I'm just sort of surprised that nobody has found a good solution for this problem seemingly? At least the extend to which solutions are presented they are filters that turn to shit within a few weeks.
I think evaporative are typically the best. I did see one ultrasonic one that has a stainless steel tank so you can run it through the dishwasher regularly
Crazy thing is that the outside humidity is just fine. If the buildings had better ventilation with heat exchange we wouldn't have this problem. But somehow even for new buildings that's not the norm. (Well, they're built as cheaply as possible to meet regulations, I guess not that surprising(
It’s just a hole in the wall (passive) and a ventilator elsewhere that reduces the pressure to then cause air to come in. But when it’s warm inside and cold outside it doesn’t seem to have the effect of increasing the humidity at all.
Yeah, I got this wrong. Outside is a lot colder so as the air is heated the humidity drops, hence the dry indoor humidity often. Still, as the other link shows ventilation can compensate a bit to this.
I have a dht22 on Pico plugged in and the laundry really works well - not a joke, measured effect. However I can imagine it might not be for everybody :)
Not sure about low maintenance because of manual water refill every day, but I’ve been using the Stadler Form Oskar Big for a few years, and I think I’ve run the same filters for a bit before they needed changing. Both me and my guitars are sure happier than without it.
I think an ultrasonic cold humidifier might be the least icky, but the downside is you should use distilled water in them. The mist they make carries any minerals from the water into the air, which turn into fine particulates upon evaporation. My IAQ sensors go nuts when I use tap water in those.
Expense is acceptable. Distilled water is rather cheap, and if the air exchange is "normal", not a lot is needed (just calculate it from absolute max. water retention in air).
Comments
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oHeehYYgl28
It’s from a supplier, but still an interesting read:
https://www.recutech.com/technology/enthalpy-counter-flow-exchanger/
Otherwise those ceramic humidifiers that you can hang on radiators ;) #lowtech
I use plants, and actually need a *de*humidifier. Most people don't like caring for plants, though.
Are the steam ones better now?