With several months of cold weather still ahead of us, which means being stuck indoors then anything that is going to make the air a little more pleasant, like not being so dry may be a good thing. Is there a quick and simple and inexpensive way of doing this? Maybe the Aqua Stone has the ability to do this, so let’s find out.
Overview
The whole idea of this product is that as small as what it is, it is supposed to be able to put the humidity back in a room. It is based on a decorative stone that looks much like an egg which will absorb the water that you add to its base. It then releases the water into the air to moisturize an entire room.
The Claim
The Company claims that their product is the all natural way to add moisture to a room. Simply by the rock absorbing the water placed in the base it is able to dispel the moisture it has absorbed into the air. They state the secret is in the stone’s porous sphere. The promoters state that the Aqua Stone is just as effective as a standard electrical humidifier.
The Hype
It is somewhat difficult to come up with some unique hype for adding moisture to the air, because there are tons of products on the market that can do this at all different price ranges. What the promoters have done here is focus on two interests that a consumer of a product of this may have. One is how it lends to the decor of the room where it is going to be used in, and secondly the fact that it can be placed anywhere because it doesn’t have to be plugged in.
The Cost
The price that is set for this at the moment is about $30. which includes shipping and handling and if you pay another $9.95 to cover the shipping of a 2nd one then you will get it free.
The Commitment
It isn’t going to take much effort to use the Aqua Stone except to remember to keep adding water to the base so it can do its job. This simple item isn’t going to require a lot of cleaning, which is something that cannot be said for a lot of other humidifiers out there. A lot of times those units get calcium build up and require regular cleaning.
Evaluation
What did people do before all these electrical air moisturizers came out on the market? Or what is a cheap way now of doing this? Many people will just set a pot or can of water over their heat vents and let the moisture evaporate into the air. It may not look very attractive, and there is a chance of the water getting spilled, but it does do the job. So is it worth $30. to buy a rock that is going to do the same thing? It is worth looking around to see if there is anything similar to this and what kind of attraction has it gained. Interestingly we came across an almost identical looking product advertised on Amazon as a Set of 2 Non Electric Humidifier for the price of about $25. but it didn’t indicate the shipping price. It only has had one review so far, and it was fairly favorable. At the same time we came across some USB mini humidifiers. Then we took a look back at what we have seen in the past when it comes to air quality products. We did a review on one that was just the opposite to this product. This was DampRid, whose main job was to take excessive moisture out of the air, which is the exact opposite of the duties of the Aqua Stone.
Final Aqua Stone Review
We have given the Aqua Stone a borderline Try/Buy rating which is a step up above our Risky Try/Buy. What was causing us a bit of concern really is the price. However, it seems that there is a real interest in this type of product when you look at the USB types and the good ratings some of them are getting. It takes away any concerns about whether something as small as the Aqua Stone could really be effective.
Our Recommendation
If you really hate having to plug in your humidifier, and you are only looking at an average sized room being dry and needing some moisture, then go ahead and choose this product. You don’t have to fuss about cleaning it, and there are no filters to deal with as it is not an air purifier.
I have had 3 of the Aqua Stones for about 6 years. I have never had a problem from using them and they work just fine in keeping my house humidified. I am thinking about buying a couple more because I have a larger house now.
Try distilled water instead….I think it makes a huge difference.
I used distilled water in my electric humidifier, I’m not using it right now and it hasn’t any mold. I’m using distilled water for the Aqua Stone as well. I believe it makes a huge difference.
I live in Phoenix, AZ. In the summertime it can get up to 120 degrees and the air quite dry due to running the A/C 24/7. During that time I use tap water in 4 small aqua stones placed around a room about 225 sq. ft. They really help to keep the air humidified, which helps me sleep. I usually have to refill the bowls at least every other day, if not every day due rapid evaporation from the heat. Using tap water I have never had problems with mold developing but I do develop problems with calcium build up. I just pop the globes into really hot water from the faucet for about 5-10 minutes and the calcium drops right off. Because of my breathing problems I have tried all sorts of humidifiers over the years and found I love my stones the best.
Yes it really works. I am so proud of mine. I use them religiously in the fall & winter time. When you first start using them, you may have to refill every 12 hours until the moisture gets built up in your room. In large rooms like the Den or Living Room, you might want to use 2 large ones. You will be surprised at the difference in your family’s health, especially if you have children.
I gave my children one & grand kids one and they dearly love it. They are on sale right now at Collections Etc. where you get a large one & a small one for $6.99 for the 2. You cannot go wrong with these. I have used electric humidifiers & all I did was clean, clean, clean to keep them from molding. With my allergies & breathing problems, I wouldn’t use anything else.
I’ve gotten two different sized stones from the thrift store, at two different times. Neither one was over 3$ I love them! Like others have said, add essential oils and get spectacular scent, and the added benefit of more moisture in the air. Living in an arid climate, these things are a life saver! Not sure I’d buy them full price if I didn’t already know they work, though. The first one I bought just because i like spheres…
I’ve had mine for 2 years now and have had no mold. If you use hot water and table salt it will stay clean. The salt leave a film on the too but I clean it off every 3 days. But salt keeps molt away. My son has bad nose bleeds but since I bought this stone he has not had any nose bleeds since. Love it.
Just got my auqastone, can’t wait to use it. Only paid $5 for it on Hollar.com so if it works it’ll totally be worth the investment… I am willing to try it cuz I’m sick of waking up stuffy.
I love ❤ my aqua stone!
I put a drop of lavender oil, the stone soaked it up, makes my bathroom smell wonderful.
Once a week I wash mine in my dish water, that always put a little bleach in my dish water.
So I’ve never gotten any molds.
Be sure to keep your stone clean.
You don’t need to breathe mold.
Melodye Buskin has it right. Hydrogen Peroxide is the answer for ALL mold, fungi, bacteria, & virus. It flat out kills them by burning them up. It does this by the rapid release of oxygen when it comes in contact with ANY organic matter.. Basically, burning is simply a high rate of absorbing oxygen. It is absolutely safe for you also (unless you come in direct contact with over 6% H2O2. Then you also will start burning. You can buy 2% H2O2 for less than $1 per quart. If you see any discoloring starting, Simply use H2O2 instead of water. No smell. No threat to you. It simply breaks down to water and oxygen. Which of these is bad for you??
Obviously you DON’T have a dry air problem so your comment has no relevance to those of us who do!
Wash with warm soapy water every 2 weeks.
Yes, Yes, Yes, the Aqua Stone really really works. I have had to use humidifiers for years because of my allergies. I have always hated the kind that plug in the wall & spatters water all over the area where it is sitting. The white substance that is left in the container after the water is all gone and the filters that you absolutely cannot clean completely. With allergies, you do not need mold in the air. I love, love, love the Aqua Stone Humidifiers. I just wish they had come out earlier with these. I ordered the sets of two for my grand children & sons. I have them all over my house. They work better than any electric ones I have used before. I fill my up every 24 hours & wash them in warm soapy water every 2 weeks. I am truly thrilled and very very happy with these. I want to thank the person that came up with this idea. The small ones in the sets would be great for a child’s bedroom or any bedroom. I use the large ones in the living room, den, family room, or master bedroom. I just cannot say enough about these humidifiers. They are safe, easy to assemble, easy to operate, easy to use period.
Has anyone tried putting salt in the water? When my parents used to leave a pan of water out near the wood stove they always put salt in it. I thought it was to make it boil faster when i was a kid but it hardly ever boiled. So now i think they did it to keep bacteria and mold out ouf the pan. Maybe if you do the same thing with your aqua stones it will keep the mold away. Just a thought i had after reading a few of the reviews on here. Planing on purchasing a couple of these from someone on Craigslist for 10.00 and thought i would look into them first. Another idea is a drop or two of bleach instead of the salt should purify the water without the smell. Another idea is to use essential oils in the water to make the room smell better but I’m not sure how well that will work so don’t do it cause i said to. Well that’s my 2 cents once i get mine i will try them out for a couple of weeks then check back and review my experience with them.
To Melodye Buskin
How did you use H2O2 to rid Candidiasis? Bath soaks or what? Please share. I just bought Aqua Stone filled w/tap. Hope it works! Ginger
I have noticed that it is easier for me to breath. Especially at night, the air feels lighter and less harsh. During winter I get really dry skin, my lips crack and I cough a lot due to dry air, the aqua stone was a wise $10 investment for my wellness.
I received mine as a gift 1 year ago. It really works. The only time I wake up with a dry cough is when it’s empty. I use bottled water & have no mold problems. I also live around Dallas where humidity can be high at times. It’s refilled about every 2-3 days before bedtime. I’m considering giving one as a gift to someone else.
So glad to see your comment re hydrogen peroxide. I use H2O2 for regular household cleaning. It breaks down to H2O and O2. Guess that those are: water and oxygen. I have a bathroom with no window and I never have mold or even a moldy smell, since I spray with a solution of H2O2 and water, and some vinegar for oils. It’s a pity people don’t know about it. It’s better, and safer, than bleach.
Food grade hydrogen peroxide kills all mold spores. It comes in 3% or 6% grades and can be purchased in health food stores. It’s been used in the medical and agricultural industries for decades especially in Europe. It is basically liquid oxygen and helped cure me of a mold related illness called ‘Candidiasis’ which went undiagnosed for years. I highly recommend looking into the various uses and health benefits of food grade H202. It can definitely be used to clean the ceramic stone as there are no toxic fumes associated with this substance like there are with bleach and ammonia.
Bought one at CVS for $6.49…put it near the Boston Fern I am overwintering, so far, no mold (1 week). Fingers crossed it will help.
I have like myAqua Stone which I keep near my bed to help with excessive dry mouth and nose from very low humidity in Arizona. My one complaint is that I seem to get mold? growing on the stone. Is it possible to run stone through dishwasher Should I only add water from the bottom?
I Love these. We had bad problem with door knobs etc shocking us. Decided to try the Aqua Stone, within 1 hour, no more shocking. Fill it every other day. Highly recommend
It gets moldy. I have a picture, but can’t find a website or email to complain to. Don’t buy it.
Aqua Fina is supposed to be
Houston tap water or so I’ve been told.
I have had one of these for about 3 months now. I use tap water (cold only for rinsing and filling up) and am just starting to see ‘faint’ mold marks at the top of the globe. So faint, not sure if it’s mold or some other discoloring…? Our tap/town water is REALLY good since we’re in the sticks of NH and don’t have much water contamination up in these parts (thank goodness for granola-y NH!) – unless you’re stuck in the southern NH cities near MA…
Anyways – going to try the warm water and just using a magic eraser for this. I think it should work. Don’t use bleach or anything else – I also need be more vigilant in filling up the globe more than once a week…. it’s usually empty by the 2nd day (my bad!). Thanks for all the info and tricks to keep these puppies around in the home. Would hate to throw out a simple tool for humidity. Can’t afford a high-tech one nor is it needed… must be way to rectify the AquaGlobe!
To get rid of mold, clean the orb and container with white vinegar.
I took a bigger bucket and filled more water in it and bubbled the stone down in that. Over about two days about a centimeter and a half has evaporated. I have not had any mold on it yet, but I just started. I’m thinkng about getting a bigger bucket and
I bought mine for $15.00 and put it in my bedroom. What a relief not to wake up with a bloody nose or congestion! I love it. It is simple to use and I have no problems with it. I am seriously thinking of getting another one.
To Dakota who posted about the red and yellow random spots appearing on the stone – get rid of it immediately! Those are toxic molds and you absolutely DO NOT need to be breathing that into your body. They can wreak havoc on your respiratory and immune system and cause permanent damage including death. Please throw them out! Any molded device should not be used. Bleach will not kill the mold spores, and I would never risk the health of my family or myself by using one of these.
I bought one of these and don’t notice any difference in air quality. I have it right by my bed. I still have a dry nose and cough at night. There is still static on my blankets. I don’t think anything really gets rid of static electricity. It is decorative and easy to use. I haven’t gotten any mold spots on mine yet. I have just been using tap water in mine. I only paid 9.95 for mine through one of those mail-order catalogs. Was worth a try, wish it worked more as described.
We have 3 of these in our home. We were shocking everything we touched with the cold dry winter. Since we have started using these we do not shock anything or each other anymore. They do get quite a bit of moister into the air. We also put one in our bedroom and both see a difference in our sleeping and breathing better, and our sinus’s are not dry and hurting in the morning. We fill ours every 2-3 days and absolutely love them! Have one at work on my desk as well.
Don’t waste your money. Mold spots require more cleaning than the electrical humidifiers!
Same thing happened to mine. Tried putting a dab of bleach on spots and nothing got them off. Threw in trash!
Thank you sooo much! I love my Natural Stone Room Humidifier (from Amazon.com dbRoth) and cleaning it was the only drawback. I have been looking everywhere for a way to clean it – I’ll try that. I had considered filling it with Vinegar – but who wants to smell that for hours! lol.
Is this from a “I bought it and it didnt seem to work” stand point or an “It doesnt look like it would work” view?
After reading what everyone else has to say about this product, I had to add in my opinion, to hopefully help others! Both me and my mom have one of these, for about 2 months. The instructions in the box are not enough to let you know how to care for this item. First, I use only distilled water (some people seem to prefer filtered), but not plain tap. Change the water at least every other day, and once a week, rinse out the stone and bowl in hot water and leave it to dry out. Do NOT use soap or bleach, nothing but water!! the way this works is that the stone absorbs whatever is on it, clay is highly absorbent, and if you put soap or bleach, that is being released back into the air and you inhale it! It does tell you in the instructions not to use any cleansing agents. Also, every so often i add a drop or two of an essential oil that is anti fungal, this can help prevent mold growth as well. Basil, lemon, orange, are some good ones. i don’t add oil every time, because i don’t know if the stone should be always absorbing oil. Neither me or my mom has had any mold issues with the aqua stone. It does require some care, but not nearly as much as a plug in humidifier. It does work, but it is small and will only work in a smaller room. You could get more then one if you want it in a larger room. I feel that it replaces lost moisture, but i don’t think it add much extra. if you really want intense humidity, you’d need something more powerful, but this is a great product for what it is!
I live in Tucson, AZ and see first hand what this dry air does to women’s skin and hair. When I saw this decorative humidifier, I snatched it up. I filled it with water ,sat it on the coffee table and waited for the magic. Months later, I’m still waiting. Yes, the water evaporated. But the water would evaporate regardless. Maybe I’ll start selling the Aqua Sponge, or Aqua Garden Rock, what about Magical Aqua Goldfish? Because a bowl you add water to, with an object in it is what someone sold and we bought.
I got my Aqua stone at Walgreens for $12.00. I had it a little over a week. I live in NC the weather is cold and dry here, and I have very dry skin. I keep the stone by my bedside table in my bedroom. I usually have to apply chap stick to my lips each night before going to bed and eye lubricant to my eyes each morning. In the last several days I have notices my lips are not as dry And my eyesore not as dry. I will continue to use the Aqua Stone and hope to see good results. Thanks for the tip about the mold.
I bought one for my office at work, because every winter it gets so dry and full of static, here in the frozen tundra of Indiana. 😉 It actually does help. I’ve had it about 1 1/2 months now. I was skeptical too, because of the small size, but I am pleased with it.
It works great. I’ve got several. It is good to put one next to the indoor plants during the winter to get some moisture (heater drys out the environment). Wash it just with water and a soft brush to remove the mold and place it in a sunny area while drying. The sun light kills mold, viruses etc… I do every ten days.
I got mine from walgreens as well on clearance for 12. I just want say I have me salt Rock light and my aqua in my bedroom big difference! And for the mold bleach dis colors mold not kills it…check the label of its sold as a disinfectant it’s no use to u. To actually kill the mold you need a mildew cleaner that’s sold as a fungul or insect killer easy-to-use is kabooom mildew destroyer it simply says not sold as a disinfectant. I also favor the mean green milldew series. If uu take this advice the spots will not just be discolored but actually killed .
Mold spots can actually be caused by organisms in the air. the moist surface provides a medium for mildew to grow on.
I got mine from Walgreens about a month ago for $12 and I keep it in my bedroom. I think it works, I don’t get shocked and my hair doesn’t get staticy since buying it. When you put water in the bowl and let it sit a while and come back, if you rub the stone you can feel the moisture all over it. Lastly mine got random spots all over it but I’m not sure if it’s mold because some of these spots are red or yellow almost as if I decorated it that way. Not sure how to explain that one, impurities in the air maybe? But overall I like it and would probably buy it for another room if I needed one.
The mold just grows back. This was a waste of money. Don’t buy it!
I received one as a Christmas gift, so i have had it a week. I placed it on my bedroom dresser, since my bedroom is pretty small. In the week i have had it i have had to refill water 4x’s i believe it works my nose and lips are not as dry when i wake up. Still odd to me how it all works but i say it works probably not in a bigger room though.
Would not add humidity to a shoebox. Let alone any room.
I tried hot water and didn’t work, however, I used bleach water and took them off.
Thank you for info about distilled water, however I am now reading my instructions and it say to use cool tap water. Hopefully the hot water and soap will remove my mold spots. I have 2 of them and only one is showing mold…
Careful, some of the bottled stuff is essentially just tap water with a fancy label, so that could still be causing the spots. I just got one for my bedroom, so I’ll have to see for myself.
I bought the Aqua Stone for my office cubicle. Seems to be helping, but as mentioned in previous comments, I have mold spots on the stone. I only use bottled water so the mold spots aren’t caused by using “tap water”.
It was a nice conversation piece prior to the mold spots!!
most helpful review i’ve seen on anything ever. short and sweet personal experiences.
Use hot water and a ‘magic eraser’. It’ll come right off!!
I’ve had the aqua stone for about a month now. I picked it up for $12 in Walgreens. I have been using filtered water in mine and it’s been working nicely. They tell you to only use filtered or distilled water, NOT tap water which may have caused the mold on other units. It’s pretty enough that I have it on my breakfast table, this way I remember to refill it every couple days. It’s still relatively humid here in SC though.
I bought these and have a set in our bedroom, I turn on the ceiling fan, and my husband stopped snoring, and I breathe better. They are quiet because they are not electric. That’s all I wanted from any humidifier, a good night sleep and no bleeding noses or coughing. We sleep better. I have to fill them every 2 days and once a week wash the dishes. Very little maintenance in my opinion. I highly recommend them.
My Aqua Stone got moldy spots also. I couldn’t find anything that would remove them.
After about 2 weeks my Aqua Stone got mole spots. I could not clean it and threw it out.
Much water is required to moisturize a dry space of significant size. The product appears to hold a tiny amount of water and to release it very slowly. I’ll pass…