The level of indoor humidity can have a significant impact on how comfortable you are in your home. It can also have an impact on your air conditioner’s efficiency, as well as your utility bill. So what is a healthy humidity level, and how do you maintain it so your AC runs at optimum efficiency?
A Healthy Humidity Level
The recommended humidity level for a home is between 30% and 50%. Any lower and you risk wooden floors and furnishings drying out; any higher and you may be encouraging the growth of mold, which is bad for your health and can also ruin drywall and furnishings. Summer in our region tends to be warm and damp, so it can be a challenge to maintain a healthy humidity level.
Maintaining a Healthy Humidity Level
If your air conditioner is well maintained and is functioning properly, it should be able to keep your humidity level where you need it to be. Significant factors that might prevent the AC from removing the proper amount of moisture include:
- Dirty air filter
- Lack of preventative maintenance
- Dirty coils
- Stopped up condensate drain
The best thing you can do to ensure your AC maintains a healthy humidity level is to schedule maintenance prior to the onset of hot, humid weather. Make sure your AC is running right so that return air is flowing through the equipment and there is no problem removing moisture.
Furthermore, it’s crucial that you change the air filter frequently. A dirty air filter will slow down airflow so that your equipment may not be able to cool the home properly. Among the many problems that may result are dirty evaporative coils, which may prevent your system from properly dehumidifying the air.
Helping the AC to Dehumidify
If your AC doesn’t seem to dehumidify the air as much as you need, you might help it out by placing dehumidifiers around the house. You can also install a whole-home dehumidification system in the HVAC.
For more on a healthy humidity level, contact Energy 1 Heating and Air Conditioning.
Energy 1 Heating & Air Conditioning
1 (440) 246-5440
Serving the Lorain, OH Area