Product review (5 stars): Automatic humidifier with no water waste
About 10 years ago I replaced the old furnace humdifier with Aprilaire automatic humidifier that doesn't waste water. It is combined with these evaporator panels and is an excellent design. Never has any water gone to waste, and these panels last for as long as they can stand up to the mineral content in your water, because that is the only thing that will ever cause them to be inoperable. If you have high lime and calcium in your water, then these panels will eventually fail, but replacing the media is very easy. A 10-pack is probably a 10 year supply in my experience.
The humidifier allows for manual humidity control or it has an automatic feature that is based upon exterior temperature. I prefer to control mine manually so that I have more granular control over interior humidity. I prefer that so that I can adjust according to how much condensation exists on the interior of windows during winter, and to adjust according to dry eye from wearing contacts. I have no doubt that it works just fine in automatic mode. The manual mode is a nice feature to have for those that prefer more granular control.