Cool Mist humidifiers are just hard IMO. 1. Warm Mist humidifiers work by boiling water. This has the downside of... well... boiling hot water hanging around the area. But otherwise, these are the simplest and are only ~$20 or $30. 2. Cool Mist humidifiers try to get around the boiling water issue. Since they humidify at room-temperatures, they're a lot more efficient... but now bacteria / mold is growing constantly.…
> 1. Warm Mist humidifiers work by boiling water. This has the downside of... well... boiling hot water hanging around the area. But otherwise, these are the simplest and are only ~$20 or $30. Or $0 if you have a pot, a stove, and a tap.
You're paying $20 to $30 for safety auto-shutoff features so that you can leave these things on all night long, and not have to worry about fumes, fire, or a myriad of other issues.
Yeah, its basically equivalent to a pot of boiling water + a stove. But... being able to move it to the locations you need (and safety features to boot) is the big advantage.