Duct Mounted Humidifier

[Groves]

Short Version: Tired of Torturing my Nasal Passages. Want to buy a whole house humidifier.


Long Version: You know the drill. Research Amazon, Home Improvement Forums, etc. Rinse. Repeat.

Nothing like real world experiences to fill in the gaps.

Anyone have experience with a whole house humidifier?

Anyone install their own? Can't be that hard. Not really worried about installing it.

More worried about buying a spendy model that actually stinks. That's where you come in, because nothing drives people to root Chiefs like getting screwed in other areas of life.

Does the whole world seem against you? You're the guys I'd like to hear from.

We are cheering your participation in this thread with all the volume our dry, scratchy throats can muster.

I realize the specific models will vary on application.

Do you like yours? Does it leak? How often does your non-pure tap water force you to change the filters?

Do you use a version with the porous wheel?

Does yours have a drain?

Did you upgrade your thermostat to accompany the humidifier?

How often over the life of your humidifier have your cursed out loud at it?

Do you now own a room humidifier because your in-duct humidifier was so lame?

Do you know what humidity is?

Do you grow cacti in your house?

Do living creatures residing in your abode give you crook eye? (a dry crook eye, at that)

Thanks

[dtebbe]

I've purchased (from this link) and installed a couple. I would say you need to be an advanced do-it-yourselfer to do it yourself. You have to cut a couple good sized holes in your airhandler and do some basic plumbing/electrical.

If you've ever installed a thermostat (including wiring it to furnace) you're ok on electrical.

If you've ever installed a icemaker line in a house that didn't have one you're ok on plumbing.

You need to be handy with tin snips and sheet metal to do the air handler work.

Here is the one I've installed:
http://www.iaqsource.com/product.php?p=honeywell_he265h8908&product=110888&category=969

Good luck.

DT

[Bugeater]

Yes, we have one. No, I didn't install it. Better be good at fishing wires and have some sheet metal skills to do the bypass.

Do I like it? I don't think it does that great. I still have dry itchy skin in the winter. But I also run a woodburner as well which sucks the moisture out of the air. I don't know how much of a factor either of them are.

Drain? Yes, it's tapped into the evaporator drain hose. Pretty simple.

Ours has a humidistat. I don't really understand the settings, I just leave it maxed out all the time.

Filter should be changed before every winter. Or at least that's what they told me in school.

Did I cover everything?

Oh, and remember to shut that bypass damper in the summer, that will kill your AC efficiency up to 25%.

[WV]

Looking for some advice here as well.

I've heard that they can cause mold in and make your duct work dirty...any truth to this?

[1ChiefsDan]

We looked at putting one in and were told not to do it. Shortens the life of the duct work?

[Bugeater]

Looking for some advice here as well.

I've heard that they can cause mold in and make your duct work dirty...any truth to this?

We looked at putting one in and were told not to do it. Shortens the life of the duct work?
I'm just an HVAC n00b but I've never heard either of those things.

[GloryDayz]

We looked at putting one in and were told not to do it. Shortens the life of the duct work?

Huh? Source? I'm not sure it's worth the annual sickness associated with not having one. And most house now come with them. Wow!

[1ChiefsDan]

Huh? Source? I'm not sure it's worth the annual sickness associated with not having one. And most house now come with them. Wow!

Source was the HVAC guy working with our home builder.

[GloryDayz]

Source was the HVAC guy working with our home builder.

Wow... I'm going to check with one of the other wrestling coaches (who owns an HVAC company), first I've heard of that..

All I know is when I'm forced to go back to the parents house, it's just brutal without one.. Lips chap in mere days....

[Bugeater]

Well I'll say this much, I would say it's plausible if you had a unit that, unlike mine, was capable of introducing a large enough amount of moisture in the air to cause condensation on the inside of the ducts. That would be bad since darkness+heat+moisture=a haven for mold.

But that would have to be one damn powerful humidifier.

[mikeyis4dcats.]

our old house had one, and I will probably install one here before next winter. I installed the other one, it wasn't bad. You need to be able to determine where it needs to be mounted though, as not all furnaces are installed the same (upflow/downflow, etc). Ours came off the shelf at Home Depot.

They don't affect your ductwork appreciably if installed properly. Make sure that it is wired into the relay, not on a sail switch though, ours was and it was a PITA, and sometimes didn't work if the switch got hung up.

Do NOT get a steam humidifier, those DO damage ductwork.

Oh, and you just want a bypass or wheel model, not a rotating drum. And change the filter each season, they get clogged with lime if you have hard water.

[WV]

our old house had one, and I will probably install one here before next winter. I installed the other one, it wasn't bad. You need to be able to determine where it needs to be mounted though, as not all furnaces are installed the same (upflow/downflow, etc). Ours came off the shelf at Home Depot.

They don't affect your ductwork appreciably if installed properly. Make sure that it is wired into the relay, not on a sail switch though, ours was and it was a PITA, and sometimes didn't work if the switch got hung up.

Do NOT get a steam humidifier, those DO damage ductwork.

Oh, and you just want a bypass or wheel model, not a rotating drum. And change the filter each season, they get clogged with lime if you have hard water.

In doing research some the rotating drums rated highest, why avoid those?

[CoMoChief]

I've purchased (from this link) and installed a couple. I would say you need to be an advanced do-it-yourselfer to do it yourself. You have to cut a couple good sized holes in your airhandler and do some basic plumbing/electrical.

If you've ever installed a thermostat (including wiring it to furnace) you're ok on electrical.

If you've ever installed a icemaker line in a house that didn't have one you're ok on plumbing.

You need to be handy with tin snips and sheet metal to do the air handler work.

Here is the one I've installed:
http://www.iaqsource.com/product.php?p=honeywell_he265h8908&product=110888&category=969

Good luck.

DT

Dude I just swatted my computer screen because of your avatar. LMAO

[mikeyis4dcats.]

In doing research some the rotating drums rated highest, why avoid those?

it's been years since I had looked into them, but as I recall, they work well, but wear out fastest, and tend to be the worst at growing "stuff".

[dtebbe]

Don't worry about mold or fungus on the model/type I posted. The panel (that you replace annually) is treated with an anti-fungal and there really isn't any moisture that stays in that pad. The controller kicks the solenoid on when it calls for moisture, soaks the pad, and then turns off. The air moving across the pad dries the pad pretty much completely in between cycles. When I swap out my pad there is never any sign of anything but lime scale on it.

DT

[Stewie]

I've had a GeneralAire for about 15 years. I had it installed on my old furnace, which has since been replaced. I just had the HVAC guys install it on the new furnace and it's still going strong. It keeps the house humidity in the 40-50% range which keeps things comfortable (no dryness or static shocks).

My humidistat is mounted on the return air duct and I keep it set at 45 degrees (supposed to set to outdoor temp) most of the time. If it gets really cold outside I'll get some condensation on windows. If it's going to be a prolonged cold spell I'll turn the humidistat down.

Not much maintenance. I just change the pad yearly (cheaper if you buy online), make sure there's water flow, and the damper is wide open before each winter.

This is the updated model of the one I own:

http://www.generalfilters.com/products/humidifiers/legacy-series-humidifiers/Model-1042LH-Legacy-Humidifier_PT12.html