Customer Reviews

Hunter 33222 Care-Free 2.2-gallon HumidifierPlus with Exclusive NiteGlo Night Light

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(8)
1 star:		(28)

 

 

I must respond to the previous reviews before I discuss mine. 1st-The same water does not sit in the base the entire time; it cycles through. 2nd-Any water that sits in any location for too long will grow bacteria. That is why they tell you to rinse the machine on a daily basis (as ALL humidifiers recommend). If you let it sit too long, the water will turn brown, but that is due to mineral deposits in the water. Using filtered or distilled water will minimize this, but so will rinsing out the unit on a daily basis. Regardless of the type of water used, the filter will build up deposits, which means it's doing its job. That is why they recommend cleaning the filter and the entire unit on a weekly basis with vinegar. This is nothing unique to this particular unit; all humidifiers will require regular cleaning. 3rd-To rinse the base all you have to do is remove the filters and the reservoir. Nothing too difficult. This will occur with ALL humidifiers. You cannot expect to have a machine that uses water and expect not to have to clean it. Leave some water in a bucket for a few days and see what happens. Moisture left to be will breed bacteria eventually. If you use this unit on a daily basis, rinse and clean it regularly. If you use it occasionally, then make sure it's dry before it sits there for any amount of time. 4th-I have 3 of these units and not one leaks. You probably got a defective one.

MY REVIEW: I purchased 4 other brands of humidifiers before trying and choosing this one. It is the best I have found in a decent price range. I now own 3 in varying sizes for my home. It is very efficient and puts the moisture out very well. This size will run for quite awhile without needing a refill. It is simple to clean; it comes apart easily and the permafilter is nice because you only have to clean it in water and vinegar and not spend $$ on new filters. The fan is louder on high but it is a soothing, constant noise and really much quieter than others I have tried. It works well when sleeping because it is like white noise. Low and medium are pretty quiet and I am able to keep it on medium in my living room even when I'm watching TV or reading. I measure the humidity in my home and these Hunter's really work quite quickly and efficiently. I highly recommend this unit!

Live in Phoenix, Arizona and need humidity just to survive the dry air here. This unit claimed to be quiet and included anti-microbial in nature. I will say, these claimes are not a fair representation of the product. Always had problems with mildew buildup, even when using the chemicals requested by manufacturer. After a few days the unit started to vibrate to the point the dishwasher is considered tolerable. We would have to shim the water tank with folded paper and toothpicks to get vibrations to lessen. Sometimes a smack on the side did the trick. After two months the unit started to leak out the intake vents.
Unit requires refilling every 22 hours or so on medium fan speed. All in all, I think this unit gives humidifiers a bad wrap as I am sure you can get a better unit with less hassles. As it is, $50 is a lot to spend on a night light.

I bought 2 of these humidifiers. They worked well for about 3 months. The humidifiers stopped distributing mist properly and started "spitting" water. The fans also became noiser and began to work unevenly on lower settings causing a squeeking sound. I've cleaned the humidiers regularily. I'm going to throw the Hunter humidifiers away and try a different brand.

I'm on my 4th one for this humidifier (I have the one w/o the night light)

LIKES
1) no filter to replace
2) relatively easy cleaning (just soak in vinegar/water and brush)
3) quiet enough for me to sleep on LOW
4) large 2.5 container so dont need to refill frequently
5) it works! i sleep better, and my hygrometer proves it

DISLIKES
1) it breaks down and stops working or leaks, or gurgles after 1 or 2 months
2) gets to be noisy when on MED (specially on HIGH)

I bought this product April 23,2006, and started noticing water spiting out rear grill. The screws inside housing are starting to rust. I think they should of used brass screws. Its a little noisey on high setting,low setting is a bit better. I am sending it back to hunter and they are sending me a different model. Ill give it a second try. I do own a very nice ceiling fan that I have had for over a year and no problems!

After about 1.5 months, it started leaking. Even though I filled it with filtered water, calcium deposits were all over the inside. I wiped out the inside with CLR (lime and calcium remover) and soaked the filters in CLR. Within 3 days, it was spitting out water again. And not just a little bit of water, either. I'd placed it on a huge beach towel that I'd folded up as many times as possible...maybe came to 3" of towel that it was placed on. The next morning, the towel was DRENCHED...I mean, I picked it up and water was dripping out of the towel. I phoned their "customer service" number listed in the manual about 3 times. I was on hold for so long each time, I gave up. Now it's just sitting in my living room and I'll probably throw it out. What a waste of $50. Oh, and when it WAS working, it was noisy. I had to turn my TV volume up to a level I hope did not disturb my neighbors (apartment living).

Mildew builds up every few days. Directions for cleaning are unclear; cannot remove the "sponge" for cleaning. Unit is too loud on all but "low" setting, which doesn't make for much humidification. Water dribbles from tank after filling. Have to "jiggle" the water tank every day in order to get enough water in the unit for the pump to work properly. This unit is anything but "carefree".
This series of Hunter humidifiers is horrible. They should have stuck to making ceiling fans.

I thought the first two units I purchased were just defective. I tried a third and cannot understand why this is such a highly rated product in some of the consumer magazines. They work well for a couple of months then start spitting water and wetting all the surfaces around. It is hard to clean, loud and much to expensive. I would not recommend this humidifier.

I have had this humidifier over a year so I can attest to its durability.

The first humidifier lasted about 4 months then died. Hunter gives a 5 year warranty on the product, and it must be costing them a lot, especially on this unit. The big problem with the unit and the reason why so many motors burn out is that this unit does not have an auto shutoff feature. The fan and the water pump are tied to the same motor. When you run out of water or let this humidifier run dry, the fan does not have water to pump and can therefore turn more easily. The fan just starts spinning around at MACH 7 without water. If you catch it and put water back into the unit while its running, you can hear a sudden drop in RPM's of the motor as the pump starts working on the water again, and the fan goes back to safe speeds. This seems to be what killed the first unit. The second unit I've had has worked for 8+ months and has not burned out the motor yet.

Unfortunately, the second unit's light has stopped working, much to my 2 year old daughter's dismay. It appears the metal connecting the light to the power just rotted away, perhaps from water damage. It is a thin wire connecting the light to the power and just didn't seem to last.

The unit is difficult to clean and I've found that I need to put as many pieces in the dishwasher as possible, including the metal filters, even though they don't recommend this. The vinegar solution they suggest to clean the filters just doesn't work for me here. I have a lot of hard water in Colorado and the deposits just won't come off any other way. The unit is very effective when clean. I just wish they had included an automatic shut off to preserve the motor life.

I'm looking into the Venta Airflow humidifier to replace this one, but it is very expensive. I've heard good things about them though and they get a 10 year warranty. If you have the money, I'd look into this unit.

ok so i dont recommend this unit either. but it may not be for the same reasons as everyone else. i have owned it for 1 and 1/2 winter seasons now and its dieing on me. i dont know if i can afford to pay over fifty bucks a season. the first season i used it i was more than impressed, no sticky mildewed filter no dangerous chemicals to add to the water (and breath in to the lungs) it was quiet , had a nite light, was soooooo clean and easy to fill with the little handle to carry from the sink. but then it got noisy and i noticed that it doesnt use as much water as before and i cant remove the sponge to clean it. its not leaking and there is still no smell and i really did like it but its not working properly now. (a girl can tell these things you know) i looked at the housing and the screws are rusty, now if you sell a product that uses water like this one you should use non rusting screws, thats a sign of poor quality. the filter bricks are only slightly crusted. that makes me read the reviews again. one person runs it dry to create a vacuum and then complains the motor burns out another tips it to make the noise stop someone else smacks it because it doesnt fit tight or shims it with paper for a tight fit and then blames the unit because it leaks. someone else is mad that it doesnt come clean enough so uses clr on it and then talks of hard water. makes me think that half the trouble with this little guy is the user. i know my water has dissolved copper pipes and destroyed the insides of faucet housings the plumber loves me. i also know that to save on electricity i have let the thing set full but off if the furnace isnt going full blast so maybe the inactivity caused some of my trouble. so i too may be an unfriendly user. but im not letting hunter off the hook either, they have a wonderful design here but have cut corners on quality components that i can see and i suspect many that i cannot see and the need for the company to sell more units may well be why. i need a new unit but sorry hunter i cant be spending fifty plus dollars every year, these should not be disposable appliances and if they are then charge us ten dollars not fifty.