Crane Adorable 2.1 Gallon Cool Mist Humidifier, Penguin Shape
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List Price: Our Price: $29.95 You Save: $10.04 (25%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Category: Health Care See more product details |
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Customer Reviews of Crane Adorable 2.1 Gallon Cool Mist Humidifier, Penguin Shape
Customer Review: Is it worth the money?
Summary: 4 Stars
I bought two of these humidifiers, the Penguin and the Frog, each for an equivalently sized bedrooms. After the first night of usage I realized that the Penguin didn't put out as much steam as the Frog did. My hygrometers clearly showed the difference in room humidity levels. To verify my findings I swapped the two humidifiers, the same thing happened. Penguin put out less steam in the new room. I also noticed that after the same usage, Frog was close to emptying it's reservoir, while Penguin used only 1/3 of it's capacity. Frog will run on full steam for about 24 hours before running out of water.
I returned the Penguin and ordered the Leopard, as it is the same construction (two outlets for the steam) as the Frog. Now both rooms have the same humidity level. My theory is that even though the steam generating mechanism is the same, the number of outlets makes a difference in the steam output. It doesn't make sense to an engineering mind, but facts are tough to ignore.
As others mentioned the green light (On/Off indicator) is bright enough to bother people at night. Dark tape over it takes care of the issue.
I thought these humidifiers were quite, that is until I experienced Air-O-Swiss 32838 Ultrasonic Humidifier. While I can't speak to it's ability to put out steam, I can say that it is 99.9% silent. It does make a difference at night. I'm contemplating buying Air-O-Swiss AOS Ultrasonic Humidifier - 7135, as it's truly silent AND provides warm steam.
One a different note. I currently have another humidifier (not AOS 7135), which puts out hot (warm) steam. Comparing the two types of humidifiers I would have to go with the hot steam type over the cold. Here is why.
Cold: A - As soon as the steam comes out of the vents it drops down, cool air is denser than hot air. This causes condensation to accumulate on the surface where the humidifier is positioned. I have to use a Bounty paper towel to prevent water from pulling on the surface. B - Because of this effect I have to keep the humidifier on a reasonably high surface. Anything lower than 3 feet and the carpet in the bedroom starts getting moist. C - Cold steam noticeably cools the room. Through the night I get a reading of about 5 degrees cooler than without the humidifier.
All in all, I'm keeping the Frog and the Leopard. $40+ is a fair value, as long as you know what you're getting into.
{Edit on Jan. 6th 2011}:
About two weeks ago the Leopard broke. The base of the water tank is leaking. The water overflowed the bottom part of the humidifier onto my dresser, ruining it. I couldn't find the hole/crack. I'm assuming it's a hairline crack that can't be seen, it took about 4 hours for the water to leak out. As a test I put the humidifier into a bucket to see if it happens again and it did. I send it back and ordered the Dragon.
Yesterday, I noticed that the Frog is leaking from the screw-on cap for the water tank. I'm going to exchange it for another one. Stay tuned...
Customer Review: Quiet, easy to use, and so gosh darn CUTE!
Summary: 5 Stars
I got the penguin humidifier a week ago after researching multiple brands, some expensive ones, filter ones, big ones, warm ones, etc. And I read the reviews about it leaking or breaking on this one, and essentially there was some complaint on just about every brand out there--always a few problems. So for the $30 this one cost (and the fact that it is ridiculously adorable!) it seemed to cover what I needed: something that was not expensive, not too large and bulky, smaller reservoir so more fresh water going through it (and less water sitting around getting ookey) and would add humidity where ever it was.
It has been running almost non-stop for a week, minus filling times or when we were out, and has worked perfectly. The body reservoir, even when running on high, has lasted at least 16 hours. I haven't had problems with white dust on everything like my old-fashioned gigantic noisy one (I use tap water), and it doesn't spray water drops out with the mist either. It definitely made a difference running at night in the bedroom--no noses and throats feeling 'dry as dust' in the AM. The penguin has a small footprint, about 9" diameter and 12.75" tall. It runs almost silently BUT it does make a trickling noise and actually sounds like our tabletop fountain. It's a nice sound during the day but wore on me during the night; I wasn't used the sound and I kept thinking it's leaking when it wasn't. So now I run it for a while before bed and I sleep much better all around.
Things to watch out for though... the reservoir opening where you fill it, there is a screw-on cap with a spring-valve (like what's at the bottom of your coffee maker basket). There should be a silicone O-ring that fits in the top of the cap. Our O-ring was inside the opening, and since it was clear-ish could be easily missed. The O-ring could cause the cap to leak if not seated properly and the cap needs to be tightened snuggly. When filled and righted (there's even a little handle to carry it by) it should only drip slightly out of the spring-valve. Check that nothing is clogging the spring-valve by pressing it in (before filling) and that the flap is not folded. Only use COLD water in the reservoir, and if you boiled water WAIT for it to be room temp before using. Using hot water could definitely cause this plastic to crackle and crack. The body must sit squarely on the 'butt' or it can dribble over the side a tiny bit.
We have had absolutely no problems with this little cutie, and if I do I'll update my posting. It has a nice rocker on-off switch on his 'left butt cheek'. It has a dial on the front (I'll call it his bellybutton) to adjust the amount of mist; even on high he doesn't drip. The mist dial doesn't seem to affect the fountain noise at all; i.e. the lesser misting does not lessen any gurgling it does. A great little design and it does the job!
Customer Review: Love it!
Summary: 5 Stars
Some people complained that their floors were a little wet in the morning? I would suggest that if you have a ceiling fan, there is usually a switch that changes the direction of the fan blades to blow the air down towards the floor or pull the air up towards the ceiling. I have my fan set to pull the air up towards the ceiling...this way the mist is pulled up and into the air instead of falling to the ground.
Some people complained that their humidifier leaked all over their wood furniture. Well, the directions clearly say NOT to put the humidifier on a wood surface so everyone who complained of that needs to learn how to read the directions first. I mean we're talking about plastic that has the potential to crack, water and electricity here. It may look cute but it's not a toy...take it seriously. I have a dog cage that is only used to cage our dogs when we leave the house. The dogs sleep in our bed. So, I closed the door to the dog cage so it's off limits to the dogs overnight and put the penguin humidifier on top of the dog's cage. This way, if it happens to leak, the water will be captured by the plastic-lipped tray at the bottom of the dog cage.
I think it's really about common sense. Try to foresee any problems and then take preventative measures to ensure you and your child are safe. Obviously kids that can walk like to get into everything and they love to climb so I wouldn't put the humidifier in a place that would entice the kids to climb up to reach it and possibly knock it over onto the ground... I also wouldn't want the electrical cord in plain sight where they could pull the penguin down off it's shelf. Anyway, it's all about safety first.
And as for cleaning, ALL humidifiers need to be cleaned on a regular basis. They ALL mold really easy. Make sure they are air drying daily. I don't think any of them are meant to be used all day and all night long. I am only planning on using mine at night. They need to air dry during the day then can be used at night. And they need to be cleaned with bleach or vinegar weekly (I would switch each week from bleach to vinegar). Mold is not something you want to mess around with - it's deadly. Many children and people have died because of mold. So don't take chances by skipping necessary cleaning and drying. Clean the humidifier as often as the directions say.
Lastly, I just want to say that this penguin is adorable and I love it. I sure hope I don't have any problems with it. We are going to be as careful as possible with this so that it lasts. It is plastic and I can see that the handle and other parts may break if we are rough when cleaning it. If I have any problems with this humidifier, I will come back and update this comment. But so far so good. Couldn't be more excited :)
Customer Review: Cute and works well
Summary: 4 Stars
I purchased this for my bedroom in a very dry apartment. I run it at night and I have noticed that my nose and throat are not as dry in the morning anymore. It's easy to use and has a large range of adjustability if you want just a little moisture or a lot. When turned up to higher settings, you can easily see the moisture coming out. The light stays green when the humidifier is on and turns red when the water runs out. It has a safety shut off if this happens, though you still have to flip the switch to turn it off.
The biggest issue I have is one of inconvenience- the tank pours water into the base, so every time you refill it, you have to unplug the base and dump it out. Don't plug it in behind a dresser or you'll be reaching back there every day or two. The tank is large and I never fill it more than half way because the water needs to be changed every day or two so it doesn't start to stink in the tank. There really isn't a good way to get a towel in there to dry it out, so when I was out of town for a few days I left it empty and open in the kitchen sink. Other reviewers have mentioned that the tank doesn't stand up on its own to be filled. This can be frustrating, but I found that if I take the penguin head off, the top of the tank rests nicely in the drain of the kitchen sink and supports the tank. Another little thing is that the dial does not have any markings on it and it slips easily when you're moving the base around to dump it out. This can make it tricky to know how far to turn it. I solved this with a small dot from a permanent marker. I turned the knob all the way to the left, then put a dot even with the bottom of the scale surrounding the knob. You may want to practice putting the tank on the base somewhere where a water spill will be easy to clean up, as it does spill from the front. I've found the best way to do it is to line up the back of the tank with the back of the base, then bring the front down quickly into position. Once you get the hang of it, it's no big deal and, when done correctly, there is no spillage. The humidifier doesn't make a mess, but it is a tank of water and thus drips sometimes after filling so you'll want to protect the furniture you put it on. I purchased an inexpensive plastic placemat and haven't had any problems, though I do keep a hand towel nearby just in case.
Overall this product works well, is cute, and is a good price. Despite the few inconveniences listed above, many of which are easily fixed, I think this product was well worth what I paid for it.
Customer Review: BUY THE PENGUIN! If I could give 6 stars, I would.
Summary: 5 Stars
Where do I begin? He is so essential to my life that he is not "the humidifier," but "The Penguin."
I've had mine for well over two years, and still he works perfectly. I second every positive comment re. ease-of-use, ease to clean, quietness, reliability and functionality.
This is DEFINITELY the cleanest humidifier I've ever owned and least likely to generate calcification. I have no idea why--in my locale, the water is quite hard.
I love this guy so much, I've bought one for my grandmother, one for my mother, and have URGED (not just a recommendation) several people to buy one. This includes my brother, whose daughter has asthma.
WHY THE PENGUIN: His head rotates. I.e., you can change the direction of the vapor. I bought the elephant for my grandmother, not thinking about the benefit of the penguin's rotating head. Of course, as you can tell from pictures, the elephant's trunk doesn't move. For my mother's I specifically wanted to get a frog or other round-headed animal. But when I tested them, the vapor opening did NOT rotate! So far, the penguin is the only rotating opening I have seen. Being able to slightly adjust the direction of the vapor w/o moving the entire apparatus is KEY. I cannot emphasize this enough. I am not sure if this asset was just coincidental of the design--it appears to be--but it was a brilliant inadvertent move! I wound up buying a penguin for my mom, who was really ill at the time, and my father, who hardly praises anything, said, "Deb, you really bought a good humidifier."
Not to mention it is cute as heck, and never makes a bedroom look like an infirmary.
ALSO, I love how the design is virtually airtight. Mine has NOT ONCE (in 2+ years) smelled acrid or grown any type of mold. I clean mine with a bit of bleach (per instructions) 2 to 3 times per month (less regularly than instructions), but it NEVER gets "gross." I've had several other humidifiers that accumulate dust, grow mold, smell sour, calcify beyond repair--you name it. This one has given me NONE of these problems.
I am ridiculously passionate about how awesome this penguin is. Do yourself a favor and stop shopping. Just get the darned penguin. :)