Need a litlte help
 

If anybody owns or has access to a hygrometer (humidity), there is beer and/or ass kissing available to those who could loan it out. Or mushroom frags if you gotta have something to show for it.

In the middle of a dispute and need to take some readings to settle it.

Re: Need a litlte help
 

Josh,

We have two Bionaire instruments that register both temp and humidity. One is kept on the coffee table and the other is in with our ball python. One is older than the other and they look different, but both work well. Rona and Sears might have them, and probably Canadian Tire as well. They were about $30 each.

Don't know if we'd like to lend eithr of them out, because we refer to them all the time to make sure it's not too humid in the condo, but humid enough for the python.

At $30, I'd say buy one and use it all the time.

London Drugs has/had them as well, humidifier aisle.

this is what I have and it works awsome

http://www.radioshack.ca/estore/Prod...roduct=6308152

Steve

Thanks Guys

Steve, thats exactly what i was looking at today. I was hoping somebody would have something a little more "professional".

We're having disputes with our builder about his window installs, and he's been trying to pass it off as humidity from the fish room. Window company came in and got a reading of approx 20% relative humidity. However when they found out they might get stuck with the bill for ripping out all the main floor windows, the humidity level esculated to "severe" and not their problem.

Warranty seems to be taking care of it, and its most definatly not related to the tanks, but it would be nice to supply our own readings so they cant keep passing the buck.

Be going back to radio shack tomorrow.

Josh,

In new construction, houses are sealed much better than in older homes, including around the windows. I would expect higher humidity in a new home than in an older home. It would have nothing to do with window installment. The better the window installment, the fewer air leaks you are going to have, and the higher humidity you will experience.

Personally, I think the window guy is right that the humidity from your extensive fishroom might be contributing to the higher humidity in your home. When you get your new gadget, set it up in your fishroom to get a reading there. I'm going to guess that it will be quite high :eek: That humdity will travel throughout your house, I'm afraid :sad:

If the source of your humidity is from your fishroom, you can turn off or turn down the humidifier on your furnace to counteract the humidity coming from your fishroom.

I am going to disagree here Bev, new homes are designed to deal with humidity better than old homes by far. my older home out here even had a 87% humidity and when I put in new windows, sealed up the house better and added a air exchange unit my humidity went down to 55%.

my new house is even better at 52% and I am evaporating 5 gal a day into the main part of the house. that is how good the newer technology is at removing humidity.

as building codes evolve one of the main goals is controlling humidity to proper levels (between 40 and 60) as excessive humidity can cause sick house syndrome.

I would spend the 20 bucks and take some readings in different areas of the house myself if they said 20% originally and now saying much higher sounds fishy.

Steve

Wow, Steve, humidity at 52% :eek: I consider that to be pretty high, but we live in different climates, so 52% might be fine where you live.

We live in a 1500 sq ft condo with in-floor heating. The highest humidity we've had was 47% during a cold spell (-25 or something) and it felt like it was raining in here. Also, condensation on the windows was so great we had ice on all windows.

Since we have no forced air heating and therefore no heat exchanger, we open the balcony door while the fireplace and a couple of fans are on to remove excess humidity. Do this at least once a day if the weather is cold to get humidity levels as close to 30% as possible, though humidity levels in our condo range from about 32% to 40%.

With high humidity levels, there is always the chance of mold and fungus growth, something we want to avoid at all costs. I'm thinking a home with 52% humidity would be a good place for mold to grow. Has that ever been a problem or concern for you?

My father in law just took a course in house efficiency. One of the topics was humidity in a home.

I was amazed to find out that the magical # is between 40% and 60%.

Too far below and bad things can grow and happen.
Too far above and bad things can grow and happen.

So 50% is actually a great # to have Bev. It's right in the good zone.

The problem with the windows was, during those couple weeks at -30 all the windows in the main floor living room, dining room, and kitchen developed a layer of ice around the casings and glass edges. Think of the layer of silicon youd ring your tub with, only around the glass and the step from the slider tracks to the casings, only the layer of ice was 3/4" thick. No condensation in the basement where the fishroom is, just these windows upstairs.

And for more fun, yesterday when it warmed up, all the casings along the ceilings started leaking and left puddles throughout the house in front of all the windows. Any drywall and insulation in contact with that is now gonna be soaked.

Bev, When they installed the windows they either didnt insulate inside the casings, or packed it in as much as they could and ended up with the same result. The cold is just seeping right through. If it was the tanks it would have completely frosted out the basement windows, which it never did.

Anybody thats been over, would you say this place is humid?

Builder, window installer, and warranty rep are here today, outta be fun.

Jonathan,

You and I live in very similar winter environments. I'm curious about how humid it is in your house and how much ice you get on your windows when it gets cold (-20 and lower).

Also, I ask the same question to anyone else on the Prairies who knows how humid their house is.

Just an aside, when I was growing up we lived in a small bungalo in Edmonton. We had forced air heating. When it got really cold, my parents would turn down the humidifier on the furnace so the windows would not ice up too badly. When they did that, it felt dry in the house. Our skin was itchy and our lips were sometimes cracked. At 35% humidity in our condo, it does not feel dry at all. Rather it feels just about right, with no dry skin or other physical problems.

I track my humidity zealously during the winter. I alsorun a dehumidifier to keep the humidity down a bit. If I don't, I get serious weepage of my windows.

I found that air movement makes a huge difference. Unfortunately windows coverings can make a huge difference too. If you have coverings that actually add to the R factor (or whatever the term is), trapping air underneath them, then humidity buildup can get pretty bad.

Anyhow, my house runs around 50%, give or take. On a cold snap I'll try to get it down to about 35% or so. I can't get it any lower than that.

On an aside, I found these digital hygrometers to be hugely variable. I have two that can read up to 15% apart. And the hygrometer on my digital house thermostat is equally out there. And you get funny looks if you ask the folks at Radio Shack / Home Depot / Canadian Tire / Rona / etc. (all the places that sell these sorts of things) questions about how well they're calibrated, or accuracy or precision. Nothing like spending $70 on a new digital thermostat and have it read different than your $30 hygrometer. Which one is correct? Which one do you take back? And what excuse do you use for returning it? "Um, well it's not really broken, but I don't believe the number it gives me." So you buy another one, throw another $30 at the problem, and gee, it gives you yet-another-wildly-out-there number.

So basically all I can conclusively tell you is that my house is between 20% and 70%. I think.

Hmm..... no wonder it feels like it's raining in here when the humidity is reading at 47%. Could be the hygrometer is out as much as 15% :confused:

Warranty did a reading...38% @ 21'C relative humidity. Specifically stated its not the tanks or the humidity regarding the windows. in his words "i wouldnt want to see it above 40% but this is perfectly acceptable".

Pulled the casings. Gaps and airspaces, not to mention soaking wet. So nice to have a circus in your own home.

This is going to be a long week.

This year we replaced four out of the six main floor windows. Our house was built in 74 so the old sliders were the aluminum which leaked terribly. We also installed a new high Ef. furnace and new hardwood floors. We were told by the furnace installers that we had to put in a bathroom fan right away or we would have way too much moister in the house. Our house has always been humid in the summer time to the point that the carpet in the basement feels wet. We added a dehumidifier and only use it in the summer time. I also keep top glass on the tank so we have little evap from the tank. We were told to keep the house at 45% humidity for the hardwood which has been near impossible. Thourgh the cold spell here in Regina we have had to boil water to keep the humidity at 30%. The only window that ices up alot is the one we have yet to replace. I will have to move the sensor down near the tank to see what its readings are.

Sorry Bev, I can't tell you what it was like before as we never had anything to test for humidity.

Hope you get your windows fixed.

um that health standards for Canada not for where I live. if you humidity is below 40% you should raise it if it is above 60% you should lower it.. anywhere in between is perfect for human health and comfort.

I grew up in Edmonton also so I am used to the dry air in the winter also. when the temp hits -10 there is basically 0% humidity. and even we used to run the humidifier in the winter to maintain at least 40%. If you are getting condensation and such on the windows open the curtains and let the air get in there. even we have to do that here in the mornings. you have electric heat like me so no circulation is a problem but I use ceiling fans to help, I just put them on low so they pull the air up. also I do have a heat recovery unit which I run to keep a constant change of air going in the house.

Steve

Josh,

Sorry to hear about your window problems. They sound severe :eek: :evil: Can you tell if the problem is one of installation or one of poor quality windows, or both!!!???!

I feel a rant coming on... C'mon josh, tell us what you think the problem really is :)

Andy

Andy, you know damn well id take up 40 pages with that. You've heard them in person. (insert machine gun smilie here)

You should see the holes i have in my walls. Finishing carpenter almost made an extra one with his head when we saw what he did :evil:

Bev, its improper installation. Theres spaces surrounding the windows, so no insulation. Just a layer of stucco between the windows/casings and the -30'C outside. When everything thawed, all that ice in the walls melted. Which left us with soaked drywall and insulation, including the second floor master bedroom and bathroom.

Just gotta make it 3 more weeks and warranty steps in and does the repairs personally. No more half assed attempts from the builder.

Edit: I should point out that our family has been in real estate for some 15 years, including property management, renovations, and new homes. We had a trusted builder we worked with but had gone with another, on the word of a friend.

Anyone building a new home, research until you go crosseyed, speak with EVERY previous client of that builders, and do NOT let them intimidate you.

Sorry to hear about that. Dealing with builders can be a pain in the arse. When my parents built their house, the windows in my room were also improperly installed.... you should have seen it, every morning, you would hear a dripping noise, wake up and find yourself standing in a puddle of water. It was unreal, and I didn't have a fish tank in the house yet! Turns out we had the same problem as you... the windows weren't insulated properly enough.

Hope you get your problems resolved asap!

-Rich

Beverly,

My basement is quite humid as that's where the tank room is.
The tank room is kept between 50% and 60% depending on the outside temp/humidity. The rest of the basement in this weather (10 Degrees today) is about 50%. I use a humidifier in the basement to keep the humidity alway's above 45%. That's purly for my fleet of guitars I have.

When it was cold last week the humidifier was on quite a bit to keep that 45% mark in the basement.

The rest of the house is about 10% to 20% lower than the basement.


When I purchased my humidifier mesurer thingy I got the good old fashioned type with the temp/humidity guage on it. I went into the store and compared the 20 or so they had on the shelf and picked the ones that were reading the same.

Oh with regards to the ice question. I have no ice in my main 2 level of my house. in the basement I get a little bit because the humidifier. In the tank room, when it's cold outside, there is always ice or condensation on the window.

I also get condensation on the lino floor that's glued to the concrete :lol:

The mechanical ones do seem to do better at producing consistent readings, but the flip side is they are slow to react to changes, and are not supposed to last very long. That said, I have one that is probably about as old as Canadian Man :razz: and I can still use it to track day to day changes although I don't rely on it to tell me absolute values.