KATHY'S HOME & GARDEN TIPS - DRY INDOOR AIR
As soon as you seal up your
house in the winter dry air can cause
problems for you and your house. Unless you are one of the fortunate ones
with a hot water heating system, most of us in and around Chicago have forced air furnaces. The arid
warmth feels great coming in from winter cold, but long term it will cause
problems.
When it is very cold outside
the relative humidity in the house can fall as low as 10%. That's dry enough to chafe skin, cause dry
throat coughing and other health problems.
Your
house and furniture are also affected. It can open trim joints, crack
floorboards, peel wallpaper and cause static shocks.
Most people will be
comfortable with an indoor humidity of
30-50%. The EPA recommends an upper level of 50%, mainly
to avoid conditions that could encourage bacterial growth. To continually measure your indoor humidity, buy
a basic hygrometer found in a hardware store.
If you don't want to shop
for the hygrometer, another good
indicator is moisture on your windows inside. To balance the humidity inside, dial down the
humidifier until the moisture is gone. You can also dial down the thermostat a
few degrees since moist air feels warmer.
Most furnaces today have a central humidifier attached. Since
these use constantly flowing water maintenance is easy. Turn off the electrical supply to the
humidifier. Clean or replace the filter
or moisture transfer medium (sponge pad).
Turn the electrical supply back on.
I use small units in the bedrooms for extra moisture. These units need
special care. Change the water daily.
Clean the water scale with vinegar. Weekly disinfect with a weak bleach and
water solution (1 teaspoon bleach in one gallon cool water).
KATHLEEN WEAVER-ZECH
& DEAN'S TEAM CHICAGO
