- Furnace humidifiers can be hooked up to forced air furnaces that move heated air into a home through air ducts. The three types of furnace humidifiers are spray, drum and flow-through humidifiers. Spray humidifiers spray a fine mist of water into the heated air produced by a furnace. With a drum humidifier, the hot air is blown over an absorbent drum that rolls through a water reservoir. In a flow-through humidifier, hot air is blown through a constantly moistened pad. Spray humidifiers are the cheapest to install while flow-through humidifiers are the most efficient.
- The hot air that a forced air furnace blows into your home is dry. In the winter, the humidity levels in your home can drop so low that your family members can experience health problems like dry, cracked skin, irritated respiratory passages and nosebleeds. The dry air in your home can cause wood to shrink and warp, which can open cracks in your wood flooring and damage joints in wooden furniture. By adding moisture to the air, a furnace humidifier will make your family more comfortable and prevent damage to wood inside your home.
- Furnace humidifiers need to be hooked up to a water line, so installing one will involve running new plumbing and a small increase to your water usage and bill. Because the humidifiers contain water and are a moist environment, they are at risk for mold growth. If this occurs, you could notice an unpleasant, musty odor blowing into your home along with warm air.
- Most problems with a furnace humidifier can be avoided with proper maintenance. Changing the water in the humidifier on a regular basis and cleaning the filters with a solution of equal parts white vinegar and water will prevent mold growth from taking hold. If you live in a humid area, installing a spray humidifier will only add a little moisture to your air. If you prefer to have more control over how much moisture is added, flow-through humidifiers allow you to increase or decrease the amount added to the hot air.
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