Humidity Management

[karimwassef]

I have this in my tank closed area for 4 yrs. just ran a hose out to the garden.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00A...idifier+70&dpPl=1&dpID=51DoGDnEwvL&ref=plSrch

 

[salty joe]

Wouldn't venting a high volume of air to the outside create negative pressure in the house, forcing in air from the outside through gaps in doors, windows, etc. to balance the pressure delta and have a significant negative impact on the A/C efficiency of the home?

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There's no getting around that. Just part of the cost to run an exhaust fan, unless the fishroom has a dedicated fresh air vent from the outside.

 

[karimwassef]

There's no getting around that. Just part of the cost to run an exhaust fan, unless the fishroom has a dedicated fresh air vent from the outside.

Which I personally recommend. IME fresh air is key to healthy growth.

 

[tkeracer619]

The house does need to remain positive pressure, especially in the mechanical room. The fish room certainly can be used as an exhaust point since it will be the highest humidity.

A house under negative pressure doesn't vent properly and can bring fumes into living spaces from water heaters and furnaces. Also, if you are pulling air in through walls and crawl spaces you can cause mold issues in your home. It is much better to be positive pressure so any air being pushed through those areas has been dehumidified. Resolving humidity in a home is different based on your location so consulting a local specialist is always a good idea.

 

[cesarjimen]

Ok, this is helpful.

So if there's no way around avoiding "outside" air from replacing the warm humid air that's being exhausted from the fish room creating negative pressure in the home, it is important , however, which outside air it is. Is it then better to have an inlet to ensure it's fresh air, as opposed to air coming in from the walls, garage and attic that could be harmful, as tkeracer619 points out?

The dilemma for someone like me who lives in Houston is that the "fresh" air coming in from the outside will be hot and humid air most of the year, essentially defeating the purpose of exhausting warm and humid air in the first place... wouldn't it be better then to install a dehumidifier like James proposed? Or just monitor the home humidity and see whether the existing A/C can handle it?

 

[tkeracer619]

Ok, this is helpful.

So if there's no way around avoiding "outside" air from replacing the warm humid air that's being exhausted from the fish room creating negative pressure in the home, it is important , however, which outside air it is. Is it then better to have an inlet to ensure it's fresh air, as opposed to air coming in from the walls, garage and attic that could be harmful, as tkeracer619 points out?

The dilemma for someone like me who lives in Houston is that the "fresh" air coming in from the outside will be hot and humid air most of the year, essentially defeating the purpose of exhausting warm and humid air in the first place... wouldn't it be better then to install a dehumidifier like James proposed? Or just monitor the home humidity and see whether the existing A/C can handle it?

Yup. Depends on where you live as to how you should vent the house. I'm not sure if it is like this everywhere but in Colorado new construction requires two very large vents in the mechanical room with a non louvered door effectively isolating the rest of the house from furnace and water heater fumes. If pulling air out of the house you should have a vent allowing air in.

When I installed my HRV it has dual fans, one for intake and one for exhaust. It made it super easy to vent the house and keep positive pressure. They also have variable speed duct fans.

I wasn't so concerned with summer venting in my situation because we use a swamp cooler for cooling, I could have just used duct fans and it would have been fine. I was concerned about sub zero winter air getting sucked in through the walls, condensing the warm moist air in the house, and causing mold in the walls.

If your a.c. doesn't keep up installing a dedicated dehumidifier is a good option. Just sucking as much air through the house isn't a good idea when it's 90deg and 90% humidity outside. Sometimes no extra ventying but higher dehumidification is the best option.

 

[karimwassef]

Your little fan will not likely create enough of a pressure difference to matter.

Fresh air is important though.

I live in Dallas. My solution is to push the air directly into a double penductor injector. The humid air is basically bubbled into the tank... so it doesn't matter.

 

[jlfalin]

So I installed my vent over the weekend. I still need to finish the wall around the vent.

I had a few questions for those of you that have vents:
1. Did you insulate the vent pipe close to where it exits the house. I am concerned that the cold air outside will cool the pipe and I will get condensation behind the wall around where it leaves the house. Drilled directly out of the wall in the fish room so the humid air will be able to get behind and touch the pipe.
2. Do you ever get condensation in the pipe since thre is a lot of humid air going through it. I know this may be the case in the winter.

Any thoughts would be appreciated.

Thanks!

 

[Mishri]

Think of it like a dryer vent.. that also pushes out a lot of warm humid air when it's running. you'll set it up the same way.

 

[reefzone123]

venting the air sounds like a great option. you could add the dehumidifier to boot. you'll be set either way.