Self-Filling Humidifiers

[Clawhammer]

This does not work. I advise folks to not drill holes in your humidifier tank.

Ray, its been a couple days without response. I was hoping to hear from you on this. I drilled two humidifiers.

[Ray]

Sorry. I didn't see that.

It worked for me, but now that I think of it, the overflow line was also submerged in the water in the bucket, otherwise it would just let air into the humidifier tank and let the water spill out the bottom! Sorry if I led you to create a mess!

Thanks for the reminder - I'll fix that. (I have also updated the image above.)

[Clawhammer]

That didn't change anything for me. The water never even reaches the overflow, it just dumps out of the bottom of the humidifier.

I don't understand the exact hydrodynamics involved in the humidifier tank shutoff but I'm pretty sure the valve is always open and relies on a bubble or the vacuum of the tank to stop the flow of the water from the tank to the humidifier base. The running water seems to disturb that no matter what I do. Maybe my pump is too powerful. Can you post pics of your setup? (the part in question anyway)

[Ray]

Originally Posted by Clawhammer

That didn't change anything for me. The water never even reaches the overflow, it just dumps out of the bottom of the humidifier.

The one I used had a little spring-actuated valve in the tank. When full and you're carrying it, it's closed. Once you set it down, a little peg pushed it up and opened the valve.

I don't understand the exact hydrodynamics involved in the humidifier tank shutoff but I'm pretty sure the valve is always open and relies on a bubble or the vacuum of the tank to stop the flow of the water from the tank to the humidifier base. The running water seems to disturb that no matter what I do. Maybe my pump is too powerful. Can you post pics of your setup? (the part in question anyway)

I think your humidifier may rely on the tank being air-tight - sort-of like putting a note card on a glass of water, inverting it, setting it on a table top and sliding the card out. It'll just sit there until you break the seal. So I guess what's happening is that the pump connections are equivalent to a leak, breaking the vacuum. I wonder if some check valves would help...

I no longer have my setup - it went in the dumpster when I moved - but it relied on an overflow to the atomizer chamber and not a vacuum.

Bu that gives me another idea. How about ditching the tank altogether? If your humidifier is like some I've seen, it'll work without the tank, as long as there is water standing in the little basin. If you find a way to extend the sidewalls a bit to make that deeper, you can pump water into that and have a return line.

[Clawhammer]

Originally Posted by Ray

The one I used had a little spring-actuated valve in the tank. When full and you're carrying it, it's closed. Once you set it down, a little peg pushed it up and opened the valve.

I think your humidifier may rely on the tank being air-tight - sort-of like putting a note card on a glass of water, inverting it, setting it on a table top and sliding the card out. It'll just sit there until you break the seal. So I guess what's happening is that the pump connections are equivalent to a leak, breaking the vacuum. I wonder if some check valves would help...

I no longer have my setup - it went in the dumpster when I moved - but it relied on an overflow to the atomizer chamber and not a vacuum.

Bu that gives me another idea. How about ditching the tank altogether? If your humidifier is like some I've seen, it'll work without the tank, as long as there is water standing in the little basin. If you find a way to extend the sidewalls a bit to make that deeper, you can pump water into that and have a return line.

I think they all have the spring valve, but that is only engaged when the tank is removed from the base. It is always open when nested in the humidifier, the water level rising to meet the hole (with a vacuum) is what stops water from flowing when the tank is nested.

I fiddled around with the no tank idea. The humidifier only works without the tank when the water line is at a very specific point. It is quite hard to find just the right water line, it would be impossible to keep (mine) functioning as water flowed through.

[Ray]

About 3 o'clock this morning, I realized I had somehow mentally combined two different projects, so went back and deleted the original post.

As I stated it, with two hoses going to/from the humidifier tank will only work if it's an open-air tank, such as the kind used in humidifiers that use a spinning disk to atomize the water or if it is a "warm mist" type.

For ultrasonic humidifiers that use a sealed tank, it will only work if the tank is removed, and you direct the water into the basin the tank sat in.

I have done both, and somehow, in my apparent haste to post something "helpful", screwed up and cross-contaminated the ideas.

I want to apologize to Clawhammer, who apparently trusted the info more than was warranted!

[SouthPark]

I wonder if that automatic disabling of the humidifier operation is done for more than 1 reason ----- as in whether the vacuum is critical to the functioning or operation of the fog generation thing ..... or for safety ...... or both.

If it's not for safety and is not critical to the normal operation of that system, then maybe there's a way to bypass the automatic disabling. The circuit board or whatever must have an input to sense the condition (of no vacuum, or something). Hard to say if it is easy to locate where that input is, and what tricks could be used to bypass the feature.

Alternatively, another style of humidifier was found on 'ebay' ----- by looking up "Humidifier UV Sterilization Ultrasonic Cool Mist Steam Diffuser Air Conditioner" ------ which probably doesn't have the same limitation.

[Clawhammer]

No apologies needed ray. I wonder if I seal up one of the holes and run a single line from the bucket into the tank if siphon action will pull water into the tank as its used by the humidifier.

I'm going to make this work even if I need to buy a new humidifier!

---------- Post added at 06:12 AM ---------- Previous post was at 05:54 AM ----------

Originally Posted by SouthPark

I wonder if that automatic disabling of the humidifier operation is done for more than 1 reason ----- as in whether the vacuum is critical to the functioning or operation of the fog generation thing ..... or for safety ...... or both.

If it's not for safety and is not critical to the normal operation of that system, then maybe there's a way to bypass the automatic disabling. The circuit board or whatever must have an input to sense the condition (of no vacuum, or something). Hard to say if it is easy to locate where that input is, and what tricks could be used to bypass the feature.

Alternatively, another style of humidifier was found on 'ebay' ----- by looking up "Humidifier UV Sterilization Ultrasonic Cool Mist Steam Diffuser Air Conditioner" ------ which probably doesn't have the same limitation.

From what I can tell there is a float (circular white pumice thing) and it is very sensitive. It has to be at the perfect level and stable (not moving) in order to turn on the nebulizer. The vacuum in the tank keeps the water from continuing to pour out when the water level in the base is high enough to meet the tank.

[Ray]

With ultrasonic atomizers, I believe the depth of the transducer is important to its functioning, as Clawhammer pointed out in post #15. The design of the base plus the vacuum effect of the closed container keep the water at that level in the atomization chamber.

In my ugliest, yet most successful modification of such a device, I did some carving and siliconing:

There is often a plastic “lip” that is where the tank is seated. Using a drill and some filing, I fashioned a semicircular notch in that lip, able to accommodate a relatively large (1/2”, I think) overflow tube, so that the bottom was just about at that “correct” water level.

Water was fed into that basin with a smaller tube, at a very low volume. You might have to add a valve to do that. Tubes were siliconed in place.

The pump filled the basin and the overflow went right back to the bucket.

[WaterWitchin]

Originally Posted by Clawhammer

No apologies needed ray. I wonder if I seal up one of the holes and run a single line from the bucket into the tank if siphon action will pull water into the tank as its used by the humidifier.

I'm going to make this work even if I need to buy a new humidifier!

---------- Post added at 06:12 AM ---------- Previous post was at 05:54 AM ----------



From what I can tell there is a float (circular white pumice thing) and it is very sensitive. It has to be at the perfect level and stable (not moving) in order to turn on the nebulizer. The vacuum in the tank keeps the water from continuing to pour out when the water level in the base is high enough to meet the tank.

I don't know much about this sort of thing, but if there was one hole, and you put a filled bucket above where the humidifier was and a hose leading down to the top of humidifier, wouldn't it just keep filling up with water as the level dropped below where the hole in the humidifier tank is?

PS Feel free to just say No, won't work, roll your eyes and move on.