Holmes !!!!!

My first issue with the Holmes HM3500 8 Gallon Console Humidifier was when it came out of the box. One of the wheels was broken, and Holmes insisted I sent them $17 for new ones rather than providing any sort of customer service. Amazon agreed to take it back, but until the new one ships in a month or so, I can't live in a house without a humidifier.

My second issue occurred within a week. Suddenly, one of the two tanks lost its ability to seal, so it leaks all over the place. I would call Holmes about it, but they obviously don't have the faintest idea what customer service means, so I'm not going to waste my breath or my time. Simply put, with so many faulty parts, I don't know what will happen if the unit stops working during its warranty period, but I suspect that it won't be pretty.

The gauges on the Holmes HM3500 leave a lot to be desired, too. You can't set the unit to shut off at a specific humidity (like 45%). Instead, there's a slider that goes from more humid to less humid, although I haven't the foggiest notion what they consider more or less humid. When it's set in the middle, the humidity in my house registers 55%, so I suspect that the most humid setting would turn your house into a rain forest.

There's also a gauge that tells you how clean or dirty your filter is, so you'll know when to buy a new one. On the first day I ran the Holmes HM3500, the filter never registered as being in "good" condition. Furthermore, even though I have an air purifier in my house, the filter gauge is notifying me that it's time to change the filter after one short week of use. I realize that filters may be cheaper if you buy them from Holmes directly, but I'm not about to replace a filter every week for as long as winter lasts, especially since I doubt the accuracy of the FilterCheck unit.

As another user pointed out, the tanks on this unit aren't easy to refill either. I've owned humidifiers prior to this, but none of their tanks or handles have been so awkward. And when you add the weight of three gallons of water, it nearly becomes impossible to maneuver them from the bathtub back to the humidifier without worrying that they're going to slip out of your hands. Needless to say, I would not recommend this for anyone who has chronic pain, arthritis or back problems.

Granted, the air in my house is more humid now, but after a week, my filter needs to be replaced, one of the wheels on the bottom of the unit is broken and one of the tanks leak. I can't imagine how I'm going to feel about this unit in a month since I hate it and its manufacturer already, but I'm hoping that the new unit won't be as faulty as this one.

I purchased this unit over eight years ago because I had a lot of square footage and lived in a very arid climate. Smaller single-room units were too inconvenient, I wanted to be able to go a while without having to take care of a humidifier. This unit definitely fulfilled my needs, I only had to add water every few days even when I ran it full blast on the high humidity setting, and it definitely improved the air quality in my home. My unit has been working perfectly since day one, and is running even as I write this review.

I do agree with most of the reviewers that replacing filters can be expensive if you don't figure out how to make your water work with the unit and find a good filter supplier OR a permanent filter (those last about 7 times longer than the paper filters, I found them on the worlds most popular BAY auction site). I've lived in two different climates with this unit. In both climates I had to figure out how to condition the water to get maximum life out of the filters. Once I got my water conditioned properly a paper filter lasted about 90 to 120 days. Now that I use permanent filters I only use one a year (I do clean the permanent filter several times throughout the year and put it back into the humidifier, but at the beginning of each year I prefer to put in a fresh filter).

I lived in New Mexico (NM) when I first purchased the unit, the water there has caliche, rust, sediment and other minerals that make the water hard, and the air is very dry year round. In New Mexico I tried using the conditioners that you can buy at most stores, but never seemed to get the right recipe going until I tried adding just a teaspoon of laundry fabric softener to each reservoir when I filled them. It was a trick I learned to help my evaporative cooling pads wick better, smell great and last longer, and it works on this humidifier, too!

I moved to Virginia several years ago and the water and weather here are almost the opposite of NM, the humidity here is very high in the summer and lower in the winter. We have well water that isn't hard or soft, but does have sand in it. We also have mold here, so I use a humidifier antibacterial in the water, and I still use the fabric softener trick, but only about half the amount (a little goes a long way, too much goops up the filter).

No matter where you live, if you put the unit away you should definitely clean and dry it first. Putting a dust cover over it helps, too. Once or twice when I've discovered dust or cobwebs on the fan blades inside the housing I've had to pop the grille off the top of the unit with a plastic lettuce knife (it is just set in with a few tabs inside each side of the seam between the grille and the housing that covers the fan assembly). Be gentle when removing the grille to avoid breaking the plastic cross sections. With that removed you can get around inside the fan unit assembly and clean it out really well (make sure you unplug and drain the humidifier before you do any maintenance on it ;o).

Also, there is a metal lever on the inside/underside of the filter housing that gets pushed up and down by the float as the water level goes up and down. For those who had problems with the light coming on when it shouldn't, or not coming on when it should, they may have inadvertently wedged or bent this lever while installing/changing filters. Just remove the filter cover, flip it over and make sure that metal lever isn't bent, is moving freely and that you hear a small clicking noise when it is gently moved up and down. If it is working, check the float. The float is a verticle white plastic cylinder in a round plastic sleeve next to the filter in the bottom part of the humidifier. The float should bob gently up and down when pushed (if there is water in the unit). If it is stuck in either the up or down position in the sleeve, it could cause the lever to send the wrong signal to the light. Finally, when you put the cover back over the filter, make sure that it seats properly over the bottom lip of the unit or the metal lever won't be able to work as designed by pressing against the top of the float. That might make the light come on and also might keep the fan from coming on (safety feature when cover is removed).

Someone else mentioned that the unit is hard to move around, so I'll touch on my experience with that, too. I have found a central location for mine and don't move it very frequently, but I have moved it a few times over the years. I have found that the unit rolls just fine on hard floors and low carpet, and when it is full it should be pushed or pulled from a lower edge, not the top. It definitely rolls better when empty, so I try to move it before filling it. There are four wheels on the bottom, two of them are wide-set stationary wheels and two are set more narrowly and swivel. That means in order to make it roll properly you have to pull it from the end with swiveling wheels OR push it from the end with the stationary wheels. In order to manuever the humidifier into a small opening or against a wall you pull or push it farther forward than it needs to be, then pivot the swiveling wheels outward and back it into its 'parking' space. Those who are familiar with the concept of parallel parking a vehicle should be able to do this with ease, those who are not may find it difficult or inconvenient. Also, since the unit isn't very tall you must lean down or be on your knees to do this. Once I figured this out it was really no big deal. However, before I figured it out I accidentally popped one of the stationary wheels off when I tried to push the humidifier straight sideways into a space between my vacuum and trash can. The stationary wheels can't roll sideways, only to the front or rear. Luckily, I was able to pop the wheel right back on....

Anyway, my unit still looks like it is brand new even though it has actually been through quite a bit of punishment. Every year it gets scuff marks and dirt from my 4 children kicking it or putting their dirty hands on it as they go by. Softscrub cleanser on a sponge or scrubbie has always cleaned everything off, and the tan and taupe plastics hide the everyday dirt or dust pretty well.


In a nutshell, here is my list of pros and cons about the unit:

PROS:

-Good quality fan and motor
-Automatic settings so that humidifier shuts off when level of humidity is reached, turns on when humidity is low
-Extra large water capacity
-Multiple humidity and speed settings
-Sensor light tells you when to refill water
-Safety shut-off when the filter cover is removed or when water gets too low
-Humidifies a lot of square footage
-Simple design that is easy to maintain
-Permanent filter is available for this unit
-More portable and smaller than most console units
-Water reservoirs have carry handles and are easy to refill
-Changing filter is easy

CONS:

-Paper filters are expensive (buying permanent filter and putting good water in unit helps)
-Learning curve to find out what works best with your water
-Learning curve for rolling and parking
-Have to lean down to move it (a tow handle would be an awesome design improvement)

OVERALL:

I am very satisfied with the performance and quality of this unit when I compare it to units I've had in the past. It has been very durable and has done exactly what I need it to do. I hope this review is helpful to anyone who is thinking of purchasing this humidifier, and even to those who may have experienced a problem with theirs...

I've had my HM3500 humidifier for 8 years. It's doing fine. I leave the two, big, unmanageable tanks off, and add a few gallons of water every day to the base (which I think holds about 4 gallons). A small wad of paper stuck between the fan/wick chassis and the base keeps them from rattling against each other, so I only hear the proper woosh of the fan. Otherwise, the fan still sounds smooth, the two controls still work solidly, the LEDs still light, the low-water-detector gizmo (that only serves to turn on an alert-light) still works fine, and the thing still looks clean.

I add a squirt of Water Treatment for minerals (about half-an-ounce) to every few gallons of water that I add to the humidifier, which I think is a little less than the recommended "capful." It's soft water, and I don't really know if it needs any Treatment.

My humidifier never smells like a swamp as long as the power is on and the fan comes on at-least-occasionally. I never turn it off if standing water remains in the base, 'cuz it starts to smell within a couple of days. If I see the outdoor humidity is going to rise for an extended time (for instance: when Spring has sprung) and the humidifier will turn itself off for good, I'll make sure to run the humidifier until it's completely dried out -- hopefully before the more-humid weather hits. (It's fun to play Weather Forecaster.) You can tell when the wick is finally dry, because the air coming out of the fan is not cool (from water-evaporation) anymore.

When leaving for a few days, I have chosen to leave the humidifier on and run dry (and then it runs continuously), instead of turning it off and leaving it with standing water. In case of emergency, it's better to waste some electricity rarely than to allow the humidifier to turn into a swamp, ruin the wick, and smell up your house.

Since I'm primarily concerned about minerals destroying my wick prematurely, I use the anti-mineral Water Treatment. I've never used bacteriostat, since my humidifier never smells.

With my system, I use about 3 wicks per 2 winters. (In Pennsylvania, you don't need to run the humidifier except during winter.) Humidifier season just started a few weeks ago, and I'm running with an old filter, no problem.

When the wick deteriorates enough, it'll humidify very inefficiently. It takes a little experience to realize when the humidifier is working too hard for a particular outdoor-dewpoint, and therefore the wick needs changing.

That said, I also recommend a $20-$25 digital hygrometer (always includes a thermometer), so you can quantify if the humidifier is holding the room at 50% humidity (or whatever your desired target is).

Once, I got paranoid that germs were coming to get me, and I added a half-teaspoon of Bleach. That was a smelly mess. Back to the anti-mineral Water Treatment.

Another reviewer mentioned they're changing their wick every 4 weeks. That's too expensive. I recommend trying a few squirts of anti-mineral Water Treatment that is specified to "Prolong the life of wick," "Helps prevent lime and scale build-up," and "Provides easier cleaning." Use more Treatment if you have more minerals in your water. I see Treatment on Amazon for about $5 per quart. With soft water, I use about a bottle per humidifying-season.

And another reviewer said he saw something about "Cleaning the humidifier every day." Calm down -- I don't remember ever seeing anything so crazy in the directions. I rinse mine out when winter is over, and that's my idea of cleaning. At the same time, if the filter survives my gentle rinsing and wringing, I save it for re-use for next year.

I don't even change the water mid-season unless I see some dirt or [significant] haze in the water-filled base.

My Water Treatment bottle mentions that "bacteriostat" solution is also available, and there is no warning about mixing it with anti-mineral water treatment, which probably means it's OK to mix them. But since my HM3500 doesn't smell, I'm not interested.

Noise-wise, I have to tolerate spending my home-time in the same room as the humidifier with its fan on Low. Medium is out of the question. High brings National Weather Service investigators to my door looking for tornadoes. With the humidifier's fan on Low speed, the noise level is about the same as a 16" pedestal fan on Medium speed.

The best situation is if you have forced air heating. Put the humidifier near the air-intake, so the humidity is sucked into the heating system and dispersed throughout the house. Even better if the air intake is NOT in the living area -- better if it's in a hallway. Put the humidifier there, so you don't have to hear its fan running.

I'm in an apartment (700 sq. feet), and the air intake is in the living room :( If the dew-point outside stays above 25 degrees, this monster of a humidifier will keep the indoor humidity above 45% with its fan on Low. But that's still a lot more fan than I want to listen to, so I'll probably get a small ultrasonic humidifier to help reduce the on-time of the HM3500. If the humidifier and I weren't occupying the same room, I'd just turn the fan to Medium as necessary.

Regardless, I'd be afraid of High speed. That must be a structural stain -- if not for the humidifier, then certainly for the building.

Lastly, I recommend avoiding humidifiers that boil water (vaporizers & some "warm mist" humidifiers). Not just because they're a hazard for young kids (and klutzy adults), but making water boil takes A LOT of electricity, and we can't afford to waste like that, anymore. Once upon a time, I got a good head of steam coming out of my vaporizer -- I hooked up a meter (called a "Kill-o-Watt"), and found the vaporizer was drawing 1000 Watts(!) -- the same as a small air conditioner. Other options must be more desirable.