1800 sq ft townhome - bypass humidifier or steam humidifier with forced air heat?

[cardinal43]

Have forced air heat in a 2 year old townhome. Should I install a classic bypass humidifier or go for the honeywell tru steam humidifier? Any other input would be appreciated. Can't survive another winter without humidifying this place!

 

[yamahauler]

I put in the honeywell and it worked well. Problem I have is that you also have the air exchanger on which is trying to take humidity out. So you are putting humidity in, then it is trying to take it out, so I couldn't win. Plus, with the humidifier on, it is too cold out and you can't control it fast enough so in the morning, you'd have 3"+ of ice buildup on the bottom of the windows. I just boil water every now and then and that seems to do OK.

 

[scott_l]

cardinal I don't want to hijack your thread but I have an additional question to ask regarding this topic. I was told that adding a humidifier to the duct work is bad because it forces extra moisture into your duct work that can accumulate in the duct work seams/bends and want not. Then mold can possibly grow in thouse areas plus the extra moisture in the duct work will hold extra dust in the duct work.

I am personally using a small portable until that we randomly move around the house (in the winter we will use 2 gal of water a day)

What the thoughts on the moisture in the duct worK?

 

[scott_b]

I have used an Aprilaire bypass humidifier with a temp compensating control. It automatically adjust the humidity based on outdoor temp.

This is the one I have
http://www.aprilaire.com/index.php?znfAction=ProductDetails&category=5&item=600

As far as the concern over moisture in the duct I would not be worried about that. Your duct work should never be colder than the dew point and even if it was the heat and airflow from the furnace will dry that up in a hurry. The humidifier is not dumping water in to the air flow, just moister air.

 

[mjkaliszak]

I don't see any problems with my ductwork & whole house humidifier. I run it in the winter. Its an april air 2000 series, about 10 yrs old. I run it at 35%-45% which is max but to be honest with you can't tell much of a benefit other than .... ( i have 1 and replace the filter every season. In my basement which is a 3rd finished floor ( W/O ) it is always dry down there and I have a stand alone unit I use in addition ( since I fall asleep on the couch ) and don't want to wake up with my tongue dried like a desert. In my utility room I have a dehumidifier running for other reasons all year long.
Everything kind of works, i just would love to a zoned by floor heating, cooling, & humidifying system.

But to be honest the best results are to ( for me ) have an independent cool mist humidifier in the area that you spend the most time in. They are cheap and the only drawback is the constant filling up with water.

 

[MZEMS2]

We have really good luck with a free standing humidifier near our living room. It puts about 3 gallons of water in the air a day, so yeah, filling it all the time gets old, but it beats hacking and coughing with dry skin all winter. I thought about adding the aprilaire system as well, but it just hasn't been in the budget.

 

[cardinal43]

Thanks guys for the replies. A bypass unit is about half the cost installed. About 500 for an aprilaire bypass unit and about 950 for a honeywell trusteam installed. I have guitars in the house so I need to keep the house humidified this winter.

Unless anyone has any other strong opinions I'm thinking bypass is the way to go. Yamahauler - sounds like trusteam worked well, but I'm not hearing that it works marvelously better than bypass so why spend the extra money, right??

 

[cardinal43]

Just saw the latest replies. I hear ya. I have been filling up the room units for the past two years. I am hoping I can get away from that with a whole-house setup....hopefully.....

 

[peter]

Go with the aprilaire 600 bypass. They work great have simple design with only a few parts. Change the filter every fall you be fine. The true steam cost more, has more parts and does the same thing in the end as the aprilaire. I am a hvac guy and I have the aprilaire's in my house. The most common thing I see with humidifiers is they where not installed right "mainly misplacement of humidistat", causing people to be non belivers in them. Feel free to contact me if you have any questions.

 

[highhertel]

If you have a good quality double or triple thermo-pane window throughout your entire house, and the house is properly insulated, there should be no reason to humidify the air unless you use a wood burning fireplace that is used daily. Fireplaces pump dry air into the house, causing wood floors and furniture to contract.



HH

 

[cardinal43]

Thanks guys. Good feedback all around. I am going to go with the Aprilaire bypass unit since I have some new guitars that I don't want to worry about warping. For what it's worth, I just spoke with my hvac guy and (at least he is being honest) the distributor he works with just stopped selling the honeywell trusteam because so many people were having issues. SO, he said "as much as I think we could've been successful with proper installation, I can't recommend the honeywell trusteam." He said his personal opinion was that the trusteams probably weren't installed right, but since he cannot be sure, and since his distributor is no longer selling them, he recommends the aprilaire for about $500 installed.

 

[yamahauler]

@ Cardinal, yup, wouldn't spend the extra $.

 

[woodey8]

Cardinal ,go with the bypass unit replace the filter every year. Also not sure if you have a basement but I installed my humidistat down there. It works great for me only on the coldest days of the year do i notice moisture on the windows upstairs. I now turn it down if I see the arctic air coming in and then go back to around 40-45% in the basement. Upstairs will be higher from cooking,showers, and weather outside. I'm just south of chicago.