On Fri, 21 Jan 2011 14:45:00 +0000, "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.

What kind was it? Did you have to fill it with water or did it have a
water connection?

If it had a connection, did it have a method for varying how much
humidity it put out? I'm sure it did. What did you set it at?

Do folks here use humidifiers and just cope with the inevitable
condensation and mold and mildew?

I don't think either mold, mildew, or condensation is inevitable.

When I used a humidifer for 15 or 20 winters, I never had any of them.
Houses and climates and weather and humidifiers vary, but I'm sure you
can find the right humidity for your house. Didn't someone here say
that was about 50%? Certainly more than 29%.

Did you have a hygrometer, a humidity meter? What did it say the
humidity was? How humid was it when the condensation began? 70 or
80%? Did you stop adding water before that point?

Hygrometers used to be very unreliable. Many just used a string whose
length changed when it was humid. I don't know if current ones work
differently or are any better. Does anyone know?

Or do they just live with the dry
heated air during winter?

Only since my the copper screen in the water supply line in my
humidifier got clogged. As soon as I can, I'm fixing that.



-- Steven L.