Humidity in the air

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1

Originally Posted By: lschmid
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I need a little help from all the experts out there. My brother lives in Nova Scotia and has a de-humidifier in the house that pulls out gallons of water. It is still like a rain forest in his house. Any suggestions on things that work to help remove moisture from the air. icon_question.gif

2

Originally Posted By: jmyers
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HEATER!!


Joe Myers

3

Originally Posted By: dvalley
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Larry,


There is alot to consider when determining how to get rid of moisture in the basement. An exterior inspection is priority, when determining why moisture is accumulating in the first place. It's almost impossible to determine your specific problem without seeing your environment. Here are several important factors to consider...

1. Is the dehumidifier draining while it is operating? Water that is continuously accumulating in the collection pan without immediate draining, will tend to recycle itself back into the basement air again. Direct draining is a must.

2. How's the grading next to the foundation of the house? This grading should be sloped 1/4" per foot diagonally from the foundation wall. Adding a dirt backfill to unsloped areas will divert roof rainwater away from the basement foundation wall.

3. Are there gutters and downspouts added to the roofing system?

4. What type of foundation does your brother have?

5. Does he live in a high water table area?

6. Is the house situated on a hill?

7. Is the basement floor concrete or dirt?

8. Are there open cracks in the foundation wall that are below grading?

There is just too much to consider when trying to locate a problem with moisture intrusion. No basement is the same. They all have differing situations regarding "why it is happening?".
Just saying "my basement is moist, what do I do?" without inspecting the overall situation, is something that is impossible to diagnose. Inspectors cannot come up with a diagnosis to the problem until an overall inspection can be completed.
![](upload://1DxZYofTwXNZTfZ4i6tcmLMn3aS.gif)
When I'm inspecting a home and I find a moist basement, I add up all the problematic areas throughout the property. I then advise my client what they must do in order to improve any/all moisture intrusion.

Please give more information as to the situation of the house. I can then tell you what must be done in order to improve your brothers moist basement.

--
David Valley
MAB Member

Massachusetts Certified Home Inspections
http://www.masscertified.com

"Some cause happiness wherever they go; others, whenever they go."

4

Originally Posted By: Blaine Wiley
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Basement???

5

Originally Posted By: dvalley
This post was automatically imported from our archived forum.


OOPS, Sorry.


I’m always seeing these problems in basements in my area, so I just assumed.


Oh well, I’ve got to slow down a bit on my reading. Anyways, alot of what I stated still remains, as to what to do to diagnose this situation.


But now that I see you are referring to the interior of the main house, now different solutions arise, which may lead to an intrusive inspection.

--
David Valley
MAB Member

Massachusetts Certified Home Inspections
http://www.masscertified.com

"Some cause happiness wherever they go; others, whenever they go."

6

Originally Posted By: Blaine Wiley
This post was automatically imported from our archived forum.


Let’s see…As I look at Nova Scotia on a map, it looks…Cold and wet!!


Coastal, snow, when no snow.....rain. I would say that if it is too humid in the house, it may be too humid outside ![nachi_sarcasm.gif](upload://6HQh6KbNiD73gqTNQInjrR2zeJw.gif) .

I think the proper fix for this situation is a move to sunny Florida. Although humid here in the summer, we design our HVAC systems to not only cool the home, but to keep out the humidity. We have humidisats.

Maybe Joe was right. A heater.
Im gonna grab a cold bud and sit by the pool.

Blaine