How to Balance Humidity Levels in Your Home with HVAC

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) states that the optimum indoor humidity levels are 30% to 50%. Therefore, keeping the indoor humidity at the right levels is necessary for a comfortable environment and a healthy habitat. The HVAC system is crucial in regulating humidity levels and avoiding mold growth. 

To balance humidity levels in your home, you can maintain settings according to your space on the right-sized unit or use external dehumidifiers. Utilizing smart thermostats, sealing your home, or using automatic features can also help maintain an ideal temperature range. If you do not know how to modify the system, you can obtain expert dehumidifier services from a professional contractor.

What is the Ideal Humidity for Comfort?

Optimal humidity levels for health and comfort are between 30% and 60%. The ideal range for most individuals is 40% to 50%. However, humidity may change as seasons influence it. During winter or summer, you should alter home humidity according to the change of season to ensure comfort and prevent many issues due to moist indoor air.

Tips to Balance Humidity With an HVAC System

Controlling humidity levels is critical, as it influences health and protects your home. These are effective tips to maintain an ideal humidity range in your home.

Tip 1. Select the Right-Sized System

Make sure your HVAC system is the right size for your home. If it is too large, it will quickly cool the room but not draw water out of the air and reduce indoor humidity.

Tip 2. Use Ideal System Settings

Most HVAC systems also have specific features or integrated dehumidifying functions specifically for that function. Check your system's guide for settings to optimize dehumidification and have your unit operating at the suggested settings.

Tip 3. Connect Smart Systems

The latest thermostats and humidity sensors can sense and regulate the ideal humidity level. Smart devices like these optimize your HVAC system and enable you to manage your humidity for greater convenience and energy savings.

Tip 4. Add Standalone Dehumidifiers

Dehumidifiers can function incredibly in humid spaces such as a basement, crawl space, or bathroom. These devices complement your heating, ventilation, and air conditioning to remove excess moisture from your air and clean it for comfort.

Tip 5. Program Your Air Conditioner

Keeping your air conditioner on the 'auto' mode of your air conditioner, and not the 'on' mode, makes the fan run when the air conditioning is active and dehumidifies more from the room.

Tip 6. Seal Your House Tight

Seal up around the doors, windows, and all other loopholes that can provide an opening for wet outside air to get into your home. Properly insulated homes do not burden your HVAC and improve proper humidity control.

Tip 7. Perform Regular Maintenance

To keep your air conditioner in top condition, give it routine maintenance. Clean or change its air filters often, check for system leaks, and have your system serviced at least once a year by an authorized HVAC technician.

What is an Ideal Humidity Level in Summer?

When summer arrives, indoor humidity needs to be moderate, at 40% to 50%. Holding it in this range offers much more comfortable living while protecting your home from issues due to excess moisture, such as mold growth or damage from too much humidity to your structure. However, over 60% may induce sleep discomfort, humidness, and harm to wood flooring or furniture.

What is an Ideal Humidity Level in Winter?

Ideal winter indoor humidity levels are between 25% and 40%. In this range, the indoor environment remains warm and comfortable without creating condensation on glass windows. Proper humidity levels during winter are vital to avoid dry skin and wood damage from furniture and floors due to dry air.

What Happens When the Humidity Levels Are Very Low or Too High?

Below 30% humidity, damp air can cause several health problems, like dry skin, chapped lips, or itching eyes. In addition, it leads to wooden floors or furniture damage because of cracks or warping.

When humidity exceeds 60%, it impacts health and household conditions. Excessive humidity promotes the growth of mold and fungi, which create allergies and respiratory diseases. Further, it may lead to moisture stains, odor, and mist on windows. All these issues require humidity control.

Conclusion

Maintaining good humidity in your home is essential for comfort and air quality. To better control humidity with your HVAC, have it serviced with proper routine maintenance, such as replacement filters and leak checks. It is always better to leave your air conditioner in "auto" mode so the fan runs whenever cooling is required for better dehumidifying.

Sealing your home's windows, doors, and other openings will prevent moisture from entering. These solutions will maintain indoor humidity well, providing a healthier, more comfortable environment. If sealing is ineffective in controlling indoor humidity, acquire professional dehumidification services from a credible company.

Click here and read more blogs