The "To Keep Up" Wiki

You have a Vicks or similar vaporizer, keeps the air from getting too dry in the winter and you want to clean it. You know that steam cannot contain bacteria and is sterile already, but you may be overly concerned and want to clean it anyway. Ok, we got it. Cleaning also makes the unit work more efficiently.

Do the following in a kitchen or bathroom with a flat water-resistant surface and near a faucet. You will need vinegar and bleach. Make sure the unit is cool, wait 20-30 mins for the unit to cool, if it was just being used.

1. Unplug it and empty the unit of all water.
2. Rinse the container thoroughly with water, drain, and wipe the inside of the container with a dry cloth.
3. Next step has 2 methods.
   1. The video says
      1. Soak steam unit in 4“ vinegar for 10 minutes
      2. Remove from vinegar
      3. With finger over bottom outlet of steam unit, rinse and fill the insides with water through the steam outlet
      4. Shake back and forth and empty the water through the steam outlet
      5. Repeat several times till no black particles are emitted and vinegar odor is gone
   2. Steve's method
      1. Disassemble (unscrew) the steam unit
      2. Remove (unscrew) the two black rods and soak them in vinegar for 10 minutes
      3. Rinse the rods and wipe away any black particles or crust that's stuck to the rods and wipe them dry
      4. Rinse inside of steam unit and wipe clean
      5. Reassemble steam unit, screw in rods and screw in bottom of steam unit
4. Rinse the area under the steam guard to remove any dust particles
5. If necessary, use toothpick to poke through steam outlet holes if they have become obstructed
6. Disinfect the container
   1. Wear protecting gloves when working with bleach
   2. Put water into container unit
   3. Add 1 teaspoon of bleach
   4. Add more water to the fill line on the container unit
   5. Carefully swish the container unit gently in circles to wet all surfaces inside it
   6. Let it stand for 20 minutes
   7. Then empty the container unit and rinse with water until the smell of bleach is gone
   8. Dry it with a clean cloth

The above is a summary of a YouTube video.