Extend the Life of Your Humidifier Filter
I can’t stand the dry air that winter brings. Our humidifier must be on all the time otherwise my throat gets dry and painful, my nose is congested and my bones feel like they’re creaking, especially at night. It’s worse during pregnancy, I’ve found.
So when our filter reached its maximum life expectancy with a few more weeks left of winter, we scoured the supermarkets and hardware stores for a replacement. And we learned that the model we have is one of the most popular ones. All the stores were out of the filters, too early in my opinion.
Desperate situations call for innovative minds. My dear hubby resolved to find a solution to ease my suffering. And he discovered that these filters can be reused! Eureka! The trick is to remove the deposits that accumulate in the filter and make it unable to do its job. Here’s what he did:
1. Put water in a 5-gallon bucket (large enough for the filter) and add a capful of liquid chlorine bleach for each gallon of water.
2. Soak the used filter in the water for a couple of hours to remove the deposits. Do not do this for long periods of time because the filter will disintegrate in the chlorinated water.
3. Soak the filter in fresh water for 1-2 hours.
4. Rinse the filter in fresh water several times to remove more of the chlorine. It’s best to do this in the shower.
5. Put the filter back into the humidifier and it’s ready to use.
There will be a scent of chlorine left as the humidifier begins to operate. But it wasn’t bothersome to us.
We’re definitely going to do this again, as filters are rather expensive and usually need to be replaced several times during the winter season. I’m not sure if the filter will stand a 2nd rinsing but doubling its life is definitely something worth doing.
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POSTED IN: Frugal Living, General Housekeeping and Homemaking
2 opinions for Extend the Life of Your Humidifier Filter
JohnnyBoy
Dec 14, 2007 at 6:27 pm
We’ve taken a different approach. Filters clog up because minerals dissolved in the water get left behind.
Our Kenmore humidifier has a filter about 7.5 inches high by 30 inches long. When it stops working, we wet it down, roll it up tight, and put it into a two-gallon cardboard milk carton. Then we fill the carton with vinegar which dissolves the mineral deposits (two gallon jug costs about $3 at Costco.
We let it sit for about three days, plungin it up and down in the container a few times a day.
At the end of the third day, we take it out, unroll it in the bottom of the sink with the water running, roll it back up and squeeze it out.
In our experience, the filter is good for another two-three weeks of like-new performance. And we’ve been able to repeat the treatment at least two times.
Maricar
Dec 17, 2007 at 10:55 pm
Thanks for this tip! It’s just in time, too. Our filter needs replacing, but I’ll try this trick first.
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