Dessicants for mildew and mold prevention while up north
 

I am interested in hearing what strategies the northern migratory Villagers use to try to combat mildew and mold while up north for the summer months. I already have a humidistat, and will set thermostat for 80F, and humidistat for 60. I have had discussions with others suggesting the use of desiccants (charcoal, other products), in closets where the air might not flow well enough to otherwise keep it at bay.

Ideas? Specific products? Sources?

Thanks

Keep your air conditioning set on 83.

My HVAC tech said 80-60..why do you recommend 83?

We keep the AC at 80 and the humidity under 50 and all has been fine for 2 years.

Set thermostat on 80F, humidity we stay around 60 %
( my attic fans are controlled by measuring outside/inside humidity differential and attic temperature)

This wasn't intended to be a thread about what settings to use for temp and humidity. I am asking about desiccants to augment that, and what products folks use.
Thanks again.

Since 2010 kept 80/60. But every year anything plastic became brittle. Combs, brushes, hair dryer, sunglasses. First 3 not a big deal, but sunglasses cost was big $$$.
In October put in a new system, mentioned the issues. Had us set at 78/60. Installer said cost is minimum, and should help with less brittle sunglasses.
So far cost is only a few dollars difference per month more than the last 10 years.

We have lived here since 2008. The first four years we were snowbirds and were told to set the air at 83. We were gone for months at a time and had no issues. We did not have a separate dehumidifier, just air conditioning.

You asked what we do or use and we are telling you what we set the temp and humidity at in the thermostat as that is all we do. We do not use anything else as we do not have the need for anything else.

We've never had any problems in our 10 years as snowbirds. Just set the thermostat at 81 degrees and leave closet doors open. But, if you want something extra, get a dehumidifier and place it in the shower or bathtub (with drain open) so there's somewhere for the water to go. The dehumidifier will take out gallons of water every day. No dessicant can remove that kind of water, unless you get a truckload.

6 yrs snowbird, gone June thru December. Set temp 81 all ceiling fans on low, all closet doors open. Also have home watch twice a month to check on thing and turn on water run everything, flush toilets turn water off. Never any problems.

I also put Damp Rid hanging bags in closets & their tubs in shower bathtub & laundry tub

A friend tells me he's used kitty litter in closets that don't get much air flow and this product in photo. Says it works.

Mold and Mildew Prevention
 

We set our AC at 85 degrees but run a dehumidifier set eat 40-45 percent relative humidity level. We let it self drain. Mold will not grow below this level. Our dehumidifier is a 70 pint unit. We also leave all closet doors open. We have never had any problems.

Set you AC on 80. No need for anything else.

I hang Damp Rid in all the closets, open doors, and also open up dresser drawers that have clothing in it. Set your A/C and Humidity settings at whatever level you are comfortable with. Been doing this for years and so far, no problems.

Agree no mold with these settings. Added a thermostat connected to the internet so I can see what the settings are and sends a notification if it stops working. This way if your air conditioner fails you can call a repair service.

We have the humidistat and A/C settings, but we also set out Damp Rid canisters to absorb the moisture in the closets. The combination of all three seems to have taken care of any problems with mold.

3 large damp rid containers set at different spots in house

We never had an issue at 80 degrees set point.


That said, I have had other places where I put a damp rid suspended over the bathroom sink. When water collects, it goes down the drain.

Damprid really works well. If you ever leave the windows down in a vehicle during rain, one of the smaller damprids will fill up in a day or two.

We use Damp Rid in the closets an keep the doors open.

Agree to set thermostat at 80'. We leave all closet doors open and one ceiling fan on low. Have not had a problem in six years.

Been here 8 years, humidistat set 55, temp at 80. Closet doors open. No need for any additional measures.
Enjoy

Was in the insurance adjusting business.

1. Leave AC on 80-81 degrees
2. Turn water off at house valve
3. Have someone physically check home, Ideally once a week
4. Make sure AC pan drain line is cleaned out before you leave

You mentioned desiccants. Usually they are used IF their is moisture is above normal.

You should be fine with a humidistat keeping humidity below the 60% magic number.

I used DampRid (calcium chloride crystals) in all closets and the pantry. There are at least three formats. One is a disposable hanging bag. Another is a cup your refill with flakes. My favorite is a container that you place a big tablet of DampRid in. DampRid removes moisture from the air and the water collects in the container. So if you're not around to empty the container, that's probably not good. I had a hanging bag of it leak onto the tile floor and was an oily mess.

Any valuables you have subject to humidity like photographs, camera equipment, musical instruments, etc. can be protected by adding silica gel packets and sealing them in an airtight container. The silica gel packets can be purchased on Amazon and some have indicators on them when they are saturated. They can be placed in the oven to dry out and be reused.

I find the humidity inside my house is higher in the winter because the air conditioner runs less and the air conditioner is what lowers the humidity. With a humidistat, thankfully that is taken care of for you. I would make sure your air conditioner and humidistat are functioning properly.

Same here, we were gone 5/6 months at a time and kept ac @ 83 and never had a problem and also did not have a separate dehumidifier.

Just humidastat nothing else. Ok

How Do Air Conditioners With Humidistat Work?
 

Up in Wisconsin, our A/C doesn't have a 'humidistat' control on it, so I had to look up what it was, and what it does. I thought this info might be useful to others, so here is what I found:

How Do Air Conditioners With Humidistat Work?
By Michelle Miley, updated November 28, 2018
Running a central air conditioning unit to maintain a comfortable temperature level inside your home when you won’t be there is costly, yet turning the air conditioning off completely in humid areas creates mold and mildew problems inside the home. The solution is a humidistat, which runs the air conditioner to control the humidity level inside the house independently of temperature.

How It Works:
While the thermostat on your air conditioner measures the temperature inside the home, a humidistat measures the humidity. If the temperature is high but the humidity level is low, the humidistat does not allow the air conditioner to run. This prevents using electricity to cool your home when you aren’t there. If, however, the humidity level inside the home creeps into the range where mold and mildew could become a problem, the humidistat runs the air conditioner until the humidity level is reduced. In this way, you protect your home from mold problems while you are away without having to maintain a specific temperature in the home.

Settings:
Make sure the air conditioner is set to the “cool” and “auto fan” settings, then set the temperature on the thermostat to 75 degrees Fahrenheit. Set the humidity level on the humidistat to 58 percent. Although mold and mildew do not form at humidity levels below about 68 percent, Craig Muccio of the Florida Power & Light Company recommends a setting of 58 as humidistat gauges can be off by as much as 10 percent.

Because she knows everything.

For years before full time here we left AC on 80, left all doors open including closets for air flow, turned off ice maker, taped sink overflow holes and stoppers in tub, sinks, and showers, set hot water to vaca mode, and never had a problem. I had a trusted person stop in once a month to flush toilets, check ceilings for leaks, etc and all was well. I do that now for neighbors when away, piece of mind. Best of luck, hurry back.

Turn all your ceiling fans on low.

May help. I used to fly model airplanes. The propellers which were made of nylon would get noticeably more brittle over the dry winter-ie combs. Soak them in warm water like two days and it will restore them.

May relate to something I read years ago about antiques. The thought was it is survival of the fittest. It is not like they did not make poor stuff in the past. Over the years the poor stuff failed for whatever reason.

Been in Florida a long time and in
 

tropical countries most of my working life , ceiling fans do not help cool an empty house it is a myth that has no truth to it , all it helps is your electric bill,when I’m gone before Covid in the summer I just leave AC at 80 in fact that’s the only preparation I do besides locking the door

I have been using Eva-dry E-500 Renewable Mini Dehumidifier in the closets for years. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

The Eva-dry is renewable (no batteries). I plug in once a month and it is restored and ready to go. The silica moisture absorbing beads turn from orange to green to tell you when it’s full! Once full, just recharge in any power strip and watch the indicating silica beads dry up and change colors – it’s that easy! No water or mess to leak or spill.

When we were snowbirds, I went to a class, Closing your Florida home. It suggested cleaning your toliets and then covering the top with seran wrap, then putting the seat and lid down. I do that even when we go on short trips. They also suggested leaving cupboards doors open and closet doors for air flow. We are no longer snowbirds, but these things worked for us. Google Closing your Florida home and see what comes up.

A wifi thermostat like an Ecobee allows you to monitor and control your AC system from your phone. Also letting your ceiling fans run on low helps with air circulation and the ceiling fan`s electric motor lasts the longest running continuous 24/7. I also set up a dehumidifier set at the 50% humidity setting in a bathtub with a drain hose.

Don’t know if this applies to all ecobee models, but our ecobee3 lite allows you to set a minimum fan run time per hour while leaving the system in auto. For example, ours is currently set to have the fan run at least 10-min per hour whether the AC is called for or not. I think I’ll try that this summer rather than leaving ceiling fans running. Thoughts?

Dessicants once absorbed the atmospheric humidity, is useless and needs to be regenerated by removal of water to be useful again.
Short term gain presents a longer-term problem

Should not set above 80 or you are taking extra risks.