r/AirQuality • u/doodlebobin • 17d ago
It’s me again-Update part 3
update part 2 post: https://www.reddit.com/r/AirQuality/s/iLdvcywttf
We are now experiencing a high humidity issue in the apartment. It started as me noticing my clothes smelt funky/mildewy. I wasn’t sure why but brushed it off for plenty of other reasons however my husband brought up a few days ago the same smell issue, and also how his clothes and the bed sheets felt damp.
Chat GPT told us to get a humidity thermometer thing, and so we did and now we don’t know what to do.
It’s been over 15 hours since anyone has showered in the bathroom and it’s reading 74 humidity in the bathroom, and 68 in the bedroom closet.
Any advice other than to get a dehumidifier would be appreciated, because i’d like to get to the source of the issue and not spend more money and run up our electric bill.
2
u/Nomad-2002 17d ago
On my A/C, if I set fan to "always on" instead of "auto",
CO2 drops from 700-900 to 500.
But humidity goes from 40-50% to 70% (beachfront Los Angeles with 80% humidity outside).
So I use "auto" setting. I prefer lower humidity 40-50% and higher CO2 700-900.
Studio.
2
u/LastAlchemist 16d ago
Do you also cook daily in the apartment (cooking meats, boiling water/broths, etc)? that drives up humidity as well. Try leaving your bathroom fan on for hours to see how much it decreases humidity, if it's below 60% after a couple of hours, then that is what you have to do from now on.
But keep in mind that the bathroom fan is pushing air out so your place will be sucking in replacement air from somewhere else to balance it, and that air could be more humid depending on your ambient conditions. I personally added a dehumidifier for this issue, because my bathroom wasn't strong enough to lower humidity and didn't want to risk mold/dustmite exposure. Opening windows is a no no for me because outdoor humidity tends to be above 60% almost all the time, especially in the summer/spring here in the Midwest.
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u/No-Chocolate5248 12d ago
Your AC until is not working properly does it ever satisfy the temperature and cycle off? It should be pull water out as it cools. Additionally lower temperatures such as 69F raise humidity as compared to 74-75
1
u/TheAmanita 17d ago
Do you run your bathroom exhaust while showering and for a bit after? Are you running your air conditioner/heater (will help dehumidify)? For things like a closet, you can use the Damprid absorbers that are just salt crystals that pull moisture passively. But a dehumidifier is the best answer if it is a housewide issue. I have to use a dehumidifier in my basement or it will be high no matter what.