Cracked, itchy skin, dry eyes … Yup, it’s still winter. And the lack of humidity is really starting to get to us.
While there’s not much we can do about this seemingly never-ending winter, a better understanding of humidity, relative humidity to be precise, can help us better equip our homes for maximum comfort. Air almost always contains some level of water moisture. Think of air like a sponge—it gets bigger in warmer weather mopping up moisture (called water vapour), and smaller in colder weather as it lets moisture out. How much water vapour a given volume of air can hold before it spills out—as rain, fog, dew, condensation, snow or frost—is referred to as the relative humidity. 100% relative humidity means the air can’t hold any more water and it’s going to start dumping out some form of moisture deposit. Cold air is unable to hold much water vapour, so the colder the air is, the drier it is. That means that winter air making its way into your house is going to be dry. And that’s where your whole-home humidifier begins to earn its keep. Maintaining indoor humidity at the right balance is extremely important. If you have too low of humidity then your nose can get dry, your throat may feel sore, and dry air can exacerbate asthma and breathing problems. If your humidity is set too high, then you may have moisture issues on walls and ceilings or condensation on windows—which can lead to the growth of mould and bacteria. Give us a call at 905-451-9081 or send us a message to learn more about our products.