Humidity Questions

[bulkhead]

I live in FL were humidity is always a bit higher than most places. I just recently got a little weather gig that show the humidity as well as temp, etc. The humidity in my house runs between 75 and 80. If I open the windows or turn the air on it will drop quickly to around 65. --- yeah.. believe it or not, it's warm enough to run the air and/or open the windows :)

I'm curious, does having aquariums in the house raise the humidity with all the evaporation? Seems like it would, but I'm no weather guy and so far I haven't experienced any fog in the house :P

Anyone that knows the humidity in their house care to share what it runs at and where you live? As well as general thoughts on humidity and it's effects on aquariums.

Thanks,

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[m and m]

Yes it does, I can't tell but my Girlfreind does and she makes me keep a Dehumidifier i think its called in the room.

 

[aalvarado87]

humidity blah i hate florida's humidity. I went to Jackonsville florida and wow i had never felt humidity like that before. I remember showering feeling all nice and clean putting my close on and felt like i didn't towel dry my body it was nuts. To make it worse we were their for a paintball tournament back when the nppl was big and man o man did our paint have trouble we were keeping it in coolers and still having problems.

I have heard stuff about humidity in homes with tanks because of like nails in walls rusting or something like that from humidity i don't know how much truth their is to that but I was told that.

 

[nixer]

i have 10 fishtanks in this one room (kinda large) its 71 degrees with 16% humidity, but i also have hot water heat
oh yea and i have a drop ceiling.

 

[bulkhead]

16%..... quite the difference.

 

[swannyson7]

During the summer humidity, I run a dehumidifier and I'm able to pull a couple gallons each day in the fish room with the LEDs. When I was running halides, my evaporation rate was much higher and I was able to close to 5 gallons each day.

 

[nixer]

yes but its cold outside here also right now
in the summer time im usually about 60% at around 72 degrees

 

[Michael7979]

Yes it raises the humidity in an enclosed house.
That is why some reefers have windows that sweat in older homes.

 

[skinz78]

I recently upgraded my system completely and when I did I opted to not have my sump underneath the tank. I was able to plumb the sump through a wall and place it in a closet behind the tank. This made it nice to be able to work on stuff in the sump but when I do open the closet door it is like opening the door to a sauna. I definitely see a huge amount of humidity in there and I am debating on adding a bath fan just to clear it out.

 

[pickupman66]

while I cannot see the tank putting much humidity in the house, the sump will keep the humidity in my garage way up. it will cause the windows to sweat and it alone keeps the garage a nice comfortable temperature even when cold outside.

 

[gar732]

I recently upgraded my system completely and when I did I opted to not have my sump underneath the tank. I was able to plumb the sump through a wall and place it in a closet behind the tank. This made it nice to be able to work on stuff in the sump but when I do open the closet door it is like opening the door to a sauna. I definitely see a huge amount of humidity in there and I am debating on adding a bath fan just to clear it out.

I thought about doing the same thing but was worried about getting mold in there because of the moisture. Have you had any problems like that?

 

[skinz78]

I haven't had a problem yet because the tank has only been set up for a month now. I definitely can see problems ahead if I don't get a fan in there.

 

[Michael7979]

skinz78-
Yeah I would quickly get an exhaust fan hooked up in there!
It will cause mold to grow and then you have to treat that problem around the tank/plumbing.

 

[btkrausen]

I ran a dehumidifier in my basement for a few days close to my tank, and just found that it dried out the air, allowing my tank to evaporate more water than it normally did. I quickly scratched that idea.

 

[Harry_Y]

I evaporate about 3 gallons a day

It really helps make these NY winters much nicer

 

[bulkhead]

I ran a dehumidifier in my basement for a few days close to my tank, and just found that it dried out the air, allowing my tank to evaporate more water than it normally did. I quickly scratched that idea.

The dehumidifier increased your evaporation?

 

[holdyourlight]

Humidity needs to be kept @ 60 percent max or you are going to have mold issues. trust me i know from experience. Ideal humidity in the household is 30-50%, in FL especially it is hard to keep it in that range, but once you get past 60% you are going to have issues. Exhaust fan is the way to go if you can. De-humidifiers are HUGE energy hogs

 

[holdyourlight]

The dehumidifier increased your evaporation?

Dehumidifiers put off a ton of heat (depending on the model) so that makes sense

 

[bulkhead]

Exhaust fan is the way to go if you can. De-humidifiers are HUGE energy hogs

Right now our outside temps are at a point where we don't need the heat or the A/C on. We open the windows for a few hours a day, some days it's a little to chilly outside to open the windows. Those days my humidity gets to 80. Where would you install these fans in an average house?
Would you exhaust into the attic or does it need to be duct to an outside wall?
I live in a typical 1,800sf house. How many fans do you think would be required?
How would the fans effect heating and cooling the house?

I ask these questions because I've known people that have gone through mold issues and it's not fun....

 

[phi delt reefer]

Right now our outside temps are at a point where we don't need the heat or the A/C on. We open the windows for a few hours a day, some days it's a little to chilly outside to open the windows. Those days my humidity gets to 80. Where would you install these fans in an average house?
Would you exhaust into the attic or does it need to be duct to an outside wall?
I live in a typical 1,800sf house. How many fans do you think would be required?
How would the fans effect heating and cooling the house?

I ask these questions because I've known people that have gone through mold issues and it's not fun....

most modern building codes no longer allow for anything to be vented into the attic - I would assume the same for your area + it doesnt cost much more to vent to the roof; just a little more work ;) You can just keep your upstairs bathroom door open and turn the bathroom fan on in there - same effect. Newer homes usually have a switch in the living room to control the bathroom fan for this exact reason (usually close to the thermostat)

Do you have central air? If so set your thermostat fan to ON (usually a slider switch where options are ON or AUTO) - this will constantly keep air moving through out the home and help equalize things. You can install an HRV if the internal fan isn't enough.