There are black chunks of like a stone like substance in the water after use. It is cleaned out every morning. You can shake the core unit and little chunks will fall out of the hole at the bottom of the cyclinder. What is this?

Here is a link on humidifiers http://www.iallergy.com/humidifier_answers.html.

The black particles are pretty common. This is a byproduct from minerals in the water and is normal.
Just clean the tank regularly (with diluted bleach). The black particles will also collect in the steamer unit (the top blue part). Wash this out with hot water (no soap or anything) after each use. If you tap it a few times on the floor of your bathtub you'll probably see some of this black stuff come out. No worries, just rinse again with hot water.
There's no harm from the black particles.

Mold can really cause problems with humidifiers-
They do need to be serviced, cleaned up, and something like weak bleach used to kill mold spores, -- get it all tidy and clean!
Were you able to clean out the drain line?-- and is it draining now?
And is the float valve shutting off the water flow, before it reaches the overflow drain pipe?
Another concern would be the soaking pad-- Has it been changed recently?

Tell us more--

Mack B

Hello,All the pads have a protectant(white) coating because the pad is aluminum and would rot out fairly quickly from getting wet.The slime is bacteria(fungus) not from the coating that forms from stagnant (sitting) water.Make sure the unit is draining out dry after each cycle.With the pad out pour vinegar OR bleach & water (10:1) to kill the mold in the drain pipe.Do not clean the pad at all ,it gets replaced.They sell an inexpensive wet floor alarm at the store that makes noise when wet.

Gererally according to the booklet in the box.
If you no longer have those instructions, simply clean out the
basin, make sure no mold, dust, hardwater or calcium is deposited.
Use a 10% bleach water solution to kill bacteria, and thats is basically it.
Just dont miss any spots, but humdifiers should be cleaned every few uses.

The filter panel may be replaced from the top or bottom but it's less hassle to replace from the bottom because the top tray retains a small amount of water and also because you must be mindful of working around the feed tube assembly. Also, when replacing the filter panel, clean both trays (requires removing both trays, water feed tube and drain tube) and drain tube ... use a 8 water -1 bleach diluted solution or other anti-bacterial solution and wipe the trays and pour some into the removed drain tube (not the feed tube!) and shake it up a bit. Be careful though as you do not want bleach solution getting in your eyes, nor on your skin and clothes!

SPECIAL NOTES
Discoloration/Black Particles
After use, the water residue in the bottom of the container may contain black particles, and, in
some areas the water and the bottom of container may discolor. These conditions are normal and
do not effect the purity of the steam or medicine. The container is easily cleaned with soap and
water. Rinse and dry the container after cleaning.

This was taken from the manual that comes with the humidifier...

This is the link to your manual:
http://www.crane-usa.com/manuals/HumidifierManual2008.pdf

CAUTION:
Always be sure that the appliance is unplugged and switched OFF before cleaning or attempting to store the item. NEVER PLUG OR UNPLUG UNIT WITH WET HANDS.
DO NOT leave water in water tank or water basin when unit is not in use as it may result in the build up of mineral deposits and bacteria that can inhibit the output efficiency of the humidifier.
PLEASE NOTE that if water remains in the water tank for more than a day or two, bacterial growth is possible.
ALWAYS use fresh cool water when using unit.
NOTE: When removing water tank, water may accumulate under vapor lid and on the bottom of the water tank. It is recommended to have a dry cloth ready to dry wet surfaces.
DISINFECTING THE WATER TANK AND WATER BASIN
1. Fill water tank with 1 teaspoon of household bleach in 1 gallon of water. Let stand twenty minutes, shaking vigorously with two hands every few minutes, drain and rinse with clean water until the bleach smell is gone. Dry with a clean cloth or paper towel.

2. Wipe the water basin with a soft cloth dampened in the bleach and water solution. Rinse the water basin with cool water to remove any bleach smell. DO NOT IMMERSE WATER BASIN IN WATER.

3. Wipe all exteriors surfaces of the base with a soft, dry cloth. Do not immerse the base in water or use water to clean the base. An electric shock may result or the humidifier may be damaged.
NOTE: It is recommended to clean humidifier with water and bleach solution as stated above after using the humidifier the fourth time.

GENERAL MAINTENANCE AND CLEANING
Before any cleaning operation, switch the humidifier off and unplug it.
1. Always unplug the unit before cleaning.

2. The humidifier must be drained and cleaned before storing.

3. Once unplugged the exterior of the unit may be cleaned by wiping with a soft dry cloth. Caution: The ON/OFF switch must be thoroughly dry before unit is again plugged into power source.

4. There may be some lime deposits in the nebulizer, particular in areas with hard water. Overcome this drawback by cleaning the nebulizer with water and vinegar on a soft cloth regularly, as follows:

A. Dampen a cloth with vinegar and wipe the nebulizer gently, until the lime deposits disappear completely.

B. Rub down gently with a dry cloth and remove remains of humidity.

C. Do not rub the nebulizer with solid objects.

D. Do not clean with chemical products

5. When cleaning the water basin do not place the nebulizer directly under the water tap.

6. Never immerse the unit in water or let water enter the fan vent (see figure 3) or any other openings.

7. It is normal for water to be in the water basin. However water must not get inside the central body. If this should happen, take the humidifier to an authorized service center before using it again.

8. Clean the inside of the water tank at least once a week, as follows:

A. Fill the tank with clean water adding a few drops of bleach. Close the tank completely with its cap and shake by holding the tank with both hands. Do not hold by handle while shaking the tank.

B. Rinse thoroughly.
Water Level Sensor- The water level sensor is made of three key parts. When cleaning DO NOT MISPLACE these parts and MAKE SURE that you assemble these three parts correctly after cleaning and before operating humidifier. They are as follows:
Plastic Cap – this part has 4 flat tabs coming out from the bottom and is placed on top of a plastic pin.
Water Float - a small round part resembling a "life saver" candy located underneath the plastic cap.
Pin – plastic pin that secures water float and plastic cap.
To clean the water float unscrew the plastic cap from the pin. Remove the water float and clean by wiping the parts with a soft damp cloth. Replace the parts by first putting the water float onto the pin and re-screwing the plastic cap onto pin.



Good Luck.

I think I found the problem.

unplug humidifer, remove top tank, empty all water out of base. dry off.

turn unit upside down.

unscrew five visible screws.

use a screw driver to pull off the black foam foot pads. you will find more screws there.

pull off the base.

look next to the fan, you will see a metal "tower" going up into the reservoir. Is it dirty such as white chalky substance on it? Clean it with cotton swabs. Clean the fan while your at it if needed.

You will see a small gray box with two metal tabs twisted. Untwist them and pull off the top.

On that metal "tower" you will see a small black chip connected to the circuit board where you just removed the metal top. Does black chip have black marks on the circuit board? Mine does. I suspect the "tower" which draws heat from this black chip was no longer able to cool because of the white chalk buildup on the tower, furthermore, the chip became too hot and caused the black chip to overheat (again black marks on the circuit board).

The chip has on it "FTR 02N" and a "54F" at the bottom. I tried doing some basic searching on internet to see if it could be replaced, but didn't find anything.


For those who don't have this problem yet, just keep that metal cooling tower clean.