How to Reduce Humidity in Your Home

4/19/2019 (Permalink)

Summer is on the horizon. It’s time to think about warm weather and outdoor fun, but also the increased risk of humidity and moisture build-up in your home. Excess indoor humidity can support mold growth and mildew spreading. It can also increase pest infestations and weaken your home’s structural integrity over time. Your goal should be to reduce and control humidity.

How to Tackle Humidity

When it comes to humidity, it’s ideal to keep the level between 30 and 50 percent. This provides enough to ensure personal comfort but doesn’t encourage mold growth. Humidity levels at this range can also benefit air quality and energy efficiency. Use these tips to help you control the amount of humidity present in your home.

1. Set your fan to automatic. Your HVAC system is ready to help you. By setting it to automatic, it turns on as soon as the temperatures rise out of the desired zone.
   
2. Add a dehumidifier to your home. A dehumidifier can be an affordable way to control particularly worrisome areas, such as basements, by pulling out excess moisture from the air.
   
3. Vent spaces properly. You should have an exhaust hood in the kitchen and vents in the bathrooms. This helps to pull out the moisture in those areas efficiently.
   
4. Pinpoint air leaks around your home. This is usually a problem around doors and windows, allowing air to enter and reducing efficiency.
   
5. Use houseplants in your home. They help to absorb extra moisture in the air. They can also help to improve overall air quality.
   
6. Place firewood outside of the home. This helps minimize any type of infestation and moisture buildup.
   
7. Cook with some focus on humidity. If you are boiling something, cover it to limit the amount of moisture that escapes into the area.
   
8. Improve circulation around the home by leaving doors open.
   
9. Keep wet clothing out of the home. If you have items like towels that are wet, be sure to wash them as soon as possible.

Let Us Help You Clean Away the Mold

When your home has been exposed to humidity for any given time, there’s the risk that mold and mildew are present. Allow our team at SERVPRO to come to inspect and clean this away. Contact us today for a cleaning appointment.