Best Humidifiers for a Child’s Room – How to Choose

Did you know that indoor humidity levels that are too high or too low can impact your child’s health and comfort? Indoor humidity of between 30 and 50 percent is ideal, and maintaining ideal humidity levels can help ease cold symptoms, reduce the proliferation of viruses in the home, and reduce discomforts caused by dry winter air, such as itchy skin and eyes. If dry air is a problem in your home, adding humidity is wise. However, if you’re choosing a humidifier for a child’s room, you’ll want to keep safety in mind.

Safety First: Choosing a Humidifier for a Child’s Room

If you’re going with a table-top humidifier, cool-mist models are your safest option. These machines create a mist of cool water droplets that evaporate into the surrounding air. Since they – unlike warm-mist humidifiers or vaporizers – don’t heat water to disperse it into the air, there are no hot surfaces to burn children or any hot water to scald them. A model that includes a humidistat to keep track of humidity levels is best, since too much humidity can cause  problems too, such as mold, mildew or water damage.

When choosing a humidifier for a child’s room, it’s important to know that while cool-mist models are safest, they’re not hazard-free. They need regular cleaning, disinfection, and maintenance to prevent mold growth or water scale accumulation, both of which can cause them to disperse harmful microorganisms into the air. Additionally, these units must be placed carefully to ensure safety –  on a flat surface, well out of reach of children. Lastly, avoid animal-shaped models marketed for children – they can be an attractive hazard, encouraging your child to play with the machine.

If dry winter air is a chronic problem in your home, you might consider adding a whole-house humidifier to your HVAC system – avoiding the need for portable models altogether. If you still have questions about choosing a humidifier for a child’s room, please contact Air Experts. We’ve been serving the home comfort needs of residents of the Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill and Wake Forest areas since 1986.