High humidity feels dreadful outdoors, and maybe even more indoors. High humidity in your house in the summertime, especially in the Carolinas? The absolute worst. You’re hot, sweaty and miserable when it’s hot and humid in your home.

You figure your AC and HVAC should be doing the job, right? You want good air quality and for your house to be comfortable, especially during the summer. Here are ideas to try out.

What’s the Right Humidity Level in a Home?

The right range for indoor humidity is 30-50%.

Too much humidity makes you hot, sweaty, and can have significant, damaging effects on your home.
High humidity triggers mold and mildew development, and can cause condensation in your walls. This leads to structural damages and timber rot.

Too much humidity is likewise negative for your health and wellbeing, beyond just feeling bad for the moment. It can cause respiratory troubles, allergic reactions and sleep disturbances.

On the other hand, air that does not have adequate moisture also sets off allergic reactions, asthma, and can damage wood floors. This is a big issue in the winter months.

At a humidity level of 30-50%, you find the balance in between too humid and too dry, which keeps both you and your family more comfortable and healthier.

Is My Home too Humid?

Besides sweating all the time, the easiest way to know the humidity level in your home is to buy a hygrometer. A hygrometer gauges moisture levels in the air. They’re not costly and you can buy one at a normal hardware store.

When you have your hygrometer, determine the air humidity in your home. Is it higher than 50%? If so, you need to decrease the moisture level.

Ways to Lower your Home Humidity

So once you’ve learned the humidity in your home is too high, what then? What are some pretty simple and doable ways to cut humidity?

Use the AC

Your air conditioner helps reduce indoor humidity because it’s cycling cooler air into the home while removing warmer, more humid air. Keeping the AC system well maintained, filtering property and serviced over the years, are all important. Anything that hurts the system’s efficiency, air flow, cleanliness and filtering means higher humidity among other potential issues.

Exhaust Fans and Ventilation

Turn on fans and vents when doing something in the kitchen or bathroom. You want to increase air flow when something is warmer or more humid than normal.

While you might generally turn them off after you’re done or out of the room, keep them on a little longer. This will be a large assistance in decreasing moisture.

Take Shorter, Cooler Showers

Longer, hotter showers equal more humid air. We won’t go as far as recommending cold showers, but not quite as hot for not quite as long means you’re putting else warm, moist air up into the rest of the house. Even if your AC and HVAC are running perfectly, it’ll take time to deal with the hot, humid burst of air.

We’re not saying you have to switch over to ice baths. By lowering the temperature of your showers a couple of degrees, and making it a minute or two quicker, you won’t add as much steam to the air, which helps keep humidity levels lower.

Check Faucets and Pipes

The last thing you want to do when reducing interior humidity is to add water lying around the house, whether you can see it or not. Leaking pipes or dripping faucets add water.

Repair any type of leaks you have, and wrap exposed pipes in insulation.  This will keep condensation from putting more water into your home environment. Signs of leaks consist of discolored drywall, wet spots and high water bills.

Clean the Gutters

Seamless gutters maybe be a surprising cause of a high humidity level inside the house. It’s very important to clean your gutters The downspouts should be routed away from your house and run to a minimum of 6 feet away from the house.

Dry Laundry Outside

Most of us have clothing we can’t dry in the dryer. In the winter, we use interior drying racks. But in the summer, all those damp clothes will make your house more humid.

We advise hanging your clothing and laundry on an outdoor drying rack or line. Before you do, you should check your local laws –  there might be some laws in place.

If you need to hang garments to dry indoors, you may want to purchase a dehumidifier. For any kind of home with a basement, this is a must.

Dehumidifiers

A guaranteed way to reduce indoor humidity is to get a dehumidifier. Dehumidifiers fit inside your furnace air handler. It removes moisutre from the air as it passes through. When that air reaches you, it’s dry and feels cooler – just what you want in the summer.

The best part? You may be able to run the AC much less, due to the fact it won’t be need as often, or for the cycles to run as long. That means less money spent on cooling or power expenses.

Move House Plants

Plants have multiple benefits inside a home or office. Some can actually help with air quality. You don’t want to get rid of them, but moving them outdoors or to another parts of a house during the hottest months may be a good idea. Move them to a well-ventilated area or outside during the most humid times of the year.

Use Charcoal

Charcoal may not be just for grilling. They in fact make a pretty good dehumidification device. It’s proven to work. All you do is take a few briquettes and place them in an open holder, such as a basket. Charcoal absorbs moisture and scents. You should replace the charcoal about every 2-3 months.

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At South End Heating and Air we are Charlotte’s affordable AC experts. Call us anytime for a free consult and free estimate. We’ll evaluate your system and help make recommendations for optimum value. After all, we want to keep you cool all summer long and warm in the winter. Just schedule a visit with one of our technicians to talk about how we can help. Would you like to learn more options our techs can help you with? Give us a call 704-684-5339.