Are You Getting The Most Out Of Your Dehumidifier

Posted: July 26th, 2009 | Author: admin | Filed under: Home Improvement Articles | Tags: , , , , , , | No Comments »

Cold weather, hot weather sometimes we need a dehumidifier to keep our home comfortable. Tips for saving money at home.

Dehumidifiers are most often used by people suffering with certain allergies as they help to decrease the water vapor in the house and therefore the likelihood of mold developing. Plenty of other useful ways to use dehumidifiers do exist too. Check out some of these little known benefits of having a home dehumidifier:

Protection of mattresses and bedding supplies such as duvets and covers. If you keep a mini dehumidifier running inside of your wardrobe then you can vastly decrease the chances of a damp smell engulfing your clothes. Prevention of the growth of microscopic mildew is also achieved. It is very difficult to rescue a mattress should it fall victim to mildew that has spread to it from bedding.

Do you keep your lawnmower and other tools in a shed when they are not being used? I am willing to place a bet that the answer is ‘yes’. If that is the situation then you need to be aware that although they get protection from outdoor elements like bad stormy weather they do not have any protection from levels of high humidity that sheds and garages are commonly associated with.Running a home dehumidifier can lengthen the lifespan of this equipment a lot by affording them protection from being the victim of corrosion.

This little tip is especially for vintage car lovers, in your car make use of a desiccant dehumidifier and a mechanical dehumidifier in your garage in order to prevent rust and corrosion.

High humidity levels ensures that food decays a good deal faster and is fresh for less time. A nice conveniently small dehumidifier placed in your pantry can maintain your ingredients and home bake freshness and enjoyable for so much longer saving you money. It will also considerabley diminsh the likelihood of fruit flies, pests and weevils from contemplating making your kitchen as their new abode.

Think how dissapointed you would be if some of your most precious belongings fell victim to high humidity levels and the damage they can do. It would be terrible to lose old photo albums, pictures, books and so on that are so often stored in places like basements and attics which are often victim of high humidity. Much annoyance and sadness can be avoided through the use of a home dehumidifier.

Condensation does sometimes damage electrical equipment, this is particularly true in high humidity areas where condensation may form within electrical devices such as: computers, television, laptops and such like. Irreparable damage may be caused if condensation makes its way inside any electrical appliance. How would you feel if you lost all your memory files and files with year worth of pictures and so on, hardrives can be replaced whereas lost memory files can’t. A home dehumidifier will prevent all of the above scenarios.

Are creaking squeaking doors common place in your house? Have they cracked and expanded? Do you possess any other such wooden furniture like tables and chairs that is showing signs of similar warping? All of these problems may well be caused by excess water vapor in the air. Again a home dehumidifier can remedy this situation.

Purchasing a dehumidifier is a relatively small investment a delonghi dehumidifier or an ebac dehumidifier come highly recommended and when weighed against the potential benefits and savings that you are likely to make it becomes quite a simple choice.

HVAC DYI Home Air Conditioning Repair?

Spray Foam Insulations That Is Eco Friendly

Energy Tax Credits

What’s a Good Brand of Furnace Filters?

 Mail this post

Technorati Tags: , , , , , ,


How To Select An Appropriate Dehumidifier For Your Needs

Posted: July 17th, 2009 | Author: admin | Filed under: Home Improvement Articles | Tags: , , , | No Comments »

HVAC  Product Locator


Dehumidifiers are your first port of call for preventing overly humid conditions in your work place or home. Humid conditions can create an ideal breading ground for all sorts of undesirable conditions such as mould, musty smells, rusting and so on. The harmful effects of moisture in the atmosphere can be completely negated through the use of a home dehumidifier. Here is our short buyers guide to getting the best dehumidifier for you:

Firstly a short explanation: if how dehumidifiers work will enable you to gain some valuable insights to allow you to find the best dehumidifier for your needs:

Most dehumidifiers work by absorbing excess moisture and water vapour from the air. They draw in air through a small vent, reduce its temperature fast which make the air condense. A fan then blows the air out of the dehumidifier. The water which has condensed inside then runs off into a water bucket or alternatively it is attached to a hose to drain off elsewhere. The best air dehumidifiers are not however only useful for lowering the humidity level, they are useful in order to:

Save energy– When the air around you is less humid you can feel cool regardless of whether the temperature is warmer, thus saving you on energy billing costs.

Supplement ACs To feel cool two things need to happen 1) cool enough air 2) dry enough air. Often people keep running their AC because the air is simply too must and they will never actually decrease the temperature of the air significantly. The air conditioner unit would naturally become more efficient if you used a home dehumidifier and it would decrease the need for you to keep it operating for long periods of time.

Keeping out the effects of excessive moisture can in the long run negatively effect the structural integrity of your building. Buckling floor panels, crimbling support beams can be very costly to renew not to mention the fact that it may decrease the value of your real estate.

There are a range of different types of dehumidifiers on the market today. most commonly functionality plays a role in their categorisation. The usual categories consist of: commercials, residential and industrial. When deciphering which is the best dehumidifier for you it is worthwhile considering the following elements:

Size: Dehumidifiers are designed in order to remove a  set amount of water out of a set amount of air per day. It is most easy to consider the size of the room you wish to be dehumidified as opposed to the amount of water you wish to have taken out as this is much easier to workout. Often square foot guidelines are provided but even these may be inaccurate because your area depending on your location may have a humidity levels that differs greatly from the average.

It may well be worth buying the next model size up than the guidelines suggest if your room is towards the higher end of the provided scale. This will prevent overstressing your dehumidifier and ensure it’s longevity.

Areas that have very high humidity levels may be served better by commercially sized dehumidifiers. A smaller unit will only have to work harder and for longer and may breakdown a lot more easily because of that. Some dehumidifiers are indeed designed particularly for troublesome areas such as basements, bathrooms and so on.

Lots of dehumidifiers are not meant to be ran in cold conditions so again you should take this into consideration whilst making your purchase, the best dehumidifiers are often fitted with anti-frost sensors so they will turn themselves off if they are getting too cold thus stopping themselves from getting damaged. These are particularly important for areas such as basements and outdoor buildings.

As there are both low end and high end dehumidifiers. The main variances are due to the range of features that are built in to the dehumidifier and the amount of litres every hour they can manage to draw out of the air. What you should try to do is find the best dehmidifier that match up with a list of features and qualities that you should make. Of course shopping around for a home dehumidifier is essential to make sure you are not paying over the odds and get the best dehumidifier (ebac dehumidifiers are highly recommended). Prices can range from $200 to over $1000, so there will be something to suit everyone.

 Mail this post

Technorati Tags: , , ,


Household Air Conditioning Basics

Posted: July 11th, 2009 | Author: admin | Filed under: Home Improvement Articles | Tags: , , , , , | No Comments »

HVAC Products

HVAC is the acronym for the home heating, ventilation and cooling system furthermore it is the reason for upwards of 40% of all household energy consumption. When people use this acronym they are generally referring to the overall feel of your house in terms of temperature, humidity, air quality and so on.

One of the main problems for house dwellers in many places around the world is maintaining the temperature at a reasonable level. This is generally done through the use of air conditioners, home dehumidifiers are also used a great deal but for controlling humidity levels.

Air conditioning systems can have many different features and so therefore they can be compared to each other in various ways, making the selection process a little testing. Here are a few guidelines for choosing an air conditioning unit:

Efficiency, of course get hold of the most efficient air conditioner that you can, this is of course even more important now with the rising cost of household fuel bills. Efficiency can be measured by the amount of energy needed to complete a specific task. A special scale is used by many manufacturers that enables you to compare units, the scale is called the S.E.E.R – scale. This stands for Seasonal, Energy, Efficiency, Rating. The minimum efficiency rating you should be looking for is a rating of level 10 and the scale goes up to 18, the higher the number the better.

Noise levels. Request to see the unit in action before buying. this will allow you to tell if it is too noisy or not. Ensure that you factor in the noise level and consider whether or not it will be tolerable in the place that you are thinking about installing it.

If you are designing a home or planning to move somewhere else then the regional climate will be a major consideration in just how much you have to pay attention to your air quality. It maybe that you require both an air conditioning unit and a home dehumidifier .

Features. There are of course an incredible amount of features that are offered these days. Don’t let yourself fall into the trap of thinking that more features means a better air conditioner. the best one may be very simple looking but very efficient. Therefore go for efficiency over features.

Proper installation is of very high priority when purchasing a unit. A HVAC contractor will often do this sort of work possibly with a builder and it will be their task to produce good air flow around the house. Achieving this is due almost completely down to getting good return air and supply air. This is ensured by the HVAC contractor so make sure you get a good one via recommendation from your local builder or through doing plenty of research.

With the above guidelines in mind you should have no problem finding a suitable air conditioning system and you may well be looking for a home dehumidifier at the same time so make sure you shop around to ensure you are getting a good deal.

 Mail this post

Technorati Tags: , , , , ,


How To Eliminate Household Mold

Posted: July 8th, 2009 | Author: admin | Filed under: Home Improvement Articles | Tags: , , , | No Comments »

So, you’ve been in your new house for a few months already and are nearing the last of the boxes to unpack. You open the door to your cupboard to view the remaining boxes but startled by an unpleasant smell coming from somewhere inside. After some looking about you find it…mould.

There are tons of different types of mold but all of them will thrive in damp moist enviroments that may be moist due to damp surrounding materials, seeping walls, damp fabrics and such like. The area that you stay in is a big factor in your houses humidity level especially in particular seasons or extreme climates. Air dehumidifiers can help in all these cases

Mould can cause allergic reactions in some people and also trigger lung irritability in people who aren’t normally allergic to these things. It can damage anything it is near and start a bad smell appearing which can be ongoing and awkward to get rid of. It could be the symptom of a air moisture problem or a drainage problem.

To tackle mould get a mask and eye shield so that you don’t put yourself at risk of contacting with potentially dangerous mould spores. After removing as much as possible wash to area several times with first soap and water and then either a commercial mildew remover/cleaner and/or one gallon of water mixed with ¼ of a cup of chlorine bleach.

Obviously depending upon the level of damage any damaged materials will have to be replaced and unless you solve the original moisture problem it will most likely need replacing again from further damage.

It might be a good idea to get your hands on a humidity metre which are around 15 dollars, if it provide you with a measurment of 50 or over the you ought to look into buying a dehumidifier. On the market today there are a wide range of dehumidifiers for sale starting from the $100 price. Here are a few pointers to remember when selecting a dehumidifier: If you require a dehumidifier in more than one room then consider buying a whole house dehumidifier rather than a single room dehumidifier. It will do the job better keep working for longer and on top of that you won’t have to fork out for the maintenance costs so often.

Also don’t forget that if you will be running your home dehumidifier in particularly cold places that it has an auto-switch off when it starts to freeze. If it doesn’t have one then it will become damaged if you run it and it starts to freeze. Make sure you check that the noise level is not too high before you buy anything.

Further more it may well be worth getting a trusted builder/contractor to take a look at the area to check for possible causes and remedies of the moisture problem. Also get the advice of a family doctor about possible allergic symptoms and other risks that you may be exposed to so you are aware of all of the dangers.

Despite the cost of doing the above in the long run the value of your house and the health of your family should be your priority and taking a few simple steps such as buying a home dehumidifier (ebac dehumidifiers are particulary highly recommended) would be well worthwhile in the long run.

 

 Mail this post

Technorati Tags: , , ,


How To Get Rid Of Musty Household Smells

Posted: July 4th, 2009 | Author: admin | Filed under: Home Improvement Articles | Tags: , , , , | No Comments »

Musty odor is clearly not a desirable quality for a house, it tends to give the impression of a dirty place and whilst it might actually not be noticeable to the owners it will almost certainly be so to visitors creating entirely the wrong sort of impression. What is more musty odors may indicate the presence of mould which in turn can kick off allergic reactions.

Musty odors can stop and start again varying upon the time of year and the climate. In the summer for example when the air conditioning is left running a great deal the air flow may eliminate the musty odor, however the cause may remain to come back and haunt you in the darker seasons. Home dehumidifiers can definetely help here.

High humidity is a likely cause of musty odors that may well stem from a basement that has cracks in its walls which allows moisture to seep in ot it may come simply from condensation. If you want to stop musty odor you really need to put a stop to the cause of the smell but there may well be more than one cause. The following will enable you to track down the cause of the problem most quickly:

To prevent condensation on water pipes which can be a source of moisture particularly in winter months is to cover the water pipes with an insulated pipe wrap, these are relatively cheap and are an easy w3ay to prevent moisture dripping of the pipes and onto the floor.

Sometimes an entire house can be affected by an odor that has risen from the basement and into the entire house but was originally caused by a lack of air flow and high humidity in the basement. Installation of a basement dehumidifier can prevent this problem from occurring and remove excess moisture, just make sure you have a drain available in order to take away the excess water gathered by the air dehumidifier otherwise you may have to purchase an air dehumidifier with a hose pipe and pump.

Double check to make sure that water thought to be from condensation is not really from tiny holes in water pipes. This problem can be solved most simply by attaching a pipe leak clamp if the hole is very small an epoxy compound can solve the problem with little problem, ask your local building supplier about both of them.

A problem of greater seriousness is when you have weeping walls that permit water to gain entry from the outdoors by seeping through them. The following process should help eliminate moisture coming from weeping walls:
Ensure a dry forecast.
Run home dehumidifiers and fans to dry the walls.
Using a brush with strong stiff bristles scrub the weeping areas with trisodium phosphate, which can be found at most regular home improvement stores and will clean the surface for you, allow the scrubbed walls to dry again completely.
Following the manufacturers instructins use latex concrete sealer to fully seal the walls.
This method alone will normally stop future weeping, if not then it is time to call the professionals.

Wall cracks can also be the cause of moisture entering a house, this is possible in new houses too. The cracks may be classed as active and likely to widen further or hopefully inactive and not likely to widen. Most cracks in walls are not difficult to repair with ready mixed concrete and a knife.

If you take the advice provided and direct it towards your particular difficulties then there is a high chance you will solve your musty household smell problem permanently. Remember that home dehumidifiers and portable dehumidifiers can help considerably

 Mail this post

Technorati Tags: , , , ,