# Humidifier



## Drucifer (Feb 12, 2009)

I'm looking to get a whole-home evaporative humidifier and a room one for my master bedroom. Not those mist crap ones.

Right now, my new home is 31% in my LR. That's bearly in the acceptable range, and with me having past nosebleeds issues when my nose dries out for too long that's too close for me.

Anyone here familiar with evaporative humidifiers?

Anyone see a Black Friday sale for one?

Are any of them now smart?


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

Drucifer said:


> I'm looking to get a whole-home evaporative humidifier and a room one for my master bedroom. Not those mist crap ones.
> 
> Right now, my new home is 31% in my LR. That's bearly in the acceptable range, and with me having past nosebleeds issues when my nose dries out for too long that's too close for me.
> 
> ...


Does your home have forced air heating and cooling?

Rich


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## Drucifer (Feb 12, 2009)

Yep! A heat pump. 

BTW, this is my first home with a heat pump.


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## lparsons21 (Mar 4, 2006)

My brother’s house has one and he likes it. But he says you have to be pretty pro-active with it to ensure the calcium buildup doesn’t get out of hand. It is an older unit but works fine other than that.

The house I bought in March is my first one with a heat pump, I rather like it. My electric bill is low (sub-$100/month) so far. I’m curious how well it will do this winter with heating and economy. So far, even with temps in the low to mid 30’s overnight it hasn’t had to kick in the aux heating. One thing I’ve learned is not to use setbacks, set the temp you like an leave it be.


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## scooper (Apr 22, 2002)

My house was originally (1983) equipped with heat pump with aux strips.

In 1997 ( when the old HP died) we put in a new HP, but instead of replacing the heat strips aux, we put in a propane furnace. The heat pump keeps us warm to about 20-25 F outside, depending how warm we want it (68 at the 20, 70 at 25). Electric heat strips will eat you alive once you have to use them - a more modern system can probably do better than I have before it needs to engage them. We discovered the heat pump had died when we had $400 electric bills in January / Febuary. The plus is that when one component goes out, we can run on the other until it can be repaired. Last winter - the circulation fan in the outside part of the heat pump wore out - ran on furnace until it was repaired, this winter - did not have fall maintenance done (mostly clean furnace burners) - used heat pump until they were able to get to us.


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## Cholly (Mar 22, 2004)

Drucifer said:


> I'm looking to get a whole-home evaporative humidifier and a room one for my master bedroom. Not those mist crap ones.
> 
> Right now, my new home is 31% in my LR. That's bearly in the acceptable range, and with me having past nosebleeds issues when my nose dries out for too long that's too close for me.
> 
> ...


If your home has forced air heat, check on an Aprilaire humidifier that connects between the intake and output plenums on the furnace. 3 models available from Amazon Prime. You might also check Honeywell whole house humidifiers.


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## Drucifer (Feb 12, 2009)

lparsons21 said:


> My brother's house has one and he likes it. But he says you have to be pretty pro-active with it to ensure the calcium buildup doesn't get out of hand. It is an older unit but works fine other than that.
> 
> The house I bought in March is my first one with a heat pump, I rather like it. My electric bill is low (sub-$100/month) so far. I'm curious how well it will do this winter with heating and economy. So far, even with temps in the low to mid 30's overnight it hasn't had to kick in the aux heating. *One thing I've learned is not to use setbacks*, set the temp you like an leave it be.
> 
> Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Pro


My first winter here too and I was about to do that - set a lower night time temp. Unlike most old people, I like the cold.

So what happens with different temp settings with a heat pump?


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## Drucifer (Feb 12, 2009)

scooper said:


> My house was originally (1983) equipped with heat pump with aux strips.
> 
> In 1997 ( when the old HP died) we put in a new HP, but instead of replacing the heat strips aux, we put in a propane furnace. The heat pump keeps us warm to about 20-25 F outside, depending how warm we want it (68 at the 20, 70 at 25). Electric heat strips will eat you alive once you have to use them - a more modern system can probably do better than I have before it needs to engage them. We discovered the heat pump had died when we had $400 electric bills in January / Febuary. The plus is that when one component goes out, we can run on the other until it can be repaired. Last winter - the circulation fan in the outside part of the heat pump wore out - ran on furnace until it was repaired, this winter - did not have fall maintenance done (mostly clean furnace burners) - used heat pump until they were able to get to us.


Yeah, a heat pump should could use some idiots lights.

I also got a backup propane furnace and somehow the pilot light already blew out. To see the pilot light you actually got lay flat on the floor and open a small hatch.


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## lparsons21 (Mar 4, 2006)

Drucifer said:


> My first winter here too and I was about to do that - set a lower night time temp. Unlike most old people, I like the cold.
> 
> So what happens with different temp settings with a heat pump?


The default setting on most setups is that if you ask for a temp rise 2 degrees or more, it will kick in the auxiliary heat. Assuming yours is all electric, that means your meter will start spinning much faster and your bill will go up.

That pretty much means that you can only set the thermostat back 2 degrees unless you are fond of high electric bills. I will say that the aux heat feels really good, but I like low bills.

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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

Drucifer said:


> Yep! A heat pump.
> 
> BTW, this is my first home with a heat pump.


You don't have a humidifier on the heat pump...somewhere? The Aprilaire humidifier *Cholly *suggested would be a good choice. I have a Lennox HVAC system with a similar humidifier built in.

Rich


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## scooper (Apr 22, 2002)

lparsons nailed it about the setback recovery and aux heat - Those electric strips will make your eyes spin (if you have that kind of meter). You're basically cranking 11 or more KW to run them - at least twice what the normal heat pump would use. Mine were on a 100 AMP breaker.

Drucifer - you mean they didn't put in an electronic start ? Since my furnace / HP inside is down in the crawlspace, it's a bit of a problem to see it. DO be sure to get your annual service before you need to start using it - cleaning the burners from dirt and rust seem to be the magic keys to a trouble free furnace.


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## Drucifer (Feb 12, 2009)

Rich said:


> You don't have a humidifier on the heat pump...somewhere? The Aprilaire humidifier *Cholly *suggested would be a good choice. I have a Lennox HVAC system with a similar humidifier built in.
> 
> Rich


I wouldn't know where to look? I don't have very good access. It's in a small closet size room. All I have access to is three covers when I open the door. The center cover holds a filter that was clean.

I will email the mechanic I had here about a month ago that I had to check it out.

Email sent.


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

Drucifer said:


> I wouldn't know where to look? I don't have very good access. It's in a small closet size room. All I have access to is three covers when I open the door. The center cover holds a filter that was clean.
> 
> I will email the mechanic I had here about a month ago that I had to check it out.
> 
> Email sent.


Huh. Perhaps humidifiers aren't used on heat pumps? That makes no sense. You would see a box with a copper tube going to it from a water source. You'd see the box has a filter in it for water. If you can't easily see it, it must not be there. I have no idea how hard it would be to put one on a heat pump.

Rich


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## lparsons21 (Mar 4, 2006)

Just like most furnaces, a humidifier is an option for heat pumps.


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

lparsons21 said:


> Just like most furnaces, a humidifier is an option for heat pumps.
> 
> Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Pro


Where would a humidifier be put on a heat pump?

Rich


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## lparsons21 (Mar 4, 2006)

Rich said:


> Where would a humidifier be put on a heat pump?
> 
> Rich


In the path of moving air of course. I've seen them usually in the return air duct close to the furnace itself.

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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

lparsons21 said:


> In the path of moving air of course. I've seen them usually in the return air duct close to the furnace itself.
> 
> Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Pro


Yeah, I get that. I just don't see where that would be in a heat pump. I haven't even seen a HP in years.

Rich


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## scooper (Apr 22, 2002)

Look for your Airhandler ( probably the same location as your aux heat strips).


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## Drucifer (Feb 12, 2009)

lparsons21 said:


> In the path of moving air of course. I've seen them usually in the return air duct close to the furnace itself.


I had my new mech guy over to my new home today and he found what he believes to be the heat pump humidifier, but its wire was cut.

He said he could run a new wire to see what happens. I declined. As I hate holiday surprises.

The heat pump is fairly new [2013], but the people that put it in sure ain't interested in doing speedy service calls on it. When I asked for a service call in September, I was told it would be weeks before they could come.

Between that response and now finding a cut wire, I now have no faith in this heat pump being probably installed. I am going to go with a whole-home standalone humidifier as my fix to my below 30% humidity reading in my living room.


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## droopylee95 (Nov 25, 2017)

Sounds like you need a new tech any hvac tech would know if it was a humidifier or not. It's probably the old one that was hooked up to a previous furnacein the house.
When they installed the new furnace the old humidifier was probably inoperable an homeowner didn'twant it replaced that's why the wires aren't hooked up.
An humidifiers aren't installed in the actual furnace. I usually do bypass humidifiers preferably aprilaire an you install them in the return duct an connect a round duct from the supply duct to the humidifier. 
I'd go with the aprilaire 400 500 or 700 you wouldn't need the crossover duct with 700.

I'd suggest going with one over the stand alone you'll have a more eventually humidified house. But I wouldn't call the guy who thought it might be a humidifiers. 

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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

droopylee95 said:


> Sounds like you need a new tech any hvac tech would know if it was a humidifier or not. It's probably the old one that was hooked up to a previous furnacein the house.
> When they installed the new furnace the old humidifier was probably inoperable an homeowner didn'twant it replaced that's why the wires aren't hooked up.
> An humidifiers aren't installed in the actual furnace. I usually do bypass humidifiers preferably aprilaire an you install them in the return duct an connect a round duct from the supply duct to the humidifier.
> I'd go with the aprilaire 400 500 or 700 you wouldn't need the crossover duct with 700.
> ...


Well said, good post!

Rich


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## Drucifer (Feb 12, 2009)

One thing, how does one adjust the humidity setting of an attached heat pump humidifier?


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

Drucifer said:


> One thing, how does one adjust the humidity setting of an attached heat pump humidifier?


Not sure. I do know the old HVAC system I had couldn't be adjusted for humidity, but the new Lennox system can be adjusted. I can do that thru the thermostat. I'd think that would be the answer, not sure. I do think doing what *droopylee95* suggests is the best way to go. That way you get the right level of humidity in every room of the house. Might cost a bit more than you intended, but in the long run you'll be better off. Where do you spend most of your time? The bedroom or the living room? You'll end up buying a stand alone humidifier for each room, I would think. I lived in a house years ago that had radiators, I suffered with dry skin and nose bleeds until someone suggested putting pots of water on _each _radiator, that worked. PITA, but it worked.

Rich


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## n0qcu (Mar 23, 2002)

Drucifer said:


> One thing, how does one adjust the humidity setting of an attached heat pump humidifier?


With a humidastat that is usually mounted near where your thermostat is mounted.


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

n0qcu said:


> With a humidastat that is usually mounted near where your thermostat is mounted.


Is that what controls my new Lenox system's humidifier? I know the smart thermostat is what is used to set the humidity level and I guess that controls...what?

Rich


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

n0qcu said:


> With a humidastat that is usually mounted near where your thermostat is mounted.


Gave this some thought, I think I had a humidistat on my old system. It was a manual switch that let me change humidity settings. That sound right? If that is correct, I don't see anything like that on my new system. Something has to control the amount of water that's put in the humidifier, right? Can a smart thermostat do that?

Rich


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## Drucifer (Feb 12, 2009)

I took a good look at all the crumple papers I found and established I have the following Carrier equiptment . . . . . 

Furnace 59MN7
Heat Pump 25VNA0
Evaporator Coil CNPVP
Humidifier HUMCCSBP, HUMCCLBP or HUMCCWBP
I didn't find anything on the humidifier in my home, but by its case it must be one of the three above.

I'm getting my HVAC guy to return and rewire the humidifier that has the cut wire and point out the knob that adjusts the humidity.

FTR According to the chart for the humidifier, with the current temp outside my home humidity should be 40%. It is currently 27%.


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## Drucifer (Feb 12, 2009)

Rich said:


> Gave this some thought, I think I had a humidistat on my old system. It was a manual switch that let me change humidity settings. That sound right? If that is correct, I don't see anything like that on my new system. Something has to control the amount of water that's put in the humidifier, right? Can a smart thermostat do that?
> 
> Rich


Do what I did. Go online and see which humidifier best looks like yours at the manufacturer website and download its manual PDF.


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