Add humidity to house - what's best way?

9 years ago

Quick question... we have a 3500 sq ft home built about 20 years ago. It doesn't seem to be greatly insulated, and the windows are absolutely terrible and it's on our list to replace them at some point hopefully soon. They are double pane, double hung, but they are reasonably drafty.

We find that the humidity levels in our home in the winter get around 22-25%. Our home is on oil, so we have three hydro-air zones. On the first floor there is an Aprilaire 600 bypass humidifier installed, though even with it running constantly we have found that it only raises the humidity by just a couple percent. Also, the basement is finished, and is the driest out of all areas in the winter, so our floorboards on the first floor right above start to split, which is to be expected.

We have 2 Ventas that add a bit of moisture but it's not that much either, any recommendations on what we can do to get the humidity level up in the winter short of spending a ton of money on new windows?

Comments (6)

PRO
Greenleaf Plumbing, LLC
9 years ago
For quick rise humidity in small house I just put the kettle on low heat. Its help for my dry skin.
callights
9 years ago
A steam whole-home humidifier is the "best" way to add humidity to a home because it can add humidity regardless of if the thermostat is calling for heat.

You are definitely fighting a losing battle with drafty windows, so maybe the best way to handle this in the short term is a few portable plug-in humidifiers. When you get your windows replaced, see if the aprilaire bypass can keep up. If it can't, (or if your furnace isn't running often enough to humidify because your house is now sealed properly), then get bids on a steam unit.

Our house is pretty well sealed and has brand new windows. We have two zones (upstairs/downstairs) but only one bypass humidifier (downstairs), and we have been able to keep humidity levels around 40% all season so far (Chicago).

I don't think keeping a kettle on low is going to make any difference in a 3500 sf house.
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jimct01
9 years ago
Forced air heat? Add a central humidifier to your furnace. Otherwise you need a standalone humidifier. But be careful. The maximum humidity in your house should be adjusted for the outside temp. The colder it is the less water you want to add. At 30 degrees or above , 40% relative humidity is good. As it gets colder you want to reduce this . At 0 degrees, you don't want the humidity higher than25%. If the humidity is too high you get condensation in the walls. Condensation in walls equals mold. If your house has no vapor barrier in the wall insulation you want the interior humidity to be lower. I speak from experience
cindywhitall
9 years ago
Have you caulked around your drafty windows?
ionized_gw
9 years ago
Is your boiler sealed combustion or is it sucking in basement air? If the latter, it might explain why the basement is the driest area. If you are not due for a boiler replacement soon, you might consider adding a local supply of make-up air.
dbarron
9 years ago
I just bought a new house and don't know if it has a built in humidifier, but I haven't seen humidity under 40% in the month I've lived here. Sometimes when I have lots of food cooking it's risen to like 52%, even though the heating system has been running (admittedly outside air has been near 100% humidity but 40 degrees cooler than the house).

I know that me and my house plants are loving it.