Customer Reviews

Slant/Fin GF200 Germ-Free 2-Gallon Warm-Mist Humidifier

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(11)

 

 

I usually do not write reviews here. However, because of my experience with ALL of the Slant Fin humidifiers that I have purchased over the past 4 years (GF200 and GF300), I wanted to let others know that there are issues with the products.

GOOD: Humidification: The output is not great and is not suitable for large open rooms. For enclosed rooms like bedrooms or playrooms, they work very well. The plus is the warmth of the moisture (this is essentially a boiling pot). Occasionally, gurgling aside (from boiling), they are quiet.

GOOD?: "Bacteria free" operation: UV lights and boiling supposedly make the products "virtually bacteria free," always a good thing.

NOW BAD: Cleaning and maintenance: Our water is neither hard nor soft (Lake Michigan water in Chicago suburbs). The mineral buildup/scaling is very substantial on plastic and metal parts and very hard to clean. Given that they need to be cleaned every week or so, it is very time-consuming.

NOW REALLY BAD: All of the Slant Fin humidifiers that I have owned had problems with water level sensors. The electrodes (2 each in GF 300) get corroded and rust away after 1 or 2 years (usually shortly after the expiration of warranty). The two probes (spaced about an 1/2 inch), when dipped in water, apparently transmit/receive a very low voltage electricity, completing a control circuit and indicating there is water in the tank. If they don't transmit electricity (i.e., no water in the tank), the boiling pot turns itself off.

The problem is that the metal probes get corroded and get covered with rust/corrosion. Because they don't transmit/receive electricity, even if there is plenty of water in the unit, the unit shuts itself off. Initially, you can scrape the corrosion/mineral buildup on the metal probes with your finger nails. Eventually, the metal probes/electrodes literally rust away. That literally renders the entire unit inoperable and, thus, worthless.

NOW THE ABSOLUTE WORST: "Customer Service": I have sent emails, written letters and left voice mail messages. I asked whether I could buy the probes or send the units back for service. I have NEVER received any response.

It is also very hard to get any live person. When I did get a person at the "customer service" department, that person claimed that she did not work in that department and transferred me to the "right" department, sending me into the voice mail maze hell, only to get disconnected after 10 minutes.

OVERALL ASSESSMENT: The product works well, as intended, for about a year or two. The promise of "bacteria free operation" and warm moisture made me forget about the extremely burdensome cleaning. I recommended these products to all of my friends and relatives in the first year of operation, accounting for as many as 20+ units. Given that a large majority of them are having the same problems as my units, I think this is a serious design defect that Slant Fin is refusing to address. I am sorry that I bought and recommended these units.

Thus, given what appears to be a serious design flaw (re water-level probes) coupled with the worst customer service I have ever experienced for a consumer product, I can no longer recommend any Slant Fin humidifiers.

I purchased this (Slant Fin GF200) warm mist humidifier with the idea of "germ free" in mind. The idea of having a germ free humidifier is great! The UV bulb killing bacteria, and the mineral pad absorbing any minerals work well (as far as I know).

I have owned this unit for approximately a month. I thought buying distilled water would be too expensive. So, I purchased extra mineral pads expecting hard water to be an issue. Anticipating the worst, I was prepared. Let me tell you, this unit requires lots of "love" or maintenance (if you want to get down and dirty). I cleaned the unit (resevoir in particular) frequently, every 5-7 days. I replaced the mineral pads when needed, usually at cleaning time (again, 5-7 days). Scale buildup was terrible -- even with the frequent cleanings! After alot of elbow grease or grunt work (and vinegar), I got things cleaned in about 20-30 minutes.

Then, I started to notice the coating (stainless steel) on the reservoir flaking off and rusting. First it was one spot, then it was 3-4 spots. This, IMHO, is poor quality! I am currently trying to get the product returned for repair, even though I strongly believe that it would happen again. After paying close to $100 for the humidifier and extra mineral pads, I would have expected better quality for Slant-Fin!

In conclusion: If you have hard water, avoid this humidifier. The mineral pads help with hard water, but they can't take all of the minerals out of your water, to prevent the scale buildup. Unless you replace the pads every other day. If you use distilled water, you may have better results, but you pay the extra for the "pure" mineral-free water.

Pros: great idea/concept, humidifies well, simple, quiet.

Cons: poor quality, expensive, needs lots of maintenance, scale buildup, purchasing extra mineral pads and/or UV bulbs.

Update #1: The company has failed to reply to email for warranty service. My next step is the Better Business Bureau. Stay away from this company!!!

Update #2: I finally received a reply from Slant-Fin (Canada, mind you -- I guess they actually care). They forwarded it on to a represetative in the U.S. I sent the unit back (pre-paid) and about 1 month later I received the unit back. They appeared to fix the rust issue. They didn't really clean up the unit very well with particles of metal within the unit (where the water would be -- not very healthy)! I am betting this will be the last winter season I get use out of it. As of right now, it is in storage. I am happy I got the unit in for service. I am still very unimpressed by this company. Next time I will buy from a well-rounded company like Honeywell. I suggest others to do the same.

I have to agree with several other reviewers on many points about both the good and bad of this unit. But the bad far outweigh the good! I bought it for my new infant, and purchased it before winter so that I had it on hand for his first illness. Luckily he didn't get sick for several months, but now that I have tried it (months past the time I can return it) I discover it is horrible, here are my big complaints:

The noise level is just loud enough when it gurgles to wake the baby from a light sleep.

But the worst is the maintenance. With a small infant I don't have time for a lot of extra cleaning and this requires a lot - and most of the manufacturers info available online doesn't tell you this. It says weekly cleaning, but I can tell you for a fact that if you let water sit in the unit unused for 24 hours you will have slimy water. So now you have to empty and dry the thing out daily. And God forbid you have hard water as we do. I can't wait a week to scrub the scale off the unit as it says in the instructions. If the unit is run every night I'd have to scrub the scale off every day or two.

I purchased it from a different store, but I did a lot of research online about what units are recommended. But I didn't look here to read consumer input. And I really wish I had. I hope that others reading this will run from this product! I also hope the store will take mine back.

This is the first time I have written about a product, but I have to warn potential purchasers not to suffer the same painful and expensive lesson. I own two Slant/Fin GF200. It has been only 1.5 years for the first humidifier and only 6 months with the second humidifier before each humidifier broke. Both are now sitting in my garage because the customer service department won't even return my inquiry. The first humidifier has one broken sensor. The second humidifier hums loudly and won't process any water. This product is supposed to have a three-year limited warranty. I have written them 4 to 5 times and my husband wrote them 2-3 times. We are very disappointed because we had to buy a humidifier of another brand because my children need a humidifier. I have wasted my money, and I thought this was supposed to be the best humidifier made. This humidifier lacks durability and its manufacturer does not fulfill its warranty.
Further, it is very difficult to maintain. Even with the weekly vinegar cleaning for the bottom and the chloride cleaning for the container, I am unable to keep the machine clean. I have had to use a knife to scrap off the mineral deposit,and this still does not keep it clean. Nothing in the manual says I could use a lime remover. Finally, I noticed the pad became dirty as quickly as a week, and the cost of the pad adds up. But now, I have all of these pads and no humidifier to use. I hope this review will help you decide not to buy this product.

[...] I wanted one that had a UV filter. I have owned other warm mist humidifiers in the past and they all were acceptably quiet. However, the Slant Fin is very noisy - it gurgles almost constantly. My son is a heavy sleeper and it wakes him up at night. Also, the mist output is poor. For the level of humidity I need, maximum is barely sufficient and this is in a bedroom. The other humidifiers I've used in the past had much better output. I don't understand the good reviews from web sites. Bottom line: avoid it

We've owned three of these hunks of [substandard] plastic. And they have all broken! First one leaked water everywhere and was sent back. ...we received a new unit. ... another one which also ended up broken after less than a full season. Now we were using the replacement unit and turning it on for the first time the second season, the power switch broke. I fixed it myself and found that the power switch was made of the [most substandard] plastic ever, and just snapped broken. ...

I have a horrible problem with hard water and have gone through many warm mist humidifiers. I have had this product for over a year now and it is still working flawlessly. The stainless steel reservoir is what makes this product great. It makes cleaning easy as it is the only humidifier that I have been able to clean. Every week I empty the water from the reservoir and let it soak for a couple hours in vinegar. This is the best and easiest way to remove the hard water. There is practically no work (other than letting it sit) involved in cleaning this machine. If you have hard water problems and want a warm mist humidifier then purchase this one. If you find it difficult cleaning this one then I bet you will have even more difficulty (as I have) with other warm mist humidifiers. If this is the case then you might want to consider a cool mist or ultrasonic humidifier. I have not had problems with the sensors (as other people have reported) with this machine. After 1 year of continual use they still appear to be new. Maybe this is because I soak the reservoir in vinegar as the instructions suggest. This machine does make a gurgling/boiling noise (seems typical of most warm mist humidifiers)and it sufficiently humidifies a medium to large size bedroom.

I had high expectations for this unit because so many people said it was the best. After it ran for a few hours I saw a puddle of water under it and spreading out across the floor and soaking the carpet. I changed the water, reset the unit in a shallow tray and tried again. Within hours the puddle of water that came out overflowed the tray. I shipped it back the next day and will not take a chance on another one.

I have had many humifiers over the years. While I cannot complain about this unit's ability to adequately saturate a room I found the noise level to be unbearable at night. The greatest problem is the inconsistent level of the noise, sometimes it is quiet and at other time (usually when the unit is heating water) it is very loud. My sleep was negatively impacted by this (relatively expensive) unit and this was unacceptable so I returned it and started researching other units. Definitely not worth the money.

Well, it worked OK for about 2 days before it melted the water cap reservoir. Not sure how that affects operation, but not a sign of great engineering. It's not horribly noisy, but it sounds like your boiling water--loud enough that you're aware of it. I wouldn't purchase slant fin again given my experience with the gf200