This machine just stinks. The tanks are huge so if you don't have a large kitchen sink with a goose neck faucet it will be difficult to fill them and fill them you will - often. The "cool moisture" is just inefficient in my opinion, and the proof is the hygrometer that barely notices the thing running. The hygrometer is lucky - it can't hear the machine running. Do yourself a favor and buy the $20 steam humidifier from Honeywell. I already replaced this huge beast with two of them to satisfactory (and silent) results.