LESLIE: Sue in Wisconsin is on the line with a question about a humidifier. How can we help you today?
SUE: Yeah, hi. Just want to say I love your show.
TOM: Thank you, Sue.
LESLIE: Hey, thanks.
SUE: And I had a humidifier, a little kind of unorthodox one for 10 or 15 years. But now that’s gone and is there any humidifier that the homeowner can put on the furnace?
TOM: Well, not really. I mean they’re not designed for homeowners to install. If you’re super handy, I don’t see why you couldn’t do it. But usually, it involves cutting into the ductwork, getting it set right. There’s plumbing involved and there’s electric involved. If you have an outlet nearby that you can plug it into, then that solves that. The plumbing’s not terrible but you have to have a small water line that goes into it. If you’ve got an old water line that you can tap into, that may not be too bad.
SUE: Yeah. I do. I have both of those.
TOM: And the other thing is, though, that the humidifier technology has changed a lot today. And so the old ones that maybe had that sort of squirrel cage-looking drum that would circle around through a puddle of water, you know, those are really ineffective and they grow mold in there. The new ones – newer ones – that have a trickle-down coil and they can work on humidistats that sense outside temperature, they’re actually computer-driven. They sense outside temperature and inside temperature. They can calculate exactly how much moisture you need.
So there’s a lot of benefits from getting a higher-quality unit than perhaps what you had before. And then, of course, you would have that professionally installed. So, can you do it yourself? Yeah. I would put it in the advanced-DIY category. But if you buy a better-quality one, I think you’re going to get more use and comfort out of it.
SUE: I see. Do you have any recommendations?
TOM: I would take a look at Aprilaire for one. They make a very good one, OK?
Leave a Reply