On Sat, 22 Nov 2014 16:44:21 -0500, Don Wiss
wrote:

On Sat, 22 Nov wrote:

What is the humidity in the house? Getting static shocks? Could be
the humidity gauge you're using isn't accurate.

That is my test. Touch a metal light switch plate. If no static shocks
there, or any other place, the humidly is high enough.

But doesn't that depend on what kind of carpet he has, if any, and what
kind of soles there are on the shoes they wear? They both have to be
right to get static.

In 30 years, I've never gotten a static shock in this house**, and for
at least 10 of these years, I've had no humidifier and I'm sure the
humidity was low. In fact an ivory came loose on my piano for the first
time in over 67 years. .

**Because the carpet is synthetic (I'm sure). I'm also not sure if the
rubber-like stuff on the bottom of my slippers and sneakers are the same
kind of rubber that would create a static charge if I had wool carpets.
or whatever pair works.

Don. www.donwiss.com (e-mail link at home page bottom).

AIUI, there are no good humidity gauges that the average person can
afford. That would include the gauge the OP is checking the humidity
with, and the gauge inside the humidifier that attempts to humidify the
household air to a desired humidity.

OP, have you tried just turning that " round knob pointing to different
numbers" to a higher number? Even if those numbers are supposed to be
the percent humidity that the unit will deliver, that doesn't mean they
are. The furnace control in the 50-apartment building I used to live
in didn't attempt to give a temperature, only heat output, for which one
could set it to A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H. I think only by trial and
error did the first landlord** find what was the right setting. The
analogy is not perfect, but I think that's how you'll find it too.

Maybe you can borrow another better than average hygrometer from
someone.

Or just set the humidity to maximum, and when water starts dripping off
your windows, etc. keep setting it down a little at a time until nothing
bad is happening, no dripping anywhere that matters, and that will be
the highest humidity your home can have, anyhow. Regardless of your
hardware. Then mark that spot on your knob dial. And you can also
probably find out what the %age is, and interpolate what all the other
numbers on the dial mean.

It bothers me that he charged you for part of a service call because HE
could not find anything wrong. Were you very clear that something WAS
wrong. But in a way there's no point in crying over spilt milk, and
just calibrate the humidifier yourself.