A Whole-House Dehumidifier Can Assist Your Cooling System This Summer

A Whole-House Dehumidifier Can Assist Your Cooling System This SummerThe humidity levels in your home are important for both air quality and comfort. The optimal humidity level during the cooling months is between 40 and 50 percent, depending on personal preference. If there is too much moisture in your home’s air and its humidity exceeds 50 percent, you could experience discomfort and other issues. To combat high humidity problems in your home, consider installing a whole-house dehumidifier.

How Dehumidifiers Work

As opposed to portable dehumidifiers, a whole-house dehumidifier needs to be incorporated into your HVAC system. They are typically designed to be compatible with forced-air HVAC units. A dehumidifier typically will remove moisture from the air flowing through your system’s ducts as the HVAC system runs.

Whole-House Dehumidification Benefits

  • Less energy use. Excess moisture in the air makes it feel warmer, which results in having to run the A/C more. When you bring down the humidity you’ll likely find that you can raise your thermostat’s settings a few degrees and be just as comfortable.
  • Better air quality. Perhaps most importantly, a dehumidifier will improve your indoor air quality. Humid environments promote the growth of potential harmful microorganisms such as some mold and bacteria. When you get rid of the excess moisture, you prevent the growth and spread of microorganisms.
  • More comfort. A final important aspect of humidity levels is comfort.  When you have high humidity, even running the A/C more won’t help you feel more comfortable. Humid environments leave you feeling sticky and uncomfortable at any temperature.

While your A/C will remove some moisture naturally, it’s often not enough, which is where a whole-house dehumidifier comes in. If you’d like to learn more about installing a dehumidification system in your Kansas City area home, please contract us at Overland Park Heating and Cooling.

Our goal is to help educate our customers in Overland Park, Kansas about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). 

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