Honeywell Whle hose humidifier not working

[madgavdad]

Recently installed a Honeywell H260Ewhole house bypassHumidifier
Heat pump, using the sail switch, mounted on the cold air return, mounted the humiditat there also. Cant seem to get above 35% humidity.
Has been very cold here around 20°.
Have the saddle valve nearly off, but can see a steady stream of water when the solenoid kicks in. taken the cover off and the "biscuit" is nice and saturated, plenty of warm air blowing over it. At a loss here, any help would be appreciated.

[teddy bear]

Raising you humidity above 35%RH is risky. At 68^F, 35%RH has a 40^F dew point. The risk is condensation in hidden surfaces that are cold and exposed to the exiting high dew point air.
To increase the moisture levels, constant air flow through the humidifier is important. The increasing the volume of the air and the temp of the air/water increase the evaporation rate. This uses large amounts of energy. Decreasing the amount of dry outside air flowing through the home also increase the %RH in the home. All homes need an air change in 5-6 hours to purge to the indoor pollutants and renew oxygen. With less than four occupants in +2,500 sqft., humidification may be needed in a properly ventilated home to maintain 35%RH.
Minimal humidification is best and you get used to it.
Regards TB

[madgavdad]

So, you're saying that 35% is desireable?
I always thought between 40-50% was the target year round.
pianos, wood floors, etc...do not suffer undue changes at 35%?
Have the humidifier set at 60%, still wonder why it will not reach above 35%, whether or not we sshould go above that level.


Thanks for the reply.

[Tech23]

Around here we set them between 35 and 45% adn don't recommend above that. You are using a sail switch which makes when the fan does...but do you have the fan turned to "On" at the thermostat? And if so, then is there power at the sail switch all the time waiting for the fan to come on or is the sail switch wired to only get power when there is a call for heat?

[beenthere]

So, you're saying that 35% is desireable?
I always thought between 40-50% was the target year round.
pianos, wood floors, etc...do not suffer undue changes at 35%?
Have the humidifier set at 60%, still wonder why it will not reach above 35%, whether or not we sshould go above that level.


Thanks for the reply.

As long as it maintains a steady humidity, wood floors pianos etc are generally fine. Its when the humidity is constantly changing that problems arise.

Not being able to get above 35%, is a good indication that you have a lot of fresh air leaking into your house. Tighten up the house, and your humidity will increase.

[madgavdad]

Thanks for the replies,
just bought the house at the beginning of the year, installed dual pane/low-e/ argon high efficiency windows the same week we moved in (do not reccomend doing that...whew!) need to replace the doors (3 but I did weatherstrip them pretty well after move-in), 2 fireplaces that obviously leak some air, even with the dampers closed (first house with wood-burning fireplaces) so, maybe after the doors are replaced in the spring, might see some difference next winter.....
Have 2700 sq ft upstairs, then an unfinished basement (all the vents have stayed closed down ther since the move-in)....Maybe I was expecting too much from this unit, just thought if I set it to 50% it would produce at least near 40-50%.

[madgavdad]

Do not leave the fan in the "on" position, comes on with the heat, but the heat runs quite a bit with single-digit drops around here right now.
So the sail switch is performing as it should, only coming on with the demand for heat.

[madgavdad]

What is anyone's take on whole house DE-humidifiers? Necessary or not?
Have a stand alone one that is higher capacity, should cover the basement quite well in the summer, just wondering if I need to think "Whole house" on that as well. How about any opinions on whole house air cleaners while we are at it? There is an old Carrier electronic air cleaner attached to my cold air return that looks to have been unhooked ( @ the 120v, would be easy to hook back up..) long ago. Any advice/ opinions would be most appreciated.

[MrDodge]

Info I've read about indoor RH
Outdoor Temp Desired RH
40 & Above 45%
30 40%
20 35%
10 30%
0 25%

[Tech23]

Do not leave the fan in the "on" position, comes on with the heat, but the heat runs quite a bit with single-digit drops around here right now.
So the sail switch is performing as it should, only coming on with the demand for heat.

Try running the fan in the on position, then the furnace will still come on and go off as needed, but the humidifier will be able to run constant with the fan...then you will be able to see if you can get above 35%. IF the humidistat reaches your desired level, then even though the fan is running...it will turn the water off to it.

I recommend if you do this to set it for around 40% and see if it reaches it.

[madgavdad]

Dodge, I've read that also, but don't really understnd it. What should the outside temp have to do with the desired humidity IN the house? Comfort levels with the heat lower are supposed to be more desireable if you have humidity 40+, from my understanding.
Would relly like some feed back on the air cleaner, does anyone have an opinion as to whether or not to hook it back up? Do they work? should I start a new post for this?

[madgavdad]

Try running the fan in the on position, then the furnace will still come on and go off as needed, but the humidifier will be able to run constant with the fan...then you will be able to see if you can get above 35%. IF the humidistat reaches your desired level, then even though the fan is running...it will turn the water off to it.

I recommend if you do this to set it for around 40% and see if it reaches it.

Would running the fan, without the benefit of the warm air blowing over the "biscuit" be beneficial?

[Tech23]

Would running the fan, without the benefit of the warm air blowing over the "biscuit" be beneficial?

Absolutely...the warm air isn't doing anything for you humidity wise, you just need the wet panel and air moving across it and out into your house. Try it and see what happens to your humidity level.

[madgavdad]

Absolutely...the warm air isn't doing anything for you humidity wise, you just need the wet panel and air moving across it and out into your house. Try it and see what happens to your humidity level.

Thanks for the reply. Is the humidistat mounted to the could air return the best idea? I have and old one mounted 1st floor, next to the thermostat, that I could tie into. Reading up on it pre-install, it seemed like the cold air return would better serve and represent the humidity levels in the whole house, not just the area around the humidistat (which happens to be not far from the kitchen/humidity central.

[madgavdad]

Absolutely...the warm air isn't doing anything for you humidity wise, you just need the wet panel and air moving across it and out into your house. Try it and see what happens to your humidity level.

Like your signature, If I could figure out how to paste one mine reads "A problem well stated is a problem half solved"

[MrDodge]

As far as RH I don't really understand it either, other than colder air can't
hold as much moisture as warmer air. Another rule of thumb I've read is if there's condensation on your windows you have too much RH which over
time is a bad thing. Hope this helps.

[Tech23]

Thanks for the reply. Is the humidistat mounted to the could air return the best idea? I have and old one mounted 1st floor, next to the thermostat, that I could tie into. Reading up on it pre-install, it seemed like the cold air return would better serve and represent the humidity levels in the whole house, not just the area around the humidistat (which happens to be not far from the kitchen/humidity central.

Yeah, in my opinion...the cold air return is the best place to have it. Thanks for the comment about my signature. I like what you said your's is as well.

[beenthere]

Would running the fan, without the benefit of the warm air blowing over the "biscuit" be beneficial?

Humidifier needs to be connected to the hot water line to work with just the fan. Your fireplaces leak more air then you may think.

The lower the outside temp, the greater the chance of getting condensation on your windows, and outside corners, as they will/may be at dew point with a high indoor humidity. At an indoor condition of 70°F and 40%RH. The moisture in the air will condense on any surface below 45°F(44.6 if you want exact). At 70° indoor and 50%RH, moisture will condense out of the air at 50.5°F. Go to your windows and set a thermometer at them, and see how cold it is when you outdoor temps are in the single digits. Do the same to the corners of rooms on the outside walls at the floor.