How Florida’s Humidity Affect Air Conditioning and Heating

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How Florida’s Humidity Affect Air Conditioning and Heating

Living in Florida, humidity is a way of life. You can’t escape it. It’s just one of those things you learn to deal with. Now, you may never become completely accustomed to the mugginess, even if you were born and raised here. Lowering humidity inside your home not only helps with your comfort, but it plays a big role in how the HVAC system functions. 

Here is how humidity can affect your air conditioning and heating.

  • Perceived Temperature
  • Causing the A/C to Work Harder
  • Paying More to Cool Your Home
  • A Dehumidifier Can Help Offset Cooling Costs

Perceived Temperature

Humidity affects the way you experience temperature. When the humidity index is at 80% it feels considerably hotter than if it were at 20%. This happens both inside your house and out. If there is high humidity inside you’ll feel warmer, which means you’ll turn the AC temp down more.

This is reversed during the winter months. As humidity makes you feel warmer, you may not need the heat on as high because of the perceived temperature increase. Low levels make the temperature feel cooler.

To maintain good air quality inside your home, you need to keep humidity at appropriate levels throughout the year, regardless of season.

Causing the A/C to Work Harder

Although most A/C units can remove some of the humidity in the air as it circulates through the ventilation system, Florida levels can be extreme, which means it reduces the effectiveness of the A/C unit.

With the high humidity, you feel hotter in the summer and crank up the A/C. To cool your home, your entire HVAC system must work harder to compensate. This can lead to potential break downs while cutting the life expectancy of the unit as well.

Paying More to Cool Your Home

As your HVAC system runs harder, especially in the summer, your energy bill will increase, and you also might have costs with maintenance or repairs.

A Dehumidifier Can Help Offset Cooling Costs

A dehumidifier might be a smart investment for your home. First, simply removing moisture from the air may make the home comfortable enough to enjoy without the A/C (at least during certain months of the year). It also cuts down on how hard the system needs to work. This helps you save money and you’ll extend the life of the air conditioner service in fort Lauderdale, FL.

Humidity in Florida is just something you need to deal with. No matter where you live in the state, it’s not something you can escape, even with the gentle ocean or gulf breeze.

Watching and taking steps to manage the humidity level in your home you can make it even more comfortable while extending the life of your HVAC system.

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Frequently Asked Questions

To deal with high humidity levels in Florida, people use air conditioning, dehumidifiers, fans, moisture-wicking materials, cool showers, plenty of fluids, closed windows and doors, and in some cases, humidifiers.

If the air humidity is too high, it can make the air warmer and more uncomfortable, promote the growth of mold and mildew, make it difficult for materials to dry, and create an unpleasant living or working environment.

While high humidity levels can be detrimental to the skin, causing irritation and promoting the growth of bacteria and fungi, some people may find that the humidity in Florida is beneficial for their skin, helping to keep it moisturized and preventing dryness. Pay attention to your skin and adjust your skincare routine as needed based on the humidity levels in your environment.

A safe humidity level in a Florida home is generally considered to be around 30-50%. Maintaining this humidity level can help ensure the air is comfortable and the house is free from excess moisture, preventing the air from feeling too dry. To measure and adjust the humidity level in your home, you can use a hygrometer, a dehumidifier, or humidifier to ensure proper ventilation.

Several factors can cause humidity levels to rise, including temperature, evaporation, humid air, occupant activities, plant life, and leaks. To reduce the humidity level in a building or home, it is essential to address these factors and take steps to remove excess moisture from the air, such as using a dehumidifier or increasing ventilation.

There are several ways to deal with humidity in Florida, including the following:

  • Use air conditioning
  • Use a dehumidifier.
  • Use fans.
  • Use moisture-wicking materials.
  • Take cool showers.
  • Drink plenty of fluids.
  • Keep windows and doors closed.

To dehumidify a house in Florida, you can use an air conditioning unit or a dehumidifier. You can also increase ventilation, use fans, fix leaks, use moisture-wicking materials, take cool showers, and drink plenty of fluids.

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