Lasko 1128 9-Gallon Evaporative Recirculating Humidifier

Great Unit, Don't Buy What The Hater's Say... - N. Peelman on Jan 16, 2010 I Like

For some reason I find many of the 1-star reviews of this product frustrating...almost all of them can/should be attributed to human error and not defects in the device itself.

Yes, if you hold the jug by the one handle water can leak from the valve at the end. Guess what? It has two handles. Use the one at the other end and it doesn't leak at all....use the top handle only when loading the thing into the unit itself.

Yes the little pictograph at the far end says you press the little spring-loaded lever to fill it at the tap. But the entire lid also unscrews to fill using a larger source (like a bathtub).

If you can fill a glass with tap water and not smell the nastiness within, great. Fill that glass then let the water evaporate from it completely. Repeat. Eventually that glass will smell (and look) REALLY bad from the contaminates left behind by the water. This is the process your humidifier goes through daily on a large scale. This is why they have filters. The nastier your water is, the more you have to change filters and clean the unit; and if your water smells, then there's absolutely nothing ANY humidifier can do to help you with that problem. If the water rings your toilet or sink drains, you're going to have problems with any device that is built to evaporate water.

Is it noisy? It can be; it has a big fan that runs to pull the moisture through the filter. It also has 3 speeds and the lowest isn't objectionable. It also has a humidistat so it will run automatically. No, it doesn't have a digital gauge and a build in hydrometer, so you will have to buy a hydrometer ($3, walmart) and play it by ear; here's a hint: Crank it to the max; watch the gauge over the course of a day. Dial back a bit. Repeat until desired humidity level is reached. Why is this is a difficult procedure?

If you find that your humidifier isn't humidifying your house like you would like it to, instead of spending 10 minutes writing a review on Amazon bashing the unit, spend 5 minutes googling for "humidifier placement" and discovering that placing the unit near a cold-air return will allow it to humidify the entire house instead of just the room its in.

Its built from plastic, not solid oak, so yeah, you don't want kids playing near it; but there's a lot of things in my house susceptible to damage from small children. This thing is the least of my worries.

I've had this unit for 2 weeks. Its not flawless, but i don't think its deserving of some of the criticism being delivered here. There's no such thing as a device that's immune to operator error. The only thing these people should really be faulting Lasko for is not being able to read their minds or providing a user manual that's 200 pages thick (which then nobody would read and Lasko would go out of business trying to print).

Loud But Effective - Alan Starner on Mar 27, 2010 I Like

I've only had this for one week, and I came very close to sending it back because of the noise. It is effective in putting water into the air, but the fan is really loud. There are three fan settings, and it's reasonably quiet at the lowest setting and you can have a normal conversation when near it. At the middle setting I have to raise my voice, and at the high speed I would have to start yelling. At the lowest fan setting, it puts about 2.5 - 3 gallons of water into the air per day, or about 1/3rd of it's rated capacity. I've decided that 3 gallons per day into the air is enough to be a benefit and I will keep this unit. I plan on only using the lowest fan speed and I leave it in a room where I don't spend much time.

As another reviewer pointed out, humidifiers are rated in gallons per day of water into the air. The rating has nothing to do with the size of the water storage. This Lasko is rated for 9 gallons per day (using the high fan speed), but storage capacity is 3 gallons plus 1.5 gallons for the refill jug, for 4.5 gallons total. I like the fact that I can have this running continuously while filling up the jug. Since I only run this on low, I only have to fill it once a day, which is great.

There are some design problems with this humidifier. First, the housing is made of flimsy plastic, and seems like it could break easily. This flimsy plastic also forms the mount for the fan and fan housing. The fan on my unit was not centered within the housing, and the fan blades were extremely close to the housing on one side. With the fan on high and sometimes medium speed, the fan blades would hit the housing and make a terrible racket. I was able to loosen the 4 screws that hold the fan and slightly reposition the fan so that no longer happens at any speed. From the other reviews, it seems like a common problem with this model. My comments on the noise above are for the sound level AFTER fixing the mounting problem.

The other design issue I have is with the refill jug. There is a recessed/retractable handle (good), but the shape of the top is rounded, so it will not stand upright on its top. Since the jug is refilled from the bottom, it would be nice if it stood upright. If the handle is retracted, it will stand lopsided on its top however, so this is just a minor annoyance. There is a valve on the bottom of the jug that is only opened when installed in the unit, and when depressed manually while refilling. This spring loaded valve is just plastic mating with plastic, and is not water tight. So if you carry the jug right side up by the handle, water will leak out the valve. It's not too hard to carry the jug upside down since there is a handle on the bottom too. I just refill and carry upside down, and then turn it right side up while over the reservoir of the unit; it still spills some water if I'm not careful, but it's acceptable.

There is a little plastic window in the side of the unit that has water trickling down when the fan/pump is on. This is to tell if the water is flowing, and it also makes a pleasant sound; can only hear it with fan low and even then the fan sound dominates. Nice little feature though.

The controls on top are for fan speed (1, 2, 3 and off), plus a humidity level. It shuts off when the humidity reaches the set level, and turns back on when it falls below that level. There is a green led that lights up when the humidity level is met. I tested to make sure this works, but living in dry Colorado, I expect it to be on all the time.

Mine came with 4 casters to make it easier to slide around. They work fine, but I had to press so hard to install one of them that the receptacle (flimsy plastic) cracked slightly.

Best Humidifier - Jerry P. Danzig on Oct 26, 2011 I Like

I have tried all types of humidifiers over the years, and IMO the recirculating evaporative technology is the way to go.

Cool mist humidifiers leave white dust all over the room. Warm mist humidifiers cost as much to run as an air conditioner. And non-recirculating evaporative humidifiers lose their ability to moisten the air in just a few weeks, occasioning constant conditioning and replacement of the wicks.

Circulating evaporative humidifiers like this Lasko, however, solve this latter problem by keeping the wick moist using a small pump.

Thus you get a clean-running, energy-efficient humidifier with a minimum of upkeep and wick replacement costs.

As others have noted, there is some maintenance involved. You still have to clean the interior occasionally and soak the wick in white vinegar or bleach to remove mineral deposits and odors. And Lasko recommends that you discard the wick at the end of the winter, replacing it at the start of the following winter.

But those are small prices to pay compared to the alternatives.

I wanted to address a few complaints I have read about this humidifier in other reviews here at Amazon. First, regarding water spilling when you refill and replace the water jug: note that the end of the jug with the water inlet valve unscrews and removes, enabling you to clean the jug. You need to make sure that this end is inserted in the jug properly and screwed closed tightly.

When you carry the jug from the bathtub (or kitchen sink, if you have a high-mounted faucet or water hose), carry it with the water inlet valve end facing up. Then just flip and insert the water jug in the humidifier, like replacing a water bottle in a water cooler, and you should minimize any spills.

As to the noise of the humidifier in operation, it makes about as much noise as your average table fan on high speed. The low speed is very quiet, however, and shouldn't disturb even a light sleeper.

Others have commented that they wish the reservoir was clear, so you could check the water level at a glance, but this Lasko does have a neat little visible waterfall window that shows whether the water is circulating properly over the wick. If no water is falling, you obviously need to refill it.

More likely, you'll get a feel for how often you have to add water depending on your environment and desired moisture level. Then you just refill and replace the jug until some water is left in the jug after you insert it in the humidifier. No biggie.

So as of this writing, I think that this is the best humidifier on the market. I will report back if anything causes me to revise my conclusion...

Easy To Use And Even Easier To Hear - J. Finkel "Jack of T on Feb 12, 2010 I Like

The Lasko 1128 9 gallon evaporative recirculating humidifier is an evaporative humidifier. This mean that a shallow tank of room temperature water with a lot of surface area sits in the base and a powerful fan circulates air over that water to promote evaporation. It has a 9 gallon capacity, meaning that you can expect to add 9 gallons of water to the air during 24 hours of continuous operation at the highest fan setting. This is how all humidifier capacities are measured. The Lasko 1128 also has a filter to trap dirt and other particles.

Most humidifiers have a convoluted mix of components that require thorough frequent cleanings and tiresome refillings. While, a 9 gallon capacity neccesitates frequent refilling, it is not much of a chore, so long as you have a deep basin sink or bath tub nearby. A large 1.5 gallon canister on the unit should be filled 6 times a day for maximum hydration. This should keep a 3500-4500 square ft. home at the normal target 35-45% humidity. For smaller houses with good insulation, two or three fills should be enough per day. The Lasko 1128 seems to do fine with a light cleaning every other week or longer if you run the basin dry between uses. If you let the water sit too long with running the fan, you might find mold growing in less than a week. A set of 4 cheap casters and a humidistat that works acceptably completes the package.

Unfortunately, it seems every humidifier has some major negatives and the Lasko 1128 is no exception. The biggest issue most users will face is the noise created by the fan. Even at the lowest setting (of 3), the fan will produce enough noise to bother most people in an adjacent room without a closed door - though some might find the noise relaxing at night. At the highest setting, it's hard to even think in the same room. I usually run this humidifier only when I'm at work or asleep (on a different floor than the humidifier). Another negative is a very weak seal on the bottom of the canister. It is not too much trouble to get used to filling without spilling, but expect to make a lot of spills at first. Finally, you should rinse out a new filter thoroughly before use because otherwise your house will smell like a chemical plant.

Overall, this humidifier does the job with minimal upkeep and a couple nice features. The fan noise will be a big negative to some, but the noise-free humidifiers generally don't produce such a high moisture output...or they leave white residue. So, though I've yet to find the perfect humidifier, the Lasko 1128 certainly does a decent job. If you are looking into a humidifier this big though, you may want to consider having a humidifier installed directly into your hvac and connected to your water line.

Great Value And It Works. - RandyM on Mar 18, 2010 I Like

We just moved into a new home in North Georgia this past Fall, so this was our first Winter outside of Florida in 20 years. We had forgotten that it doesn't stay highly humid all year long in most parts of the country. After a couple of months of using a wood burning fireplace insert, coupled with two propane gas forced air furnaces, we had effectively dried out our house to about 15% relative humidity. Although our goal was only heat, we were cracking baseboard wood joints and crown molding joints all over the house. Finally, we realized this dry climate was going to be with us for awhile more, so we decided to add a humidifier to the climate conditioning of the house.

We knew we needed a large capacity humidifier, but we didn't want a semi-permanent hulk of a console humidifier in the middle of our family room. We liked the fact that these are small enough to set on top of a folding TV table, yet large enough to do the job. We have a 2-story 4500 sq. ft. house, so we purchased two of the Lasko 1128's. We figured even if they were over-rated at 3200 sq.ft. capacity, that two of them together should handle 4500 sq.ft.

When we first started them up, we were very discouraged. After running on high speed fan for two straight days and nights (48 hours) without stopping except for refilling water, the relative humidity had only increased from 15% to 18% on a small humidity meter we had purchased from Walmart. To make matters worse, both units were only using up about 1-1/2 gallons a day each. These are supposed to be able to put out 9 gallons a day each. The reservoir in the bottom takes 3 gallons of water (2 fillings from the 1-1/2 gallon jug) and then the last filling of the jug stays in the unit. That keeps 4-1/2 gallons in the unit when completely filled. Both of our units were only using the water that was in the jug plus maybe a little bit more, during a 24-hour continuous run period. No wonder our humidity was not going up very fast.

We called Lasko technical support and were told that we need to let them run about a week before complaining about their performance. The tech rep explained that all of the furniture, carpet, walls and ceilings would have to absorb their ambient humidity before the air level would change appreciably. Evidently, everything in our house was bone dry. Then why weren't these units using more than 1-1/2 gallons of water a day? We still don't know that answer.

True enough though, after about a week of continuous run on high speed, the humidity in the whole house climbed up to about 45%, both upstairs and downstairs. We dialed back the built-in humidistats on each unit to keep the relative humidity in those areas to stay at 41%. We are now able to keep the fan speed on low (which is very quiet) on both units, and the fans only come on whenever the furnace comes on or when we have a fire going in the fireplace. They do their job of keeping the house right at 41% all the time. By the way, they are only using about 3/4-gallon a day now that the house is up to a comfortable humidity level. We refill each jug in the morning and not again until the next morning.

Only 4 stars instead of 5 stars because our units are not living up to the specifications of putting out 9 gallons per day when it was real dry. The bottom line is they do work, maybe not as advertised or expected, but in the end, they do the job as required with less refills than expected.

The Guitars, The Wife, And The Plants All Agree On This One - G. E. Johnson on Mar 7, 2010 I Like

This has been a rough heating season, and because of my collection of acoustic guitars and my wife's plants, we monitor the humidity. The heating system has had to run far more this winter than usual, and the relative humidity on our main floor has typically ranged from 24% to about 30% most of the winter. The plants have looked pretty forlorn, and the guitars have all had to have dampits installed and monitored. My wife tried to raise the humidity level in the house by running a cool mist vaporizer like what you might put in a child's bedroom when they have a cold. This approach was like trying to bail out the ocean with a thimble. You could barely move the humidistat by one point in the vicinity of the vaporizer. Enter the Lasko 1128.

The Lasko arrived, got properly cleaned, filled, and cranked up full throttle. Within 24 hours, it had the 2500 square foot main floor up nearly 10 points (and into the range that might be identified with comfort). I've had to add water several times, but this is relatively straight forward. If we'd had this unit at the start of the heating season, I could have avoided fooling with the dampits, and the plants would all look quite a bit better than they do.

The unit is on the noisy side when you crank it up to full speed. And if you put it near the cold air return duct, a lot of the water vapor heads into the HVAC system. This might be a good thing, since it gets distributed farther away from the unit.... but on the down side, it slows the rise in relatively humidity in the area where the unit is operating. The unit is not hard to move around on the castors which are provided. It did take a little elbow grease to install the castors correctly. My wife is a petite woman, and I'm not sure she could have done this by herself.

Once you're up to the relative humidity that you want, you can reduce the speed and set it on autopilot. We did this overnight, and the noise level was diminished enough that it did not interrupt our sleep.

It looks like filter changes will be simple enough. I'm going to order some filters, but there are instructions with the unit that explain how to extend filter life, so it may not be necessary to have an extra one this year since our heating season will be over soon.

Overall I am pleased with the unit, and I may order a second one so that next heating season we can put one at one end of the house and another at the other end, to get greater uniformity of relative humidity, and to allow operation on a low speed setting more of the time.

The box says that the unit is assembled in the US of foreign and domestic parts. I guess that nowadays that about as close to "made in the USA" as you're going to see most of the time. It comes with a one year warranty. I hope we don't need it, but at the price point, even if it only lasted one season, it would be worthwhile.

This Is A Good Humidifier - Richard B "rico" on Jan 18, 2010 I Like

This is the best humidifier I've owned. There are many reasons to use a humidifier in winter months -- health and comfort would head the list. Lower heating bills would be another. I set the humidistat dial to the 10 or 11 o'clock position and it keeps the relative humidity around 45% which feels comfortable for Arizona. (if you don't have a humidity gauge and if you want to go to the trouble of setting up a wet bulb thermometer you can calculate relative humidity at -- [...] )

The Lasko 9 gal. capacity is about right for my 1,800 sq ft. house. I use only reverse osmosis water so mineral build up is not an issue. Since the R/O also removes the clorine from tap water, I add about 1/16 tsp. chlorine bleach per gallon to keep mold from growing in the machine. It is better, in my opinion, to replace the evaporative pads every 3 - 4 weeks to keep mold and fungus from getting started. I also completely drain the tank twice a week using a siphon tube. This keeps the water and humid air from the machine fresh and clean. While this regime seems excessive, I think it will keep the unit COMPLETELY clear of mold or fungus build up for many years to come. The pads are reasonably priced from Lasko and I've been pleased with Lasko humidifiers in the past -- the motors have lasted for many years.

There are two problems with this machine however. First, the fan blades are noisy. I keep the fan speed on low and it is still fairly noticeable. The second issue is water dripping when I refill the reservoir. A towel comes in handy when carrying the reservoir from the sink to the humidifier, but it is a small inconvenience compared to the benefits of the machine.
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Works Great! - Mama JoJo on Feb 28, 2010 I Like

This unit easily keeps the humidity level consistent in our upper level. We keep it just outside the doors of our three bedrooms. I've got a cheap hygrometer that I got with another unit and I've moved it around to all the rooms to check. All humidifiers I've tried are loud. It's worth it though to avoid the dry nose and throats that happen in the winter. My hubby didn't believe me that a humidifier would help him and the kids with cough, dry throat, sinus congestion. Once the humidity level got up to where we wanted it (which took just a couple hours) he was a believer. We've all felt great since. It's just a fact that you have to clean these things. Not a big deal and this one's filter seems to stay cleaner than others I've tried. I love how you refill. Very easy to do in our bath tub. I only need to refill once a day. Overall I think it's a great unit and would recommend it to anyone.

No Recurring Costs - Johnny "BarJohn" on Jan 28, 2009 I Like

Update: February, 2011. We've used this 150 days each of the last two years and it's worked flawlessly. Last week the refill jug broke, after being lifted and swung around 900 times. I was delighted to find out that the company sells a replacement jug for $6 (plus $7 shipping). These people sell an excellent product and don't try to get rich on replacement parts. I'd give them six stars if I could.

Our house is so well insulated that the furnace doesn't run often enough for a furnace-mounted humidifier to work well in our 2550 s.f. house. As a result we've tried a number of different kinds of portable humidifiers.

The ultrasonics don't put out enough volume. Nor do the spray mist ones. The warm mist ones have a very high operating cost. For a couple of years we used a wick-and-fan humidifier that had plenty of capacity and ran quietly. The problem was that the wicking filters were expensive ($16 each) and rapidly lost their capacity: a filter that would wick 5 gallons a day was down to 1 gallon a day within two weeks. So even this solution cost us almost $1/day for filter replacements.

The Lasko Recirculating Humidifier seems to have solved this problem: instead of water being wicked up by the filter, the filter is wetted from the top by a little built-in aquarium pump - much in the way that furnace-mounted humidifiers work.

We've been using this humdifier for three weeks now. It is slightly noisier (even on its lowest setting) than our old one; but the noise is not objectionable, and the volume of water being put out has not decreased at all.

I can't speak for the longevity of the product, but its operating costs should be very low, and its technology is exactly what I've been looking for for years.

WOW! A Humidifier That Actually HUMIDIFIES!!! - A. Pariseau "CSMAA E on Nov 1, 2011 I Like

This humidifier is a gem. It pumps out lots of humidity quickly and can turn your room into a SWAMP if you want it to! We've tried several humidifiers in our large 400 sq-ft master BR with attached walk-in closet and large master bath and nothing comes close to this beast. Add bone-dry Colorado to the mix and it's a real challenging task. This Lasko does the job with ease. I filled it at 8:00 PM, turned it on low and, by morning, humidity had increased from 30 to 42%. With the control set to 3/4, the room rose to 56% in 24 hours! Wow! No other humidifier has ever come close. Several "large" capacity ultrasonics, including a "warm-air" model from Air-O-Swiss, struggled to reach 40% in days. It is not a quiet unit, however. The fan cranks out lots of humid air because it moves at high speed, even at the lowest setting, so it makes some noise. But it becomes a familiar, soothing sound in a few days. After the room reaches desired humidity, the humidistat only cycles about once per hour, and we rarely hear it during the night. One thing about this unit that is much appreciated is that the fan is extremely well balanced, so there is absolutely no vibration or rattles within the unit. All you hear is the fan and the soothing sound of water trickling through the "fountain" feature. (One of our earlier console attempts was a similar-sized Honeywell disaster that was so poorly balanced that it rattled like crazy. Promptly drained, re-boxed, and returned.) All-in-all, I am extremely pleased with this unit. If you're looking for a workhorse humidifier and don't mind a bit of fan noise, this is your final stop.

Great Unit For The Price - Just Techie on Jul 27, 2009 I Like

Works great, easy to clean, low maintenance cost. Bought my first and found the pitcher lid was cracked after about a week. It leaked a little. Faxed Lasko a copy of my receipt with explanation of the problem. Received a replacement lid that week. Cleans the air, parts are cheap and is easy to clean. Great product.

Size Just Doesn't Always Matter - Marc on Jan 9, 2012 I Like

The pros:
1) Relatively easy to fill, but watch your floors, it will drip.
2) Large capacity (although as other reviewers have pointed out, it's 9-gallons per hr output, NOT a 9-gallon unit. It holds 3.5 canisters (including a full canister.)
3) It makes lots of noise so you think it's working.

The cons:
1) NOISY!!!!! Even on the low setting, it's more than just an annoying background hum. On higher settings you can no longer hold a conversation in the same 800 sq ft room without raising your voice. On the highest setting you won't be sure if you are in your own home or sitting in the last row of a 727 during take-off.
2) The unit doesn't turn off when it's out of water. I have never seen a humidifier that didn't turn itself off when there was no water. Even the early '70s humidifier I had as a child turned itself off.
3) VERY VERY difficult to tell if there is water in the unit or not. Sure you have a little waterfall that only runs when there is water, but the color of the unit and the waterfall color make it very hard to see. The unit is so noisy, that you can't tell if it's the waterfall making noise or just the fan (and yes, even on low.)
4) Puts very little moisture into the air. I live in an 1100 sqft apartment. Open footprint and I don't close interior doors. In the master bedroom I have an older Hunter humidifier that has a humidistat on it. During the month or so I've had this Lasko, it has not raised the humidity more than 4% with the two units not more than 10 ft & one right angle away from each other.
5) The spring on the filling latch is already starting to weaken.
6) The design of the filling canister may have some physics reason behind it, but if so it's beyond me. When will a manufacture put the fill location on the top of a unit. I guess it just makes too much sense.
7) Be prepared to wash this thing weekly. The 'green' buildup is disgusting and fast. I have to wipe the fill canister down every time I fill it (twice a day.)

I paid more and went larger because filling these units is such a pain. But just to keep the humidity in my apt above 20%, I have to fill my old unit once a day and this new unit twice a day. I'd return it but shipping charges are way too high. I wish Amazon and ShopRunner would get together. I love ShopRunner's free return shipping on ALL items.

End result, come spring cleaning, this unit will be going out with the trash and the money I paid for it.

If you read my other reviews, you'll notice that I write them mostly for items I think are great and everyone should get or awful & I want to help people save their time and money. This falls into the latter category. Don't waste your time and money, move on to a unit that actually works, not just sounds like it works.

Update:
I won't bore you with the details, but after some experimentation, I was able to determine that in my ~1100 sqft apartment with all doors (except the front one) open at all times, this unit was able to raise the humidity level 7% at a humidistat 10ft away with a right angle midway. The humidity level went up 2% at a humidistat 20ft away, in the same room as the humidifier.

Anyone who cares enough to make a decision based on reviews, should avoid this unit at all costs. It's no better than trowing money out your window on a windy day. When I told a friend I was going to throw it out, he offered to take it and I refused to give it to him since it just plain doesn't work. If you only go by what the air feels like when it's coming out of the unit, you may think it's actually working. You'd be wrong. The most fascinating # I came up with was on a humidistat I placed right next to the controls. It read 16% when I placed it there. I checked it an average of 5 times a day, including all hours. With the fan on low, it increased to 19% during a short period of time, when there was also a light rain outside. Other than that is stayed at 16%. With the fan on medium, it never budged from 16%. I did not turn the fan to high because my cats and I would have needed to wear ear plugs it's so loud. If you've ever stood in a NYC subway tunnel when an express train goes flying by, the noise this unit makes may not be quite as loud, but it's continuous. There was no place in the apartment I could go where it wasn't too loud to be able to talk without yelling.

If the #'s don't prove it to you then feel free to waste ~$70 like I did and possibly have the false impression you are doing something good for you and your family. As for me... This unit is already packaged and put out with the rest of my trash.

Best Humidifier I've Found For VERY HARD WATER - DaByuBoy on Jul 8, 2011 I Like

If you have very hard water then this type of humidifier is a must. Since the day it has arrived it has been in use 24/7 for over 3 months now. I live in Las Vegas and it is very dry and the water is very bad. We don't have a water softener or any kind of water filtration system so every humidifier I've tried only last a matter of days before the scale builds up so much that it no longer works. I refill this unit every night before bed. The tank holds 1.5 gallons and I usually have to fill the tank 3 times. Basically you fill the tank drop it in, wait for it to empty, maybe takes 20 seconds, and then keep repeating this until you no longer hear the tank emptying. I can completely refill it three times in a couple minutes, it's not a big chore at all. My favorite feature is that you don't have to unscrew the top of the tank to refill it. All you do is flip it over, press down on the button on the bottom of the tank and hold it under the bathtub faucet to let the water pour right in. Flip it over while still over the bathtub then no water gets on the floor. We keep ours in the bedroom with the fan on low and the humidistat turned so it runs continuously. The soft sound of the fan humming all night helps us sleep and cancels out any noise coming in from outside. It's not any louder than a small desktop fan if you keep it on low. It puts out plenty enough moisture on low. Overall I am very impressed at how little the hard water has affected its performance with so much use. I just received a replacement wick/filter and swapped it out. The next day after I put in the new filter I had still used the same amount of water as before so that tells me even though the first filter was hard as a brick from all the scale build up it was still working perfectly. The digital humidity gauge also agreed. I soaked the old wick in descaler overnight (the kind made for dishwashers, some type of acid) and now it is ready to go when I swap them again in another 3 months. The scale also does not seem to be affecting any of the internal parts of the humidifier. There is some visible scale in the bottom of the tank but not as much as I would have expected. I guess running the water over the filter again and again deposits most of the scale on the filter. Throwing some dishwasher descaler in there probably wouldn't hurt next time I swap the wicks. No more dry noses and chapped lips for us.

Another think to mention which I did not see in any of the other reviews is that I measured the air temperature coming out of the unit and it was 8 degrees cooler than the ambient room temperature. Technically it is just as much of an evaporative cooler as it is a humidifier. Our bedroom temp is actually now always at least 2 degrees cooler than the rest of the house if we keep the door closed. That also makes it more comfortable at night for sleeping.

Great Product, Iffy Shipping - Charmaine S. Krystal on Dec 4, 2010 I Like

Does it do what it's supposed to do? YES. Does it have some issues? YES.
1.
Noise? If you keep it set at high humidity but low fan speed then there's not much to complain about. Let it run 24/7, who cares if it's 70and balmy indoors? Silence you wimps!
2. If you're lucky enough to get a unit that hasn't been beaten to death by the shipping/delivery people then congratulations! I sent back two broken units but had very accommodating service from amazon.
Bottom line, it's a great product but don't be surprised it it arrives in pieces.
And put a few inches of water in the BASE to make sure it's not leaking before you go ahead and refill the chamber 3 times...

Better Than Ultra Sonics - Zac on Mar 6, 2010 I Like

I bought 2 air-o-swiss 7135 but really regret it. I could have bought 4 of these laskos for the price of those. They did not work out becuase I could not find anyway to stop the white dust problem. way to expensive to buy distilled water. The only gripe with this lasko is its loud, but it is doing an excellent job. The whole house feels great now. i do not care for the filling chamber though, either the spring is not strong enough or the rubber seal is to weak but I get water everywhere each time I fill it up.

Should have bought this first and saved alot of money.

High Output Humidifier - T222T222 on Apr 13, 2011 I Like

I bought this humidifier because it stated that it pushes out 9 gallons of water a day into the air. It does indeed do that, which is the only reason I'm keeping the product. I fully expect this to stop working within the next 12 months. The craftsmanship is terrible. Pieces literally fell off as I was unpacking it from the original box (control knobs). Another issue is that you have to fill up a 1.5 gallon container 3 times to fill it up to capacity. If it is to humidify 9 gallons into the air thats 6 trips back and forth to the sink with 1.5 gallons of water a day. Probably steals about 20 minutes a day from me. So I give it 3 starts. Why... because it works. Why not 5, because I'll probably need another one next year and between now and then I'll have spent 100 hours filling it up.

Effective But Needs TLC - G. Persico on Jan 24, 2011 I Like

Lasko 1128 9 Gal humidifier puts out much water vapor. Changed our humidity from around 10% to a more healthy 35% in less than 1 day in a 2000 sq ft leaky house. It has only one draw back. Filling jug leaks somewhat. After contacting customer service who quickly replaced the filling jug which didn't totally fix the problem (but made it very much less) we concluded that there are design flaws in the filling jug. To minimize any drips from sink to unit do the following: 1: BE SURE THE COVER OF JUG IS TIGHT 2: don't fill it to the very top 3: be careful to carry it upright (use bottom handle) 4: Tip the bottom that is going into the humidifier over the hole the jug sits in to minimize any water drips on floor. I also opened the cover, carefully removed the rubber stopper and spread the spring to increase the spring tension on the stopper. This also helped but filling it 90% full seems to be all that is needed.

Additional note: It is somewhat loud on highest setting. Use top setting to get started. After humidity setting is reached you can use low fan to maintain humidity.

Great Product, Great Humidifier - Carole Lichte "Apple on Feb 1, 2010 I Like

Works great, helps keep dust down and moisture in our air we breath. I know, I live in a desert.

Lasko 1128 9 Gal Humidifier - WKopp on Oct 3, 2011 I Like

I purchased this humidifier for my daughter and family. They use a wood burning fireplace for their major source of heat. This makes their home very dry and uncomfortable. This product works well and is easy to move around. It is made of plastic and could be a little more sturdy, but works fine for what it is intended to do.

Lasko 1128 9 Gallon ERH - irishstoner420 on Jul 22, 2011 I Like

for the people out there that simply want to put more moisture in the air. this will do just fine for you. does its job well. the only down side is there is no way to tell if the water tank is running low unless you take it out and look at it. its a great humidifier dispite what you have read in other reviews. it does exactly what it should for a cheap $60 some odd dollars. i would not reccomend it for people who are looking for something that runs silently. it has a good hum to it when its running. Shmeel me?

A Very Solid Humidifier - Lam F. Wong on Jan 17, 2011 I Like

Dry and itchy skin? This is the cure. I have conducted extensive research for a portable humidifier. I purchased a warm mist type at first, but decided to return it before I even open the box. And I am glad I did.

Humidifier is a pain-in-the-youknowwhat appliance. You will never find a perfect design and are required to trade-off among all the annoyances. Almost all of them require water treatment gidget and filter replacement.

Cold mist type relies on ultrasonic technology - quiet, small capacity, often cleaning.
Warm mist type relies on a heater to boil the water - quiet, not energy efficient, small capacity, reliability and safety concerns.
Evaporative type relies on hygroscopic media (filter) to soap up the water for the fan to evaporate - noisy and efficiency loss with older filter.
Recirculating type relies on a water pump and a hygroscopic media to flow down the water for the fan to evaporate - noisy.

The Lasko 1128 is the recirculating type. It has both large water holding capacity and moisture output capacity. I fill up the water daily or every other day on less dry climates. It keeps my 1500 sqft space at >40% rH easily. The fan has three settings and is noisy at all three.

The humdifier is well designed and should last a long time. The casters have very tight fit. The base needs to be supported at the back side of the caster mount before insertion.

This is probably the least expensive humidifier to operate and it probably requires the least cleaning frequency cycles. Yes, it is noisy and the water carrying bottle does not seal very well. I will buy it again but not for myself. A very good investment.

Great Humidifier - Loydene A. Ried "dee on May 26, 2010 I Like

I am very pleased with this Humidifier. And filters are cheap if you go to the Lasko website.

Easy. Effective. Good Value. - Gerald Sun on Jan 2, 2012 I Like

I used to use a Honeywell HCM-631 -- a pretty popular humidifier for small spaces. The Lasko is such a marked improvement because of its lower maintenance cost (filters are 1/3 the price of Honeywell replacements), novel design, and ability to really push a lot of moisture into the air (~1.5 gal in 8-9 hours on the *lowest* setting).

The one thing I wish I knew before I bought was the mechanism of the 're-circulating' portion of the humidifier, as it is not clear from the pictures. The stock photos show the front view where you can see the fan vent, the clear window (with water trickling down), and the handle for the reservoir filling tank.

What you don't see are the backside and inside. The back is the intake vent for the humidifier; it measures about maybe a 12 by 8 inches. Directly at the intake vent is the single filter pad, sitting upright in a plastic frame. The filter pad is about the same dimensions as the intake vent, with a thickness of about an inch.

Inside, the pumping mechanism seems to be an extension of the main fan--an intake for the 'pump' (less so a stereotypical pump; you can run this dry without any issues) which forks immediately into two pipes. One pipe goes to the front window (so the water you see there contributes nothing to humidification); the other pipe releases water onto a ~12x1x1 inch plastic well that is a part of the frame for the filter pad. This well has four equally spaced ~0.5x0.5cm holes through which the water can trickle down onto the filter pad. The plastic is pretty soft, so presumably you can use a tool to widen the holes if you think not enough water is trickling onto your filter pad. This means that, unlike traditional humidifiers, your filter pad doesn't actually physically sit in water. This also means that the majority of the water trickles down the plastic frame back into the main reservoir--never hitting your filter pad.

That said, this humidifier is very effective in pushing moisture into the air.

Final comments
1) Yes, it can be loud at the highest setting. People who can sleep with white noise will find no issue with the lowest setting
2) Yes, you need to run it for a day or so to rid it of a plasticky smell at the onset
3) Good price/performance ratio. Just think, you're paying ~$100 for something that holds 4.5 gal and can push 4.5gal of moisture into the air in 12 hours. Many other more expensive products can scarcely match that much output for the price.

As Ggood As It Gets - Karen Sanders "hooma on Dec 11, 2011 I Like

I purchased this humidifier a couple of weeks ago. I've been using a Holmes humidifier for a couple of years and wanted to believe there had to be something quieter on the market. I was pleased to find I can sleep while it's on as long as I'm running it above the fan speed. I have it on my second floor master suite, about 50 feet from my bed. I should add I'm a light sleeper.
My only complaint is how it fills. My Holmes water jug would sit flat on the counter, I'd unscrew the cap and pour the water in. The Lasko jug is rounded and it won't sit flat and steady to be filled. It shouldn't have been a big deal to engineer that lid as flat. It also requires that you depress an arm to hold a valve open while it's being filled so it can become pretty much a two-handed job. The jug is tall so your options for filling become 1. holding the valve open under a very tall faucet 2. holding the valve open with one hand while filling the jug from a spray hose with the other hand 3. maneuvering it under the bathtub faucet which gets everything wet and then drip your way back to the unit or 4. put the unit on the floor and squeeze a small hose between the valve and the opening to fill the unit from the bathroom faucet.
Other than the filling issue, I'm pretty satisfied. It's quiet and it does the job.

It Works. - Jeffery P. Lorig on Dec 7, 2011 I Like

I have a Holmes humidifier that crapped out after a year and honestly never did a great job. This machine here just works. It will humidify your room in no time. All humidifiers are loud so ignore the negative comments about the noise. Honestly, a little "white" noise throughout the night blocks everything else out.

Works Great! - Brian G. on Aug 28, 2011 I Like

I've used Honeywell humidifiers for years, always having to replace them each year or every-other year because of noise any of the other 50 issues you've read about... So I decided to try the Lasko and so far I'm impressed. The fan is definitely a bit louder, but I feel like this unit also puts out a lot more humidity (at a faster rate) than the Honeywell.

The massive holding reservoir is very convenient, as is the ability to see the water levels and the water flowing, telling you that the individual tank doesn't need to be refilled.

I like the Lasko tank more than the Honeywell tank because of the fact that you don't have to take the top off to refill it.

I'll leave additional feedback once I have a better idea of what kind of maintenance issues are involved between seasons...

2nd One NOT A Charm - Lorenzo R. Queral on Jan 10, 2011 I Like

After getting many years of good winter performance from my first 1150, a part broke that I could not get so I ordered another exact model. Now running for about 3 days, it is not humidifying anywhere as well as the first unit. Runs and runs and I can't get hunidity above 33%, where I could dial up 40+% on the previous one. I should also mention that the new unit is in the exact same spot as the old one had been in. I've spent several days scratching my head about this difference. It seems to me that even though the fan appears to be spinning properly at all 3 speeds, somehow I don't feel as much air coming out at the top of the unit as the old one. This is confirmed by the fact that the water bottle does not seem to empty as fast as the older unit. I thought that maybe there was not enough water being pumped to the top of the filter pad, so I temporarily blocked off the flow to the hokey "waterfall", which really doesn't do squat, figuring that this would increase water volume to the other pump output - the filter pad - but this did not seem to make much difference. The little chute where the unused water from the pad runs back down into the bottom reservoir (can be seen when you remove the tank) does not appear to flow as much water as in the older unit. What's really funny is that raising the fan speed to jet aiplane noise levels doesn't really improve the situation much if at all. After being so happy with the older unit for years, I am now dissatisfied with it's replacement. I'm gonna call Lasko and see what they have to say about this matter, but I don't have much hope with this. As an aside, the new-style water bottle, which now is higher and uses a smaller cap, is very difficult to fill because it is so high. The older unit's cap was about 5 inches high so when you unscrewed it to fill the tank, the tank would fit under the kitchen faucet much easier. This must have been a recent change, as Lasko included an "addendum" paper to the manual, showing the new tank, because the tank pictured in the main book was the "old style". Thankfully, my old bottle fits and works, so I've been using that one instead, as it's easier to fill. As it stands right now, this new unit does not even come close to it's rated moisture output, and I need that output, as the living area is 3000 square feet. The old one did it, why not the new one?

Not Good Enough - Choi Ed on Dec 15, 2010 I Like

House: 1700sqft-2nd floor, 1300sgft-1st floor located near Atlanta, GA
Furnace Thermostat Setting: 68degF both floors (with separate natural gas furnaces)
Humidistat Setting: 40%

Lasko 1128 Humidifier Performance Observations (45day period):
1. Noise - It's noisy even at #1 to be placed inside the bedroom. I placed it at the 2nd floor hallway and it doesn't bother us even at #2 or #3.
2. It turns on and off and maintains desired humidity when the outside temperature is above 32degF. During the last five days when the outside temp went down to the 20's and 10's, it was set to #3 and running 24hrs/day. The house humidity went down to 33% in the 2nd floor and 30% in the first floor. I have since cleaned the filter and humidifier 3 times (the filter is good for one season according to Lasko, maybe not). The filter still looks 75-80% clean and new.
3. I'm filling the bucket a maximum of 3 times/day only which means 4.5gallons a day only even when set at #3 running for 24hrs which is way below the 9-gallon published rating.
4. Take note that this humidifier is running together with three other 1-gallon capacity cool mist $30 humidifiers which are really quiet. Two are in the 2nd floor bedrooms.
5. The filter is located at the back of the unit where the air comes in. This means you cannot place the back of humidifier against a wall. Provide 2-3" clearance.
6. There are three small holes on top of the filters' plastic case where water flows down, filtered and mixed with air. Maybe the holes are not sufficient. I'm thinking about adding one hole at a time to increase output.
7. The 1.5gallon jug fills at the bottom and carried using both the bottom and top handles or the top handle only.
8. It doesn't turn off when the water is low and may emit foul odor. Clean the humidifier at least every other week.
9. It has a dial type humidity setting. You will need a digital humidity meter to set your desired humidity.
10. I have not seen my electric bill. But, with all four humidifiers running 24hrs because the Lasko unit is not providing what it suppose to, then it's not good enough.

Outstanding Performance! - J. Miller "Heaven is on Jan 11, 2012 I Like

If you want a humidifier that really does the job, this one is it! 9 gallons of water a day! And you don't see any steam or mist coming out of the unit - it is totally invisible. I would suggest that you be careful with the unit - the plastic seems easy to break. When my first unit arrived, the UPS man threw it to the street then slammed it on my porch. When I opened the box, it was broken. I contacted amazon and they immediately sent me a replacement and arranged for UPS to pick up the damaged item. Couldn't have been easier.

I was so impressed, that I bought my girlfriend a smaller Lasko humidifier: Lasko 1115 3-Gallon Evaporative Recirculating Humidifier. It works the same way, but is a bit smaller.

So we're both going to have a cozy, comfortable winter this year with our Lasko humidifiers keeping plenty of moisture in the air.

Flawed But Effective. - G. Mitchell on Jan 2, 2012 I Like

Humidifiers are a must in my big old radiator-heated bungalow. Tired of refilling my two smaller units twice daily I wanted a high-capacity unit that could humifidy a large space. This one has done a good job so far, doing the work that my two smaller ones were barely able to achieve.

However, it's very big and very noisy on the highest two of three fan settings. Even on the lowest it is not quiet, though it can be gotten used to.

I knew that a unit with a 4.5 gallon capacity would be a pain to refill just because of the volume required. Lasko put some thought into the design of the 1.5-gallon filler tank; it does have a nice handle and is easy to insert and remove. Unlike many other humidifiers, the filler tank's function is only to transport water from faucet to unit. It empties itself completely into the bottom of the humidifier but does not itself hold water while the unit is running (unless you overfill the unit). My only complaint about the filler tank is that it's not very watertight; I have to hold a towel under it as I transport the filled tank to the unit, since there is a steady drop of water out of the tank. I think Lasko could easily have made the thing a little tighter-sealed.

Loud As Hell... But Works Well - Mike Troutner on Jan 2, 2012 I Like

I bought this and am probably going to return it. It is a cross between a jet engine and a waterfall in terms of sound... Even on low speed. It does work well, so if noise is not an issue, I would recommend it.

Lasko Humidifier 9 Gal. - janices on Dec 17, 2011 I Like

It is a floor model that it easy to fill and works great to alleviate dry air in your home in the winter. You can even turn down your thermostat by using a humidifier, as moist air is warmer than dry air. This puts essential moisture in the air to help you breath easier. No dry skin, chapped lips or bloody noses when this is used. My last humidifier was a Holmes 2 tank system, an was very difficult to fill the tanks as you had to remove these covers that were difficult to remove and replace. The lasko has one tank and you just push down on the handle and it opens the tank to refill. Has an easy carry handle once it is filled with water. It has 3 fan levels, and different humidity settings to adjust to your perfect level. Humidity level should be between 45-50 for optimal health benefits. The filters are pretty cheap too. I ordered directly from Lasko.com
**UPDATE- Have been using this for over a month now, and it doesn't seem to be putting the moisture in the air like I thought it would. I have a very small house under 800 sq ft and this should do the job, but it is not. I am filling the tank twice a day and it is running constantly and still can't get the humidity above 39. I am very disappointed in this humidifier.

Lasko 1128 9 Gallon Humidifier - Norm-A on Dec 8, 2011 I Like

I own this humidifier for a while now, and it works just fine, The only complaint I have is on low fan, it is too noisy when watching television, we are thinking of trying to move it to another room, other wise if you do not mind the fan noise then buy it.

Norm-A

Absolutely Awesome - J. Galle on Nov 18, 2011 I Like

We have a 1500 SQ FT house in West Texas. It is dry & windy all the time. Our allergies are getting worse by the day. So I bought this along with a Humidity Monitor and wow. I have the Humidifier on about 8 of 10 for the humidity level and the power level 2 of 3. My house is staying at 53-55% Humidity according to the monitor which is in the living room where the front door is constantly opened and closed. I have the Humidifier in the center of the house, my hallway. When I have guests over, we just roll it into the laundry room while they are there and roll it back out when they leave. Everybody in my house feels a lot better. When we forget to add water, it just simply acts as a fan. Don't have to worry about the heater going bad because there isn't one. No need for a safety shutoff, or something else to go wrong. Mine is lasting about 2 days before it has to be refilled, however I usually add a tank of water a day and we are good to go.

This Is A Big, Loud Humidifier - georg on Jul 30, 2011 I Like

i was looking for a efficient humidifier for my workshop. as some of the other reviewers mentioned, this thing is big (i didnt want something that i had to refill every few hours...) and, if you use it full power, a bit loud. the truth is, i dont think you would be happy operating it next to your bed while sleeping, our in a quiet living room while watching a movie. but it was exactly what i was looking for - a low maintenance, big, efficient humidifier. it is low tech and rugged - looks like it could be running for the next 30 years or so...
make sure, the built-in refill-jug is properly assembled when you put the lasko in operation for the first time. mine had the jug's lid not properly screwed on tightly, and started leaking while fetching water the first time. just had to close it properly once, no problem since then. the humidifier itself has of course never leaked, it's just a big plastic bucket with a filter unit inside, and a big fan on top.
anyway, i use it in combination with Holmes S1708 Bacteriostat for Cool Mist Humidifiers, which keeps the water free of bacteria & fungus.
would buy it again for my workshop
would also buy it for using in apartment, but switch it off at night or operate it in the kitchen...

Pretty Good, But Not Perfect - D. Allin on Apr 18, 2011 I Like

Here in Albuquerque we have had many months of extremely low humidity (under 10%), and we needed something to help our noses and reduce the static electicity. This Lasko does a very good job of adding moisture to the air, without leaving white powder around it or producing noticeable fog. It's not silent, for sure, but on Low the fan noise is tolerable. I wish it had some sort of alert to indicate the water is low or out; instead you have to pull out the filling canister and look down inside. And the only way you know it's full is when the filling canister stops dumping water into the tank. It does have a clear plastic waterfall on the side, but you have to get very close to see if water is actually circulating through it. Filling the humidifier is tedious, since you must pull out the big canister, fill it with a very tall faucet or a sprayer, then carefully turn it upside down and lower it back into the machine. You need to be close to the sink when you do this, as there is a good chance you will spill some. But, the main unit does roll easily. The humidistat works very well. For us, the humidifier has to be refilled daily, but it's worth it to have the extra moisture in the air. There is no odor, and the machine stays clean. We do add a bacteriostatic liquid to the water every couple days, to help it stay clean. The Lasko isn't perfect, but it's the best solution we have found for a reasonable price.

Decent Humidifier, Good Price - D. Gottschalk on Apr 18, 2011 I Like

My Lasko 1128 9-gallon humidifier was purchased in order to keep a music classroom at the right climate during the winter (to prevent piano soundboards and woodwind cork from drying out). For a large classroom with an approximate volume of 18,000 cubic feet, it does a good job. I found that the low speed was usually sufficient, which is good because medium and high were far too loud to have on during classes.

My only complaint is the leakage of the refillable water reservoir. It must be turned upside down to be filled, and while there are handles on the top and bottom, it is impossible to carry back to the unit (right side up or upside down) without significant drippage. I had to keep an old cloth at the ready to avoid leaving water spots all over the finished hardwood floor of my classroom. Cosmetically, the reservoir is quite sleek; it looks quite futuristic, almost as if out of some sci-fi movie. But the functionality needs to improve; I think a spring with a higher elastic potential would solve the leakage issue.

All in all, the price was right for this unit; any other brand with a comparable capacity was over $100. It serves its purpose in the classroom, but if you use it at home, make sure you watch the dripping.

Lasko 1129 9-Gallon Humidifier - PJP on Mar 27, 2011 I Like

Purchased the Lasko 1128 as a replacement whole-house humidifier for my 2600 sq ft home. We live in upstate NY, and I had a couple of Hunter humidifiers that I used previously for this purpose. It's pretty much continuous duty for 3 or 4 months per year. The Hunters were definitely not up to the task, but the Lasko has performed very well. It seems to be living up to it's rating - I need to refill it multiple times daily to prevent it from running dry. I've had it for a couple months now, and it continues to work as advertised. Replacement elements are readily available and inexpensive as well, though I have not yet had need to change it out.

The only thing I'd add would be a low level indicator light or switch, because you need to remember to fill it regularly. The filler tank is 2.5 gallons, and the humidifier base itself holds 5 more gallons. In the dead of winter, I need to top off the filler tank twice in the morning and once or twice in the evening.

Overall a good product that works well. Given the opportunity, I'd certainly buy it again.

Simple And Effective - Jane Donut on Feb 25, 2011 I Like

This humidifier is just what I expected and wanted. It holds a lot of water and does a great job of putting it into the air. As others have said, it is on the loud side, but that is to be expected from a humidifier of this size that uses a fan. If you want quieter, go for an ultrasonic humidifier - but then you will have added issues of dust from hard water or the added expense of replaceable ion exchange cartridges. This unit is a great deal and is simple to use and maintain.

The reason that the reservoir can drip after refilling is the spring on the check valve can stick a little after pressing it down to add water. Simply lift up on the spring to release it and you will never have any drips again!

I am using this unit for the first level of my two-story 2300 sq ft house. I use the lowest fan setting and set the humidistat to about 3/4 of maximum and it regulates the humidity to a very comfortable level.

Works Great - Dov on Feb 23, 2011 I Like

I live in the SW desert and have owned a few humidifiers. This one arrived today. I turned it on 1.5 hours ago and my entire house (1800 sq ft.) is very noticeably humid. It is large, and on the lowest fan setting it is a reasonable noise level at night. The fan's highest level is quite loud but I don't care right now. I must add that I selected a Lasko because I recently purchased a heater made by them and it works great. For the price, this seems to be a great value.

Works Very Well - K. Crow "Story Mama" on Feb 21, 2011 I Like

We bought this humidifier after the one from H.D. wasn't cutting it. We had a Lasko from about 2000-2006 and this is pretty much the exact same model. I guess it works and there is no need to change. It brought up the entire second floor to a comfortable humidity by itself, (we live in a fairly small house, but I thought that was impressive.) You do have to clean it, and it isn't the most sturdy piece of equipment, but it does get the job done.

Works Great! - John N on Feb 18, 2011 I Like

Ordered after reading the mixed reviews, It arrived quickly. After 4 weeks of continuous use it has done a good job, holding the humidity at a comfortable level. I have been able to discontinue the humidifier in my bedroom. It has met my full expectations. I can't understand why there were so many folks that had complaints.

A Product That Works - Ocardaugh "ocardaugh on Jan 30, 2011 I Like

We have been using this humidifier for several weeks and we are extremely satisfied with it. There have been no problems with filling or leaking and we have been able to dial-in the humidity setting to a level we find comfortable. We use this humidifier to maintain the nightime humidity level of our bedroom and we find that we need to fill the removable tank about once every other night, which is easily accomplished. The fan noise is loud. but no more then our furnace. All in all, we are completely satisfied.

Lasko 1128 Humidifier - KCLEE on Jan 16, 2011 I Like

A year ago I bought a honeywell unit from Walmart, it was ok, but not able to humidify 1300 sf. I looked at several machines, and chose the Lasko 1128 sight unseen based on reviews that it would humidify up 2900 sf. Amazon processed my order promptly, the machine arrived undamaged. After reading instructions, I filled up the small water tank, and set it on high. The machine was unable to get humidity above 20%. I tried high fan until I couldn't deal with the noise anymore. The water tank is very small, and a pain to refill, as water goes around the dispense valve. The tank is also very difficult to get into, or out of the machine with out spilling water. Overall, I was mainly disappointed with low output, hard to fill, and poor design. It appears the water wick (filter)is too small, and does not flow enough air. The entire machine is made of very light plastic. Overall, if you have a one room, it should do ok. Be prepared to refill it frequently.Returning the machine was no more difficult than taking something back to a store. A return sticker was printed, and it was dropped at a local UPS store.KUDOS to Amazon for really good customer service. I've had more problems with local stores. I replaced this machine with a Essick console model from a local appliance store. It cost $140, and has been more than up to my needs. I will definately buy from Amazon again, their part of the transaction was great.

Best Portable Humidifier I Have Ever Had. - James M. Callaghan on Jan 9, 2011 I Like

My Lasko is the best portable humidifier I have ever owned. This is mainly due to this humidifier using a built in water pump, which continuously provides "flowing" water over its large filter pad. Thus, the total filter is always wet, unlike wick type humidifiers that can only draw the water up a few inches on their filters and get moldy a lot since with these, the water does not circulate or flow across the evaporate filter pad(s). My furnace humidifier is not recirculating but does have water flowing over the filter and down a drain. It can only keep the house at 27% humidity. I have added the Lasko 1129 to my bedroom. It keeps the upstairs at whatever I set on it. I have it set for around 40% humidity most of the time.

Operation of the Lasko Humidifier is accurate and easy. The humidifier dial is very accurate at keeping the humidifier at the setting I set. I check it with an external humidifier guage. The 3-speed fan works well and I keep it on the low setting, which is enough for my needs. It is relatively quiet in operation but you do hear the air. It it was totally quiet, I do not feel I would be getting the necessary air flow I need to keep the upstairs at the proper humidity level. Our furnace air handler does circulate the humidity from the Lasko throughout the house. The Lasko unit is easy to refill. I hold the 1.5 gallon tank under the bath tub faucet to fill it. The 4 castors do help you to roll the humidifier if you need to. I took the top off and emptied the water once just to see how easy it was to do. It was very easy to get at the filter pad to change it when necessary.

I highly recommend that anyone buy a recirculating humidier when they feel it is time to replace their wick humidier. The Lasko evaporative recirculating humidifier is the best portable recirculating unit I have read about and owned.

So Far, So... Ok - Master's Kittie "Bli on Jan 4, 2011 I Like

Just arrived today. And, like so many others who purchased this item from Amazon, mine arrived broken. It seems functional, however, so I have set it up and will wait to see how it does.
There was a small piece of clear plastic floating around in the box, turned out to be the part that keeps the "waterfall" snapped into place. While the bottom of the waterfall is a little out of place, it seems to work fine so far. I debated sticking a small piece of metal or plastic under the bottom edge to keep it properly aligned, but I was concerned that it would impede the flow of water so I have left it alone for now.
Additionally, a small section of the fan housing is broken. There are many supports, though, and there has been no wobbling so far, so I will keep an eye on it for the next few days and see if any problem develops.
I have to say, it was packaged horribly by Amazon - very surprising in my experience. The big box that the humidifier comes in is just rattling around loose in an even bigger brown Amazon box. There were no air packs, peanuts, swaths of brown paper, nothing... Can't blame the manufacturer for that.
Regarding the "noise" of the unit in operation: it's running a loud, strong fan. The only noise so far, besides the water trickling, is that of a typical fan. With the busted support, however, I'm leaving it on low for now, anyway. But wow, it puts out a LOT of air on high! Even on the middle setting.
The seal on "jug" that you use to fill the unit does leak, but so far the unit itself doesn't seem to. The tolerances are super loose on the whole piece, though, like an old Harley. Thankfully, no oil leaking underneath (nor water).
Once it has been running more than a half hour I will update this review with how well (or not) it does its job...

UPDATE 1/9
Well, it's been running almost non-stop on low since I first installed it. I don't have a humidistat (sp?) or anything like that, but it's definitely better in here than it was. My nose felt better even the first morning.
However, I live in a 900 sq ft condo and it's running virtually all day/night. Even when it reaches the desired setting and shuts off, it's only off for maybe 10 minutes and then cranking again for several hours. I'm not looking forward to my next electric bill. Still, with forced air heat, I need something, the dry air was killing me.
I can't imagine it trying to keep up with 3200 sq ft as rated, though. I think it would need to be on high 24/7.
No issues with the broken housing so far, the fan's running as smooth as the first night. I don't find it too loud, as others have, even with it in the hall just outside my bedroom.
I think I'll leave it at the 3 stars. Nothing to drop it from that, but nothing to increase it, either.

Great Price - Great Output - K. Dickinson on Jan 3, 2011 I Like

Ordered one of these for our 2nd home in the snowy mountains where we have a fire burning 24/7. The air is so dry inside we needed something to work the entire home. The added moisture in the air was immediately noticable once the unit was on for just a few hours. Even with the extremely dry air and the unit running most the time I only needed to refil the main jug once every couple of days. It holds about 4 jugs of water in the main tank. Liked it so much we ordered one for our main home as well. With Prime shipping it arrived in 2 days, both times. Love PRIME!

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