Solutions for a Damp Basement

PREVENT WATER & MOISTURE FROM GETTING INTO YOUR HOME

If you've never owned a home with a basement before, you may not know how to take care of it - especially if it's an unfinished basement without central air conditioning, which includes most of the older homes in New England and Maine. During the winter, you may not need to worry about moisture in your basement caused from humidity, but in the warmer summer, the higher humidity may cause condensation to form on your pipes, creating moisture that could cause mold and lead to an unhealthy environment. 

Getting a dehumidifier for your basement is the quickest and easiest way to reduce humidity levels quickly. Before you get one, check out the current rebates and programs offered by Efficiency Maine to see if a purchase of a new dehumidifier could be offset in any way.

If you've got water infiltrating from other sources, check out the above video for how you can remedy these issues.

Even if you've already bought and installed a dehumidifier, it's a good practice to check on it occasionally to make sure that it's still operating properly. You may even find that you have to replace them after several years. But, the upside to replacing an older unit is that a newer model is much more likely to run more efficiently.

The short answer is "Yes!" Also, ideal humidity levels vary based on the season. And, if you're really interested, there is an increase of consequences in the higher and lower humidity levels for bacteria, viruses, fungi, etc. So in the summer time, the ideal range is 40-60%, with 50% being the sweet spot in between.