Dry air isn’t great for you or your home.
Air wants moisture, so when it’s particularly dry — for example, during the Canadian winters — the air can (and will) suck water out of whatever possible. This means that dry air can damage your home by pulling the moisture out of things like hardwood floors and the frame of your home.
As a result, the structure of your house could shift leaving you with tiny gaps around your doors and windows causing your heating bill to go up. But adding a humidifier to the mix can ward off the dry air, and keep your house intact.
It’s not just your house that benefits from having a humidifier though, they can also help you by:
- Preventing the common cold and flu
- Staving away dust accumulation
- Keeping your home smelling fresh and clean
- Reducing snoring
Risks of using a humidifier
While there are surely benefits to keeping a humidifier around, there are still some risks involved.
In extreme cases, the excess moisture in the air could cause mold to build up in your home. Not to mention, dirty humidifiers can toss up gross particles in the air that might be bothersome to those with asthma and allergies. Even for those with healthy lungs, the mold or air particles could irritate your respiratory tract.
All-in-all, you want to make sure you clean your humidifier on a regular basis. Many use vinegar as its a natural cleanser and can help loosen any built up residue. Regular cleaning can help prevent bacterial growth. Plus you will generally want to be careful when dealing with water, electricity, and heat.
Types of humidifiers
Not all humidifiers are made equal. The one that you choose will depend on what you’re looking for — besides adding a little humidity to your home, that is. Some use humidifiers for relaxation with essential oils or to simply as an air freshener. There are essentially five different humidifiers to choose from:
- Central: Central humidifiers are hardwired into your home’s heating and air conditioning unit, the benefit being that the moisture is added to the air at the source.
- Evaporator: Like the name says, water evaporates inside the machine, then sends the water vapours into the air.
- Impeller: These cool mist humidifiers add chilled water to the air to not only humidify it but also cool it down.
- Steam vaporizer: Opposite of the impeller, steam vaporizers use a heating element to warm the water before it mists throughout the room.
- Ultrasonic: These humidifiers have an element that vibrates at a frequency higher than humans can hear to distribute humidity into the air.
Eco-friendly humidifier alternatives
Humidifiers aren’t your only option to add moisture into your home when the air is dry. Humidifiers work because they add moisture into the air, but there are a few other options you can go with that don’t require you to buy or install a humidifier:
1. Hang clothes to dry
While dryers are convenient, hanging your clothes to dry inside your house during the winter months can help provide the same benefits of a clean humidifier. It might be annoying because they might take longer to dry, but this can help increase the humidity levels in the room.
2. Houseplants and water vases
Houseplants naturally increase the humidity levels in your home. The big problem is that plants typically don’t thrive in dry environments, so you’ll need another source of water. That said, you could boost it by adding vases filled with water in front of the window that will allow evaporation and improve your indoor air quality.
3. Running the shower
Leaving your bathroom door open while you have a shower can prevent dry air in your home giving you similar humidifier benefits. That said, you want to make sure you only run the shower when you’re using it because wasting water is not an eco-friendly alternative.
4. Using your stove
Your stovetop can be a great source of humidity inside your home, especially if you’re cooking something like pasta or soup. Cooking on a regular basis (like every day) can be a great alternative to warm mist humidifiers, especially if you live in a small home.
Are the humidifier benefits worth it for you?
Getting a humidifier isn’t the right option for everyone. Not to mention you might not need to add one if you have an eco-friendly alternative that works for you. That said, there can be serious health and home benefits for those that use them.
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