On Jan 21, 9:28*am, N8N wrote:
On Jan 21, 10:08*am, ransley wrote:



On Jan 21, 8:45*am, "Steven L." wrote:

Where I live, the weather forecast for this weekend calls for outside
temps to fall below zero degrees Fahrenheit. *And I find that with the
heated indoor air being so dry, during sleep my throat gets parched at
night and my skin dries out too.

I've got a humidifier that I bought a long time ago but never used. *I'm
thinking of using it. *But the last time I used one of those, I got
condensation everywhere--the windows and window shades and even the
toilet bowl--and mold and mildew began to grow on those things.

Do folks here use humidifiers and just cope with the inevitable
condensation and mold and mildew? *Or do they just live with the dry
heated air during winter?

-- Steven L.

Adjust the humidity to where condensation does not occur, you had it
way to high. I can only raise mine 10-15% or I get consensation, so at
below zero its going to be low, maybe 25% for me.

what RH you end up with not only depends on how cold it is outside but
how well insulated your house is, and more importantly, how well
insulated your windows are (windows are likely where condensation will
show up first.)

So basically you have to tinker with the humidistat until you find a
happy setting... *keep bumping it up until you start to see
condensation then dial it back a little bit.

nate

I've been posting a lot on here lately about my humidity obsession.
I've finally been able to maintain it in the 35-40% range over the
last few days. This morning it was -20F outside and I had some
condensation - not much, just a little on the first inch of the low
end of each window. It's been in the low single digits all week and
it's the first time I've seen condensation (so yes, the quality of
windows etc definitely plays a big part).

I am holding RH at a high level because I'm installing hardwood
floors, but without that need I would probably aim for 30-35. I found
that before I started cranking it up (when I realized it was only
22%), the family were having skin problems and my 3 year old suffered
a lot of nosebleeds (took me a while to realize dry air was a
factor). Buddy of mine is going through the same thing, except that
his is just 13%(!). Apparently his dog is constantly scratching and
his stairs all squeak.

First advice I would give you is to get a hygrometer if you don't
already have one (I like the electronic ones - not expensive). And
then, if necessary, fire up the humidifier. You will have to make
your own mind up about what the right balance is between moist enough
to be comfortable and dry enough to limit condensation. Personally, I
would not allow it to get down below high 20's, and if you have
significant condensation at that level, you need to do something about
your windows.

Good luck.