We all know how uncomfortable the stickiness of excess humidity heating up our houses is. But it’s not just our bodies: our homes can suffer greatly from high humidity as well. What we need is an efficient means of balancing air equally throughout our houses. The means of making this happen lies with the purchase of a whole-house dehumidifier.
This article will help you better understand how high humidity can dampen your home and spirits. It also explains why a dehumidifier is the solution for breathing reliable, moist air again.
And if you are interested in getting a whole-house dehumidifier installed or require other assistance with your indoor air quality, call us at (443)-383-6898 or schedule online. SuperTech can help anyone who is at or around the Baltimore Metro area!
Get Assistance With A Dehumidifier Today
What Are Some Signs of Humidity Increasing?
If you notice fog on your windows or a musty odor in your house, your humidity may not be getting regulated correctly. And you don’t only want to focus on temperature increasing; in-house moisture is equally important.
Control Your In-House Temperature Using A Whole-Home Dehumidifier
Poor indoor humidity can be detrimental to those dealing with asthma, allergies, and general breathing problems. So if you have one of these issues, a dehumidifier is essentially a must. Furthermore, it can lead to your muscles cramping up and induce population of mites in your home. It may even feel impossible to sleep at night when you keep heating up under the covers.
But perhaps worst of all, high humidity can rapidly spread infections and prevent the evaporation of body sweat. In the latter case, you may be sweating more than usual and suffering from dehydration.
You hadn’t previously considered a lot of this, had you?
And it’s not just the rooms that can experience problems, but the structural integrity of your house.
We hope you are starting to understand the importance of in-house dehumidification. If any of this is concerning to you, please do not hesitate to reach out.
Now, if all that wasn’t scary enough, let’s get deeper into hazards involving the structure of your home...
Why Should I Get A Whole-House Dehumidifier?
Prevention Of Bio-Growth
You may already know this in some capacity, but time for a science lesson!
Bio-growth is a fungus that decomposes material through a process known as “biodegradation.” Excessive bio-growth on your HVAC system can lead to your AC air having a musty smell. And even worse, in large quantities, it poses severe risks to human health!
One problem is that an excessive moisture level amplifies its development. A dehumidifier efficiently combats bio-growth, removing excess moisture from the area before it can develop.
Air Quality Improvement
Indoor air gets affected by in-house pollutants, especially bacteria found in your ductwork, and poorly-regulated in-house humidity can lead to the number of pollutants skyrocketing. A dehumidifier helps keep your air safe and clean by controlling your indoor humidity level.
You may have an air purifier that helps remove common pollutants from your humid air. Still, excessive humidity will prevent your air quality from improving without a whole-house dehumidifier.
Studies have shown that most fungi prefer humidity to be at or above 80% RH (relative humidity). Furthermore, airborne microorganisms heavily dislike when humidity is midrange.
The ideal and healthy humidity range for humans in a given environment is 40-60% RH. Modern dehumidification systems function to maintain that humidity.
Elimination of Dust Mites
Dehumidifiers also protect the air from dust mites, which thrive in warm, humid environments and worsen asthma and allergies. So eliminating an excessive amount of humidity makes your home less susceptible to any dust mite.
Protects Your Home
As previously stated, poor relative humidity can be detrimental to your house’s structure. It can lead to cracking, splitting, and bending of wood, especially if it remains for a long time.
If this happens, bio-growth may develop on things such as beds, doors, and hinges, as well as anything that rusts. You may not even notice that this has happened until the damage is done. A dehumidifier can help combat this and leave your house fresher and healthier.
Helps You Feel Comfortable
In many cases - because of moisture - the temperature of our houses has been heating to a much higher level than we think. This is because humidity makes us feel stickier and more uncomfortable than usual.
In this situation, many people jump to changing the settings on their thermostats. What they don’t realize is that doing this leads to them using more energy than necessary. Dehumidification systems are the real solution here, not air conditioners. They decrease moisture to make our homes more comfortable and us healthier and more energy efficient.
If you are considering purchasing a whole-house dehumidifier, SuperTech offers free estimates.
Get An Estimate On A Dehumidifier For Your Home
Wait: What About My Air Conditioner?
Central air is meant to keep the temperature of your environment at a solid level. It sucks in warm air from your house and passes it over a device called an “evaporator coil” to cool it. It then returns the chilled air to the rooms of your home while expelling the heat outside.
Central air pulls moisture out of the air alongside removing heat. As a result, an air conditioner also unintentionally decreases your home’s humidity. So unless your system works exclusively as a dehumidifier, it cannot control humidity.
When humidity exists in excess, it makes the house feel much hotter than it is. For example, you may regularly keep your thermostat around 72 during the summer, believing it to be the perfect range. However, high humidity can make your house feel somewhere around 80 degrees.
It doesn’t seem fair, does it?
This leads to you feeling that you need to keep your air conditioner running for even longer to get cool. In turn, the system must work significantly harder due to the humidity in the air.
Furthermore, an HVAC system will typically remain at one speed. It turns on when it senses your house is above the desired temperature and off once it reaches that temperature.
In turn, its inefficiency in handling humidity can lead to incredibly aggravating situations. This is especially likely to happen if you live somewhere that regularly experiences high humidity.
You cannot just rely on your HVAC system; a whole-house dehumidifier is extremely handy.
How Does A Whole-House Dehumidifier Function?
It is a massive benefit during the summer for your air conditioning to work in unison with other systems. A whole-house dehumidifier does just that!
Most operate in sync with HVAC systems, connecting to the letter's return ductwork via an inlet pipe. This allows the air to be sucked in and cooled, as well as the moisture to get liquified into droplets. These drops subsequently fall into a pan that drains them from the system. To learn more about the specifics of your return vent, check out our homeowner’s guide to HVAC ductwork.
However, when the air is dry, it will pass through the warm evaporator coil and increase in temperature. It then gets sent into your house’s rooms.
Sound like a fascinating process?
A dehumidifier features a moisture-specific sensor that keeps track of the air’s humidity. Whenever it detects increased humidity, it automatically activates the dehumidifier so that it can handle things.
Differences Between A Whole-House & Portable Dehumidifier
Whole-house and portable dehumidifiers have the same central function, but their benefits to health and house safety differ. This includes keeping the house comfortable.
When the humidity level is good, you will not feel as strong of a temperature. This will also prevent the development of bio-growth, mildew, corrosion, and nagging allergies in your house.
Capacities, sizes, and removal of water differ between in-house and portable dehumidifiers. Placement, operating temperature ranges, cubic feet per minute (or CFM), and available replacement will as well.
There are pros and cons to weigh when purchasing either type of dehumidifier. The corresponding charts below list them:
Pros:
*insert chart listing pros of both systems*
Cons:
*insert chart listing cons of both systems*
Factors To Weigh Into Your Decision
Even after knowing the above factors, you should still speak with an HVAC technician. They possess invaluable advice on whether a whole-house dehumidifier or a portable room dehumidifier is better. Trust the professionals! Furthermore, consider the size of your house, number of rooms, and relative humidity level.
For example, portable dehumidifiers are recommended when only one room or area needs better humidity control. However, if you have a large house with poor humidity control throughout, a whole-house dehumidifier is the better option.
Also, remember that a whole-house dehumidifier’s functionality is directly linked to how it is installed. Individual systems can be affected by factors such as make, model, and year.
And again, if you have any questions or would like an estimate, SuperTech is just a phone call away!
Have Your Indoor Air Quality Improved ASAP
Ventilating vs. Non-ventilating Installation: Which Is Better?
With non-ventilating configurations, your in-house air gets pulled out of the room and passed through the dehumidifier. This extracts the air's moisture before sending it back into the house.
Meanwhile, ventilating configuration continuously replaces your indoor air with fresh outdoor air. It takes outdoor air in, filters it, extracts its moisture, and sends it into the rooms for consistent circulation.
As its name states, ventilating configuration provides houses and buildings with ventilated air. By repeatedly cycling clean, dry air in and out, it creates numerous advantages, including the prevention of bio-growth development.
An influx of fresher air also eliminates moisture produced inside, odors from cooking, smoke, and other indoor pollutants. Good ventilation can also protect against breathing problems and allergies. Furthermore, it increases the oxygen level in the air while creating a comfortable and healthy living environment.
The diagrams below offer a visual differentiation between ventilating and non-ventilating configurations of whole-house dehumidifiers:
Ventilating System
Non-Ventilating System
How Do I Maintain The Right Levels Of Humidity?
Humidity directly affects our everyday lives in many ways. We therefore need to ensure that our in-house environments maintain proper moisture levels.
If your house’s relative humidity level is poor, don't hesitate to call SuperTech for a whole-house dehumidifier installation. We will ensure you breathe cleaner and fresher air and help keep your home in terrific shape.
SuperTech also provides other excellent services to improve in-home air quality. These include installing whole-house ventilation & humidifiers, UV air purifiers, and AC air filters.
We are the top-rated HVAC company in the Baltimore area and would be thrilled to get the best dehumidifying system possible into your home. We can perform in-depth inspection and run all the necessary tests. And with our free estimates ensuring no added pressure on you, there’s no reason to wait! Start breathing fresh air ASAP!
Have questions? Submit a request using our website’s online request form (at the bottom right-hand corner) or speak with an office specialist.