With the aid of a humidifier or a dehumidifier, reaching ideal indoor humidity is fairly easy to do and can help prevent poor air quality, exacerbated allergies and asthma and home damage. Generally, humidity most often refers to relative humidity, not absolute humidity.
Below, learn more about what relative humidity is, where it comes from, side effects of too low or too high humidity and how to maintain ideal indoor humidity in your home. To be clear, air is not actually capable of physically holding onto water vapor because it moves too quickly. When the air in your home reaches a specific capacity of water vapor, it will condense as moisture, causing the air to feel damp.
It allows you to assess the amount of moisture present, so you can understand how much humidity you have and decide which type of dehumidifier or humidifier is best for you. How much relative humidity is present in your home will depend on the region and climate you live in.
The resulting number is multiplied by to get a percentage, which is the relative humidity. Hygrometers and dehumidifiers can help you calculate the current relative humidity in your home. Absolute humidity is the actual amount of moisture in the air. The more water vapor in the air, the higher the absolute humidity. Relative humidity is measured as a percentage or ratio of the amount of water vapor in a volume of air RELATIVE to a given temperature and the amount it can hold at that given temperature.
Warm air can hold more moisture than cold air. This means that at the same absolute humidity, the relative humidity can be lower in warm air and higher in cold air. Though they may seem similar, the terms absolute humidity and relative humidity cannot be used interchangeably.
Most people spend a majority of their time indoors. You may be surprised to find out that levels of indoor air pollutants may be 2 to 5 times higher than the levels of outdoor air pollutants. While you may be able to see dust on a bookshelf or dirt on the floor and know that it is time to clean, you cannot always see what is polluting your air.
Some of the main indoor air pollutants and their sources include:. When any of these pollutants are present, it is safe to say your air needs to be cleaned. Conversely, healthy air is:. There are several ways moisture can enter—and stay—in your home. Rooms where water is used frequently, such as the bathroom and kitchen, tend to be more humid than other areas of your home.
Humidity can occur in your home due to:. This, of course, depends on the climate you live in, as well as your personal preference. As temperatures rise and fall, the ability of air to hold water changes. When air is warmer, it can hold more water. When air is cooler, it cannot contain as much moisture. Excess relative humidity can cause poor indoor air quality which can harm your physical health and the health of your home, alike. Humidity is a measure of the amount of water vapor in the air.
Relative humidity measures the amount of water in the air in relation to the maximum amount of water vapor moisture. The higher the temperature, the more water vapor the air can hold. Relative humidity is what your morning weather reporter would refer to. Humidity is a natural part of our atmosphere, it comes from the amount of water vapor in the air. It is an integral part of the water cycle, as water vapor is continuously generated by evaporation and removed by condensation.
When the temperature is higher, the air can hold more water vapor, meaning that the warmer the climate, the higher the humidity level can be. For example, a densely saturated amount of air may contain 0. Colder air cannot handle as much moisture as warmer air.
Consider for example a winters day. On the other hand, warm air can handle more moisture than cooler air. If you cool it down to below That is why air conditioning systems often have a dehumidifier built-in.
Without them, your walls in the home would be soaking wet during the summer. Unable to hold any more, it would rain. Colder climates often have lower humidity levels than warmer climates as colder air holds less moisture than warm air.
In winter, humidity levels tend to be typically lower. This will require you to monitor humidity levels ongoing and run the appliance when you need it. The benefits will be added comfort and more energy efficiency. Any unpleasant effects of high humidity will be reduced as well.
In the winter, low humidity becomes the primary problem in many homes as cold air cannot hold as much moisture as warm air. When your furnace is active for months, humidity has the opposite effect than in the summer heat. A dramatic drop in moisture levels can make your living area feel cooler than your thermostat reading. Problems that arise in the home can include discomforts from dry skin, dry nasal passages, irritated eyes, and aggravated sinuses — even damage to furniture and flooring.
Your furnace or heat pump may be using a high amount of energy to run and still not provide the warmth you need in the colder months. In the winter or cold climates, a lack of moisture in the air becomes an issue that can contribute to discomfort in your living spaces. You will want to take an opposite approach from the warm weather by adding an appropriate amount of moisture to the air with a humidifier.
Like a dehumidifier, this appliance can be installed right on your system to help improve HVAC performance. It adds moisture to air before it is forced through the ducts in your home. A stand-alone humidifier can also be purchased to add humidification to the home. Depending on the size of the appliance and the size of your home, you may need multiple units in different rooms of the house to feel comfortable. To address problems in your home's humidity levels, you may need additional equipment, such as a whole-home ventilation system or a humidification system.
These systems are designed to increase your home comfort and decrease your risk of humidity-related health issues. Let's unpack the t ypes of humidifiers you can use in your home Humidifier therapy adds moisture to your air to prevent dryness. The type of humidifier depends on your preference, budget, and size of your home or area you need to add moisture. Warm mist humidifiers boil water to create steam.
This is then sprayed into the atmosphere of your room to increase the amount of moisture in the air. They are a great help if you are suffering from nasal congestion and throat irritations. Warm mist humidifiers can also be helpful with medications. When choosing a humidifier, the leading choice you need to make is between a cool-mist humidifier and a warm mist humidifier.
Cool mist humidifier benefits tend to outweigh those of the warm mist variety, and cool mist versions are typically more popular. The whole house humidifiers are built into your HVAC system and are designed to add moisture to your entire home. While many different kinds of humidifiers are available at the store or online to be set up as a stand-alone unit, people accustomed to a dry climate all year long often outfit their ventilation and ducting system with a built-in humidifier.
This usually attaches to an intake or outflow point somewhere on your ducting system usually requires professional installation.
On the opposite side, a dehumidifier is going to be beneficial in the summer months. Fewer allergies, less mold, less window fog, fewer smells, etc. Reduces risk of infections. Viruses and bacteria do not dwell in moist air. Studies have shown that increasing humidity levels significantly reduced the ability of airborne viruses to cause flu infections. Softer glowing skin.
Humidifiers assist in keeping your skin moist to help prevent dry and dull skin. Snoring relief.
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