Five Ways To Reduce the Humidity in Your Home

Have you ever heard someone say, “It’s not the heat, it’s the humidity”? High humidity can quickly make even the comfiest home unbearable, no matter what the temperature is set to. This can be especially true for homeowners in Minneapolis, St. Paul, and the surrounding areas, as Minnesota’s hot and humid summers can feel oppressive. If you find yourself looking for ways to reduce the humidity in your home, our team at Dean’s Home Services is here to help. We’ve put together our top five tips for keeping your indoor humidity levels in check.

1. Use Venting Fans & Ceiling Fans

One way to get rid of excess humidity is to run the vent fans in your house. When you’re cooking, run the vent fan over your stove to capture that heat. When you take a shower, be sure to get those fans going, too. These simple steps can help prevent extra moisture from entering your air and raising your home’s humidity levels. Not only is this helpful for making your home more comfortable, but it’s also a good way to protect your property from the damage that high humidity can cause.

While running ceiling fans does not necessarily reduce humidity, they can help to circulate air and make a room feel cooler. In general, fans do not reduce the actual temperature of a room, but they can create a wind chill effect that makes a person feel cooler and lessens the effects of high humidity levels.

2. Skip the Hot Shower

A major source of humidity in your home is hot water, specifically from a hot shower. While many of us prefer a hot shower to start the day, research has found that a cold shower can be good for your health and can be useful in lowering humidity levels for your overall comfort.

When you get out of the shower, think about how much moisture is trapped in that room. The mirror and the shower doors are fogged up, and when you open the door, that moisture doesn’t just vanish. Lowering your shower temperature by just a few degrees can go a long way toward decreasing the humidity in your house.

3. Install a Whole-Home Dehumidifier

One of the best and most straightforward ways to reduce humidity is by using a dehumidifier. Portable dehumidifiers can be an easy option if you need dehumidifying effects in small areas. However, if high humidity is a consistent problem for your home, you should go a step further by having a whole-home dehumidifier installed. These systems work in tandem with your HVAC system to efficiently remove excess moisture from your air.

4. Schedule an AC Tune-Up

A common cause of high humidity in your home is an air conditioner that’s failing to dehumidify as it should. Your air conditioner doesn’t just cool your home, it should also be removing humidity from your air. In order to ensure it can do so effectively, you need to keep up with regular AC maintenance. Having a professional inspect and tune up your air conditioner will allow it to run in optimal condition and effectively dehumidify your home’s air.

5. Put Out Charcoal Briquettes

While this is probably the least conventional recommendation on our list, you may be surprised to see how effective it is. If you are looking for a quick and easy way to reduce humidity before you can have a dehumidifier installed or have your AC inspected, try putting out a bucket of charcoal briquettes. Charcoal is incredibly absorbent, which is part of what makes it so good for use in filters and overdose situations. This works for dehumidifying your house, too.

Put out a bucket of charcoal briquettes in a few strategic areas of your home. You can put them in decorative flower pots if you like in order to make them look nicer, or in a coffee can, punch a few holes in the lid, and place them in the humid areas. Replace the charcoal every few months.

Call Dean’s for Humidity Solutions

When high humidity starts to wreak havoc on your Twin Cities home, Dean’s Home Services is here to help. We provide a comprehensive range of air conditioning and air quality services, including dehumidifier installations, to help make your home as comfortable as it can be. With over 100 combined years of experience and same-day services, working with our HVAC professionals means you’ll get expert solutions to your humidity concerns.

The Dean’s Team can help you better manage the humidity inside your home! Contact us today to get started with services in Minneapolis, St. Paul, or the surrounding areas.