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Keep your indoor jungle thriving with our favorite.
Credit:Better Homes & Gardens
Humidifiers are a key tool to keeping many popularhouseplants happy in the winter.
Orchids, ferns, other epiphytes, and mounted plants absolutely need higher humidity to do well.
I have personally used humidifiers to keep my ferns looking fresh all winter.
Credit: Amazon
The filters should be replaced regularly, which will add to your long-term cost.
The most helpful feature when it comes to plant care is the free compatible smartphone app, VeSync.
These basic tweaks can be adjusted on the unit itself as well, which we found easy to control.
We swabbed the inner crevices of this machine before cleaning it to test how much bacteria it held after use.Credit: Better Homes & Gardens / Henry Wortock
The humidifiers mist can reach up to 3.9 feet, making it a good choice for taller plants.
It took us about six minutes to complete a regular wash of the tank.
Levoit recommends replacing thewater filter spongeandmineral absorption padsevery two to four weeks depending on the hardness of your water.
Lacidoll 4.2 Gal.
TheLacidoll 4.2-Gallon humidifierperformed well, increasing the rooms humidity between 21% and 45% in our tests.
However, it lacks smart features and is larger than what most users need.
Like the OasisMist, there are filters to help manage mineral buildup.
However, we found the LV6000S a bit more difficult to clean compared to our top pick.
We also noted whether any night-lights or noise emitted from the humidifier were distracting for nighttime use.
After running the equipment, we performed two cleaning tests.
If the machine came with a brush, we used it.
We also descaled the tank with vinegar to evaluate how easy it is to deep clean.
Ultrasonic humidifiers, like the Levoit, are the most common.
An ultrasonic humidifier uses rapid vibrations to produce a fine mist of water that is released into the air.
One downside of ultrasonic models is you may notice fine white dust on surfaces near the gear.
This is resulting from the minerals in your tap water being released in the mist.
Using distilled water, which is recommended, will decrease this.
And in our tests, it took longer to increase a rooms humidity with an evaporative model.
Choosing a humidifier with a rotating nozzle can help direct warm mist away from leaves.
Features
In our tests, most humidifiers did their basic job of humidifying the space well.
But the features offered by each model is what sets them apart.
you could expect to find at least two (but often more) power configs on most humidifiers.
Many include a timer and auto-shutoff when the tank is empty.
Night lights and essential oil pads are also fairly common.
For everydayhumidifiers for bedrooms, smart features werent a standout, but for plants, we recommend them.
App connectivity is also helpful for cleaning reminders and the ability to monitor humidity levels from afar.
We recommend emptying the tank between uses, and ideally you should becleaning the tank daily.
Thats why choosing a humidifier with a tank thats easy to clean is so important.
Your Questions, Answered
How big of a humidifier do I need for my plants?
When shopping for a humidifier, youll find a recommended square footage listed in the product description.
Credit:Better Homes & Gardens
We recommend choosing a humidifier that can sit within a few feet of your plants for the best results.
Do all indoor plants need humidifiers?
As long as a houseplant is well-watered, the humidity can be low, and they will do fine.
The Levoit OasisMist Smart humidifier showed a difference in the humidity on our thermometer during testing.Credit:Better Homes & Gardens
However, a humidifier can help these plants thrive and may even help extend time between waterings.
In our tests, we found thatplacing humidifiers near plantsmade them appear happier and more vibrant.
For epiphytes, orchids, and ferns, humidity is critical, Satch says.
According to Satch, ferns have primitive vascular systems and do not retain water well.
Orchids and epiphytes are tropical and subtropical plants that grow on trees instead of in the ground.
They do not have access to the soil, so they have no reservoir of water to draw from.
Therefore, they need humidity to keep them from drying out between waterings.
To write this article, she relied on insights from our research and testing team.
Weve been testing humidifiers since 2022.
This article also includes reporting fromSydney Vrban, a writer and content strategist with five years of experience.
This article also includes insights from allergistDr.
What is BHG Recommends?
In these cases, we use the same testing criteria we use to test the purchased products.
