Comments on: Essick Air 826-800 2-Speed Evaporative Console Humidifier

By: Sue Weingarten

Sue Weingarten — Sun, 29 Nov 2009 12:53:29 +0000

Have two of this model to adequately humidify whole house. One is three years old, other is new this year. Does a super job of keeping house humidity between 40 and 50% during cold,dry Wisconsin winters. New unit just started to show “CF” on digital display. Manual does not explain what “CF” means and no explanation on website either. Unit is working well, but we would like to know what problem it is trying to let us know exists. Filter is clean, less than one month old and we use antibacterial treatment with each fill. Fan is clean, as is tank. What can we do with this display?? More info needed from manufacturer!!

By: M. Jackson

M. Jackson — Sun, 29 Nov 2009 10:11:16 +0000

This product works. It was able to raise the humidity in the large open area of my house from 33% to 60% no problem. It could have raised it more but that is the point I was shooting for.

5 stars for performance.
5 stars for easy filling.
5 stars for easy maintenance.
3 stars for control features.
3 stars for construction.
3 stars for noise.

The plastic is thin, so if it were ever to be dropped accidently it would certainly break.

It is reasonably quiet on the low fan speed. I can sleep with the fan noise at that level no problem. It is loud on the high fan speed. Too loud for listening to music or watching TV.

I am satisfied with this product because it meets my need when other units failed to perform. I recommend it for its performance and easy maintenance at a lower cost than other large capacity units.

By: M. Saunders

M. Saunders — Sun, 29 Nov 2009 08:09:57 +0000

I bought this to help with the exceptionally dry winter air here in Colorado. With the heater running, it's not uncommon for my hygrometer to read 20% or less humidity during the winter. This leads to cracked skin and huge amounts of static electricity from just walking across the carpet.

After reading a bunch of reviews, I ended-up purchasing this Essick 826-800 model. I specifically chose it because it had simple controls and being an electronics guy, I didn't want the potential reliability hassles of digital controls on something filled with water (and doesn't really need digital controls!)

The unit unboxes easily enough. I didn't have much trouble getting the fan portion attached to the base. Like some other reviewers stated, it's not a high-precision fit, but just take a minute and look at thing, and it goes together easily enough. The filter just slides into place as well. Overall, it didn't take more than a couple minutes to get put together once I was done inspecting everything.

As for actual use, the Essick doesn't disappoint - at least on low speed. At low speed, the unit provides a nice drone/white noise but is nothing intrusive at all. I'd compare it to sounding like one of those small 8 inch clip-on fans. BUT, when you turn the knob to high... wow. It gets about four time louder. It's still not ear-splitting by any means, but it's no longer in the "quiet" category. Fortunately, I don't plan to (or need to) run it on high.

The performance is good. I have to put about four gallons per 24 hour period in, so it's definitely getting water into my home's ~1600 sqft. My hygrometer currently reads 36% as I'm writing this. I not longer get the massive static discharges with every move I make, nor do I have to smear lotion all over my hands (I'm a guy - I don't like that!)

One additional note for those who watch their electricity: I ran the Essick 826-200 with my Kill-A-Watt and it consumes about 0.80 kilowatts per day. At my rates, that works-out to about $3 per month in electricity use.

Overall, this unit works quite well and is worth purchasing if you need a humidifier that can handle a middle-sized house. It could be a bit cheaper in price for what you get, but I still find it an OK deal.

By: Vladimir Shamets

Vladimir Shamets — Sun, 29 Nov 2009 06:01:05 +0000

I bought this humidifier a couple weeks ago and I’m experiencing big problems with this unit.

The wick basket fell apart right after unpacking the humidifier. Please not it was not a defective basket, it was designed like this. The side basket hooks wouldn’t hold the basket together , you should do some tricks and get the wire around .

The automatic shut off system did not work! I woke up in the morning and there was no water left in the tank but the fan was still running . The rod that should turn the fan off is the worse design I’ve ever seen.

I don’t know who wrote those positive reviews for this product , my guess is they have been written by the guys who make those horrible products.

Please beware and if you do buy this humidifier and get disappointed don’t tell me I didn’t warn you.

By: James B. Head

James B. Head — Sun, 29 Nov 2009 05:00:37 +0000

Does a good job humidifying the bedroom and is fairly simple to operate and maintain.