How do I increase the capacity of a small humidifier?

Question

I'm trying to increase the humidity in our house, as it gets extremely dry in the winter. I have a small second hand humidifier that I have modified to suit my interests, however there is one thing that still bothers me about it. The capacity is quite small and as such I have to refill it at least twice a day. It would be very nice not to have to do this, so I've been thinking about how I could attach an external water tank to it.

The current water holder has a clear plastic top, so I could easily make a hole in it. I thought I could use one of the huge spring water jugs that you see in office water dispensers for the external tank. I would place the external tank above the built-in one, so there would be a constant flow as the humidifier used water. So all I would need, after making holes in each tank, would be to have a specific part that I can imagine, but that I've never seen or heard of.

This part basically attaches itself to any hole securely and without leaks. It's a bit hard to explain, but I'll try to show you what I'm thinking of with ASCII art. This is a side view of it.

  |       |     <- pipe continues to the external tank
  |       |
__|_______|___  <- rubber and metal ring with hole in the middle
  |       |
  |       |     <- pipe that fits the hole in the plastic (threaded)
  |       |        this piece goes into the hole in the humidifier

______________  <- a rubber and metal piece that you screw on from the other side
                   to secure the connection

And then, when installed, it sandwiches the plastic of the humidifier's top between the two rubber pieces and lets water flow from the pipe into it.

This strikes me as an extremely useful item for DIY, being able to securely connect any hole to a hose or pipe, so I would be surprised if it didn't exist. If it does, what is it called? And would they have one at a hardware store? A specialty plumbing store?

If this doesn't exist, how else can I connect an external tank to my humidifier?

Thanks!

Answer 1

If I understand your question and ascii art, what you're looking for is called a bulkhead fitting.

There are a ton of different types: made from different materials, inside thread, outside thread, barbed, one-sided, two-sided, and all different sizes. I'm sure you can find one that is suitable for your application. The big box stores should at least have a few to select from, your local plumbing supplier will have more, and of course you can find anything online.