Whole House Humidifer Recommendation

[tbm5690]

Looking into getting a whole house humidifier installed, and debating between the bypass-type as opposed to steam. I am mostly concerned about effectivity of the system...I've heard mixed reviews on whether or not the bypass type does much at all considering the water use of about 20 gallons a day. The water usage doesn't bother me too much, although the cleanliness of the filter element does on top of whether or not it would be able to get the house up to the levels I'm hoping for. Right now I've got 5 sensors throughout the house measuring at about 35% or so, and the air will get considerably more dry as winter goes on. A target of 50% would be great, but if I could maintain close to 40% I'd be happy. I have heard the steam units are more effective and use less water. Can anyone with either system type installed share some observations?

 

[Averroes]

In on this thread. I wanted to know this as well and have been thinking about it. Any input is appreciated.

 

[ocoilslick]

Added humidity will make it feel warmer, and you can drop the thermostat a bit and feel the same warmth.

 

[SHOZ]

The water you use will make a big diffrence. Hard water is going to leave behind deposits no matter what you use. Depends on what's easier to keep clean. Much like a coffee maker liming up over time.

 

[Mazomopar]

The last homes we've had here in Wisconsin have had aprilaire 600. Very simple and dependable. Use the OEM filters and tap into the softened hot water. We can breathe easy with the relative humidity near 45. And it's something you could install in an afternoon.

 

[kschachn]

I have this Honeywell one I installed 20 years or so ago and it has worked fine. I put in the automatic humidistat a couple of years ago, that works great prevent window condensation.

 

[tbm5690]

Thanks for the replies so far...yep I do have a softener so that would be the water fed to it. I would also want to run it using my smart thermostat that does have humidity control. Anyone have the steam canister system or familiar with it? I know I'll need 240 to it but that's not an issue.

 

[greenjp]

Honeywell must not update their designs ever. I installed an HE360 (I think that's the model #) about 5 years ago that looks exactly like the one kschachn has. This is an evaporative type so yes some of the water goes down the drain but I can't say I ever noticed the change in the water or gas bill. Mine is fed right from the outlet of the hot water heater. Note while it's an evaporative type it is not a bypass. This is installed in the main duct coming up out of the heater, and uses a built-in fan to pass the air through the pad. The fan does have a sort of high pitched whine which might be annoying depending on where it's located in your home. There is no duct going over to the return.

Mine is controlled by the main thermostat which is a Honeywell IAC, has humidity control as a feature. It works really well and does not have any trouble maintaining the set point of 40%. It only runs when the heat is cycled on. Our house is about 2,400 sq. ft and we have a two stage furnace that runs at about 50k BTUs almost all the time. When it's very cold outside (say 30 or under) I'll dial it back to 35% to cut down on the condensation on the windows.

I'm in MD where it is very dry in the winter, without this the humidity would be in the teens.

jeff

 

[SHOZ]

Watch out for salt build up in when using soften water. Won't hurt plastic though.

 

[kschachn]

Watch out for salt build up in when using soften water. Won't hurt plastic though.

There is no salt buildup with soft water. Soft water does not have sodium chloride in it.

 

[SHOZ]

There is no salt buildup with soft water. Soft water does not have sodium chloride in it.

LOL. Only in perfect world.

 

[kschachn]

LOL. Only in perfect world.

You need to learn how ion exchange resins work. That way you won’t make more incorrect posts like this one and the whole thread about “making” asphalt from motor oil.

If you don’t know anything about chemistry and physics then it’s best to refrain from making posts about them.

 

[wings&wheels]

I've found that the manufacturers tend to overestimate the coverage of humidifiers...

We originally had a mist type one in our lower floor zone which we replaced pretty quickly; lots of minerals in the water and it left a fine dust. We replaced it with an Aprilaire bypass evaporative unit which is effective but can't keep up with the while house, ~4,100sqft. Also, we can only have a humidifier on the lower floors the top floor air handler is in unconditioned space.

After trying a few units, we now have a stand alone large Aircare digital unit upstairs supplementing the lower floors's plumbed in unit. Happy so far.

Given our experience, I'm not sure I would put in a plumbed in unit again. The misting unit was a pain; aside from the dust it pooled water in the ducts, but some of that was installer error. The bypass unit has been OK, but requires drainage and, in our case, a condensate pump....all potential points of failure. Also, the deposits from our water will collect on the matrix, fall off and have clogged the drain tube, so it requires cleaning a few times each season.

 

[SHOZ]

You need to learn how ion exchange resins work. That way you won’t make more incorrect posts like this one and the whole thread about “making” asphalt from motor oil.

If you don’t know anything about chemistry and physics then it’s best to refrain from making posts about them.

I know soft water will kill your houseplants and eat up aluminum fins on air conditioner condensers.

So it may not be sodium cloride but it is sodium something.

 

[OVERKILL]

I live in a larger (~3,200sq-ft) old house (~100) with no exterior insulation and I replaced a drum-style humidifier with a blow-through a couple of years ago which seems to do the job, though space-wise I'm pretty much at the upper limit for the unit. It is plumbed into the cold feed to the hot water tank, so it is interesting to see people plumbing them into the hot side, as the instructions for mine explicitly state to put it on the cold.

I have it set to run off my EcoBee, which determines appropriate humidity based on outdoor temperature, so it varies throughout the winter. It does have a digital humidity meter, which I find does not align with humidity in the rest of the house, which I think is an advantage to having the thermostat do it.

 

[tbm5690]

That's helpful, thanks. My house is only 2400 sq. feet and from what I can tell decently insulated...built in '96. Not drafty and although windows are original they are premium and still seal well. Haven't given much thought to hot vs cold on the feed line...I would think hot would be more effective for evaporation but also subject the panel to faster bacteria buildup.

 

[kschachn]

That's helpful, thanks. My house is only 2400 sq. feet and from what I can tell decently insulated...built in '96. Not drafty and although windows are original they are premium and still seal well. Haven't given much thought to hot vs cold on the feed line...I would think hot would be more effective for evaporation but also subject the panel to faster bacteria buildup.

The installation manual for my Honeywell unit said it could be plumbed to either the hot or the cold supply, unless the unit is installed on the return side of the air handler. In that case it must be connected to hot water.

 

[OVERKILL]

The installation manual for my Honeywell unit said it could be plumbed to either the hot or the cold supply, unless the unit is installed on the return side of the air handler. In that case it must be connected to hot water.

Interesting the difference between manufacturers. Mine is on the return, but as you can see, it bypasses hot air from the feed side to the evaporator pad, so I expect the water being warm isn't an advantage (and definitely isn't a requirement, as I noted, they specify it goes on the cold) in that scenario as it is having very hot air blown through it.

 

[JustinH]

I have been using a pureguardian room humidifer for the past ten years. Purchased from Costco, 2 gallon capacity.

In the heating season it definitely makes me feel better while sleeping.

Without it, I would routinely see sub 20% RH in the house. Lowest I have seen is 8% during a cold snap in San Antonio.

 

[DriveHard]

I have roughly 3k ft^2, in the middle of cold Iowa. I installed a new furnace and AC last year, and then installed one of these.

265000-001 - Trion 265000-001 - Mister-Mini Duct-Mounted Atomizing Humidifier

Trion 265000-001 - Mister-Mini Duct-Mounted Atomizing Humidifier - Mister-MINI® humidifiers operate by dispersing a fine mist into the warm air supply duct of your heating system. The water is evaporated by the warm air from the furnace and carried into your home by the furnace air flow. The...

www.supplyhouse.com

I run the fan 24/7 on advice from my HVAC guy, and it keeps us right between 38% and 40%.

Here in central IA, we have VERY clean water, and I also have a filter/water softener.