When people are discussing various methods of medicine to cure their ailments, essential oils do not come up very often. However, the use of essential oils and aromatherapy has steadily been rising in popularity as their medical benefits become more widely known.
Many people have been adding essential oils to diffusers, so the scent can be enjoyed throughout the room. And why not? Diffusers are an effective way to disperse your essential oils.
But what if you don’t have a diffuser? What if you have a humidifier?
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Can You Put Essential Oils in a Humidifier?
No. You should not put essential oils in a humidifier. It is not a good idea. Aside from being ineffective, it could also break your humidifier.
There are a few technical reasons why you can not use essential oils with your humidifier. But the important thing to know is essential oils may damage your machine, as the internals of a traditional humidifier are just not made to handle the potency of essential oils.
But to understand completely we must first discuss how diffusers and humidifiers work as well as their differences and limitations.
How Do Diffusers Work?
Diffusers combine water and oil to form a sort of mist. This mist is then dispersed into the air so that the people in the home can feel and smell the oils. As a result, people will be able to use the oils to relieve their breathing and sinus issues and help them battle basic illnesses such as colds.
Basically, diffusers are made for the purpose of using essential oils in them.
How Is This Different From A Humidifier?
While an essential oil diffuser works to combine the oils with water and diffuse them into the environment, humidifiers have the purpose of restoring humidity to the air of a home.
A lack of humidity can irritate dry skin, eyes, and other areas of the body. Dry air can also result in cracks in the house, such as in the drywall and plaster.
Therefore, dry air is definitely not a desirable thing to have in a house, so it is a good idea to have a humidifier for solving this.
How Do Humidifiers Work?
A Humidifier is designed to collect the excess heat in the room and release it into the air in the form of water vapor. They increase the humidity levels by adding moisture to the air. If essential oils are dispersed using heat, this will reduce their effect.
The oils will become more diluted, and they will not benefit you as they should be. This means that the various health benefits of using essential oils will do little to no good to you.
The exception to this is if you specifically have a cold air humidifier. These types of humidifiers work very similarly to a diffuser, but there are still more reasons not to add essential oil to your humidifier.
Most humidifiers are made using a lot of plastic materials. The type of plastic used for the tank and wicking filter is not designed to withstand essential oils. The oils contain elements that will eventually break down plastics, and will therefore cause issues with your humidifier.
Humidifiers are meant to handle water, and little else. As well, the essential oils may actually start to clog various parts inside the humidifier.
Eventually, it will slow down and stop functioning effectively. As a result, the water tank will usually crack and break.
Once the water tank and other areas of the humidifier start to leak, the unit may not be salvageable anymore. You cannot use a cracked humidifier, because it would not help reduce the level of humidity in your home, and instead would add to your list of problems.
Essential Oils In A Humidifier Can Be Messy!
If you are interested in using a humidifier for your essential oils simply because you do not want to buy a diffuser, you may think you are saving yourself extra steps. However, you should not try to take shortcuts on certain things, and this is one of them.
When you put essential oils in your humidifier, you may create an odd mixture of oil that is sticky and heavy. When this is expelled from the humidifier, it will land on your furniture, clothes, and your body.
This is very unhygienic and very difficult to clean, so you will be fighting with it for a while to come, and may even need to throw some stuff out.
The Benefits Are Greater If Using Oils In A Diffuser
Seeing as diffusers are meant for the task of dispersing essential oils, they are more equipped to do so.
For example, diffusers can reduce essential oils until they are just a fine mist. The particles are so small that they can mix with the air and be released into the house.
This is good because people can simply breathe in the mixture that has been created. It is also easier to be absorbed into the body.
Humidifiers, on the other hand, are not able to break up the essential oils into such a fine mist. This means that less of the oil will be absorbed and used to benefit the people in your home.
Final Thoughts On Getting Essential Oils Into The Air
For many reasons, humidifiers are usually not meant to be used in conjunction with essential oils, and it is not even worth the attempt. There are certain exceptions, such as if you specifically have a cool mist humidifier that was designed to work with oils.
Overall, you would be better off investing in a diffuser with an essential oil tray for home.
