Crane Germ Defense Antimicrobial Humidifier Customer Reviews

Good product, especially for the price

Our requirements in a new humidifier:
-Ultrasonic
-Quiet
-Good design (not to look like a boom box)
-Humidistat with ability to set desired humidity level and stop runnin...Read complete review

Our requirements in a new humidifier:
-Ultrasonic
-Quiet
-Good design (not to look like a boom box)
-Humidistat with ability to set desired humidity level and stop running when that level is achieved
-Large capacity
-Easy to clean
-No filters or parts that need continuous replacement

This humidifier mostly satisfies all of these requirements, but we do have a few complaints/suggestions for improvement. We use this for humidifying our bedroom during the dry winter months. It has helped relieve nighttime dryness.

I rank it number one for design, compared to similar (and more expensive) brands. The white color and rectangular shape is not offensive and looks quite nice in any room. The buttons and screen are easy to understand and are thoughtfully put together.

The noise level is much better than other fan-operated humidifiers I have had. There is a small hum of the motor (white noise) that is hardly noticeable. The thing to get used to, was the water-movement/bubble noises that result from the water being pulled down from the tank. It sounds similar to the noise of a fishtank. We're used to it after a couple of weeks, but it definitely took some getting used to.

The digital interface is very nice, but the lighted display is too bright. There is no reason for the light to stay on constantly, and should definitely be addressed in future models. We cover the display with a card, which mostly blocks the light, but still leaves a small blue glow. At the least, the color should be changed to red, which is easier on the eyes in darkness and doesn't awaken the brain as much as the color blue is known to do.

That said, the user interface is very good. I didn't know we would like the timer, but we use that function every night. Generally we use the lowest power/flow setting, but I like the ability to increase the power for quick-humidifying needs. The function for setting a desired humidity level was one of our top priorities, but we only use it during waking hours. The problem with it is that once the desired level is reached, the machine cycles on and off quite frequently. For instance, if you set it to 60%, it will run until 60 is reached and then stop it's humidifying. But, if it detects that the humidity level went down to 59, it will turn on again for the instant that it takes to get back to 60. That may seem nice, but the sensor is so sensitive that this 59-60 back and forth happens in a very short amount of time - sometimes less than a minute. The machine ends up turning on and off every few minutes, which can be disruptive if you are not fully asleep (and even when awake). So, we use the humidity level setting for daytime and the timer for nighttime. It works out well for us.

Not mentioned in other reviews I read, there is noise in the user interface. First a power-on jingle, and then a beep for every button pressed. It is unnecessary and rather irritating. I would prefer no sound, or at least the option to turn off the sound on my device.

The tank handle is fragile, as noted in many other reviews. It should have been designed strong enough to support the full tank, or not included at all.

The heating element/warm mist setting still smells when operated, even after two weeks of intermittent testing. I can't stand the smell enough to justify using it. There is no smell with the cool mist.

Overall it is an excellent product that I am glad to have purchased. It could use some design updates for future models, but I still believe it to be one of the best of it's kind available. It is a good value for the functions it offers