Automatic humidifier anyone?

  • Active since 1995, Hearth.com is THE place on the internet for free information and advice about wood stoves, pellet stoves and other energy saving equipment.

    We strive to provide opinions, articles, discussions and history related to Hearth Products and in a more general sense, energy issues.

    We promote the EFFICIENT, RESPONSIBLE, CLEAN and SAFE use of all fuels, whether renewable or fossil.
Status
Not open for further replies.
F

fixall

Member
Oct 23, 2014
20
54914
I set a pot of water on the top of my Enviro ef3. It did help evap the water but too slowly. A humidifier would just be a waste of energy and money.

I took a table spoon of water and let a few drops fall thru the top of the stove onto the metal that covers the heat ex-changers and wa-la instant steam!

So howabout a small metal container sitting on the stove with a adjustable spigot. Set it to drip very slowly onto the heat ex-changers, creating alot more humidity.

Would this have a long term damage on the metal, like cracking etc. from the cold water falling on it?
 
fixall said:
I set a pot of water on the top of my Enviro ef3. It did help evap the water but too slowly. A humidifier would just be a waste of energy and money.

I took a table spoon of water and let a few drops fall thru the top of the stove onto the metal that covers the heat ex-changers and wa-la instant steam!

So howabout a small metal container sitting on the stove with a adjustable spigot. Set it to drip very slowly onto the heat ex-changers, creating alot more humidity.

Would this have a long term damage on the metal, like cracking etc. from the cold water falling on it?
Click to expand...


This is a pretty bad idea. Aside from the metal possibly cracking you would have a pile of sediment placed straight on the stove, calcium, iron, etc...

Buy a humidifier.
 
I agree with bobdog for various reasons but I think one would be hard pressed to crack the top of a stove with a few drops of water. Doing a hill-billy ingenuity project like mentioned will deteriorate the finish without a doubt.

Buy a humidifier. That is why they are made and used.

You could go all out or all in depending on how you view it and sling the garden hose thru the window for more of a temporary steam room spa effect. ::-)
 
I don't like spending extra money, either. After years of endlessly filling small room humidifiers, I finally bought a whole house humidifier that's much easier to live with. I use a gallon jug to pour water (with water treatment and bacteriastat) into the base twice a day, change the filter about every 6 weeks. The house fills warmer, and it really does help everyone's breathing. It's one of my better purchases from last year, I'm very happy with it.
 
Plus converting water to steam does not come without cost. To convert 1 gallon of water into steam would be stealing probably between 8000-9000 btu's from your stove.
 
bobdog2o02 said:
a pile of sediment placed straight on the stove, calcium, iron, etc...
Click to expand...

We have a cute green-finish kettle we had on the woodstove insert, it worked well but got all crusty with deposits, now I'm not sure if I could clean it with sandblasting. Wouldn't want that on my Harman.

Now, maybe if I had it suspended on a hook in the airstream of the pellet stove's output vent...
 
tiger said:
We have a cute green-finish kettle we had on the woodstove insert, it worked well but got all crusty with deposits, now I'm not sure if I could clean it with sandblasting. Wouldn't want that on my Harman.

Now, maybe if I had it suspended on a hook in the airstream of the pellet stove's output vent...
Click to expand...

It would still leave the dissolved solids behind. CLR will probably safely remove it.
 
HP52NOVA said:
I got this installed 4 years ago and never looked back. Worth every penny.

http://www.aprilaire.com/whole-house-products/whole-house-products/humidifiers/model-800

it seems that adding the pellet stove to my house this season made things even dryer - so its working extra this winter!
Click to expand...

All good if you have good, relatively mineral free water (which most well water isn't). I could destroy that unit in a week. I prefer a stand alone unit I can fill with city water I get from work.
 
I have city water but our old iron delivery pipes and high lime content wreaks havoc around here.
 
bobdog2o02 said:
I have city water but our old iron delivery pipes and high lime content wreaks havoc around here.
Click to expand...

An alternative would be rainwater/snowmelt collection, something I do for washing cars and farm equipment in the warmer months. You could put a collection barrel (or tote) in a heated area to keet the rainwater from freezing and use that.
 
SidecarFlip said:
All good if you have good, relatively mineral free water (which most well water isn't). I could destroy that unit in a week. I prefer a stand alone unit I can fill with city water I get from work.
Click to expand...

This is not correct for this product. I have town well water and its full of minerals. This unit, as opposed to others of its kind, has an internal and replicable canister you just change every year, no hassle. when I change it and the end of the heat season, its almost completely full of sediment. the replacement takes 5 minutes and the canister is $60. We get automated RH level clean steam all over a 5000 SQF house with no issues. Brilliant product and by far superior to any standalone humidifier. it will work fine with any kind of water, you may need to replace the canister more often.. As I said, I run it for over 4 seasons now and its running strong - pretty much hands free.
 
Last edited:
HP52NOVA said:
This is not correct for this product. I have town well water and its full of minerals. This unit, as opposed to others of its kind, has an internal and replicable canister you just change every year, no hassle. when I change it and the end of the heat season, its almost completely full of sediment. the replacement takes 5 minutes and the canister is $60. We get automated RH level clean steam all over a 5000 SQF house with no issues. Brilliant product and by far superior to any standalone humidifier. it will work fine with any kind of water, you may need to replace the canister more often.. As I said, I run it for over 4 seasons now and its running strong - pretty much hands free.
Click to expand...

Interesting concept (I read the literature btw). I bet it's a helluva lot more expensive that the Honeywell Quiet Care I have that does the job for us and it looks as though the 'cannister' is expensive too.
 
Sticker shock....$1600 bucks for the Aprilaire (not installed, installation extra) and 65 bucks for a cannister. I can lug home a pond full of water and buy a dozen or more Honeywells for that.

Not demeaning it, it looks turnkey and nice but it's outta my league price wise.
 
The need for a humidifier is usually a sign of other problems like a leaky house, although quite common. Normal living like breathing, bathing, cooking etc provides enough moisture for a home. Humidifiers are often an easier fix than fixing a leaky home. Fixing the leaky home will solve other problems though. If you get a whole house humidifier don't let the installer use a self piercing valve. They will leak or become stuck. Have them install a soldered ballvalve. A properly installed steam humidifier will usually perform best with Aprilaire probably the best choice. Try to stay away from a "float" style because they can easily become stuck and flood the area. Also they need to be drained properly so they don't freeze and backup. A wholehouse humidifier should also be tied in with the fan so it can run by itself and not only when the heat is on. Lastly there are a lot of thoughts about tieing in to the hot or cold water supply as far as cost and efficiency are concerned.
 
SidecarFlip said:
Sticker shock....$1600 bucks for the Aprilaire (not installed, installation extra) and 65 bucks for a cannister. I can lug home a pond full of water and buy a dozen or more Honeywells for that.

Not demeaning it, it looks turnkey and nice but it's outta my league price wise.
Click to expand...

Yes, its is costly. But you can get it for $700 on amazon if you can do the install yourself. With PRO install, your looking at about $1500-$2000. This depends greatly on the size and needs of your house. There is no way, in my case, that a standalone one would address our needs - given the size of our house, local climate and heating type. if a standalone works for you, then there is nothing wrong with that!

There is somewhat of ROI here, as having more RH in the air had allowed me to drop our overall tsat temps by 2-3 degrees, so we burn less, etc. but the main thing is the house is much more comfortable - no static shocks, nose bleeds, etc.
 
pageyjim said:
The need for a humidifier is usually a sign of other problems like a leaky house, although quite common. Normal living like breathing, bathing, cooking etc provides enough moisture for a home. Humidifiers are often an easier fix than fixing a leaky home. Fixing the leaky home will solve other problems though. If you get a whole house humidifier don't let the installer use a self piercing valve. They will leak or become stuck. Have them install a soldered ballvalve. A properly installed steam humidifier will usually perform best with Aprilaire probably the best choice. Try to stay away from a "float" style because they can easily become stuck and flood the area. Also they need to be drained properly so they don't freeze and backup. A wholehouse humidifier should also be tied in with the fan so it can run by itself and not only when the heat is on. Lastly there are a lot of thoughts about tieing in to the hot or cold water supply as far as cost and efficiency are concerned.
Click to expand...

I never heard about the notion of a leaky house causing the need for humidity. if fact, I always believed it is the exact opposite - the more tight is your house, the more wood products you have (floors, furniture, etc.) and the more electric heat you use (a heat pump dehumidifies on heat mode) - the more RH you will need to add. A "leaky" house will be cold, drafty and suffer from low RH during the winter. Its the well insolated house, with outside air barley comes in and is having all the RH sucked out of the air that need the additional humidity. The problem, as I see it, is not that the humidity is escaping, is that it either cannot come in (home too tight) and/or being taken out actively by heating - then you need something to add RH to be more comfortable. I am missing something here?

Also, the hot water vs. cold question only applies to the evaporative types of whole home humidifiers - as far as I know - for steam, you always use cold.
 
A humidifier is more times than not a band aid. The reason for a dry house is usually the house drawing in cold dry air from outside. RH is relative and as the air warms the RH goes down. Warm air can hold more moisture. Example: it may be 33 degrees outside and 50% humidity and 70 degrees and 35% humidity inside. I dont have a psychrometric chart handy but there is prob more moisture inside. Again daily living for most being bathing, cooking even breathing raises humidity in a home unless it is lost. A lot of people think they have a "tight" house. Unless they had a blower door test done to prove that I would be suspect. Also there is no such thing as a dry heat source. The only differences between a forced air furnace and a steam boiler for instance is that the airflow can help to draw in more cold dry air. The same problem that we are talking about here. And yes the hot-cold water supply question goes to bypass evaporative humidifiers.
 
Also a heatpump dehumidifies as does an ac in cooling mode. I do not believe that a heatpump dehumidifies in heat mode. The only way a heatpump could do that is in defrost mode. Which is cooling mode with heatstrips activated. Technically it would be heating with a dehumidifying effect. Some heatpumps have a dehumidify mode but that is a cooling mode on very low such that it won't effect the temp that much and it may or may not have heat strips.
 
HP52NOVA said:
I never heard about the notion of a leaky house causing the need for humidity. if fact, I always believed it is the exact opposite - the more tight is your house, the more wood products you have (floors, furniture, etc.) and the more electric heat you use (a heat pump dehumidifies on heat mode) - the more RH you will need to add. A "leaky" house will be cold, drafty and suffer from low RH during the winter. Its the well insolated house, with outside air barley comes in and is having all the RH sucked out of the air that need the additional humidity. The problem, as I see it, is not that the humidity is escaping, is that it either cannot come in (home too tight) and/or being taken out actively by heating - then you need something to add RH to be more comfortable. I am missing something here?

Also, the hot water vs. cold question only applies to the evaporative types of whole home humidifiers - as far as I know - for steam, you always use cold.
Click to expand...

It is the right notion, and a pretty widely expressed one.

Humidity doesn't just disappear in a tight house - where does it go?

Very low humidity in winter time is a pretty sure sign the building envelope is not tight. Dry outside air comes in, humid air goes out. Best way to fix low humidity is good air sealing. As you mention yourself - A "leaky" house will be cold, drafty and suffer from low RH during the winter.
 
Well, I don't believe my 110 year old farmhouse is doing to get any 'tighter'. It is what it is. I'll keep pumping the moisture in because I don't like static electricity or bloody noses either.....
 
  • Like
Reactions: bobdog2o02
Unless you wrap the house in shrink wrap just opening a door to go in or out allows moisture to escape. Typically it's extremely low RH in the winter, outside and any house will aspirate a certain amount of humidity no matter what you do.

Me, I'll keep humidifying.
 
HP52NOVA said:
I never heard about the notion of a leaky house causing the need for humidity.
Click to expand...
Sorry, but you are precisely backwards here. The more "leaky" your home, the faster it exchanges air. Colder outside air holds less moisture, and when pulled inside and heated, indoor humidity drops. Just physics, man.
 
poop happens......
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Similar threads

P
Dodging a bullet with my heating system
Replies
0
Views
955
The Boiler Room - Wood Boilers and Furnaces
peakbagger
P
webfish
  • Locked
General GLOSSARY OF COMMON HEARTH AND HEATING TERMS
Replies
0
Views
7K
Articles
webfish
webfish
webfish
  • Locked
Pellet Stoves/Corn/Biomass CONSUMERS GUIDE TO PELLETS PART ONE
Replies
0
Views
7K
Articles
webfish
webfish
S
  • Locked
Modified the trivet on my Napoleon 1900P
Replies
26
Views
5K
The Hearth Room - Wood Stoves and Fireplaces
ScotO
S
Top Bottom
Back