Customer Reviews

Holmes HM5601-UC Warm Mist Humidifier

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(8)

 

 

We purchased this for a vacation home in an arid climate. I got it, filled it, turned it on, and nothing happened. Then I read the short instruction booklet. Duh. It works great. The unit works fine, shuts off when its supposed to and operates quiet enough for a bedroom. You get a full night out of one fill. We also own a Honeywell product, and it operates in a similar fashion. If you don't clean these products regularly, you'll have problems. The manufacturer recommends doing this daily, but a quick clean out every few days works well. You'll be amazed at how much sediment builds up in such a short time. Note this is a humidifier, not a vaporizer. If you want to have damp air, consider a vaporizer.

Here is my original review from December 31, 2004: I was leary about purchasing this model after reading the negative reviews...but decided it was worth a try for the price. I hadn't planned to buy a warm mist humidifier, but I was attracted to the idea of having warm vs. cold air given that we live in an older, drafty house in a cold climate. I purchased two for my kids' bedrooms about three weeks ago and so far they work great. For people concerned about the noise factor, the machine itself is very quiet -- no motor or fan. However, you can indeed hear the water "gurgling" away, especially at the high setting. This is less of an issue at the low setting, and not a problem for us -- we haven't found the noise to be disturbing.

A minor negative is the somewhat confusing instructions (I have yet to understand how the "reset" setting on the control knob should be used). But the machines seem to be working even with my bypassing that step!

Another minor irritant: although the unit is advertised as running up to 24 hours on one filling, we have found that water needs to be added after about 18 hours, even when running at the lower speed. This could, however, reflect our horribly dry air. Since we don't usually run the units all day long, it's not been a big problem.

The major plusses include ease of cleaning, relatively compact size, relatively quiet operation, the two speeds, and adjustable humidistat (I do wish, however, that the machine provided a numerical reading of the humidity level in the room, but you can't have everything, right?).

I plan to buy two more, including one for my office at work.

Update on March 11, 2007: After 3 winters of use, my three Holmes humidifiers are still going strong. I will point out that my Mom had less success with hers -- the tank leaked, as others have described. But no complaints from me.

When I first got this humidifier I thought it was defective because it kept shutting down and I would have to reset it. NOW I figured out what the problem was. AFTER YOU FILL THE TANK YOU SHOULD WAIT A LITTLE BIT BEFORE TURNING IT ON UNTIL THE WATER IN THE TANK FILLS THE SECTION WHERE THE HEATING ELEMENT IS. Otherwise the humidifier shuts off because it "thinks" it ran out of water. That must be a small design flaw. But now I have no problem with it's performance.

Also the shape of the water tank is a little unusual and you must be certain to make sure it is properly in place. I do like that it can run for so long without the need to refill so often and it does not need a filter.

Those who prefer a warm mist humidifier, over the more common rotating belt type, will find this unit highly efficient in delivering a steady flow of moisture. Humidistat and fan settings accurately deliver measured outputs. The one design weakness is that the water tank control valve does not always and easily align with the probe when a newly filled tank is placed on the unit. If this valve is not opened by the probe upon installing the filled tank, the reset will not initiate and the unit will not restart. Consequently, the operator must visually insure that the tank aligns with the probe so water is released to the heating unit.

Run it pretty much day and night. Keeps a 1400 sq foot house comfortable. Cleans up easy - need to clean couple times a week - manufacturer recomends daily.

In the past I've bought the ones sold in the baby stores for my son, but they are so hard to keep clean. This product is awesome and so easy to clean! I recommend it to anyone who needs a humidifier to aid in sick family members. I like it so much I'm going to buy another in case I have to people sick at once.

Everyday I used two Holmes humidifiers, smaller ones than this model. I've used them for two or three winters, storing them in the summer, and I've had great results. That's why I usually buy a Holmes product, when the choice is to be made.

This time, though...hmmm. Bad luck. At first, the unit seemed to run perfectly. Though, I did think that I heard a 'crack' when I was filling the tank, the first time. Anyway, after a week or so, all of a sudden I noticed that the humidifier had gone to 'reset' and the tank had cracked all over like broken glass -- a bit of water had leaked out, too.

I ordered a replacement tank. That cracked after the first use.

I'd been convinced that the problem was the tank -- not the main 'engine.' But, perhaps I got a bad unit and any tank would crack on it. There was nothing to indicate that, though -- it seemed to be running fine, until it cracked.

Pros: 1) filter-free (don't understand why Amazon keeps suggesting the filter to accompany this humidifier), 2) good price, 3) quiet operation, 4) does the job
Cons: It would be nice if water can be added from the top, which is a feature that we couldn't find in any humidifier so far.

Unit is brand new.

Good features: Larger water tank, warm mist, water filter, water tank handle, 2 speeds, easier to clean, price.

Problems: Too many instructions to complete minimal tasks; not good humidity coverage; noisy even at low speeds; won't reset; poor website support.

Other cheaper units have been better (Vicks, Reli-On, etc)

i used holmes HM5305 warm mist humidifier which has mostly the same features as HM5601. we filled the tank full before going to bed, turned it on and set the humidistat in the middle setting. when we woke up, the water tank was melted and it was still halfway empty. what was the automatic shut off for? could have been a fire hazard.