Humidity in Your Home

To make your home more comfortable to live in during the winter months, homeowners in the Omaha area add moisture into their homes with a humidifier.
The dry heated air is supplemented with moist air to prevent static electricity, keep your skin from cracking and prevents furniture from drying out and cracking.

During the summer months the process should be reversed, we should work to remove moisture from the home. In many cases your air-conditioner will remove enough moisture to keep your home comfortable and safe.

Although too dry of air in the winter can be annoying it is not dangerous. Too high of moisture content in your home can be unsafe and cause excessive mold, mildew, dust mites and is attractive to critters such and termites and cockroaches. It can lead to a "sick building syndrom" inside your home and can eventually lead to death in some circumstances.

The moisture level in your home should range from 35 to 50% with the ideal setting at 45% humidity. You can purchase a hygrometer to keep tabs on this moisture content but it will vary depending on the placement of the device.

Moist air is heavier so it will naturally collect in the basement.

Mr. Handyman has installed several devices that do a wonderful job of removing excessive moisture from the home. One is called E-Z Breathe and the other is called Humidex. Both work by removing the moist air at the basement floor level and replenishing it with dryer air from above. These devices can turn a damp musty basement into a more pleasant living area and restore a healthy moisture level throughout the home.

Today, many people have mysterious health issues they cannot get a handle on. In many cases it can be related to high moisture content in the home which leads to hidden mold and mildew and triggers lung and respitory issues. The first step would be to purchase a hygrometer and keep tabs on the humidity level then take action if it is above 50% humidity.