High levels of humidity and dampness are commonly associated with mold, so if you want to reduce the chances of mold growth in your home, controlling humidity with a dehumidifier is a common strategy. The key is to get the humidity level below 50%. 30%-50% is ideal.
Although a dehumidifier does not eliminate active mold, it will help to prevent the growth of mold. It can also be a good tool to prevent mold from appearing in the first place. To use, simply run the dehumidifier in the current room that has an active mold problem or is moist for several hours each day.
We suggest keeping your humidity level at 45-50%. You can adjust it slightly based on your comfort level, but keep in mind this is an ideal humidity level for healthy indoor air quality. Avoid mold and mildew by keeping your humidity level at or below 50%.
Keep your dehumidifier set to 30-50% to eliminate excess dryness or moisture. Don't leave your dehumidifier facing a wall (this will block the vents & prevent it from doing its job)
General dehumidifier advice would be to have an ideal relative humidity setting anywhere between 40 & 60%. 100% is saturated air and at 0% you have no moisture. For some reason many customers are using a dehumidifier when there is no real need to do so.
The basement humidity level should vary between 30% in winter and 50% in summer. 25% is too low and can cause skin conditions and peeling paint. Over 60% is considered too high and can lead to breathing problems, mildew, and fungal growth.
Water Vapor
If there are no cold-condensing surfaces and the relative humidity (RH) is maintained below 60 percent indoors, there will not be enough water in those materials for mold to grow. However, if the RH stays above 70 percent indoors for extended periods of time, mold will almost certainly grow.
Should you keep your dehumidifier running all the time? In order to achieve the ideal indoor relative humidity levels of 35 to 50 percent, it is recommended that you run a dehumidifier for 12 hours a day.
A comfortable basement should maintain a humidity level of 30 to 50 percent — however, those may differ depending on your climate.
Mould will easily grow and spread if the right conditions are present. So, dehumidifiers don't kill mould, but they can help to prevent it from growing inside your home by reducing humidity.
However, as an EPA spokesperson flags: “If you already have mold growing, a dehumidifier will not stop it.” That's because mildew and mold will develop within 24-48 hours of water exposure, and it will continue to grow until steps are taken to eliminate the source of moisture, and effectively deal with the mold problem ...
Simply put, dehumidifiers cannot remove mold. The machine is designed to remove moisture in the air. This means that if there is already a presence of mildew in a home or building, it will not be removed just by working to reduce the moisture after the fact.
Set the Right Humidity
To get your manually-controlled dehumidifier up and running, set its humidity level. You want it set at 30 – 50%. If there's too much moisture, you'll get dampness and mould.
The water is drained by gravity alone so for effective continuous drainage the dehumidifier needs to be raised a foot or two above the floor and the hose run to a floor level drain.
A dehumidifier should collect around 10-20 pints a day. However, factors such as relative humidity levels, size of the appliance, location, and temperature can affect how much it collects.
The size of the room, the humidity level, and the extent of the water damage are some of the variables that affect how long a dehumidifier takes to dry out a room. A dehumidifier typically needs between 24 and 72 hours to completely dry out a room.
When a dehumidifier fills up quickly, you may have excess humidity in your home or an issue with the dehumidifier itself. Conversely, a consistently empty dehumidifier is also a sign of system malfunction. If either of these issues persists, repair services or other humidity control options may be needed.
Can I leave the dehumidifier running at night? Yes, we recommend using a dehumidifier 24hrs, however, be aware that there will always be a noise generated from the machine when it is operating.
The World Health Organisation guidelines suggest 21 degrees in a living room and 18 degrees in the bedrooms, falling lower at night and when you are out. You don't need to keep your home at these temperatures all the time, but you should aim to bring it up to these temperatures at least some of the day.
Keep the thermostat at 78 degrees or above. A higher thermostat setting and slightly warmer air temperature results in drier indoor air. In the cooling mode, temperatures lower than 78 degrees generate more humid air and cool indoor surfaces, increasing condensation that breeds mold.
Keeping your humidity level between 30%-60% helps manage the prevention of mold growth. But active mold requires remediation to end the problem and ensure it will not begin to grow again. Mold can develop on wet or moist organic materials in your home within 24 to 48 hours of the moisture exposure.
Many experts would confirm that you need to keep the humidity levels below 60% in the basement to avoid mold growth. Sometimes, you can get away with humidity this high, but you should take it as a cut-off point, and never let it go beyond that.
If your entire home is prone to high moisture levels, you may need to invest in a whole-house dehumidifier. These can be installed in the basement and will help dehumidify the upstairs, and the entire house. Whole-house dehumidifiers are more expensive and much larger than their portable counterparts.
Do you feel like you're never comfortable at home, even though the AC reaches the set temperature? Your home's humidity level may be too high. A home should have a relative humidity of 30% to 60%. Above 60% and you have what's considered “high” humidity.