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How to use a vaporizer safely when you have BE and MAC
A couple of months back I shared my dilemma about needing to use a humidifier for my eye condition. Scoop kindly informed me that the safest choice is a warm steam vaporizer that boils water and so kills bacteria. I bought one, but haven't used it yet because I have been trying to avoid breathing in anything aerosolized or adding to my daily cleaning processes. Instead, I have avoided turning on my heat and have added another layer of clothing. This has worked well so far, however, now that the temps are starting to fall, I notice that the humidity in my house is lowering and my eyes are starting to complain.
Time to bite the bullet and pull out the vaporizer. My understanding from what I have read (don't remember where now) is that it is important to clean out the vaporizer with bleach after every use. My question is: What do I do if I use the vaporizer not just while sleeping at night, but all during the day? Do I have to clean it each time I add water, or can I add water regularly during the day and clean it once a day? I'm trying to keep things simple, but I want to do it safely. Many thanks,
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@lsm1936
It moistures the room air since yesterday the room humidity was only 32% I used it. I try to keep it around 40%.
@lilianna I really don't believe you need to worry one bit about cleaning the heating element! If it is hot enough to produce steam, and runs for more than 30 minutes above 135f, it is hot enough to kill bacteria.
As long as you can clean the rest with a brush and antibacterial Dawn, you should be okay.
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1 Reaction@sueinmn you are right!!
I don’t need another chore. I guess I will use like last year destilled water and let it run
I actually had a VFT seedling do something similar once — a little spiral pattern that none of the siblings had. In my case it grew out of it as it got bigger, but it stayed a bit “quirky” compared to the others. It’s not super common, so definitely fun to watch, but my experience is that most of these odd patterns fade as the plant matures.
On the same thought, how about the humidifier in line with the furnace?
Thank you
@amap2025 Furnac humidifiers pose the same risks as other cool air humidifiers. Tap water may contain NTM AND the filter and reservoir provide a breeding ground for bacteria.
@sueinumn
What is a fumac humidifier?
Dr. Joseph Falkinham from Virginia Tech is an NTM specialist with his own laboratory and regularly advises the NTM community, He strongly dislikes ultrasonic humidifiers and recommends that if a humidifier is truly needed, it should be an evaporative type. Some evaporative models blow air across a filter, and others boil water on a plate. This is what he said regarding boiling and aerosolization:
“We have boiled water that was inoculated with lots of NTM and did not detect any NTM in the steam. I did that to assure folks that boiling tap water (that likely carries NTM) would not generate NTM-laden aerosols (an aerosol is droplets of water in the air, easily seen as mist).”
On that basis, he suspects (but has not tested) that a warm mist evaporator humidifier or any instrument that boils water to generate steam is unlikely to add NTM to the air.
He emphasizes that no one should use any humidifier labelled as ultrasonic. Those devices can transfer NTM from water to air in the same way that showers can aerosolize bacteria.
He also recommended that the humidifier be cleaned regularly with Dawn detergent and a diluted bleach solution.
Personally, I live in 900 square feet so it is relatively easy for me to add moisture to the air. I use an Amazon tea kettle in both the bedroom and living room, and leave the top open, and within about eight minutes all of the water has been turned into steam.
It shuts off automatically, although I hesitate to recommend any electrical device because safety can vary. I am simply sharing what I do in my own home.
Happy Saturday,
Linda Esposito
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2 Reactions@lilianna I don’t think distilled water is proven to/doesn’t necessarily have MAC. Dr Faulkenham says the water is sterile (by distilling process), but he can’t vouch for the jugs being sterile as there too many manufacturers to test all.
I use distilled water for sinuses rinses and have looked at this a few times. Penn told me distilled and even Jewish Health says distilled water is ok on website. Note-I do boil and cool it after it’s been opened >24 hrs. Hassle.
Do you have a MAC authority/researcher source that says distilled water isn’t safe?
I only remember what Dr F. said but I do the nasal rinses if needed with boiled and cooled water and for my vaporizer I use distilled water. I have to be reasonable because I will lose my mind. I don’t want to be only boiling and sterilizing all day.