My wife and I have a new (less than 2 years old) house in Northeast
Ohio, and we've determined that we need a humidifier. We're seeing the
typical symptoms of dry air that are reported in the houses and in
people.

Consumer reports did not put much effort at all into testing the
furnace mounted models, only saying that "All should perform
adequately.". Looking around on the web & talking to people at work, I
find that Aprilaire is a decent brand, so I've ordered one.

Prior to ordering it, I've read the installation manuals I could find,
located & marked the place on the duct where I'll install it & run the
supply & drain lines.

There are a couple of questions that I have not found answers to as I
STFW. I would appreciate any words of experience that the group can
offer:

1. The installation diagrams I've looked at sometimes show the
humidifier unit on the supply duct and sometimes on the return duct.
Either way, warm air will flow from supply through the element to
return. Therefore, it seems to me that the humidifier element should
not care which direction the air flows through it, and it doesn't
matter on which side (supply or return) the unit is mounted. Is this
correct?

2. I specifically bought the Aprilaire 600 (instead of the Hamilton
12HF from Lowe's) because the Aprilaire's controller has an outside air
temperature sensor. (Price was a wash, anyhow). I understand that the
only purpose of this sensor is to decrease humidity when it's colder
outside (and therefore colder on your windows & outside walls) to
prevent condensation from occurring. Is this correct? Would anybody
who is currently running one of these in automatic mode, maintaining
humidity without adjusting the dial or seeing condensation please
report their success? Or if not, then report failure?

Thanks for your assistance!

The auto control works, you lower humidity just the point where there is
no condensation anywhere. It will maintain humidity so condensation does
not occur. Condensation leads to mold then rot of wood window frames.
Keep outside thermometer higher than any snow will ever get, my instaler
first put it at 6" I had him raise it way up to 5 feet in shade, N side.
Keep snow from resting on sensor, mine is under my elec meter. I close
airflow in summer with a damper and its mounted on the supply going back
to the return. The unit you have is superior to non thermostat controled
units by far. In fall clean the pad in CLR or similar acid solution.

On Thu, 15 Dec 2005 06:56:26 -0600, (m Ransley)
wrote:

The auto control works, you lower humidity just the point where there is
no condensation anywhere. It will maintain humidity so condensation does
not occur. Condensation leads to mold then rot of wood window frames.
Keep outside thermometer higher than any snow will ever get, my instaler
first put it at 6" I had him raise it way up to 5 feet in shade, N side.
Keep snow from resting on sensor, mine is under my elec meter. I close
airflow in summer with a damper and its mounted on the supply going back
to the return. The unit you have is superior to non thermostat controled
units by far. In fall clean the pad in CLR or similar acid solution.

Dont mount the humidifier on the supply side. Your heating unit has
many expensive electronic parts, none of which deal very well with
leaking water.
Dont clean the pad with CLR or anything else. They are less than $10.
Sometimes you can use them more than one year but the manufacturer
recommends that you toss it after 1 yr.
Bubba

wrote:
...

1. The installation diagrams I've looked at sometimes show the
humidifier unit on the supply duct and sometimes on the return duct.
Either way, warm air will flow from supply through the element to
return. Therefore, it seems to me that the humidifier element should
not care which direction the air flows through it, and it doesn't
matter on which side (supply or return) the unit is mounted. Is this
correct?

Yes, but Bubba comments make sense.

Make sure it is designed for either installation. Recheck the
instructions to see if it indicates.


2. I specifically bought the Aprilaire 600 (instead of the Hamilton
12HF from Lowe's) because the Aprilaire's controller has an outside
air temperature sensor. (Price was a wash, anyhow). I understand
that the only purpose of this sensor is to decrease humidity when
it's colder outside (and therefore colder on your windows & outside
walls) to prevent condensation from occurring. Is this correct?
Would anybody who is currently running one of these in automatic
mode, maintaining humidity without adjusting the dial or seeing
condensation please report their success? Or if not, then report
failure?

Yes, that is how it works and in my personal experience it works well.


Thanks for your assistance!

--
Joseph Meehan

Dia duit

Why not use CLR, lime away etc , it cleans them it is metal, and that is
all you need. Its worked for years and is clear of any buildup. Leaks,
mine if it did leak is far enough away from the furnace where water
would not leak into it.

On Thu, 15 Dec 2005 08:36:06 -0600, (m Ransley)
wrote:

Why not use CLR, lime away etc , it cleans them it is metal, and that is
all you need. Its worked for years and is clear of any buildup. Leaks,
mine if it did leak is far enough away from the furnace where water
would not leak into it.

Because they are not designed to be cleaned. Its not a serviceable
part. It is meant to degrade. Thats why it starts turning into a
crumbling mess. You'll notice the honeycomb shape of the pad. It is
designed with and angled pattern to keep the water in the pad. Just
for ****s and giggle, install your pad upside down and turn the water
on. Point being, they are easily prone to leaking, falling apart and
making quite a mess. As an owner, technician, etc. I dont like
callbacks and cleaning a pad would deifintely cause me many callbacks.
Homeowners may choose to do this. Service companies wont.

Also, to the OP. Still dont believe it doesnt matter whether the
humidifier is installed on the supply or retun duct? You are correct.
It doesnt. Read the installation manual. It will tell you the same.
Aprilaire nor any of the other humidifier manufacturers care if it
leaks down into your furnace and causes damage.
Wait till it leaks down into your Lennox or Carrier Variable speed
unit. Especially under the furnace warranty. I hope you have lots and
lots of money because that water shorted board will NOT be covered.
Now are you catching on?
Bubba

"Would anybody who is currently running one of these in automatic mode,
maintaining
humidity without adjusting the dial or seeing condensation please
report their success? Or if not, then report failure? "

I have the Aprilaire 760 with the outside temp sensor. I have a
humidistat and can see that when it gets cold, the sensor does reduce
the humidity by a small amount. I usually have it at about 58%. If it
gets down into the low teens, it will lower to about 50 or so. Of
course the problem is it doesn;t know the cold is coming. So if the
temp drops quickly one day, you could still have some condensation
because it will take a day or more for the humidity to adjust.

BTW, one reason I went with the fan powered 760 was the issue of
moisture and the furnace. I'm not sure if a leak on one side of the
furnace is any worse than a leak on the other side. But with the
bypass type, you always have moist air going through the heat
exchanger. Steel plus moisture is never a good combo. The 760 mounts
only on the hot air plenum, so air from the humidifier never goest
throught the furnace. On the other hand, I've never heard reports of
pre-mature heat exchanger failure from a bypass humidifier, so whether
it's a real problems remains unknown.

On 15 Dec 2005 12:22:10 -0800, wrote:

"Would anybody who is currently running one of these in automatic mode,
maintaining
humidity without adjusting the dial or seeing condensation please
report their success? Or if not, then report failure? "

I have the Aprilaire 760 with the outside temp sensor. I have a
humidistat and can see that when it gets cold, the sensor does reduce
the humidity by a small amount. I usually have it at about 58%. If it
gets down into the low teens, it will lower to about 50 or so. Of
course the problem is it doesn;t know the cold is coming. So if the
temp drops quickly one day, you could still have some condensation
because it will take a day or more for the humidity to adjust.

BTW, one reason I went with the fan powered 760 was the issue of
moisture and the furnace. I'm not sure if a leak on one side of the
furnace is any worse than a leak on the other side. But with the
bypass type, you always have moist air going through the heat
exchanger. Steel plus moisture is never a good combo. The 760 mounts
only on the hot air plenum, so air from the humidifier never goest
throught the furnace. On the other hand, I've never heard reports of
pre-mature heat exchanger failure from a bypass humidifier, so whether
it's a real problems remains unknown.

I can only lead you to the water. I cant make you drink it.
Bubba

wrote in message
oups.com...
"Would anybody who is currently running one of these in automatic mode,
maintaining
humidity without adjusting the dial or seeing condensation please
report their success? Or if not, then report failure? "

I have the Aprilaire 760 with the outside temp sensor. I have a
humidistat and can see that when it gets cold, the sensor does reduce
the humidity by a small amount. I usually have it at about 58%. If it
gets down into the low teens, it will lower to about 50 or so. Of
course the problem is it doesn;t know the cold is coming. So if the
temp drops quickly one day, you could still have some condensation
because it will take a day or more for the humidity to adjust.

BTW, one reason I went with the fan powered 760 was the issue of
moisture and the furnace. I'm not sure if a leak on one side of the
furnace is any worse than a leak on the other side. But with the
bypass type, you always have moist air going through the heat
exchanger. Steel plus moisture is never a good combo. The 760 mounts
only on the hot air plenum, so air from the humidifier never goest
throught the furnace. On the other hand, I've never heard reports of
pre-mature heat exchanger failure from a bypass humidifier, so whether
it's a real problems remains unknown.


My 760 is mounted on the return and works fine.

I purchased and installed my 600 last year. I love the unit and easy
to install. The duct is tapped into the supply and the water/pad is
on the returned. Normally you would want this the other way around
but my heater/air conditioning coils would not allow for that. I also
check with the vendor and some mechanical engineering friends. This
setup is not a major issue.

Be sure to hook the water solenoid to the heaters main (24v) supply so
that the water comes on with the fan. They do make the inductor coils
but I prefer the direct power source.

What is STFW? Shut the F'n Woman?

The ones I've installed have all gone on the return duct.

You'll need a bunch of tools that most home owners never need, such as red
and green handled tin shears. Follow the directions in the package.

--

Christopher A. Young
Do good work.
It's longer in the short run
but shorter in the long run.
..
..


wrote in message
oups.com...
My wife and I have a new (less than 2 years old) house in Northeast
Ohio, and we've determined that we need a humidifier. We're seeing the
typical symptoms of dry air that are reported in the houses and in
people.

Consumer reports did not put much effort at all into testing the
furnace mounted models, only saying that "All should perform
adequately.". Looking around on the web & talking to people at work, I
find that Aprilaire is a decent brand, so I've ordered one.

Prior to ordering it, I've read the installation manuals I could find,
located & marked the place on the duct where I'll install it & run the
supply & drain lines.

There are a couple of questions that I have not found answers to as I
STFW. I would appreciate any words of experience that the group can
offer:

1. The installation diagrams I've looked at sometimes show the
humidifier unit on the supply duct and sometimes on the return duct.
Either way, warm air will flow from supply through the element to
return. Therefore, it seems to me that the humidifier element should
not care which direction the air flows through it, and it doesn't
matter on which side (supply or return) the unit is mounted. Is this
correct?

2. I specifically bought the Aprilaire 600 (instead of the Hamilton
12HF from Lowe's) because the Aprilaire's controller has an outside air
temperature sensor. (Price was a wash, anyhow). I understand that the
only purpose of this sensor is to decrease humidity when it's colder
outside (and therefore colder on your windows & outside walls) to
prevent condensation from occurring. Is this correct? Would anybody
who is currently running one of these in automatic mode, maintaining
humidity without adjusting the dial or seeing condensation please
report their success? Or if not, then report failure?

Thanks for your assistance!

Stormin Mormon wrote:
What is STFW? Shut the F'n Woman?


STFW (Search the F... Web) is what you should do before you ask
questions.
Also, RTFM (Read the manual).

On Fri, 16 Dec 2005 04:04:19 GMT, lid (mitchsklar) wrote:

I purchased and installed my 600 last year. I love the unit and easy
to install. The duct is tapped into the supply and the water/pad is
on the returned. Normally you would want this the other way around
but my heater/air conditioning coils would not allow for that. I also
check with the vendor and some mechanical engineering friends. This
setup is not a major issue.

Be sure to hook the water solenoid to the heaters main (24v) supply so
that the water comes on with the fan. They do make the inductor coils
but I prefer the direct power source.


Normally you would want this the other way around

WTF? Are you really that dumb?
Think........."why would I not want to install the humidifier on the
supply plenum where all the expensive electronics are directly below?"
Why Oh Why Oh Why would I not want to do that?
I'll give you a few moments on that one.
(Hint: Think water and electricity)
I'll continue to give you some time on that one. I dont want you to
exert yourself too much.
Bubba

Bubba wrote:

On Thu, 15 Dec 2005 06:56:26 -0600, (m Ransley)
wrote:

The auto control works, you lower humidity just the point where there is
no condensation anywhere. It will maintain humidity so condensation does
not occur. Condensation leads to mold then rot of wood window frames.
Keep outside thermometer higher than any snow will ever get, my instaler
first put it at 6" I had him raise it way up to 5 feet in shade, N side.
Keep snow from resting on sensor, mine is under my elec meter. I close
airflow in summer with a damper and its mounted on the supply going back
to the return. The unit you have is superior to non thermostat controled
units by far. In fall clean the pad in CLR or similar acid solution.

Dont mount the humidifier on the supply side. Your heating unit has
many expensive electronic parts, none of which deal very well with
leaking water.
Dont clean the pad with CLR or anything else. They are less than $10.
Sometimes you can use them more than one year but the manufacturer
recommends that you toss it after 1 yr.
Bubba


Excellent advice. Seems obvious, now that you mention it. Just the sort of
thing you learn from experience!

Thank you

wrote:

I have the Aprilaire 760 with the outside temp sensor. I have a
humidistat and can see that when it gets cold, the sensor does reduce
the humidity by a small amount. I usually have it at about 58%. If it
gets down into the low teens, it will lower to about 50 or so. Of
course the problem is it doesn;t know the cold is coming. So if the
temp drops quickly one day, you could still have some condensation
because it will take a day or more for the humidity to adjust.

If I read your answer correctly, even though you have the temp sensor
installed, you mess with the setpoint. Did you actually observe
condensation on your windows when you didn't do this?

If the outside temp sensor actually lets me use the humidifier without
having to screw with the controls every few days, then I can mount the
controls in the basement (where my wife doesn't have to look at it!).

However, if the outside temp sensor does a half-assed job of controlling
humidity as advertised, the control is going in the living area, since we
will be messing with it!

Thanks for sharing our experience.

I set mine till there is no glass condensation, my humidity is well
controled, My unit has to be mounted on a return, for me it is set and
forget.