dehumidifiers

Whole Home Humidifiers & Dehumidifiers in Tulsa

Whole Home Humidifiers & Dehumidifiers in Tulsa

From dry, itchy skin, to chapped lips, and static electricity, low humidity in the home affects your quality of life. It can affect breathing, irritate the nose and throat, cause nosebleeds, and is especially hard on asthma and allergy sufferers. It can also suck the moisture out of hardwood floors, pianos, guitars, furniture, and other expensive wood-based items, costing you a small fortune.These things can happen if the relative humidity in your home falls below 30 percent.

Benefits Of Whole-House Humidifiers

In the winter, that level can easily dive as low as 15 percent, drier than the air in most desserts. Broken Arrow, Oklahoma should not feel like the Sahara desert. To regulate moisture in your home you need a good humidifier.While most portable units don’t regulate actual humidity levels, and can only humidify one or two rooms, whole-house humidifiers have an immediate connection to your heating system, providing comfort and consistency throughout the home. Portable units run the risk of adding too much moisture to the air, which can lead to mold, mildew, dust mites, and insects. If portable units are not cleaned often, they can become sources of mold and bacteria. Some benefits of whole-house units are that they only need to be cleaned once or twice a year, and don’t use a reservoir, eliminating the dangers of stagnant water in the home. Once ideal humidity levels are set, whole-house humidifiers regulate moisture levels, humidify air as needed, and distribute it to every room in the home.Maintaining humidity levels reduces the chance of respiratory infection by reducing viruses, bacteria, and dust. By eliminating dust you also reduce the time, effort, and cost of cleaning your home. In addition, as dry air feels colder, maintaining proper moisture levels will help you to feel warm naturally, allowing for lower thermostat levels, and lower utility costs.In terms of health, cost, and energy efficiency, whole-house humidifiers are the most beneficial way to regulate humidity in your home. With several models available, the best humidifier for you will depend largely on your existing heating and cooling system, as well as the size of your home.Our goal is to help educate our customers about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems).  For more information, click here. Air Assurance services Tulsa, Broken Arrow and the surrounding areas.  To get started, check out our website or see our current promotions.

Getting the Right Humidity Levels for Your Home

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Most of us don't realize we can control the humidity levels in our homes for greater comfort. Too often, our homes are too damp in summer, or too dry in winter. Read on for ways to control home humidity.

Best Relative Humidity

The best humidity levels are usually between 35 and 55 percent. In summer it's best if the humidity is lower — around 35-40 percent — because warm air holds moisture, which can make us feel even more uncomfortable on a hot day. Relative humidity higher than 50-55 percent prevents perspiration from evaporating on our skin, so that we feel sticky and can't cool off.

In winter, it's best to keep the humidity a little closer to the 50-55 percent range so that the air retains some moisture. This helps prevent skin and respiratory tract irritations that result from too-dry air.

How to Control Humidity

To monitor humidity in the home, you will need an inexpensive humidistat.

When you want your air to be drier, do the following:

1. Install exhaust ventilation to the outdoors in wet areas such as bathroom and kitchen.

2. Make sure you change the air filter in the HVAC system, and have the evaporator coils cleaned. The HVAC won't dehumidify your home effectively with a dirty filter and coils.

3. Sequester plants to one room so they don't give off moisture throughout the home.

4. Limit shower time, as well as the boiling of water.

5. Fix plumbing and ceiling leaks.

6. Air seal your home and fix your ductwork to prevent the intrusion of moist air.

7. You may even need to install a dehumidifier if your home is excessively damp.

For more on controlling home humidity, contact Air Assurance of Broken Arrow.