The level of relative humidity in your home should remain somewhere between 30% and 50%. This helps maintain your indoor comfort, improves the efficiency of your heating and cooling equipment, and can protect your residence from things like mold and mildew. Many people choose to use portable units for convenience, but you don’t get whole-house coverage this way. Rather, we recommend having a whole-house humidifier or whole-house dehumidifier installed on your HVAC system for better results. Let’s look at the differences between these two pieces of equipment so that you can better understand what your home needs.
What Is a Humidifier?
If you have very dry air in your home, then you may need a humidifier to add moisture back into your air. Whole-house humidifiers will add moisture into the air that is circulating through your heating and cooling equipment and ductwork. Increasing moisture can alleviate issues such as dry skin, irritated sinuses, and dry eyes.
Adding moisture to your indoor air is not only good for your health and well-being, but it can also help make your HVAC system more efficient. Dry air tends to feel cold, meaning you may want to turn up your thermostat to make your home feel more comfortable. This can raise your energy bills and lead to more wear and tear on your HVAC system.
There are several types of humidifiers that you can have installed on your HVAC system. This includes steam vapor units, evaporative models, impeller models, and more. While they each work a little bit differently, they are all designed to increase the relative humidity in your home.
There isn’t a lot of maintenance involved with a whole-house humidifier. You can schedule professional maintenance as part of your annual HVAC service. Cleaning the interior components of the system is ideal to prevent mold growth. You should also inspect the equipment you’re using to monitor the relative humidity in your home. Accurate readings will help your equipment function optimally.
What Is a Dehumidifier?
If there is too much moisture in your indoor air, a whole-house dehumidifier will help regulate it. High relative humidity in the home can make your indoor living environment feel stuffy and uncomfortable. It can also lead to mold growth, structural problems, an increased prevalence of dust mites and pests, and much more. Many people use portable dehumidifiers in their basements, but this equipment isn’t effective enough to reach all the air in an entire home.
A dehumidifier works by drawing moist air into the unit. This is where the temperature of the air will cool down to condense moisture into water so that it can be removed through a drain line. The dryer air will then be circulated back into your home. Portable units usually have a tank that needs to be periodically emptied to keep your equipment running. The drain line that is part of a whole-house setup is much more convenient.
There is minimal maintenance required for a dehumidifier. You may need to change a filter periodically depending on the specific unit you have. Also, periodically cleaning the drain line will prevent clogs and water damage.
Can You Use Both Types of Equipment?
It isn’t uncommon for a home in the San Antonio area to have both a whole-house dehumidifier and a whole-house humidifier. There are certain times of the year where one type is used more than the other. For example, very rainy seasons tend to warrant the use of a whole-house dehumidifier. Dry weather will engage your humidifier to add moisture back into your indoor air.
How Do You Control These Units?
If you have one or both types of equipment installed in your home, we recommend also upgrading to a smart thermostat. There are models that will monitor the relative humidity of your home and engage your dehumidifier or humidifier based on the readings that are collected. Plus, you have the convenience of being able to monitor this data and usage from whatever smart device you hook up to your thermostat. You can make adjustments from wherever you are.
How Can I Tell if I Need a Humidifier or Dehumidifier?
First, you can invest in a hygrometer to monitor the level of humidity in the home. Check out different rooms at different times of the day. You’ll also want to monitor relative humidity at different times of the year to get a full picture of your home’s humidity.
There are other physical signs to watch out for as well.
Dry Skin and Hair
Your skin may feel very dry when you are at home. This is because dry air can weaken the barrier of your skin and decrease elasticity.
Chapped Lips
Much like your skin, your lips may also become very chapped or cracked when indoor air is too dry.
Irritated Sinuses
Dry air can make your sinuses feel very dry, irritated, itchy, and so on. You may be susceptible to getting sick more often if you are experiencing sinus problems caused by dry air. On the other hand, too much moisture in the air can lead to mold growth. If you breathe in mold, this can cause allergy symptoms, respiratory problems, and more.
Static Electricity
Have you been feeling small shocks when you touch a light switch or other electronic device? Your dry air may be increasing your risk of static electricity. The electricity discharges and causes a minor shock to your system, but humidity decreases the chances of that happening.
Damage
Both overly dry and overly moist air can cause problems with flooring and other materials in your home. If you have solid hardwood floors, too-dry air can cause the wood to contract. High levels of humidity can cause wood to swell. This constant expansion and contraction can lead to your floors warping. Also, if you have wallpaper on your walls, dry air can cause it to peel and crack over time.
Mold Growth
If you find mold anywhere in your home, too much moisture is present in that area. You may have a plumbing leak that is resulting in mold growth, but you’ll want to assess your indoor air as well. Mold should be professionally removed immediately to prevent health concerns. Also, you’ll need to figure out and fix the root cause of your mold issue to prevent it from spreading.
If you would like to learn more about having a whole-house humidifier or a whole-house dehumidifier installed in your San Antonio, TX, home, reach out to our team here at Cowboys Air Conditioning & Heating. We would be happy to answer any questions and help you find the equipment that is ideal for your home. In addition, we also offer the installation, repair, and maintenance of various types of heating and cooling equipment. We also address various indoor air quality concerns, service ductwork, and install smart thermostats.
Reach out to Cowboys Air Conditioning & Heating to learn more or to schedule an appointment in San Antonio.
