How are the humidity levels in your Edgewater, Maryland, home? If you don’t know, don’t worry. Many people aren’t aware of their home’s humidity percentage. Certain signs, such as mold and mildew, indicate that your home has humidity issues and will benefit from a dehumidifier.
Stains on Your Walls
Two types of stains are problematic: dark mold stains and water stains. Mold loves to grow in humid environments, and the spores it releases are bad for respiratory health. Seeing mold stains means that a colony already has a foothold and indicates a prolonged humidity problem.
Water stains may not mean that you have a mold infestation, but they could suggest that you have a leak somewhere. Water leaking and pooling in dark corners of your home is the perfect breeding ground for mold. In either case, call a home services professional and get a dehumidifier immediately.
Musty Odors
Like mold, mildew grows in damp, humid conditions. While not as harmful to human health, mildew lets off a musty, unpleasant odor, but finding mildew doesn’t always mean you have mold. Mildew’s presence can indicate conditions favorable to mold, so you should act quickly to dehumidify the affected part of your house.
Allergy Issues
You may not see or smell indicators of high humidity, such as water leaks, mold spots, or mildew, but your sinuses and lungs may pick up on the problems first. Are you having sudden allergy attacks when it’s not your allergy season? If nothing has changed in your home cleaning schedule, the culprit might be an increase of mold and bacteria that favor humid conditions.
The best solution for a humid home is a whole-home humidifier. Instead of dealing with dehumidifiers for each room, with reservoirs you have to empty every few days, the whole-home humidifier attaches to your HVAC system. Our service professionals can perform maintenance on this unit when we service your home’s HVAC system. Call our Coastal Heating & Air Conditioning team at 410-919-0110 to learn more about whole-home humidifiers.
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