Distilled water

[Lightweaver]

How do you store distilled water? Once you open it, does it need to go into the fridge? If I buy a big jug of distilled water, leave it on the shelf, and use it over a month or so, would it become stale or contaminated in any way? I'm thinking bacteria or mold spores from the air?
Never used distilled before.
I'm pretty sensitive to any nastiness in the air so I want to make sure the water is clean.

[LSAT]

Does not need refrigeration. It will stay clean if you keep the cover on.

[Pugsy]

On a little shelf under my machine on the night stand in my bedroom. I do keep the lid on the gallon of water though.

[chunkyfrog]

What they said.
If it is where it could freeze, only leave about half in the jug.
That way it will not split the jug--hopefully.

[mesenteria]

How do you store distilled water? Once you open it, does it need to go into the fridge? If I buy a big jug of distilled water, leave it on the shelf, and use it over a month or so, would it become stale or contaminated in any way? I'm thinking bacteria or mold spores from the air?
Never used distilled before.
I'm pretty sensitive to any nastiness in the air so I want to make sure the water is clean.

Unless the label says it's sterile, it's likely NOT sterile when it is placed on the retail shelf as it is not intended to be. And, once opened, it WILL be exposed to the same air as that which you breathe. As you decant volume into your machine, it must be replaced with room air.

BTW, distilled water is not strictly necessary. It might be better IF you have very hard water and can't properly treat it. If it's good to drink right from the tap, it's safe, and somewhat cheaper, to use in your machine's reservoir. At a $1/jug it's not a bank breaker, granted, but tap water costs you essentially nothing, not even the plastic container that will eventually end up in recycle depots or in a land fill.

You are just as likely to get 'nastiness' from the very air you breathe through the machine as you are to get it via the water poured out of the opened jug. If you want a more reliably 'safe' supply, take it right from the tap where exposure to room air is only 8" long, and as long as it takes you to snap closed the lid. Even then, all night long.............

[palerider]

How do you store distilled water? Once you open it, does it need to go into the fridge? If I buy a big jug of distilled water, leave it on the shelf, and use it over a month or so, would it become stale or contaminated in any way? I'm thinking bacteria or mold spores from the air?
Never used distilled before.
I'm pretty sensitive to any nastiness in the air so I want to make sure the water is clean.

And to add to the fun, you don't even need distilled water, it's a convenience factor to avoid build up of minerals if you don't have nice soft water.

[Lightweaver]

At the beginning, I was just using filtered tap water (we have very soft city water). Sometimes I would notice a little bit of slimy film when cleaning the container before refilling it (gross!), so I started boiling the water before use. After a while, the process of boiling and cooling the water every night got pretty annoying so I decided to try distilled. No slimy film yet, I'm hoping it won't appear as the water jug remains open.

[palerider]

"convenience".

[SleepGeek]

I would notice a little bit of slimy film

The slime comes from bacteria from the air we breath feeding on the minerals in tap water. Which is why distilled is recommended, even when not sterile does not (should not) contain minerals. As mentioned just do not leave the cap off the distilled bottle and you should be fine. At .89 - .99 a bottle distilled should not be a burden.

fwiw boiling does not remove those minerals.

[Pugsy]

Distilled water won't necessarily prevent that "slime" thing either but it will delay it quite a while though.
That's a good thing since I am not known for being anal with my cleaning routine.
I am more known for my lack of cleaning routine.

[palerider]

I would notice a little bit of slimy film

The slime comes from bacteria from the air we breath feeding on the minerals in tap water. Which is why distilled is recommended,

Citation?

[ChicagoGranny]

Citation?

I don't know what he is talking about in the air. But, some people have the following issue.

A problem that frequently results from iron or manganese in water is iron or manganese bacteria. These bacteria are not healththreatening and can occur naturally in soil, shallow groundwater, and surface water. The bacteria feed on iron and manganese in water. These bacteria form redbrown (iron) or black-brown (manganese) slime in toilet tanks and can clog pipes. These bacteria can give the water a musty or swampy smell.

https://ag.umass.edu/cafe/fact-sheets/i ... ater-wells

[zonker]

No slimy film yet, I'm hoping it won't appear as the water jug remains open.

not sure what this sentence means.

why would you not put the cap back on the distilled water after use?

[Deborah K.]

So, I have very hard tap water. Would using it instead of distilled water cause any harm to me or to my machine? Or would it just mean I'd have to clean the humidifier water tray a little more often? I'm tired of carrying the heavy bottles upstairs and would love to switch to tap water.

[Pugsy]

So, I have very hard tap water. Would using it instead of distilled water cause any harm to me or to my machine? Or would it just mean I'd have to clean the humidifier water tray a little more often? I'm tired of carrying the heavy bottles upstairs and would love to switch to tap water.

Won't hurt the machine itself. Will most likely cause mineral deposits in the water chamber that can get yucky looking and require cleaning if the yuck factor bugs you. Vinegar soak or lemon juice kind of cleaning will usually remove the deposits.
I have seen some donated machines with water chambers that were very obviously only ever used with tap water. The machines worked fine. The water chambers looked like hell but a good vinegar soak and a little elbow grease and they looked brand new.
In most parts of the world the manuals just mention "water"....they don't mention distilled.

The distilled recommendation is just to avoid mineral build up. That's it.