Is distilled water necessary in tub? Spring water vs tap?

[Chandleresque]

Should I pay for distilled water? Benefits?

[Stom]

You can do a search as this topic comes up over and over.

Distilled or de-ionized water is the easiest way to keep your humidifier chamber free of scale build up. Think of it like your clothes steam iron.

Any water that is safe to drink should be ok to use in your machine. And you can use vinegar to remove scale if you get build up.

[BlueDragon]

Should I pay for distilled water? Benefits?

It mostly depends on your water and how quickly scale builds up. Here's my experience:

• Three days with water described as "very hard." Very significant scale build up on floor of humidifier tank. Had to soak it in vinegar to dissolve the scale.

• Two weeks using softened Tucson water (which starts out pretty hard). Some scum on plate noticed and I thought maybe something was growing. Cleaned with vinegar.

• Two months using Tucson water run through reverse osmosis system and tank never washed. Humidifier tank looks like new -- no build up of any sort.

If I didn't have the r-o water, I'd use distilled or de-ionized water, or else wash the tank weekly.

[palerider]

Should I pay for distilled water? Benefits?

distilled water is a *convenience*.

In Europe, where distilled water is harder to come by than in the USA, the manuals say "use water" not "use distilled water".

So, no, it's not necessary.

[SewTired]

All depends on how often you want to demineralize your tank. For some who don't have cars, live in apartments without elevators, live rurally, or are homebound, it might not be worth the effort to get distilled. A half gallon of vinegar will last you more than a year while using tap water. For many of us, buying a gallon of distilled for 89 cents and bringing it home is not much effort. For some, it's a tremendous effort. Where I grew up in Massachusetts, we had soft water. I think you probably could go all year without needing to demineralize. Where I am now, you need to do it at least twice a month (and that is with a water softener appliance).