Whole house humidifier

The link gives me a server not found error. Other than that here in Canada it is very common to have a humidifier attached to the cold air return plenum by the furnace (forced air heating only). It really helps to reduce the "dry mouth" in the winter,especially at night. By doing that they help to keep you from getting colds as dry nasal and throat passages will pass any cold germs easier. It will also help your furnature and musical instruments from drying out as well. Another thing is that it will make you "feel" warmer as you have less mosture evaporate from your skin.
 
I have a Lennox (April-Aire) installed on the cold air return on my furnace. Not really the ideal situation, as I understand, but the easiest way with an existing furnace. As far as I know, it's better to have it on the warm air side since warm air can hold more moisture, thus increasing the humidity effect. But, it still does help quite a bit even down here in KS! We still use a room size one in our bedroom, though, because the one on the furnace only runs when the furnace is HEATING (keep this in mind), if the fan is just circulating, no humidifier running. Also, mine maxes out at 45%, and that doesn't really seem all that high...especially once it circulates in the house with the dryer air.
 
I have a Lennox (April-Aire) installed on the cold air return on my furnace. Not really the ideal situation, as I understand, but the easiest way with an existing furnace. As far as I know, it's better to have it on the warm air side since warm air can hold more moisture, thus increasing the humidity effect. But, it still does help quite a bit even down here in KS! We still use a room size one in our bedroom, though, because the one on the furnace only runs when the furnace is HEATING (keep this in mind), if the fan is just circulating, no humidifier running. Also, mine maxes out at 45%, and that doesn't really seem all that high...especially once it circulates in the house with the dryer air.

While it is physically mounted upon the return plenum, the humidifier takes its feed air through a additonal ~6" bypass duct mounted on the supply side plenum. Warm air is thereby pushed through the humidifier and in turn fed into the return plenum. A damper is installed in this 6" duct to shut off this bypass in the summer when the A/C is on. Also, you should consider running the fan all the time in the winter as it helps prevent stratification (hot upstairs, cold downstairs). This will also pick up more humidity off the humidifier's pad. However, I wouldn't run the fan continously unless you have a furnace with a two-speed fan or, better yet, the infinitely variable DC motor (on low). Otherwise, if you run the (high speed) fan all the time, you sense the moving air and it will feel cold and is noisy.

I have the Honeywell equivalent of the Aprilaire and it works fine. I replace the pad annually, which is cheap and easy. By all means, purchase the type with the pad that has water flow across it as opposed to the rotating drum style. (The one in the link is the right style). The rotating drum style is highly unsanitary. It might be worthwhile to buy the brand name (Honeywell or Aprilaire) to ensure availability of replacement pads in the future.
 
I have wondered, how much electrical cost in running the fan? As a percentage of running the full cool / heat? I'd like to circulate the air, but it seems like a waste.
 
I have wondered, how much electrical cost in running the fan? As a percentage of running the full cool / heat? I'd like to circulate the air, but it seems like a waste.

I have the infinitely variable (DC powered) furnace fan motor and I can run it very slowly and indiscernably quiet. I think it costs but pennies a day. In terms of reducing stratification, filtering air constantly and adding more humidity (or removing humidity in summer), I think it's well worth it.
 
While it is physically mounted upon the return plenum, the humidifier takes its feed air through a additonal ~6" bypass duct mounted on the supply side plenum. Warm air is thereby pushed through the humidifier and in turn fed into the return plenum. A damper is installed in this 6" duct to shut off this bypass in the summer when the A/C is on. Also, you should consider running the fan all the time in the winter as it helps prevent stratification (hot upstairs, cold downstairs). This will also pick up more humidity off the humidifier's pad. However, I wouldn't run the fan continously unless you have a furnace with a two-speed fan or, better yet, the infinitely variable DC motor (on low). Otherwise, if you run the (high speed) fan all the time, you sense the moving air and it will feel cold and is noisy.

I have the Honeywell equivalent of the Aprilaire and it works fine. I replace the pad annually, which is cheap and easy. By all means, purchase the type with the pad that has water flow across it as opposed to the rotating drum style. (The one in the link is the right style). The rotating drum style is highly unsanitary. It might be worthwhile to buy the brand name (Honeywell or Aprilaire) to ensure availability of replacement pads in the future.

Yes, this is true. However, it would seem to me that putting a small amount of humidified warm air into a cold air return would not be as beneficial as just putting the humidity in the warm air supply to begin with? The humidified slightly warmed return air passes over the heat exhcanger and gets heated which lowers the humidity (I believe). However, I'm not an HVAC expert :scratch2:

Anyway, is this constant fan idea something all furnace fans can do, or does it have to be specifically designed for it? Are you talking a VFD on the motor? In my case, if the furnace burners are not on, the humidifier is not seeing water flow, so I'd just be circulating the house air as-is.
 
AprilAire 550 here. It's on an American Standard "91% plus" central unit.Also an Air Bear filter unit, and the big Englander pellet stove in the basement.1150sq ft basement,1150 sq ft upstairs.
No compaints-guitars stay in tune,all wood and furniture is the stablest it's ever been.Not sure what all is available out there,but mine works good.If you go a new system,get one,and at least the good filter.I want an air purifier unit,I shoulda had them put it in when we did the install.
 
Anyway, is this constant fan idea something all furnace fans can do, or does it have to be specifically designed for it? Are you talking a VFD on the motor? In my case, if the furnace burners are not on, the humidifier is not seeing water flow, so I'd just be circulating the house air as-is.

I just turn the thermostat fan setting to "On" as opposed to "Auto" when I want the fan running constantly. I don't know the details of the motor other than to say my buddy whose company installed it recommended the infinitely variable speed motor (DC vs. AC). It has little toggles (similar to those for setting the codes on a garage door opener) where you can set the low and high speeds of the fan for the best comfort/efficiency. FWIW, the fan rarely kicks into the higher speed.

BTW, even though there's no water flow when the burner's off, the pad remains moist for quite a while. Similarly, for AC operations, the evaporator coils remain cold for a while after the compressor cycles off. I think the big advantage, however, is the reduction of stratification in the 3 story house.
 
I just turn the thermostat fan setting to "On" as opposed to "Auto" when I want the fan running constantly. I don't know the details of the motor other than to say my buddy whose company installed it recommended the infinitely variable speed motor (DC vs. AC). It has little toggles (similar to those for setting the codes on a garage door opener) where you can set the low and high speeds of the fan for the best comfort/efficiency. FWIW, the fan rarely kicks into the higher speed.

BTW, even though there's no water flow when the burner's off, the pad remains moist for quite a while. Similarly, for AC operations, the evaporator coils remain cold for a while after the compressor cycles off. I think the big advantage, however, is the reduction of stratification in the 3 story house.

I will have to look into this. I could benefit as well since we have a 2-story. It's good size...just shy of 2500 sq ft above grade living space. Thanks for the tip! :thmbsp:
 
It's definitely worth it. You can do it yourself if you can do very minor plumbing, electrical, and sheet metal work. You won't even notice the electrical cost.
 
It's definitely worth it. You can do it yourself if you can do very minor plumbing, electrical, and sheet metal work. You won't even notice the electrical cost.

As noted previously by someone else, the additional humidity in the conditioned air will make it feel warmer. With this additional humidity, you can actually dial your thernostat back a degree or two for the same level of comfort. It may well save money in the long run.
 
We bought this one last winter. Doesn't waste water. No filters to replace. Made big difference in the static electricity in the house. We got it at Lowe's or HD. You can order it directly also.

http://www.desertspringproducts.com/desertspring/humidifiers_rotary.asp

jimbofish,
How about installation; did you do it yourself and if so, what was it like? I have rather hard water where I live; is there a way to clean it of hard-water build up?
Thanks for the info! :thmbsp:
Mike
 
Yes I did... not hard with the proper sheet-metal snips. A pair of center-cutting snips and both left and right snips will do the job... around $10 apiece... a cordless drill/screwdriver and a couple of bits. The instructions were clear and they have phone and on-line support too. They give you peel-and-stick templates that you just stick on the ductwork and follow the lines. One large square hole for the main unit, one 6" round hole for the flextube, and a small hole for the humidistat. Our installation was a bit difficult because the furnace is under the basement stairs along with the hot water tank and only accessible from 1 side. Had to work around A/C lines, gas piping, etc that blocked access. :tears: Fortunately there was already an AC outlet there for the wallwart power supply, and the cold water piping to the HWH. :thmbsp: If the furnace had been out in the open, I could have done the installation in an hour or two.

We also have very hard water and that was one of the reasons we went with this brand. We would have been replacing filters or cartridges too frequently. The discs are self-cleaning by design and easy enough to clean thoroughly at the end of the season. If you have a drain nearby, get the Auto-flush kit, which flushes the basin and loosens most of the minerals on the discs. We just use a lawn sprinkler timer that we already had... cheapskate that I am... since we weren't using it during the winter anyway. :yes: Or you can just attach a manual shut off to the drain and flush into a bucket.

Hope this helps...
 
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