Does My Home Need a Humidifier in the Winter?
According to the EPA, indoor humidity levels should be between 30 and 50 percent for maximum comfort and to prevent conditions that can lead to mold and mildew formation.
Keeping humidity within these levels in your home throughout the winter can help you avoid some of the common complaints associated with dry air, such as:
- Dry skin
- Dry, itchy eyes
- Static electricity in clothes, hair, carpets and upholstery
- Respiratory ailments
Finding the Right Humidity Balance
As with many things in life, getting the humidity inside your home just right for everyone who lives there is all about balance. Too much humidity and you may have some uninvited guests (in the forms of mold and mildew). Too little and you might feel like you’ve developed a shocking new superpower when it comes to generating static electricity.
Purchasing a hygrometer allows you to continuously monitor the state of humidity inside your home, which lets you determine if you need to add a little moisture into the mix.
Why Is the Air So Dry in Winter?
Illinois winters are not widely known for having high relative humidity. Even on the most humid days, the air inside homes heated with gas heaters (which is a very common situation in the area) tends to dry out quickly, leading to discomfort and other problems associated with too little moisture in the air.
For people living in Peoria and the surrounding areas who use a gas heater, the odds are good that a humidifier will make their home more comfortable during the winter months for themselves, their family and their guests.
Call on the experts at Fritch Heating and Cooling today to get fast answers to all your indoor air quality questions, including those about ventilation, air purification and humidity control as well as any heating and air conditioning concerns.