Inside: Learn how to clean humidifiers using an easy method with just bleach and vinegar.
It is amazing what a humble humidifier can do.
In a child’s room, it can quiet the incredibly distressing, barking coughs of a case of croup.
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It can help anyone with a cold sleep through the night without loading up on medication.
In a wintry climate, it prevents annoying frequent shocks from static electricity.
It provides some pleasant white noise that can help people concentrate on work or sleep without interruption.
Whether used occasionally or through entire seasons, a humidifier needs to be cleaned every week and it needs a final cleaning before going into storage.
How to Clean a Humidifier
Supplies Needed to Clean a Humidifier
A timer is optional but recommended.
The cleaning process takes about half an hour.
Time needed: 30 minutes.
The Process of Cleaning a Humidifier
- Empty the water from the tank and use a damp cloth to wipe off the outside of the humidifier.
- Unscrew the tube from the motor portion of the humidifier.
- Clean with vinegar.
Pour 8 ounces (one cup) of undiluted vinegar into the tank of the humidifier. Use the disconnected tube to stir the vinegar, then leave the tube and tank to soak in the vinegar for 5 minutes.
- Wipe down with vinegar.
Dip a clean cloth in the vinegar. Dump out the remaining vinegar and use the cloth to clean the entire uptake tube and the walls of the humidifier tank. Make sure any particles are gone.
- Rinse the tube and tank with warm water.
- Clean with bleach.
Fill the tank with one gallon of clean water and one teaspoon of bleach. Use the tube to stir the bleach solution, then leave the tube and tank to soak for 20 minutes.
- Empty the bleach solution from the tank and rinse the tube and tank with warm water.
If the humidifier is needed for continued use, screw the tube back into the motor, fill the tank with clean water, and put it back to work.
If the device will be stored after cleaning, it is recommended to let it air dry for a few hours or overnight to ensure that it is completely dry when stored with no moisture remaining.
Storing a humidifier that is damp or, worse, still has water in the tank can allow a great deal of mold to grow. At best this mold will ruin the humidifier and at worst it can create quite a serious household hazard.
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