8 Ways to Dehumidify Your Home

Spring thaws the snow in Minnesota. But it also ushers in the first rush of humidity. This is a consequence of being the Land of Ten Thousand Lakes! (Actually, it’s twelve thousand.) Humidity not only makes the heat of the middle of the year feel worse, but it encourages the growth of allergy-triggering molds and creates water damage inside homes.

The best way to deal with high humidity inside a home is to have air quality specialists install a whole-house dehumidifier. (Don’t spend money on a portable dehumidifier. These devices pose fire risks and won’t get the job done you need.) When correctly paired with an air conditioning system installed by a professional, a whole-house humidifier balances relative humidity levels in the comfort spot between 30% and 50%.

For assistance with whole-house dehumidification in Minneapolis, MN and throughout the Minneapolis-St. Paul area, contact our staff. Below are ways to help lower your indoor humidity in the meantime. (Don’t worry, we’ll be there soon to have the right dehumidifier in place.)

8 Home Dehumidification Tips

1. Properly ventilate your house: This is particularly important in moisture-creating rooms such as the kitchen and bathroom. Keep the windows open. The fan inside a bathroom is an important tool, since it draws out moisture. Run the over-the-stove fan in the kitchen as well.
2. Use fans: If you have oscillating or standing fans, now is the time to get them out and put them to use. This helps increase ventilation.
3. Avoid cooking and cleaning: These actions place large amounts of moisture in the air. When you do have to cook, restrict it to cooler parts of the evening and cover the food as much as possible to avoid extra moisture entering the air.
4. Raise the indoor temperature: This sounds counter-intuitive, but if you can tolerate feeling a touch warmer, raising the temperature helps reduce relative humidity. The reason is warmer air can hold more moisture than cold air.
5. Take shorter, cooler showers: You don’t have to turn on icy water in the shower, but try to lower it to a level producing less steam. Opening the tap partway helps with this. Keep showers down to five minutes.
6. Store firewood outdoors: If you still have some stored firewood for the fireplace leftover from winter, place it outside. Wood often contains water that evaporates into the air.
7. Put houseplants outside: Plants naturally release moisture vapor (which is a reason people like having them in dry climates). Either place them outdoors or keep them in a single room. Don’t overwater them either.
8. Use the air conditioner: We recommend this only as a final step, since an air conditioner costs money to run. Make sure you first close off any windows. An AC does have dehumidification properties, but it is not a substitute for a dedicated whole-house dehumidifier.

Make sure you prepare for the coming heat as well as humidity! Arrange for air conditioning maintenance with our Partner Plan. We have representatives ready to speak to you about the details and benefits and get you started.

Aquarius Home Services: Serving Minnesota and Wisconsin.