How Much Energy Does My Humidifier Use? (+ Cost to run a humidifier & Most Efficient Revealed)

Humidifiers are used to produce moisture in the air which is considered essential for the health of people, pets, including plants but, have you ever wondered what is the cost to run a humidifier and how much energy does humidifier use? This article will guide you about how much energy a humidifier use, how many amps it uses, electricity use, etc. 

Energy consumption by humidifier:

The energy consumption by the humidifier depends upon the type of the humidifier and its output level. The following are different types of humidifiers:

  1. Portable humidifier
  2. Whole house humidifier. 
Humidifier
Humidifier

Portable humidifier:

This type of humidifier is considered a good source to add humidity to a room and it can be used in cool mist and warm mist varieties. For example, ultrasonic humidifiers are considered one of the popular types of portable humidifiers. The mist created by this humidifier is minimally visible to the naked eye and it is good to raise the humidity level in the room. 

Energy consumption by portable humidifier:

  • Cool mist consumes electricity of about 80 kWh
  • Ultrasonic humidifier consumes energy upto 44 kWh. 
  • Warm mist humidifier energy consumption is upto 220 kWh. 

Whole house humidifier:

It can be easily attached to the home’s heating and cooling system for adding humidity to the air. The whole house humidifier is of three types such as bypass, fan-powered, and steam. 

Energy consumption by whole house humidifier:

  • Bypass humidifier consumes upto 0 kWh of energy. 
  • A fan-powered humidifier has an energy consumption of upto 108 kWh
  • Steam humidifiers have an energy consumption of 1.9 kWh

The following are some factors that are considered to find out the energy consumption of a humidifier. 

  • The humidifier which has the higher rating is considered a more efficient humidifier such as EEV 1 and EEV 2.
  • The type of humidifier is also considered a factor for energy efficiency as ultrasonic humidifiers are the most energy-efficient humidifier. 
  • A person who is living in a small house should use a portable humidifier as it will use less electricity. 
  • The setting at which the humidifier is used also plays a role in energy consumption if the humidifier is used on a high setting it will consume more agency when compared to using the humidifier at a medium or low setting. 
  • The feature of the humidifier is that they are used in standby mode. It will consume energy even when they are not running.
Humidifier
Humidifier

The following table shows the power used by the humidifier in a warm mist setting:

Warm mist settingTypical power
Low setting125W
High setting260W

The following table shows the power used by the humidifier at the cool mist output setting:

Cool mist outputTypical power use
Low-level5W
Medium level15W
High level24W

Amps usage by a humidifier:

The following table explains the amperage used by different humidifiers at different mist settings which are used at 110V and 220V circuits:

Mist settingWarm mist ampsCool mist amps
Low1.14A, 0.57A0.14A, 0.07A
Medium N/A0.14A, 0.07A
High2.36A, 1.18A0.22A, 0.11A

Cost to run a humidifier:

The humidifier is considered to be affordable and you can use it every night, overnight or every day it doesn’t cost much. The cost to run a humidifier let’s take a few examples, 

  • Using the humidifier at the setting of mist and time of 1:9 hours used on low and on high overnight, 2:9 hours used overnight, and the humidifier used for 15 hours per a day 
  • The Warm mist humidifier uses a power of upto 260 watts and the cool mist humidifier uses a power of upto 24 watts.
  • The average cost of electricity is $0.1101 per Kilowatt-hour in the US.
Humidifier
Humidifier

The following table shows the cost of running the humidifier according to the above example:

Time usedWarm mist power costCool mist power cost
Overnight (9 hrs)$0.26$0.02
24 hours$0.69$0.06
9 hrs/night – 1 week$1.80$0.17
9 hrs/night – 1 month$7.73$0.71
24 hrs/day – 1 week$4.81$0.44
24 hrs/day – 1 month$20.61$1.90
24 hrs/day – 1 year$250.76$23.15

Energy efficient humidifier:

The efficiency of the humidifier is calculated by noticing the amount of energy required which the humidifier can release for a liter of water into the atmosphere. The energy consumption is measured in kilowatt-hours and the humidifier that has higher water output per kWh of electric consumption is considered to be a more energy-efficient humidifier. using the humidifier for a long time will also affect energy consumption. When a person is using an energy-efficient humidifier they almost save $11.8 plus kWh per year. The following are some point showing which humidifier save what amount of energy consumption:

  • An energy-efficient ultrasonic humidifier is able to save $11.8 kWh of energy consumption per year.
  • An energy-efficient cool-mist humidifier is able to save $36.2 kWh of energy consumption per year.
  • An energy-efficient warm-mist humidifier is able to save $80.1 kWh of energy consumption per year.
  • An energy-efficient whole-house humidifier is able to save $426.7 kWh of energy consumption per year.

Conclusion:

From the above article, we can conclude that the energy consumption by the humidifier depends on the type of humidifier and the level at which they are being used. If you want to reduce energy consumption look at the factor that increases the energy consumption of the humidifier.

FAQ’s

Do humidifiers increase water bills? 

A humidifier uses from 1.5 gallons to 12 gallons of water per day. The water bill will not increase by using a humidifier. 

What is the difference between a dehumidifier and a humidifier?

A humidifier is most used in the winter to add moisture to the air whereas a dehumidifier is used in spring and summer to the moisture out of the air.

Rick Costa

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