Vornado Element SA Air + Steam Humidifier with Auto Refill Notification, 0.75 Gallon Capacity, No Filters Required

The vornado humidifier is perfect.We bought an ultrasonic at first from a different company, but learned about their negatives quickly.The tri-mode low, medium, high vornado has been perfect. Love the humidistat to turn off automatically when the set humidity level is reached.We leave it on high during the day so the fan is low while emitting more steam. And then turn it to medium for the evening which turns the fan up a bit, but less steam. We find it cycles off/on less this way.The fan is noticeable, but what isn't in the middle of the night.We usually fill with filtered water which reduces the need to clean the calcium buildup.Perfect little unit with a 5 year warranty from a reputable company.

Little bit noisy and runs out of water fast but puts a lot of moisture in the air

At first, I loved this humidifier so much I bought two. Which was fortunate when I dropped one of the tanks on linoleum and it broke, I still had the other. Now, about one month after daily use, the humidifier itself won't work. The lights are on, but it's not starting, regardless of the setting I choose: hot, warm, cold, 30-70 level, etc. Very upset, this feels like engineered obsolescence.

Let me start with the basics: Powerful Steam Humidification Up To 1,000 Sq. Ft. - 3 Air-Assisted Steam - Temperature Settings - Automatic Humidity Control - .75 Gallon Tank - Capacity - Up to 4 Gallon Output in 24 Hours - Locking Touch Controls - Auto Refill Notification - SimpleTank System - 5 Year Limited Warranty - Boils 4oz of water at one time - Dishwasher Washer Safe - No Filter - Easy of Use, that includes refilling the water tanks, cleaning the unit.After careful consideration, I decided to give Vornado try. I saw very mixed reviews about the unit, I have purchased their fans in the past and never had an issue with them. I was quite happy with their line of fans. So I purchased the unit on January 10, 2018, the order was filled in 2 days!The design is very well thought out, easy to read screen and controls are very responsive. It has a nice led indicator to tell you the temperature of the steam being produced. I believe its a vortex circulators, with brushless DC motors " (Brushless motors have significantly higher efficiency and performance, and lower susceptibility to mechanical wear than their brushed counterparts. Brushless motors offer several other advantages, including Higher torque to weight ratio. Increased torque per watt of power input (increased efficiency)."The first thing that Vornado tells you to test is the tank, fill with a few inches of water and test for leaks... No leaks proceeded to fill the tank to full and move the unit into place and plugged module in for the night. I set the humidity for 40% and cool settings. I woke up hours later, discovering the unit never turned off. I didn't know how humid it was in my bedroom until I went to the bathroom. I don't heat the whole aptarment. Went I came back into the bedroom, I felt that I was walking into a blanket of humidity. It awfully warm in the room to where it was uncomfortable. The unit never turned off during the night.Later that day, I decided to move the unit into my computer room. I wanted to watch the unit as it ran while I did my work. The unit is very temperamental about the humidity temperature levels. I set it for 30% this time... I would turn on and off this time and other times, it would just run until I physically turned off the system. I was very disappointed with the item, I had high hopes! I contacted Amazon for an RMA and they sent out a new unit within the 2-day time frame. This time I tested the unit during the day. I set up the unit in the computer room and let it run. This one was worse than the first one. I once again had the system set at 40%, it ran was past the percentage. This unit didn't even attempt to turn off at any settings...I know it has a 5-year warranty, what's the point of buying the unit if it's maybe or be in their possession for repairs?I decided to do one last ditch effort and contact Varnado. I'm sure they are aware of the humid state controller being defective. The last thing the company said, was I will tell the product manager, cause that's what I requested. I commented that I'm disappointed cause their heaters/fans are great! This falls short of expectation... I'm afraid that I'm going to have to return the unit...The humid state is faulty! For the record, I never have an issue with the tank leaking, once you turn off the turn. DO NOT TURN the container that will cause the system to leak. Up straight up! I had no pooling, or issues with condensation on the rugs, floor on the table. Yes, at 70% the unit can be a little loud. From what I read the levels are considerably low for how much it can put out! I can not find the noise level rating... To be considered, the Vornado fans have never been whisper quiet. They are designed to move a lot of air at one time, this is the same case. It's more of white noise, not a real drawback. I can burp at times, cause the unit will draw in 4oz of water at one time to heat. The unit itself is the best design I have seen compared to its container parts. No filters to change, the manual tells you how to clean the unit. The unit itself comes apart like legos... Very easy to access the heating elements, the inside of the unit for cleaning... Take in consideration when you turn on the unit, the only time you will see any steam is at 70%! I could barely see the steam even at max setting on the highest heat setting. I would not recommend you place yours have over the fan to set the flow of steam! Also, consider this is ABS plastic, you don't want to use any harsh abrasives on the unit. It sounds like I'm a vendor for the company... I'm showing the bad and the good of the unit... I hope this review helps.... In the end, you have a low chance of getting the merchandise working right... Just beware, if you get one that works perfectly.. .Time to play the lotto!

I loved the ease of my vornado. Easy to fill and clean. I loved I can change the humidity and temp.I've owned mine for 2 years and the fan stopped. With one email the company promptly responded and quickly resolved issue. With the amazing warranty I received an update model.

So I like the finish and function of this steam humidifier, and I've been looking for the right steam humidifier, but the fan noise is almost too much and I may need to send this one back. The quality and finish seem good, and I like the function. The water reservoir detaches easily, and is the simplest fill I've ever seen. Sadly, they noise is just loud. I've attached a photo of an iOS sound measuring device, showing that our quiet home (~33 db) goes to about the level of a quiet street (~54 db) when it's turned on. Not terrible, but WAY too loud to sleep with the humidifier turned on. For example, it's too loud to talk on the phone and it's about 10 feet from my desk. Sadly, I think it's going back.

Here in Michigan we definitely need humidifiers during the winter. We have one for the whole house attached to the furnace, but it struggles to get the house much past 20% on a cold day, so when anyone is starting to feel a cold coming on, we have to roll out one of our humidifiers. We have a Venta Airwasher and an assortment of ultrasonic and filter type humidifiers.I'd say that the Vornado Element is probably our favorite, or perhaps a close 2nd to the Venta. There's a lot to like with this - because it uses a steam element, there's no filter to clean or replace. The silicone tray and small element make it easy to clean. The Venta, for example, need cleaning once a season, and the many small fins make this a problem.One detail for example is that the water reservoir has a really large lid making it super easy to clean out. Even though the reservoir is just water, our experience is that you eventually get some mold inside, so this means you can get in and really scrub it and dry it out at the end of the season.There are 3 fan settings - the cool steam highest fan setting is a bit on the louder side, but since we use these primarily at night, it's just like having a white noise machine. On the lowest fan hot steam setting the noise isn't that loud, and the steam isn't hot enough to burn you anyways, so we just use that setting.Humidistat control is great - we put it on 30 or 35% and it definitely is shutting off the steam when it hits that limit. This setting is good because we can get through the night. That's the one issue - I'd say it could use another 30-50% more water volume, perhaps 1 gallon or 1.25.

Update: 5 stars. Despite a few small complaints, I am super happy to have a device that- raises the humidity in my 600 sq ft apartment by 15-25%- does not need any extra filters or parts - it's completely self sufficient and I can easily manage the negative effects of my very hard water just by opening it up and taking out the scale that collects on and below the heater element (it literally sheds itself and collects in the silicon bottom!)- it's designed and built well and looks like it will last for years (silicon rubber and soft plastic parts)- it's just nice vapour that comes out and doesn't make anything dusty- I got help from a real live local person who works for the company who helped me resolve the hard water problem (using vinegar or the available packaged mix does a great job)Cons are few - it doesn't increase the humidity as much as it claims. I doubt any other device would do better. You can't dim the display light and at night it's very bright! Edit: patched with tape.Final point - it's not clear anywhere if this can be damaged if you let it run dry. I let it run dry overnight a couple of times accidentally, and more have left it on all weekend. No damage or issues.--original review---I have high hopes for this unit that uses old-fashioned steam so it doesn't need filters, and it shouldn't create any white dust with my hard water. I've just checked for leaks and started it up. I will update this review as needed.Came with one foot/leg broken off in the package but I can glue it I suppose. (I could also call the help line which is clearly provided. The 800 number works in Canada.)I don't see any way to adjust the fan (for noise control). You just choose your level of humidity. The fan is less noisy than my fridge, and is a softer sound as it's just moving air. The unit gurgles regularly as water is moved from the tank to the inside.I have hard (well) water and will report on how it affects the unit. The package came with a pack of citric acid powder and instructions on how to use it to remove scale buildup, and clear instructions on how to buy additional packs.EDIT: 1 star off after one day:there is a crust of lime on the inside of the silicon heat bath, which is due to my hard water. I can live with this as it works as it should and the buildup doesn't affect the operation, but might after a few days if not cleaned. It is VERY easy to clean.It doesn't raise the humidity above 30% from just under 20 - the room is 600sq ft with a 10ft ceiling. Pretty poor performance. But still an improvement and I don't have an option for a different type.I have not yet tried to use a hotter steam instead of the cool. That's next

Waste of money, error code showed after less than year that meant it was irreparable 😡Only used it over the winter months.Really disappointed, not cheap either!

Works okay until it doesn't. This unit is pretty loud and the lights are really bright (matters if you are thinking of having this in your bedroom). I took care of the unit well and cleaned it every few weeks. Stored it after 1 winter use. After taking it out for the 2nd winter in I got to use it for a couple of weeks then started getting the A3 error which means it's basically dead according to the manual. Not happy with this product at all as it only lasted a season.*editRaised to 2 stars as the warranty process is very fast and smooth and I got a different unit right away. They do not make this particular model anymore, so I received a different one.

I live in Canada, and with drying effects of winter, I was concerned about my guitars. I decided to purchase this steam humidifier to replace an aging ultrasonic Honeywell model and I am incredibly happy that I did. I've looked at the reviews for this device and can't help but wonder about how some people use devices. The instructions for the humidifier are clear and concise, and it was well packaged, although delivered without an Amazon box (glad I work from home to accept packages!).I know that there have been some complaints about the humidity sensor not working as effectively as people hoped. I have several Bluetooth hygrometers in our home, and use those to determine if the humidity level is really increasing everywhere. Our place isn't huge, but this small humidifier is managing to increase the humidity in a combined area of 900 sq. ft. with no effort at all. As a matter of fact, it managed to bring the humidity from 43% to 52% in about an hour (on the hottest steam setting), while using up about half the tank.I've set it in a corner, closer to the middle of the area, and it has managed well there. The area around the humidifier is not wet at all.But it is a little louder than you might expect, although on par with a small fan. The touch controls are a lot brighter than they appear. I would have appreciated a timer based function as well, but I can also get up and turn the thing off when needed.

Easy to maintain silicone filter easy to clean was well designed. No white dust. 5 stars!!!