Normal Home humidity levels????

[ludiNano]

Hello everyone. I have 60 gallon of tanks up stairs and 75 downstairs, i just bought a cheap humidity/ temp from Lows.

And my humidity is at 65-70%.

I know there are a # of bad things from warped doors windows to mold in walls. I do have painted cement walls in basement and never notice condensation on walls or anything.

Could someone tell me what are noramal humidity levels for a home??

[Bri Guy]

Im at 53%, normal for me.

[ludiNano]

Yea i have a de-humidifier, but once it fills i ussually dont get to emptying it out for a day or so. It fills 1.5-2g water in about 12hrs.

It also has a hose to dump right into drain, need to do that.

[RokleM]

I researched this a couple years back, and I believe 40-60% was the normal "comfortable" range for humans. I have the dehumidifier running year round in the basement, down to roughly 50%. the rest of the house varies by season, 35-60%. I try to not get any higher than 60.

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

I run an exhaust fan year round from my basement fish area. In the summer, I actually have 4 running. Preventing mold is a priority, IMO.

[ludiNano]

So is 70-75 pretty bad....?

[das75]

30-50% (from here (http://www.cmhc-schl.gc.ca/en/co/maho/yohoyohe/momo/momo_002.cfm) ), problem with higher, specially when it gets colder outside, is condensation, which can lead to mold even in places where you can't see (wall cavities, joist spaces, attic).

[Rusty Jones]

yes 30-50% depending on outdoor conditions when ODT reaches below zero you may want 20-25% indoor hum though this can be hard to reach along with your average basement dehumidifier you may want to think about a fresh air exchange system honeywell and american standard make some good ones. this will help out alot and bringing in temperd fresh air will help tank conditions also.. remember all the air going into your tank is the same stagnent horrible air just recirculating in your home ( avg indoor air quality is 10-100 times worse than city air pollution )

[ludiNano]

what does a system like that cost??

Or adding an exaust fan.

[Rusty Jones]

system prices do vary but if you follow the instructions exactly they are fairly easy to install you may want to look @ some hvac wholesale sites .. exaust fans will only put your home in a negative pressure and cause excess air infiltration and heavy heating and cooling loads on your home and wallet (like our hobby doesnt already cost enough) if you would like i could get some model #'s and prices for you from my local sup but i wont have that info for you till sat. my air exchanger is made by BROAN ( gaurdian + ) but that was before other manufactures started making good units

[REEF-n-Chicago]

75 percent is humidor level.... leave your cigars out in the open :)

[Rusty Jones]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13699919#post13699919 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by REEF-n-Chicago
75 percent is humidor level.... leave your cigars out in the open :)
HAHAHAHA..... i laugh'd my @$$ off when i read that

[Rusty Jones]

here's the skinny on the ventilator systems ... you should be sitting down at this point .. the unit wholesales at about $800 bucks or so plus insulated flex pipe.. but this will benefit your entire home not just you tank.. the system will exhaust air from the home and bring in fresh air from the outside ... while filtering the air from the outside the air passes threw a polymer heat exchanger transfering the heat from your home to the incoming air w/o mixing the two..

[Rusty Jones]

this will help to remove the humidity from your home and allow fresh air to all the gills and lungs residing in your domicile ... you will be happy =)

[Rusty Jones]

as for the summer if your humidity levels are still somewhat higher you could reduce the fan speed on your furnace to allow more contact time as the air passes over your evaporator coil ( your air conditioner spends 80%+ of it's energy removing moisture ) this will help ring the water out of the air ( you may want to contact your local N.A.T.E. certified HVAC company for this as this system will need to be tested)

[hypernesia]

Rusty, What about this company?
www.airxchange.com

[BigJay]

Does a heat pump AC system remove enough humidity from a home?

[Rusty Jones]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13701121#post13701121 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by hypernesia
Rusty, What about this company?
www.airxchange.com

the basic idea is there. im too lazy to register on there site so i couldn't find some of the info i was looking for it appears as though they offer integrated systems and i didn't see any filtration options... the nice thing w/ the honeywell and american standard models is they are stand alone units that tie into your current heating system and filter the air that they bring into your house ( you do what to remove any particulates and allergens from the source )

[hypernesia]

Do you have a website for one of these (Honeywell or American Standard)?

[Rusty Jones]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13701728#post13701728 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by BigJay
Does a heat pump AC system remove enough humidity from a home?
during the summer it operates the same as a traditional a/c and the same moisture removal rates will apply / winter months they remove no humidity from the air so depending on your indoor conditions you may want to take control of your hum. levels....either way fresh air is a necessity in most homes as well as commercial buildings

[Rusty Jones]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13701930#post13701930 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by hypernesia
Do you have a website for one of these (Honeywell or American Standard)?
http://www.americanstandardair.com/HomeOwner/Products/AirExchangers/
there are many to choose from this is just an example... depending on what your yearly heating and cooling hours are per year you may want an ERV or HRV system

[Rusty Jones]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13701930#post13701930 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by hypernesia
Do you have a website for one of these (Honeywell or American Standard)?

ohh your in wisc. you may want to chose an HRV .... Brrrrr!!!
of course im not one to talk im about 10min from the border myself

[hypernesia]

10 min, you might as well be in Wisconsin!! Did you look out the window today ---SNOW! Its too early to snow. So these air exchangers dry the summer air and humidify winter air my house stays somewhere in the lower 50% range and that is with a Dehumidifier running but the house is less than two years old. Are these pretty easy to install?
Ludi sorry if about the questions I didn't mean to steal your thread.

[Rusty Jones]

the ERV will have more of an impact drying the summer air your a/c is your best dehumidifier ( when it's installed right which doesnt happen as often as you would think) the HRV system just transfers heat energy ... humidification shouldn't be a problem w/ a 220gal tank

[Rusty Jones]

and yes SNOW SUCKS i don't know why we choose to live in this region ( ludi i also apologize for monopolizing your thread....sorry )

[hypernesia]

Thanks for the info, I need to do something, pretty much year round my humidity in my home is 50-60% with a dehumiod running 24/7 always attributed this to the tank and 4 30 trash cans full of water in the basement.

[ludiNano]

Hey its fine for the most part its on topic and providing info I didnt know.

[Reeferon]

i live in a 650 square foot apartment and have a 65 gallon tank with a big sump and a 250 watt halide on it.
I am getting rid of the big tank and getting a 24 nanocube with hopes that my allergy induced asthma will get better.
It has gotten worse lately and i am trying to do whatever I can to better my situation.

Right now i have 67% humidity in my place.

[ludiNano]

GREAT now my dehumidifier, isn't working now. Its runnig but not pulling anything out...

Its a SOLEUS AIR.

Its supposed to do 25 pints/ D. DB 80F 60% RH or

40 pints/D. DB 86f 80% RH

Manufature date is 2005, is there something that goes out on these or needes recharged???

[ludiNano]

GREAT now my dehumidifier, isn't working now. Its runnig but not pulling anything out...

Its a SOLEUS AIR.

Its supposed to do 25 pints/ D. DB 80F 60% RH or

40 pints/D. DB 86f 80% RH

Manufature date is 2005, is there something that goes out on these or needes recharged???

[RokleM]

Is the fan blowing or is the compressor on as well? The bad thing I've seen with the dehumidifiers is the fact saltwater puts a hurting on them pretty quick. My LG I have now has lasted a couple years so far... The two Kenmore's I had prior bit the dust in under two years each.

[ludiNano]

It sounds just like it always had.

[RokleM]

Do you have a kill-a-watt you can plug in to ensure the compressor is running (should be 50 fan watt vs 400-800 w/ compressor)?

I'm no expert on the units, and unfortunately they're so cheap I had a horrible time even giving my ones with issues away. Very difficult to find anyone to work on them.

[ludiNano]

No Kill A watt.

[wookie]

I had the same problem this summer, had around 60-75% in the basement. I did some research and found a whole house dehumidfier called "Santa Fe" it can handle 3,000sqft. I set the unit ot 45% and in few days the basement was dry. It's not cheap but well worth the money in my opinion.
http://www.iaqsource.com/product.php?p=thermastor_4021400&product=112832&category=542

[das75]

coils clean, air readily blows through?

[ludiNano]

Ok so it has 4 options for moister setting : a circle with arrows, dry, middle, moist , i always set it on dry figureing i wanted it dry.
Still not sure if thats what i wanted it at but i switched it to the circle with arrows, and its pulling water now.