Pennsylvania is notorious for being extremely humid and muggy during the summer. While keeping your windows and doors closed helps lessen issues with high indoor humidity, many homeowners still struggle to control indoor moisture. The good news is that there are numerous ways that you can better manage humidity inside your house to ensure everyone feels more comfortable.
Schedule an HVAC Tune-Up
Ensuring that your air conditioning works properly and effectively helps manage indoor humidity. What many people don’t realize is that air conditioning removes both heat and moisture from the indoor air. However, if your AC system has any issues that hinder its ability to work effectively, it will struggle to control the humidity level in your home.
The best way to ensure effective AC performance is to schedule a spring tune-up. During the tune-up service, HVAC technicians will handle all of the necessary maintenance tasks, such as cleaning both coils and the blower. They’ll also check the entire system for any issues that could contribute to poor performance and decreased energy efficiency. Not only do annual tune-ups help an AC system perform better and use less electricity, but they are also important for preventing sudden breakdowns, reducing repair needs and ensuring that the system lasts as long as possible.
Ensure Your Airflow Is Optimized
For your AC system to effectively control moisture throughout the house and maintain consistent room-to-room temperatures, it needs to evenly distribute air across the entire building. Replacing the air filter regularly is one of the biggest keys to ensuring optimal airflow. If the filter gets too dirty, it reduces the amount of air that the blower can pull in through the return vents and ductwork. This restriction in airflow leads to the system not cooling as quickly and not removing nearly as much moisture from the air. It also means that the system won’t put out sufficient cool air to supply the rooms toward the end of the supply duct branches.
The other crucial part of ensuring your AC system has optimal airflow is keeping all of the supply vents open. You also need to make sure that the vents aren’t clogged with dust and debris and that the airflow isn’t obstructed by furniture. The volume of incoming and outgoing air needs to be balanced for your AC to work properly. Closed, clogged or obstructed vents throw off this balance, causing increased pressure and resistance in the supply ducts. The higher pressure on the supply side of the ductwork then quickly contributes to the blower not being able to draw sufficient air in through the return ductwork.
Seal Air Leaks Around Windows and Doors
Making sure all of your windows and doors are fully sealed is another essential step in managing indoor heat and humidity. Air leaks allow hot, humid air to continually seep in from outside. The increased moisture can make it impossible for your AC to ever keep up, no matter how much you run it.
The easiest way to identify air leaks is by using a smoke pencil or smoke pen, but you can also just use a lit stick of incense. Monitoring how the smoke moves near windows and doors allows you to easily identify leaks and drafts. It’s also a good idea to check all of your electrical outlets and switches, as they’re also common sources of air leaks.
If you find any leaky windows or doors, the best solution is to fully reseal around the interior and exterior of the frame by removing the old caulking and then applying a new bead. If the rubber weather stripping is cracked or missing, you should replace it as well.
Run Bathroom and Kitchen Exhaust Fans
Any time you cook or take a shower or bath, you increase the amount of moisture there is in the air. Taking an overly hot shower produces an especially large amount of steam and can significantly increase the indoor humidity level. Turning on the exhaust fan in the kitchen or bathroom before you cook or bathe ensures that most of the heat and moisture gets vented outside to prevent the humidity level from increasing. Once you finish, you should leave the fan running for 20 to 30 minutes to make sure that all of the moisture is removed. Running the fan in your bathroom is also important for avoiding issues with mold and mildew and protecting the paint.
Manage Sources of Moisture
While running the exhaust fan in your bathroom helps, you should also use a towel or squeegee to remove water from the shower or tub after bathing. If you don’t, the water will eventually evaporate and make the air more humid. Taking shorter and cooler showers helps to reduce the amount of steam produced. You don’t have to take a cold shower, but you shouldn’t run the water as hot as it will go.
Houseplants contribute to increased humidity in several different ways. Some plants release up to 97% of the water they take up through their roots into the air, and water in the soil evaporates. Tropical plants with large leaves or plants that require frequent watering are generally the biggest concern in terms of humidity. Succulents, like aloe vera, and other plants that require minimal watering are the best choice. Not overwatering your plants, making sure to soak up any excess water that drains out into the pan below the pot and not having too many plants in one area also helps with moisture control.
Upgrade Your HVAC System With a Whole-Home Dehumidifier
By far, the most effective solution for managing indoor moisture throughout your entire house is adding a whole-home dehumidifier to your HVAC system. Running a portable dehumidifier helps reduce the humidity level in the surrounding space. However, unless you have one in almost every room, your AC will still circulate moist air around the house. Running multiple portable dehumidifiers will also use more electricity than using a whole-home dehumidifier. The other benefit of a whole-home unit is that you never need to empty the water reservoir, as all of the water it collects either empties out into your drain/sewer system or gets pumped outside.
A whole-home dehumidifier is installed with the main return duct. When your air conditioning is running, it constantly removes moisture from the incoming air before it gets cooled. This results in the cool air the system puts out being drier. It also reduces the amount of moisture the AC system has to remove, which enables it to cool the house faster and more effectively. You can also run the dehumidifier when your AC is off simply by turning your HVAC system’s fan on at the thermostat. This is useful on rainy spring days when your home can get overly humid but isn’t hot enough that you need to have your AC on.
Whole-home dehumidifiers come in a range of sizes, and it’s important that you have an experienced HVAC technician evaluate your house to determine what size you need. You don’t want to install an oversized unit since it will cost more and use more electricity than necessary. If the unit is sufficiently large, it won’t effectively meet your humidity control needs.
At Comfort Solutions HVAC, our experienced team is ready to help with all of your home comfort needs. Our professional cooling services can ensure your comfort throughout the summer. We also offer a wide range of indoor air quality solutions, including dehumidifiers, humidifiers, UV light purifiers and more. To schedule a service appointment or consultation in Easton or the surrounding areas, contact us today.
