This summer, I installed new hardwood floors in the main living area of our home. Hardwood floors are awesome — much easier to care for than carpet and great if you have kids and/or pets. But, hardwood floors need your home to maintain a reasonably consistent moisture level for them to be happiest. I don’t let the moisture level above 55% in the summer time or below 45% in the winter time.
If you’re using console humidifiers in your home, they can become a maintenance nightmare after a while. Last winter, our toddler had a great time playing with our humidifiers and the routine cleaning of the wicks and refilling of reservoirs quickly becomes tiring. So, I decided that this heating season I would install a whole-house humidifier. 
Researching the different types of humidifier options, I quickly became overwhelmed. I like to be certain that I’m making the best choice when making a purchase and with many positive and negative reviews of the humidification options, it didn’t seem like there was any “right” answer for us.
In the end, my potential choices came down to a humidifier from Desert Spring, Best Air Pro or Honeywell. The Desert Spring units had too many complaints for my comfort level. The Best Air Pro has a limited distribution network and I wanted to purchase my unit in person. So, I settled on the Honeywell HE-360. Over the years there have been numerous revisions the the HE-360. Different reviews may refer to various revisions but you can’t be sure which one because the model number has never changed or iterated.
The HE-360 is available in two flavors: with or without the installation kit. Unless you read the fine print, you’re left wondering why the HE-360 might be $189 from one retailer or $230 from another. The $230 package includes the installation kit. Of course, when you look on Amazon.com, Lowes.com or HomeDepot.com the model numbers don’t change, just the price. The pricing and labeling on the HE-360 is almost as confusing as the instruction manual.
Pricing on the HE-360 seems relatively fixed. There’s not a difference between the price at Amazon.com or Home Depot — as long as you compare apples to apples. I picked up my unit from Home Depot yesterday morning–it was the only one they had in stock. They had a few of the Honeywell bypass-type humidifiers but I was after the HE-360. Luckily, it was perched three shelves up, almost out of sight.
My next installment will cover unboxing and walking through the parts and preparation for installation. The third installment will cover installation and final thoughts. I’ll have part II up on Wednesday and part III up by Friday. As a teaser though, the humidity in our 1300sf townhouse has gone from 30% to 45% in the past 24 hours. I’m pleased with my purchase.
