How do you clean warm mist humidifiers?
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This is a great question: How do you clean a warm mist humidifier? It’s a question that’s asked time and time again on the internet by people who want to ensure that their humidifiers aren’t putting out harmful bacteria or viruses into their homes. It can happen, trust me. Nobody’s being paranoid about this; the warm mist put out by the machine itself can be chock full of bad stuff that can cause you and your family to get sick. Even if you routinely clean the humidifier with warm soap and water, it may not completely do the trick. With that method you can’t always get into all of the components; yes, you may have no trouble cleaning the tank, but the real bad stuff is in the mechanisms themselves. You need something a little stronger.
So let’s talk about the best way to clean one of these things. First of all, do not use bleach to do this. Yes, I know bleach is the preferred method of choice for a lot of applications, but for anything safety sensitive such as this, you really really want to stay away from it. Even a little bit of bleach left in the humidifier itself can cause serious health concerns over time. No, we want to use something just a little safer. You probably will agree with that. What we want to use is good ol’ fashioned white vinegar. Yes, white vinegar from the store is one of the best ways to get rid of unwanted mold and many types of bacteria. The acidity in the vinegar will completely destroy the mold at its source, so don’t worry about that. And better yet, since you use the stuff in salads day in and day out, it’s safe. There are no harsh chemicals added to it; it’s completely natural.
No, it won’t exactly be as effective as bleach (I don’t think anyone can argue that bleach does a wonderful job), but you won’t have to worry that your family is being exposed to harmful chlorine fumes. But even if it’s not as crazy effective, it won’t matter. It’ll get rid of all the unnecessary junk in warm mist humidifiers just fine.
That’s all I have to say about this, really. Don’t go for harsh chemicals, and stay away from even commercial cleaners unless you really know what you’re doing with them. Keep with the natural solution of vinegar and your family will do just great this cold season.
