Winter is the favorite season for many among us. What could be better than sitting under your blanket holding a cup of hot chocolate in your hand? However, it comes with dryness in the air resulting in flues, dry skin, and even breathing difficulties. To overcome the odds, we have humidifiers and diffusers. The differences between them can make you confused sometimes. Hope this guide humidifiers vs diffusers helps you to understand their functions and to pick out the perfect one for you.
What are humidifier and diffuser?
Before we proceed, let’s get introduced with a humidifier and a diffuser. This is crucial to determine which one you need. In case you had a long day and want to get relaxed at home, a diffuser could be the perfect one. A well-performing diffuser uses essential oils and makes the air smell fresh and relaxing. The antifungal and antiviral properties of the essential oils get all over the air and help you prevent sinus and allergies. On the other hand, humidifiers add moisture to the air. The humidity helps to fight breathing difficulties and prevents drying out of skin, nose, and throat. However, excess humidity in the air can cause the house environment unpleasant. A dehumidifier can be a great help to prevent it.
Comparison – Humidifier vs Diffuser
A humidifier and a diffuser help you enjoy some quality time in your house by keeping the air fresh, healthy, and relaxing. Even though both of their ultimate goals are to serve you with better air to breathe in, there are differences between them regarding their function. An essential oil diffuser diffuses the properties in the oil and releases scents in the air. The primary purpose is to make the air smell just like you want it to be. On the other hand, a humidifier increases the air’s moisture level to ensure you have healthy air to breathe in.
All you have to do for evaporative diffusers is put a few drops of your favorite essential oil into the diffuser pod. With the help of a diffuser fan, the oil evaporates, and the aroma spreads all over the air. A nebulizer diffuser comes with a tube where you have to pour the oil. An air-jet will blow the air to the top of the tube, and with the vacuum effect, the oil will get touched with the air and get scented. In Ultrasonic diffusers, oils are added to the water, and a disk breaks the oil into mini particles, and they get along with the air.
In a warm mist humidifier, the water you add will make steam get released into the air. This is almost similar to how a vaporizer works. In an evaporative humidifier, the water reservoir has a wick, filter, or belt, and a fan will blow air through the device. Finally, in an impeller one, the spinning disk will break the water particles down, and it will get released into the air and increase the moisture level.
In terms of health benefits, a diffuser can be a relaxing therapy for someone dealing with anxiety and stress. Some of them come with LED lights built-in, that can change the vibe entirely according to your mood. Other than that, the essential oil’s antioxidant properties can help improve immunity in your family members. The antifungal and antiviral elements help to fight viruses and fungus. However, to get the best result from a diffuser, you must pick out the essential oil that complies with your taste and needs.
On the contrary, if your residence is in a dry climate and tired of having dry and flaky skin, nosebleed, dry throat, and breathing difficulties, you may want to go for a humidifier. By maintaining the ideal humidity level, which is 30% to 50%, a humidifier makes the environment healthy. If you are suffering from snoring every night, it can bring a solution for that as well. By increasing the moisture to the dry and cold air, a humidifier can make your house flu-proof. Sinus congestion and colds can be prevented as well.
Which one is the best choice for you?
As we have seen above, both humidifiers and diffusers can be an essential part of your life. However, they play very different roles than one another. This is why before picking one of them, there are a few things that you need to take into consideration. If you live alone or have a separate room of your own and love the aroma of essential oils, you may go for a diffuser. The aromatherapy after a long, tiring day can do wonders for you. However, choosing an essential oil that doesn’t go with your taste will make a diffuser useless. In case you are sharing your room with a mate or family member, we suggest avoiding getting a diffuser if it doesn’t match your roommate’s taste and create a disturbance.
On the other hand, if you and your family feel uncomfortable in the dry, cold air, a humidifier can be the best option for you. To get rid of allergies, flu, cold, dry nose and skin, dry eyes, a humidifier can help. Apart from that, you will not have to worry about making disturbance for others with a humidifier unlike the diffusers.
Can a diffuser be used as a humidifier?
Yes, nowadays, many brands offer diffusers that can work as humidifiers and vice-versa. In some humidifiers, there is a compartment to add essential oils. This can release aromatic steams in the air.
However, we do not suggest using a standard humidifier as a diffuser by adding a few drops of essential oil to the water as it can cause damage to your device. If you need both moisture and aromatherapy, go for the one that offers both.
Bottom Line:
A humidifier and a diffuser, even though they serve different purposes, both are effective and essential in their ways. One helps you spend some relaxing, me-time while another comes with numerous health benefits. It is vital to spot the differences and match both functions with your wants and needs. Getting the wrong one would be a waste of your money and time. We hope that this Humidifier vs. Diffuser comparison has helped you choose which one is best for you.