How To Choose The Right Dehumidifier To Help Prevent Mold Damage In Spokane

8/9/2017 (Permalink)

Prevent Mold Damage

As a homeowner, it is important to be aware of the risk of mold. Mold is a fungus, and the spores eat into organic materials in your home and bring a real danger of damage to your home and belongings. A home that has mold might smell musty, and the patches themselves are unsightly. Fungus in the home can even cause health effects.

Humidity is a key factor when it comes to mold damage in your Spokane home. Humidity means the amount of moisture present in the air. As mold loves a moist environment, high humidity increases the risk of fungal growth.

One way to reduce moisture and help prevent mold damage is investing in a dehumidifier for your home. A dehumidifier is a straightforward and portable piece of equipment that lowers the humidity level of the air in your house. Dehumidifiers work by drawing in the damp air and forcing it over cooling coils, where the moisture in the air forms condensation which is collected by the machine. The unit pumps drier air back into your room and causes the humidity to go down.

SERVPRO® has a range of powerful dehumidifiers on hand to help you with any damp problems you have. However, if damp is an ongoing concern in your home we highly recommend investing in your dehumidifier, too.

You might wonder how best to choose your dehumidifier. Most manufacturers label dehumidifiers according to how many pints of moisture they remove per day. So, a 20-pint dehumidifier removes 20 pints of water from the air in a 24 hour period. Your choice of dehumidifier relies on two things: How big an area you need it for, and how damp the area is.

The Association Of Home Appliance Manufacturers states the following sizes as a starting guide:

500 square feet – 10 pints
1000 square feet – 14 pints
1500 square feet – 18 pints
2000 square feet – 22 pints
2500 square feet – 26 pints

These recommendations are accurate for a moderately damp home with some musty odor in humid weather. A higher capacity dehumidifier is better for damper homes.

If you are concerned about humidity, give SERVPRO a call. As well as a range of dehumidifiers, we have testing equipment such as moisture probes and thermal hygrometers on hand to assess the damp levels in your home and advise you on the best next steps to take. For help dealing with humidity, call SERVPRO of Spokane County at (509) 487-4700.

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