Whether it’s a hot, dry summer or a cool, rainy season, we know in the Midwest that high humidity will start in late spring and stick around until cold winter winds blow in. That’s why Dry Basement® Foundation Repair recommends installing a dehumidifier in your home’s basement or crawl space.
Here are four main reasons for running a dehumidifier in your home.
1. Prevent mold
Mold is a fungus that breaks down materials, according to AllergyAndAir.com. It flourishes in moist, damp air where the humidity is 50%-65%. If it grows to large quantities, it can become a health risk, and can contribute to asthma attacks. Symptoms of mold allergies can include eye and throat irritation, skin rashes, sneezing, itchy throat and/or coughing.
2. Improve air quality
Humidity levels help determine the quality of air in your home, as do the amount of toxins that you may or may not be breathing in, according to AllergyAndAir.com. “While there’s no denying that an air purifier is the most effective way to cleanse the air of potentially harmful substances, a dehumidifier does indeed play an important role in improving your indoor air quality.”
This is why Dry Basement® Foundation Repair installs the SantaFe® Filtration System: It is a high-efficiency air filtration system, as well as a dehumidifying system. It uses a two-stage filter:
- A rinse-clean filter for removing large particles.
- An easily replaceable filter which removes mold and dust particles down to 2 microns.
3. Help eliminate dust mites
Household dust mites can also cause allergy-related symptoms and trigger asthma attacks. They grow best in warm, humid areas.
Dehumidifiers lower the overall humidity in your house, helping to eliminate the environment in which dust mites thrive.
4. Keep bugs out
Karl Rowell, Quality Assurance and Safety Manager at Batzner Pest Control, explains, that certain pests love humid environments.
“These include silverfish, millipedes, centipedes and cockroaches,” he says. “In extremely humid cases, mosquitoes and fleas could also start to breed.”
What to look for in a dehumidifier
For basements, we recommend the Santa Fe® – Classic system. This model dries the air in basements up to 2,600 square feet, finished or unfinished.
For crawl spaces, we recommend the Santa Fe® – Advanced II. This low-profile device, especially designed for crawl spaces, dries the air in areas up 6,000 square feet by 3 feet high.
Both systems:
- Can be installed in an unfinished area and ducted to a finished area.
- Automatically empty collected water into the sub-floor drainage system or down an existing drain. If a gravity drain isn’t available, a condensate pump can be installed to remove the water. Either way, there’s no pan for you to empty.
- Use a two-stage filter: a rinse-clean filter for removing large particles, and an easily replaceable filter which removes mold and dust particles down to 2 microns.
- Remove up to 400% more moisture than an average crawl space or basement dehumidifier, without using any more energy.
- Make your heater and air conditioner work more efficiently, since drier air is easier and less expensive to heat and cool.
For more information or to schedule a basement inspection and evaluation, call Dry Basement® Foundation Repair at 816-741-8500 or contact us online to schedule an appointment.