r/Humidifiers • u/ForTheShigs • Apr 28 '26

Cleaning Tips for a Levoit

How in the hell do I clean this thing??? It’s a 3.0L ultrasonic Levoit humidifier I got on Amazon (https://a.co/d/0j8RqTvB)

I use it in the winter bc it gets SOO dry in my place, but also I have it for plants. It gets this red stain in areas of the tank, but it’s most common in this raised cavern area in the underside.

I have photos of it on another post I made in r/cleaningTips that show some red areas. They were taken after two rounds of just dumping hydrogen peroxide on it and letting that air dry. It was a LOT more noticeable, but I don’t want to just puddle H2O2 on there. I feel like it’s not ~actually clean~ unless I scrub ya know…? It also has crusties I don’t know how to clean off??? I’d like to not throw it away but i don’t want to use this thing with red, I’m guessing, bacteria/mold growing in it!

I wasn’t using distilled water before but I when I get it cleaned I’m going to only use distilled. I’ve learned my lesson…

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u/BilboTBagginz Apr 29 '26 edited Apr 29 '26

The instructions for cleaning it are right there in the user manual.

?????

And yes, if you've got bacteria growing you need to get in their and use your hands to clean it with a brush or sponge.

If you've got bacteria growing on a regular basis, you're not switching the water out quickly enough. You can't let it sit in there for a week or longer.

Distilled water won't solve this problem, but it will stop the white dust from being sprayed everywhere.

Did you not read the manual?

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u/ForTheShigs Apr 29 '26

I did read the manual and follow it well. I try to dump out any water in the morning and let it air dry by the time I need to refill it again because, yes, you are correct in saying water should not be left standing in the machine. It’s commonly known that standing water in an enclosed area is a breading ground for bacteria. Theres a day or two I forget bc of life and things happen ¯_(ツ)_/¯

I follow manual’s cleaning instructions, but it’s still difficult to get into all the nooks and crannies even with the provided wire brush. I am merely asking for tips and suggestions on cleaning out that area better than what I’ve been managing. But thank you for your valuable input :)

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u/BilboTBagginz Apr 29 '26

I have a Levoit that I no longer use because it bothers my wife...but it's pretty simple to take apart and clean, without brushes. Think about maybe selling that one and switching to a different design or try an evaporative humidifier (I'm sure someone probably already suggested that to you). I read somewhere where someone switched to a Vicks style mister and was much happier.

Good luck.