Do You Need a Whole Home Humidifier?

It is quite normal for your furnace to run continuously during the coldest months of winter. You may use thick curtains or close all your windows to try to contain heated air. While that is a good practice to save on your heating costs, it is still recommended to have a whole home humidifier, which can make the air feel warmer, allowing you to lower your thermostat settings.

If you are considering having a whole home humidifier installed in your home, call a trusted HVAC company in Woodbury, MN such as Rumpca Services. We offer a wide variety of whole home humidifiers designed to control your home’s humidity levels.

What is Humidity?

Humidity is the presence of water vapor in the atmosphere. It is completely invisible, just like many gases in the atmosphere.

It is important because it has direct effects on many properties of air, and of materials in contact with air. Water vapor is a basic agent in both weather and climate, and it is an important atmospheric greenhouse gas. Without water vapor, the Earth would be 87.8 degrees colder.

Humidity and Health

Although humidity is often overlooked, a balanced humidity level is crucial to your health. Too much or too little humidity can cause serious health issues.

Many viruses develop in low humidity conditions, which increases your risk of catching airborne diseases. When someone sneezes, the droplets may dry out but the viruses remain alive, floating in the air indefinitely, entering your dry respiratory tract.

Exposure to low humidity dries out and inflames the mucous membrane lining the respiratory tract, increasing your risk of colds, influenza, and other respiratory tract infections.

Low humidity can also be a factor if you struggle with dry, irritated eyes since it is known to increase the evaporation of tears. This may break the moisture balance necessary for a healthy, comfortable eye surface.

Other Effects of Improper Humidity

During the winter, when your home is heated and the air is dry, your wood flooring loses some of its moisture, resulting in contraction and shrinking of wood.

When wood plank shrinks, thin gaps can appear between planks. During winter, gaps can easily develop by as much as the thickness of a dime. Once your furnace is turned off in the spring and humidity levels rise again, most gaps will close up again.

What is a Humidifier?

A humidifier is an appliance that adds moisture to an individual room or an entire house. Whole home humidifiers work alongside a home’s HVAC system to add moisture to the air as it moves around. It is usually located between the supply and return air ducts, and work with the HVAC system or independently to add moisture. Typically, the same thermostat that monitors your heat will monitor and control the humidity levels in your home.

Why Use a Whole Home Humidifier

A humidifier helps you heal faster. If you have cold, allergies or asthma, a humidifier can help make your nasal passages slippery, which aids in faster healing, especially when the weather is cold.

If anyone in your home is suffering from allergies, you can enjoy all of the benefits of humidified air and reduce your allergy symptoms specifically by investing in an air humidifier packed with an anti-microbial filter.

Having the right amount of moisture in your home helps prevent the development of viruses and bacteria. A humidifier can keep you and your family from catching airborne diseases.

A whole home humidifier works efficiently at low operational costs. It consumes less energy to balance humidity throughout an entire home. The Environmental Protection Agency suggests that you can save up to 4 percent on your energy bills for every degree you lower your thermostat.

Ask the Experts in Indoor Air Quality

If you need help in choosing the right humidifier for your home, call Rumpca Services. We are an authorized dealer of some of the best brands in air quality. We are the reliable Woodbury heating and air conditioning company that delivers outstanding products and unparalleled customer service.