Humidifying my house

[Ancient Iron]

I would like to know how to humidify my home. It is 1450 sf. ranch and is heated with oil and forced hot air. This house is very dry in the winter months, and sleeping is a choice of staying warm or actually breathing at night.
Is there a way to humidify the house that will work with the heating system safely without fear of mold or legionnaires disease in the duct work.
There was a humidifier that was tapped into a water pipe in the basement, but has since been removed before I owned the house.
Some time in the future I would like to modernize the heating system and take advantage of the newer technology.

 

[brewchief]

Post a couple pics of your furnace and surrounding ductwork if you can. There are multiple choices, the simplest is a bypass humidifier, Aprilaire 600 is one we install tons of that work pretty good with minimal maintenance.

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[trashmanssd]

I am not a fan of the whole house duct work attached systems because out of sight is out of mind and can end up festering. I have used many ultrasonic units but find those are a pain to keep clean also. This year I went to this (link below) and I love it you can add a bactericide and change the wicks once or twice a year.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00O0WOO74/?tag=atomicindus08-20

 

[justinjoyal]

A properly installed steam humidifier will work great.

 

[SALIV8]

We use a large room humidifier with a fan and pad that sits under the fan. We fill it as needed and add humidifier bacteriostat with every fill. It handles our 1200 sq ft very well as it is placed outside the bedrooms.

I clean it (some mineral buildup that's all) and replace the pad every year.

 

[theoldwizard1]

Ultrasonic humidifiers are great, but you have to use distilled/reverse osmosis water. The smallest amount of minerals in your water will lay down a layer of dust in 24 hours that you will not believe !

 

[BillK]

AI,
This has been discussed several times here. Personally I tried two different types of on the furnace humidifiers when our house was new. Neither of them seemed to do much good, probably because the furnace does not run that often and I did not want the fan running 24/7.

We bought a Sears console humidifier and it has worked great for almost 30 years. Yes you have to fill it regularly when it is cold out but it really no big deal. We use a bacteriostat / water treatment and change the filters every year. Other than changing the filters I have had to do absolutely nothing to it. Our house is 2000 sq ft with gas forced hot air heat.

 

[930dreamer]

We use a cabinet style unit that sits in the family room.

 

[yeldogt]

With a ducted system I have typically used the Lenox bypass type -- the unit sprays fresh water onto a metal media. The media does need to get cleaned or replaced every year .. same with the nozzle. This type uses the hot air after the furnace to pick up the water and puts it back into the system.

The foam type work but require more maintenance -- when working they pull through plenty of water to keep them fresh ... the problem is most people don't clean them enough and they get a mess.

 

[dave*99]

I had the plenum mounted spinning media drum type for many years. It was a chore to maintain. But it did humidify. It always looked nasty inside.

About 10 years ago I replaced it with an Aprilaire 600. It is easy to maintain. I bought a case of the replaceable internal water panels. I change the panel every year. There is no standing water in the unit so I don't see a way for bacteria to accumulate.

The humidifier has a humidistat to control it. It is mounted in the air return duct by the humidifier.

But after I got a Honeywell Red Link thermostat, I was able to wire the humidifier to the thermostat. Now I can set the humidity level on my thermostat. It does require extra wires to the thermostat for that capability.

 

[rust in the eye]

Also happy with my Aprilaire 600 bypass.

 

[DB2]

I (DIY) installed an Aprilaire 800 Steam Humidifier when we had a very leaky 125 yr old 1500 sf house. It worked amazingly well for the 4 years we had the house, and with none of the "grunge" issues you can get with the bypass/ultrasonic humidifiers. I never had to change the canister on it either.

The install was pretty simple; I did it in a weekend. I put the steam tube in the return air plenum of the furnace. I ran a new 20A 240V circuit for it and then piped in water/drain plumbing. I did use an Aprilaire thermostat, which made controlling it very simple. I also subsequently installed an Aprilaire whole house dehumidifier. Was very happy with the whole set-up for year-round comfort.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B005DS4YY2/?tag=atomicindus08-20

 

[firebirdparts]

I have an April Aire 800 and it’s the 4th steam humidifier we’ve had. I am thinking it may be the one that really lasts. It works. They traditionally have been difficult to keep operating. I could have still had the first one if parts were available.

 

[greenskeeper]

el cheapo way is a small dish near each register, as the hot dry air flows it will pull water from the dish humidifying the air.

 

[randyandrewsberg]

Aprilaire 800 is the best, true steam. Not too hard to install DIY, even managed to hook it up to my existing Trane thermostat. Set your humidity level and it does the rest.

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[machsnell]

I would also like to have one but I am weary of installing in my 60 year old ductwork. Much of which is under our house slab. There is no basement in the main house. I am scared to see what is in there.

I was looking for one that could be tied I to a small water line like one to your ice maker. It would need to have a float valve so it would fill in it's own. I am too lazy to fill the water daily. I keep a pot on the wood stove but it isnt nearly enough.

So far I couldnt find one that had a valve that allowed it to fill autonatically.

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